From 1 December 2024, drivers in South Australia will be required to get a special licence for 'ultra high-powered vehicles'.
  • LineNoise@kbin.social
    17·
    11 months ago

    So a proper incorporation of advanced driver training into the licensing scheme, right?

    Those wishing to obtain a U class licence will be required to complete an online training course.

    Oh.

    • Faceman🇦🇺@discuss.tchncs.deEnglish
      4·
      11 months ago

      It’s not much but it’s a start.

      Also having a separate licence class makes it easier to have laws specific to that class, higher penalties for speeding for example.

      Personally I also think having a licence class like that should have a requirement (or at least a strong incentive) to do a performance driving course of some kind.

  • No1
    6·
    11 months ago

    Motorists in South Australia can now also be fined up to $5000 if they deliberately disable an ‘automated intervention system’ on an ultra high-powered vehicle – which includes anti-lock braking (ABS), automated emergency braking (AEB), electronic stability control (ESC), and traction control.

    So does that mean if I set the Manettino to Race mode or ESC-OFF on my ferrari, I’m getting fined?

    What about if I toggle the DSC button on my fully sik Turbo XR6 falcon or WRX?

      • No1
        3·
        11 months ago

        I agree with you - but it’s a stupidly impractical law.

        So, some modes on the manettino are OK, and others aren’t? Is Ice/Snow mode OK? Is Comfort mode OK? Is Sport OK? Each mode has different amounts of ABS/DSC/ESC. Which is OK? Which isn’t ? And it’ll be different on nearly every make/model of car and change from year to year on the same car make/model.

        Even the cars that have buttons from the factory to turn off DSC/ESC like the Falcon and WRX I mentioned?

        Is pushing a button ‘deliberately disabling’ ? Sounds like it to me. Not sure how they enforce that.

      • ephemeral_gibbon
        1·
        11 months ago

        There is a very good reason to turn off traction control on public roads, it’s terrible on dirt.

        I grew up at the end of a small but public dirt road. My partner has a prius that’s good for the drive from Sydney home so we often use that when visiting. There are two steep hills on the gravel road. If traction control is on it cuts power as soon as a tire starts slipping, so I go through an annoying sequence to turn it off every time we enter or leave the farm and then it can do those hills easily.

        My big concern with rules like this is if they then push to make it so manufacturers don’t add a traction control button or at least some ability to disable it. They should just be punishing the actually problematic driving (drifting on public roads) instead of making it illegal to turn off traction/stability control.

        ABS and AEB make more sense to require on, although I’d be somewhat worried in older cars that a fault in that system would turn the car into scrap if you couldn’t get the parts anymore.

  • Mountaineer@lemmy.worldOPEnglish
    4·
    11 months ago

    I’m gad that my motorbike doesn’t count.
    If I’m doing the maths right, 101 kW @ 259kg ~= 390 kW/tonne