G'day guys
I have seen some old threads about this but nothing really definitive.
I am in the process of lifting my 03 outback. 2" body with 3" strut tops and raised king springs (effectively a 2"body and 2" suspension lift?) Then adding bigger tires(205/80/16 if they will fit)
Just had a thought about the whole insurance thing.
I currently have fully comprehensive with RACV.
Don't particularly want to hit something and them to say nope not covering that.
I am under the impression that a 50mm lift overall and an increase of 15mm diameter in tires is all that is aloud without an engineers cert.
According to this anyways.
Has anyone here got an engineers certificate for their lift/tires?
Anyones insurance OK with your mods?
Anyone had any troubles making a claim because of an "illegal lift"?
Should i just risk it and not worry about whether they will pay out a claim?
Anyone just risking it and hoping for the best?
So many questions haha
Cheers,
Paul
Lifts and insurance
You should call RACV and ask them about any modifications you are planning to do. My conversations with them have been along the lines of they will not modify a car with any modifications whatsoever. If they do then they inflate your premiuns significantly more than other insurers do for the same mods.
Insurance for modified cars you really only have two places to go, Just Car and Shannons. Both are picky on age of vehicle, drivers etc.
Regardless of who you go with make sure they have the mods on record, and ask for them to send out a copy of the listed mods.
It is unlikely you will find an engineer to certify larger tyres. It is worth talking to an engineer about the mods you are considering because they might have some usefull advice.
remember with a 2" lift you are only going like 10 or 15mm above the factory body lift, although with lifted springs and 3" strut tops you're still going to be over the 50mm limit. I'd suggest raised springs and a full 2" lift with 2" struts and that should be legal.
Pretty sure 99% of people with larger than factory tyres are just running the risk, like myself.
Insurance for modified cars you really only have two places to go, Just Car and Shannons. Both are picky on age of vehicle, drivers etc.
Regardless of who you go with make sure they have the mods on record, and ask for them to send out a copy of the listed mods.
It is unlikely you will find an engineer to certify larger tyres. It is worth talking to an engineer about the mods you are considering because they might have some usefull advice.
remember with a 2" lift you are only going like 10 or 15mm above the factory body lift, although with lifted springs and 3" strut tops you're still going to be over the 50mm limit. I'd suggest raised springs and a full 2" lift with 2" struts and that should be legal.
Pretty sure 99% of people with larger than factory tyres are just running the risk, like myself.
[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
I have gone with Dobinson raised springs (25mm lift in the front and 30mm in the rear) with 1" (25mm) strut lift blocks from Subtle Solutions. I also have oversize 215/70R15 tyres on my Forester. With my combination of lift not including the tyres I am completely covered with SGIO with my modifications to the car at no extra cost. I am even a Green P-Pleter here in W.A but that has no effect unlike other states.
I have found my lift is easily enough clearance and 1" more would very rarely be needed if you just pick your route in the sitation. Also at the cost of CV's going with 3" lift I wouldnt bother. Also the cost of an engineering certificate and getting the car taken over the pits, then re registered all for an extra 25mm isnt worth it in my opinion on a Subaru. With what I have now over my stock saggy suspension I get a minimum clearance of 265mm at my exhaust and over 300mm at my rear diff.
My family have also changed from RAC Comprehensive Car insurance to SGIO as the annual cost is lower and they are still a secure/safe company than are very unlikely to go bust.
Hope this is of some help.
Taza
I have found my lift is easily enough clearance and 1" more would very rarely be needed if you just pick your route in the sitation. Also at the cost of CV's going with 3" lift I wouldnt bother. Also the cost of an engineering certificate and getting the car taken over the pits, then re registered all for an extra 25mm isnt worth it in my opinion on a Subaru. With what I have now over my stock saggy suspension I get a minimum clearance of 265mm at my exhaust and over 300mm at my rear diff.
My family have also changed from RAC Comprehensive Car insurance to SGIO as the annual cost is lower and they are still a secure/safe company than are very unlikely to go bust.
Hope this is of some help.
Taza
Well i rang RACV today and they told me that i can do whatever i like in the way of modifications as long as it it still "roadworthy"
If i did the 2" body with 3" tops and no raised springs would that be over the 50mm limit?
If i was to stay within the legal 50mm lift couldn't the insurance just deny a claim anyway because of over sized tyres?
Or are they more likely to deny it because of a lift than tyres?
I might give some engineers a call to discuss.
Anyone know of any cheap/respectable ones?
These laws really suck haha
Any other opinions are much appreciated.
Paul
If i did the 2" body with 3" tops and no raised springs would that be over the 50mm limit?
If i was to stay within the legal 50mm lift couldn't the insurance just deny a claim anyway because of over sized tyres?
Or are they more likely to deny it because of a lift than tyres?
I might give some engineers a call to discuss.
Anyone know of any cheap/respectable ones?
These laws really suck haha
Any other opinions are much appreciated.
Paul
I would think that you would be best with a 2" all round lift kit, and getting that approved (not sure what is required in your state)
and then fitting raised springs, they are mod that would normally be done without any approval anyway and could be considered a not related to the body lift and increasing load carrying abilities. You could even get pedders (keep receipts) or somebody to fit these springs and if anything happens you can refer back to them for legality issues.
With tires I would suggest 215/65 r16 or 235/60 r16 these are very close to standard and would not make the car unroadworthy in a forensic investigation.
In reality I think that the car has to be proven unroadworthy in a way that has caused the accident in a forensic investigation for your insurance company not to pay up. As long as the lift and a/t tires is listed on your policy you should be ok.
and then fitting raised springs, they are mod that would normally be done without any approval anyway and could be considered a not related to the body lift and increasing load carrying abilities. You could even get pedders (keep receipts) or somebody to fit these springs and if anything happens you can refer back to them for legality issues.
With tires I would suggest 215/65 r16 or 235/60 r16 these are very close to standard and would not make the car unroadworthy in a forensic investigation.
In reality I think that the car has to be proven unroadworthy in a way that has caused the accident in a forensic investigation for your insurance company not to pay up. As long as the lift and a/t tires is listed on your policy you should be ok.
Being somewhat of a "worry wort" and always thinking the worse (if it doesnt happen, bonus) I put my 82 MY wagon through the engineers certificate deal when I fitted the 2" lift. Before this though I called the RTA (NSW) and they banged on about only being able to lift a vehicle 2 increments via it suspension system without a certificate (what the !!!!) anyway that conversation was not going anywhere so the engineer was the place to go. This cost about $250.00 and resulted in the report being written and now (from memory) a seperate code is included on the rego sticker to show it has mods and is engineered. Insurance companies will insure just about anything but if an accident occurs will blame the modification to get out of it. As mentioned engineers generally wont approve wheel mods and in NSW there is an RTA code document detailing something like you can go 25mm bigger diameter and the same in offset from standard for wheels. Each year I pass this info onto the new apprentices I train at work and hope it is of some use to them. I cant recall the exact document number but if needed can get it next week. The word from my rego check mechanic is a car with a lift and basic mods will pass rego but if the Police defect the vehicle it will need a fully blue slip (or whatever they are called now) before it will be able to get back on the road.