couple of quieries for the clever buggers on here

[aussie_macca]

i know these are dopey newbie questions and they may or may not have been covered but i couldnt find anything that gave definate answers in other posts or google searches.

1. Are external wastegates legal? I have read and heard they are legal as long as there there's no venting into the atmosphere (basically its fine if its plumbed into exhaust).....but i have also read that they are illegal because they come under the same laws as a boost controller which can allow you to modify the performance of the car without having it tuned so it still follows the e.p.a 'emission' laws. basically im just wondering if anyone knows for sure whether they can be legal if they are plumbed in without an illegal screamer pipe or if there is just no way to have one, and considering i run straight lpg which puts out bugger all emissions anyway i dont really get why it would be illegal, which is why im curious.

2. Again i've read and heard its illegal to install a larger turbo on a car, and yet i have seen plenty of cars getting around with T04's or gt35-40's without any issues, and from what i could make of the vic roads website, bigger turbos arent smiled upon, but if it gets an engineers cert you should be pretty well right?

3. Cold air intake on turbos is beneficial? im not saying it is or it isnt, i know everyone here will say cold air= more dense=more power....BUT, my question is what difference would it make on a turbo when the o2 from a CAI would only get heated up after passing through the turbo only to be cooled again by a decent intercooler if your running one....so yeah the question is what benefit is there to be had by making an effort to get cold air to your turbo if its only going to be heated up again before it gets cooled yet again by your cooler.


Like i said i know these may have been asked before but i just cant seem to find any clear yes/no answers, so if there is anyone who knows any of these things for certain then your input would be much appreciated. thanks. josh

[cracker]

any external gate fitted to a car that isnt a standard replacement part, is illegal.
doesnt matter if its vented, plumbed technically its illegal, i really cant be bothered looking it up and quoting

its also illegal to install a larger turbo, once again technically.
fitting a larger then standard turbo to a car changes the emionions of that particular car.
larger turbos can be passed by engineer, providing you can pass the relevent tests from epa

when it comes down to it in vic, do what you want, if you get defected find someone to clear it.
if you get epa'd put it back to standard.

go external gate, run a screamer put a high mount t04z on it do what you want!
but everytime you drive it, theres a chance youll be pulled over, and defected or epa's most likely just a defect.
get it cleared and your back on your way.

iv been pulled over...once in 2 years driving a vlt daily. last 6months have been gt35, with open gate no cat no polution gear etc etc, legal hell no, drive it every day hell yes, and i love it.
when i was pulled over pop the bonnet, cops didnt no what they were looking at, said hmm... cant have a cai...or bov...defect no fine, big deal. much much much easier cheap then getting it signed off by an engineer.

[cracker]

also cai will always help... compressing air heats it up, intercoolers "wash" some of this off.
better off starting with a lower temp then a higher temp.
rather have 30degs then compress it rather then 80degs then compress it

[nemesis_adrasteia]

any external gate fitted to a car that isnt a standard replacement part, is illegal.
doesnt matter if its vented, plumbed technically its illegal, i really cant be bothered looking it up and quoting

its also illegal to install a larger turbo, once again technically.
fitting a larger then standard turbo to a car changes the emionions of that particular car.
larger turbos can be passed by engineer, providing you can pass the relevent tests from epa

when it comes down to it in vic, do what you want, if you get defected find someone to clear it.
if you get epa'd put it back to standard.

go external gate, run a screamer put a high mount t04z on it do what you want!
but everytime you drive it, theres a chance youll be pulled over, and defected or epa's most likely just a defect.
get it cleared and your back on your way.

iv been pulled over...once in 2 years driving a vlt daily. last 6months have been gt35, with open gate no cat no polution gear etc etc, legal hell no, drive it every day hell yes, and i love it.
when i was pulled over pop the bonnet, cops didnt no what they were looking at, said hmm... cant have a cai...or bov...defect no fine, big deal. much much much easier cheap then getting it signed off by an engineer.

until you crash and your insurance is void and if you hurt or kill someone your looking at jail time

[aussie_macca]

until you crash and your insurance is void and if you hurt or kill someone your looking at jail time

this is more the legal aspect i was concerned about, a fine doesnt bother me but void insurance and criminal charges in a serious accident are a pretty big concern. In regards to it being legal to fit a bigger turbo as long as there is an engineers cert, im kinda curious how that would work considering the vast majority of biggers turbos aren't internally gated, the reason i was asking about the turbo is because im looking for some more power and the car is in legal rwc condition at the moment and im trying to keep it that way while also having a pretty decent streeter.

[sleepa]

A bigger turbo may be illegal, but if they don't know about it then it isn't. Most are covered by heat shields, so get a heat shield made up for your new turbo and they won't look twice. I really think you only have a problem if it is a massive high mount turbo that is obviously not stock.
Just hide everything to make it appear stock.

I personally haven't heard anything about bigger turbos and stuff being illegal, only if it messes with the emissions, but as you are running LPG you can get away with it. If you are that worried once you have completed the engine take it to an engineer and get a certificate. No more trouble.

[cracker]

until you crash and your insurance is void and if you hurt or kill someone your looking at jail time

read the rules mate, 90% of things you do to a car are illegal if you get right down to it.
not meeting epa regs isnt going to kill someone

[nemesis_adrasteia]

read the rules mate, 90% of things you do to a car are illegal if you get right down to it.
not meeting epa regs isnt going to kill someone

i have read the rules "mate" yes its illegal most can be rectified by getting checked by an engineer.

your taking what i said out of context. if you illegally modify your car and are in an accident you can be in a lot of trouble(if you get caught) thats the facts