FTO AUSTRALIA

Hi guys, just a general question.

i've only just noticed this in the user manual, there is a light on the dash board to let you know if your wearing your seat belt or not. i have never seen this light come on when i take off my selt belt, what about the rest of you?

The Connection for it is under the Drivers Seat, Make sure it hasnt been disconnected

MY '94 GR hasnt got it, but my '95 GPX does. I dont know whether the gr just dont come with them or i have the same problem as you.

Not that i really car, im pretty sure i dont need a light to tell me whether my seat belt is on or not.

I8A4RE wrote:MY '94 GR hasnt got it, but my '95 GPX does. I dont know whether the gr just dont come with them or i have the same problem as you.

Not that i really car, im pretty sure i dont need a light to tell me whether my seat belt is on or not.

yip gr's have em just the connector under seat prob undone or buggered mine only worked sometimes

Nup, youre all wrong. Youve been rodgered by compliance again. In the old system, the japanese belts hadnt been crash tested to see if they complied with Aussie design rules and so they were swapped out with good old aussie cheap and nasties (which rattle like bastards I might add). The reason it doesnt work is because the buckles dont have the sensor in them (or the wiring) as they arent the originals. Under the current scheme they were allowed to leave them in (which is why some work - including mine)

So..not only do some stupid places rip the strut bars out of vR's when they get imported, but they take out the seat belts putting non-sensored ones in leaving you with a light on all the time?
Maybe i should just learn some Japanese..seems as though living in japan kicks the crap out of trying to import and FTO without idiots butchering the things to hell.

thanks for the info guys. anyone know the part number for it? and whether mitsu or anyone else sells them and for how much? it just seems so stupid. not that i really mind but if the car's capable of it, why take it away? seems such a waste.

I could get them. Ill also have a look down the coast. If youre REALLY lucky, I may have a set hanging around (chances are slim though)

borntospeed wrote:thanks for the info guys. anyone know the part number for it? and whether mitsu or anyone else sells them and for how much? it just seems so stupid. not that i really mind but if the car's capable of it, why take it away? seems such a waste.

Just curious but why?

Just because you want the car working as it was originally intended. At least, thats the way I felt with my previous FTO's that had been butchered in the seatbelt department. Im feeling the same way now about my Xenons. Have all the bits still from when they were taken out during compliance. On the verge of putting them back in again even though they arent legal (although I cant understand why they arent given they are no different from the ones in a number of 'production' cars on the market). Its not because I want better light visibility, its just because I feel the car has been denegrated and I should restore it to its former glory.

dstocks wrote:Just because you want the car working as it was originally intended. At least, thats the way I felt with my previous FTO's that had been butchered in the seatbelt department. Im feeling the same way now about my Xenons. Have all the bits still from when they were taken out during compliance. On the verge of putting them back in again even though they arent legal (although I cant understand why they arent given they are no different from the ones in a number of 'production' cars on the market). Its not because I want better light visibility, its just because I feel the car has been denegrated and I should restore it to its former glory.

OMG, u took the words out of my head! that's so true, i just want my car running the way the manufacturer intended... not so idiot who thinks Australia is the best, Australian design rules are the best and everything should be changed to the way Australians think its the best. many of these designs are so outdated. also, many of the AS standards are copied from the ISO standards, that itself shows that we shouldnt tinker with standards that are internationally recognised. same with cars... one great example is the nissan gtr... one of my friends was telling me during compliance, they swap the cat convertor to some useless aussie design one that is very restrictive and is of bad manufacture. anyway, i digress...

dstocks: do u know what other things they changed or removed due to compliance?

dstocks wrote:Just because you want the car working as it was originally intended. At least, thats the way I felt with my previous FTO's that had been butchered in the seatbelt department. Im feeling the same way now about my Xenons. Have all the bits still from when they were taken out during compliance. On the verge of putting them back in again even though they arent legal (although I cant understand why they arent given they are no different from the ones in a number of 'production' cars on the market). Its not because I want better light visibility, its just because I feel the car has been denegrated and I should restore it to its former glory.

Well i have never thought of t that way

It doesnt concern me though as i like to modify everything but i definitly see where your coming from now.

do you know what other things they changed or removed due to compliance?

There are a number of things im aware of and they very between the previous scheme which was phased out about 4 years ago and the scheme that is in place now. These "should" be done (but in some cases are not):

Firstly, the car has to be completely stock to be complied, so all aftermarket stuff wil be removed for compliance (it may be put back on afterwards though)

- Remove Xenons and replace with standard globes (current scheme only)
- Put child restaints in the rear speakers
- Replace the curved glass in the wing mirrors with flat glass
- 4 new tires
- change catalytic converter
- Replace seatbelts (old scheme only)
- add/change tire placard in drivers door sill
- Insert unleaded filler pipe (old scheme only)
- remove foglights and put indicators where foglights are (facelift only and only new scheme)
- remove strut braces - im not sure if this needs to be done or the people compliancing the car believe they are aftermarket and remove them.
-remove spacesaver tyre (new scheme)

There are probably a few more things, but this covers most of them

dstocks wrote: its just because I feel the car has been denegrated and I should restore it to its former glory.

The quote of a true car enthusiast... and an fto lover


Oh and those bastards stuck the child restraints in my car too...and when i replaced my speakers, I'm now left with two ugly holes in the speaker covers

Arrrrggggg, I just realised, my car has been raped ...... Someone must have spiked its drink....I bring it into the country promising it a better life and this happens... ill have to give it another wash....

dstocks wrote: - Remove Xenons and replace with standard globes (current scheme only)
- remove strut braces - im not sure if this needs to be done or the people compliancing the car believe they are aftermarket and remove them.

dstocks, do you think these things are related to the possibility that under the new scheme they have used GPX's to get their compliance plates so when they get a Version R they have to take everything off that is different to a GPX as they think it's not standard. I always thought that was the reason for this?

Oh, and Love my unraped baby Though it still needs a wash anyway

No, you dont understand, yours has been raped too. Its a consipacy.

Seriously though, I dont think its the ADRs that dont include version R's, otherwise you would get caught on the chassis number and it wouldnt be able to be complied at all. I think its more along the lines that the people that are dealing with the process (and this includes both the complying company and the government auditors) dont really understand what the car comes with and as a result take those bits off to avoid problems. With respect to the Xeneons, its a different story though. Apparently according to the ADR's you are only allowed to have Xenons if they are self leveling and have windscreen wipers (to stop diffusion). Obviously the FTO lights do not, so therefore they are out. Funny thing is that there are plenty of current production model cars being released that dont have this requirement imposed against them, so it is obviously a grey import beat up. Interestingly, to add to the confusion, the previous scheme has no such ridiculous rule, so any FTO's that came in under the old scheme with Xenons are actually legal.

So, I challenge anyone to explain the logic in that!

ah, fair enough. Aussie bureaucracy stuffs us again.

I sometimes wonder how much the government will change the rules if Ford or Holden, will we become more like New Zealand used to be (ie import friendly) or will we all have to buy toyotas

Hearing you on the conspiracy brother

As to the child restraints in the rear speakers dstocks, does this make the car unroadworthy when or if I remove those giant bolts? I mean those things are ridiculous.

2 things;

1 - why in the HELL do they remove the headlights when my current parents car not only has xenon lights, but also happens to be a LOT higher than standard cars being an SUV, with no headlight wipers or anything else to clean them?
Conspiracy? Yes.

2 - seriously though, what dipshits decided that putting CHILD RESTRAINTS (in a f**king FTO of all cars) in place of the SPEAKERS was a good idea?

I really, really, REALLY hate our bullshit import rules.
after you import an FTO, do you have to allow an extra..what..1.5k just to fix it back up to a non-raped state?
That's an absolute joke.
What, is the government scared of our sh*tty car makers getting completely decimated by imports?

I've gotta remember this thread so when i get my FTO i can remember what to fix to make it back to factory specs, legal or not i don't care.