Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Classic Morgans (pre-CX) Asbestos in Morgan parts

Hi. My name is Ric from Australia. I am totally new to this forum so if I am in the wrong place please redirect me. I have just purchased a 1992 Plus8 from Japan and am having it shipped to Australia The Asbestos laws in Australia are savage and I want to k ow if 1992 vehicle would have any asbestos in any of its parts. I have had new brake pads and shoes put in her but not sure if head gasket. Clutch etc etc May be a potential source.
Any help would be appreciated

Hi Rick, First of all, welcome to this wonderful Forum. You are right to say the Australian asbestos laws are very tough. I have not yet had to go through the process myself but I have made serious inquiries with import agents about the process as I intend to import some old cars at some point.. It seems a question of luck if they decide to inspect your vehicle for asbestos. Some agents have had no problem, others have nightmare stories where the car is pulled apart by their nominated mechanics at your expense.

The main areas are brakes, gaskets, clutch and old heat shields which I believe were an issue when my Delorean was imported.
So, how to solve the problem....

1) Some agents offer a service where they will do a pre-import inspection, replace any suspect parts and issue a certificate. Problem is, that MAY not be acceptable to the authorities. It's their call and it is a good idea to RETAIN all the replaced items to support your case.
2) Talk to your chosen import agent, if you are using one. Be guided by them and be aware of the cost and time outcomes.
3) The Victorian Morgan Owners Club have had experience in the area and is worth contacting as are the great folk in the Morgan Owners Club of Australia
and I'm sure will have a view of suspect asbestos issues in your specific car.
4) I am happy to chat further or provide local contacts if you require. Just send me a PM

Good luck Ric and we look forward to hearing more about your MOG in due course

Thanks for that. I did get a very short answer from the Morgan factory stating that no asbestos in manufacturing but still not 109pc sure if that is correct because UK no asbestos laws came in in 1996 or thereabouts.

Here is more info on Asbestos https://www.abf.gov.au/prohibited-goods-subsite/files/fs-asbestos-risk-importing-vehicle.pdf

Have you organised a VIA? if not leave the car in Japan until you have. Read this. https://www.infrastructure.gov.au/i...ehicles/importing-road-vehicle-australia I know of people who did it wrong and can never drive the car, it was allowed in as a parts car and that is it. Also keep all that paper work as often a second owner has real hassles getting an imported car registered without proof it was imported with a valid VIA meaning a lot of people will not buy it from you years down the track..


A few points on the VIA.

• Make sure you get a VIA from Department of Infrastructure before the car arrives. Infrastructure legislation states that any vehicle that arrives before a VIA is issued must be destroyed by Customs.
• Arrival from a customs point of view means the date the ship arrives at the port the first piece of cargo is unloaded, if the ship goes from Japan to Brisbane arriving 1/5/2023 to unload a container and then to Sydney arriving 5/5/2023 to unload your car and your VIA is issued 4/5/2023 then tough luck legally the car must be destroyed even though you have the VIA before the ship arrived at the port you are interested in.
• I know of people who have had cars arrive early, the easiest solution to not have have the car destroyed is to ship it to New Zealand and leave it on the wharf and then put it on another ship to come back. It can not stay on the same ship as it is then the same vessel/voyage that has already arrived in Australia. Not cheap as you have to pay for the costs of the car being taken on and off a ship in New Zealand and any storage costs but at least the car can then arrive in a later Vessel/Voyage.
• Before I could get a VIA I had to own the car overseas and then arrange for an engineer (I got one from the SEVS register) that department of Infrastructure has approved to make sure the car meets Australian Design rules. Unless you have an engineer lined up to do the work they will not issue the VIA.

In 2002 (well before Asbestos rules came out) I bought a Nissan Silvia S13 Convertible through an Importer who specialized in importing cars under the SEVS rules. A car that went for $7,000AUD at a Japanese auction ended up with the right paper work and a compliance plate for registration under the Special Vehicles ACT on my driveway for about $19,400AUD ($3,000 of that being the SEVS Engineer). I then had to pay for a temporary one hour permit to drive it to get it inspected and another one hour permit to get it weighed at a weighbridge before they would issue me a weekly permit while I had a few repairs done to get it passed for ACT Registration. If the car couldn't be made roadworthy to pass registration then not sure what I could do, probably be very upset I has wasted nearly $20K

I then owned the car for 18 years before it was written off by a hail storm and loved it. Would I go though the hassles again? Yes if I had to, in 18 years I have seen 3 S13 Convertibles come up for sale so probably easier to find one overseas even though they are rare overseas as well. For a car like a MGB when there are always a few for sale I would buy locally. For a Morgan? It would have to be a good buy to go through the hassles seeing there are a few cars available locally on Car Sales.

I would not trust the advice from Morgan HQ. Get in touch with the folk in the Victorian Morgan owners club.
They actually wrote an article on the process which was widely distributed.
A good import agent is a must for this process but get your import approval first..

Or find a Good Import Agent to help get the Import Approval.

Here is a page from th4e Australian Border Force Website
https://www.abf.gov.au/importing-ex...pes-of-imports/importing-a-motor-vehicle

And a page from Department of Infrastructure
https://www.infrastructure.gov.au/i...icle-australia/8-steps-importing-vehicle

If you Google Customs Brokers Vehicle Import you will find many companies;
https://www.airseaworldwide.com.au
https://www.wwcf.com.au
https://www.personalimport.com.au -- This one mentions it will help do the VIA for you
https://www.ucbrokers.com.au/vehicle-freight/
https://www.ironladyimports.com
https://www.dazmac.com.au/How-to-import-a-car.html

I feel your best option is to check out a few of the above links and chose a company to organise everything.

It is a typical case of government regulation which goes from not enough to over the top. My brother in law was an engineer that worked for Hardie's during the asbestos production period and he fought for safety in the production areas. According to him the company was well aware of the health hazards but did little even for their own workers.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-02...-tricks-on-asbestos-compensation/9391708

My brother in law eventually left the company over the issue of safety because he could not bring about any changes in the established way of doing things.

When you consider the amount of asbestos still in the older cars and bikes circulating in Australia, not to mention older houses, sheds, factories and so on, it is ridiculous to insist that the relatively rare classic or vintage vehicle imported into Australia be asbestos free and certified as such. Surely the main thing is to insist that any suspect components be disposed of correctly (gaskets, lagging, friction material) and replaced with non asbestos items when necessary for ordinary maintenance.
Such rules could be applied to all vehicles that where manufactured while asbestos was in use and a compulsory warning sticker placed in an appropriate place. Such a rule could even extend to an asbestos logbook which certified which possible asbestos bearing components had been replaced.
I may be wrong but other than brake and clutch components, and head and exhaust gaskets, I think you would be hard put to find any vehicles that had asbestos in other areas. Gaskets would remain reasonably stable whilst in place and in many cases normal maintenance in the last 30 years would already have replaced brake and clutch components.

The final element of the asbestos prohibition regulations in the UK came into effect in November 1999. This effectivel banned the use of all asbestos products in the UK

The ban had been discussed for a around 2/3 years during various rounds of consultation of the prohibtion. At the same time a similar approach was adopted by other EU members as part of the European Asbestos Worker Protection Directive.

In the lead up the this many of the European based car manufacturers had stopped the use of asbestos in products due to litigation issues. The problem that arises at present is that despite the ban on the use of asbestos evidence exists that non-OEM parts imported from places like China and India can still be found with an asbestos content where simialr bans on asbestos are not currently in place.

My first Morgan a 2003 Series 2 Aero interestingly had asbestos warning stickers on the fuse cover and bulk head. After I got to konw a few people at the factory I pointed out the them that asbestos had been banned and shortly after this they stopped fixing the stickers.

I'm not sure how this helps with importing a Morgan from Japan but the Australia has probably ended up with the approach it has due to its proximity and imports from nations that haven't banned the use of asbestos. Most notable is this Perth Children Hospital and similiar occurances with trains imported from China.

I know the thread has suggested that asbestos can be found in car friction materials and gaskets, but you should also be aware that it was used in sound deadening pads until the late 1970's and on some older vehicles it was incorporated into underseals.

Surveys on older houses can contain a warning of asbestos content despite the surveyor finding no trace of such, but simply based on probability. Unfortunately mortgage companies ignorant of the practice then insist on a deeper dedicated survey for such with the cost passed on, in our case, to our buyer.

Asbestos can be found in floor tiles, Artex and cement board, used for soffits and other places. Any pre 1985 house could contain asbestos fibers as it was in 1985 that asbestos was removed from textured plaster. It isn't the end of the world as most has been painted, which effectively seals it away, but any building work can be a problem.