Well after a tough and challenging year, we are all looking forward to a break. Please drive safely and enjoy family and friends.
We are closed from 24th December and will reopen on Monday 11th January 2021.
We will be checking our emails, so please email us. Click Here.
The Victorian Government has clarified the restrictions for service and repair for Melbourne Metro.
Stage 4 restrictions pertaining to logbook and scheduled vehicle servicing have been eased as of 16th September 2020.
If you are outside of the 5km radius from Macro Auto, please give us a call and we will try to help you access maintenance for your vehicle.
Routine maintenance is now permitted as a stand-alone service for safety purposes, including for repairs and safety recalls. Repair and maintenance are still permitted where service providers are providing support to a permitted service or industry, or where it is required to maintain the health and safety of Victorians at home or at work.
“VACC research indicates that Victorian new car dealers saw an 81.1 percent drop in vehicles presented for service between June and August. This, when factoring in motorcycles and trucks, could have led to half a million vehicles missing their regular service ‘window’ by December – if the logbook restrictions continued. Critical repairs may have been missed. This is not only dangerous but would have produced a backlog that was unlikely to be cleared in time for the end-of-year holiday period,” said VACC CEO, Geoff Gwilym.
Please call Macro Auto on 9874 8744 for any assistance you may require.
We are open to assist permitted workers to maintain a safe and reliable vehicle.
Most of us are at home but for some work continues. The health and safety of our clients and their vehicle is our number one priority.
Automotive repair and maintenance are permitted to operate where providing support to a permitted service or industry or where required to maintain the health and safety of Victorians at home or at work.
Please abide by the 5km radius restriction. If you are out of this radius, contact us as we can still help by providing a vehicle pick up.
We have strict hygiene and safety measures in place.
Please stay safe and well.
Please call 9874 8744 for any assistance you may require.
We hope all our clients have stayed fit and healthy during lockdown.
We have noted that a few clients didn’t use their car for long periods and are now experiencing battery problem. To maintain optimal battery life, please try to drive the vehicle weekly especially if your car battery is over 3 years old.
As the restrictions ease, we are very busy with vehicle servicing.
As the school holidays approach and people are preparing to explore Victoria, we would ask for you to plan ahead and give us as much notice as possible to book in your car.
Below are some links to some driving trip ideas:
https://www.visitmelbourne.com/regions
https://www.tourstogo.com.au/things-to-do/victoria/
https://www.theurbanlist.com/melbourne
https://www.racv.com.au/royalauto/travelling/victoria.html
We will maintain our new strict hygiene rules whilst repairing your vehicle.
Please keep safe and healthy and remember to social distance!
We are currently classified under ‘essential services’ and will remain open to assist our clients to ensure that their vehicles are safe and reliable.
Customers are permitted to travel to and from their auto repairer. We want to ensure your vehicle is maintained safely as per the log book maintenance schedule.
To ensure we are all protected as much as possible we have taken extra steps for all vehicle bookings. We have initiated increased sanitising and hygienic protocols and are taking extra precautions to keep our staff safe.
We recognise the importance of essential workers during this difficult time. Emergency workers, medical professionals, transport/logistics clients, essential trades and those who provide food services will be given priority service to have their vehicles repaired or serviced.
We are happy to work with each client to only undertake the work that is required to maintain your vehicle as safe and reliable transport for you and your family. We can follow up with true log book servicing and other non-essential repairs at a later date if necessary.
If you have a warning light on, please contact us ASAP to diagnose the issue.
As we are open, we welcome regular log book servicing and repairs as usual.
Please let us know if someone has travelled in your vehicle that may be unwell or if you have been in contact with anyone who has had COVID-19. Car cabins can harbour bugs and we like to be prepared.
We are currently maintaining regular business hours: Monday- Friday 8.30am – 5.30pm, other times by appointment.
Please keep safe and healthy. Remember to social distance and together we will overcome this situation we are all experiencing.
Thank you,
Nick and Kylie Macrokanis
Macro Auto Services PH: 9874 8744
Email: info@macroauto.com.au
Please see Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) for a full list of vehicles under recall. https://www.productsafety.gov.au/
If the fuel pump fails, the engine may not run smoothly, resulting in the engine stalling and being unable to restart. The failure will also be accompanied by warning lights and messages on the instrument panel. A pump failure may result in a loss of power while driving, increasing the risk of accident causing injury to occupants and other road users.
Renault has issued recalls for wiper issues, exhaust and parking brake faults. The wiper defect relates to linkage between the front windscreen wipers and motor which may fail.
If the linkage fails, front windscreen wipers may not operate as intended, resulting in obscured driver vision in rainy conditions and an increased risk of accident causing injury to occupants and other road users.
Renault faulty exhaust system – the case of the pipe cracking, drivers may experience stalling of the motor when driving, loss of engine braking assistance and the possibility of fuel leakage. This may increase the risk of accident and injury to occupants and other road users.
Renault Australia reports that if the parking brake fails, the vehicle may not remain stationary when parked, increasing risk of an accident resulting in injury of vehicle occupants, other road users and pedestrians.
Mercedes-Benz Australia recall relates to incorrect head restraints being fitted to the vehicle’s rear bench seat. Notches in the head restraint rods used for height adjustment are not adequately spaced, resulting in a reduced amount of height options and increased chance of an incorrect head restraint height being set.
Mercedes-Benz Australia reports that if an incorrect head restraint height is set, there is an increased risk of neck injury in the instance of an accident.
Volkswagen Australia has issued a recall Gold, Jetta, Passat, Polo and Caddy models affected by an issue with their seven-speed dual clutch automatic ‘DSG’ transmission.
Volkswagen Australia reports that the fluid loss can result in a loss of pressure within the transmission, reducing the vehicle’s drive functionality and increasing the risk of an accident that may cause serious injury to occupants or other road users.
BMW recall – the defect related to the third (high) brake light fitted to the roof at the rear of the vehicle may loosen or detach from its fixture. BMW Australia reports that if the brake light detaches it may cause an accident resulting in injury to road users.
SOURCE: CARADVICE.COM.AU Author – Liam Murphy, April 2020
Victorians driving cars that still have defective Takata airbags could be deregistered.
Hundreds of Victorians could be stripped of their car registration if they fail to replace a deadly, faulty airbag.
The state government is giving owners of cars fitted with the defective Takata alpha airbags one last chance to have them replaced and is contacting every individual car owner.
The faulty airbags can kill or maim when deployed and there have been 29 reported deaths and 320 injuries worldwide, including one death and one serious injury in Australia.
The government, through its licensing authority VicRoads, will take make this last-ditch attempt after multiple attempts by manufacturers to contact owners of affected cars through letters, phone calls, emails and door knocking.
Two years after the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission issued a national compulsory recall of cars fitted with the Takata alpha airbag in February 2018, 400 registered cars in Victoria still have the defective airbags.
Minister for roads, road safety and the TAC Jaala Pulford says the government does not want to “suspend or cancel anybody’s registration”. “But we will do whatever is necessary to get these potentially deadly airbags off our roads.
“Despite concerted and ongoing efforts by vehicle manufacturers, we still have more than 400 vehicle owners who have not responded to the recall order,” she says.
We will do whatever is necessary to get these potentially deadly airbags off our roads.
The threat of registration sanctions applies to certain Honda, Toyota, Nissan, BMW, Mazda and Lexus models manufactured between 2001 and 2004.
VicRoads will soon write to owners telling them it is their last chance to act before being penalised.
Owners of affected cars should contact their local authorised brand dealer immediately to organise a replacement airbag at no cost.
The compulsory recall of the Takata alpha airbags has been followed by the voluntary national recall of 80,000 cars fitted with another potentially deadly airbag, the Takata NADI (non-azide driver inflator) type 5-AT propellant airbags.
To check if your car is affected visit ismyairbagsafe.com.au.
If you have any questions, please call Macro Auto PH 9874 8744
SOURCE: RACV Author: SUE HEWITT January 2020
October 2018
With more than two million Australian cars subject to the Takata airbag recall, RACV is urging manufacturers to act quickly.
In February 2018 the federal government announced a recall of 2.3 million vehicles with defective Takata airbags that pose a serious threat to lives.
It affects more than 60 models from manufacturers including Honda, Toyota, Mitsubishi, Subaru, Nissan, Mazda, BMW, Lexus, Chrysler and others.
The airbags have been associated with 20 deaths worldwide, including that of a New South Wales man who police say was fatally injured by flying shrapnel from his Honda CR-V airbag.
RACV’s Vehicle Engineering Manager Michael Case says “Now it is time for vehicle manufacturers and vehicle dealers to urgently replace these airbags so motorists can feel safe in their vehicles.”
“We acknowledge this recall will no doubt come as an inconvenience to many Victorians whose vehicles are affected,” says Mr Case. “It is important for Victorian consumers to know that replacing affected airbags is free of charge, even if you bought the car secondhand.”
Vehicle owners worried about defective Takata airbags can check whether their car is safe, with an online portal letting them check by entering just their number-plate details.
The website ismyairbagsafe.com.au has been set up by the Australian car industry, led by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries.
The airbags have been associated with 20 deaths worldwide, including that of a New South Wales man who police say was fatally injured by flying shrapnel from his Honda CR-V airbag.
RACV’s vehicle engineering manager Michael Case urges all owners to check their registration numbers on the site, and the Australian Consumer and Competition Commission’s recall list at accc.gov.au, and to keep checking as more models are added to the recall list.
Worried about your airbags? Follow these steps
Visit ismyairbagsafe.com.au and accc.gov.au to see whether your vehicle is affected.
If your car, motorcycle or truck is on the list, call your local dealership or manufacturer immediately to arrange to get the airbags replaced.
If your vehicle has Takata Alpha airbags (as noted on the Product Safety Authority list) do not drive the vehicle as it is a critical safety risk.
Do not interfere with the vehicle’s safety features as it could pose a serious safety risk.
Any questions, please give us a call at Macro Auto PH: 9874 8744
SOURCE: RACV
The latest vehicle-safety systems may help you avoid a crash.
Modern cars have crumple zones, airbags, seatbelt pretensioners and whiplash-reducing headrests. They’re commonplace to help disperse crash energy and minimise or eliminate injuries in serious crashes, something that has been instrumental in slashing the national road toll by more than half over the past 30 years.
But in the past decade the focus has turned to avoiding crashes, by fitting so-called active safety systems. While some active safety features have been around for a while, with anti-lock brakes (ABS) and electronic stability control (ESC) helping control skids and slides, the latest systems use cameras and radars that can react faster and more reliably than the driver.
AEB
This acronym denotes autonomous emergency braking, which will automatically slam on the brakes when the system detects another object ahead. AEB is common now on mainstream models, although the systems can vary enormously. The more sophisticated AEB systems see through fog and rain to more accurately interpret everything from other vehicles to pedestrians and cyclists.
A vehicle might contain one or more of these types of AEB systems:
• Low speed: This version targets city driving where crashes often occur at low speeds but can cause debilitating injuries such as whiplash. These systems use cameras or lasers to look for the reflectivity of other vehicles and are not as sensitive to pedestrians or roadside objects.
• High speed: These systems utilise long-range radar to scan further ahead of the vehicle (up to 200 metres) at higher speeds.
• Pedestrian systems: These versions typically use a camera combined with radar to detect pedestrians by their shape and characteristics. The way pedestrians move relative to the path of the vehicle is calculated to determine whether they are in danger of being struck.
• Reversing AEB: A more recent development, reversing AEB is designed to brake the vehicle when it is about to strike an object while reversing. This includes pedestrians as well as inanimate items.
Blind-spot warning
While modern cars have improved in almost every area, vision is one area where they have gone backwards, as more fashionable designs and safer structures conspire to obscure the driver’s view. Technology has come to the rescue, though, with sensors positioned in the mirrors or bumpers on the lookout for vehicles outside the driver’s view. A warning light in or near the exterior mirrors as well as audible warnings will alert you to any potential issues. More advanced systems can provide mild steering assistance to reduce the chances of an impact. Manufacturers are even developing these systems to look out for cyclists when the car is stationary.
Rear cross-traffic alert
Great for reversing out of driveways or parallel parking spots, rear cross-traffic alert uses rear radars to monitor traffic approaching from either side. Warnings are usually flashed up on the infotainment screen with an audible warning to alert you to approaching vehicles. Many rear cross-traffic alert systems will also apply the brakes to stop the car from continuing on its crash course.
Active cruise control
Cars that maintain a set speed have been around since the 1950s, but newer active cruise control systems use a radar to maintain a set distance to the car in front. The distance can be adjusted between various levels.
Lane-departure warning
A forward-facing camera or laser sensor monitors lane markings to determine when the car is wandering out of its lane. Warnings will typically involve beeps or vibrations of the steering wheel or seat, encouraging the driver to take corrective action.
Steering assist
An extension of lane-departure warning, steering-assist systems provide gentle steering assistance to help keep the car in its lane. At the very least they can help reduce fatigue by assisting with physical driving duties and, more seriously, they can prevent the car running off the road. However, steering assist systems aren’t perfect so it’s imperative the driver still focuses and controls the vehicle.
Brake assist
The difference between having a crash and avoiding one can often be a few metres, which is the sort of distance brake-assist systems can knock off an emergency braking situation. The car’s computer monitors pedal movements to predict a potential emergency. Usually it involves a very quick movement from the throttle to brake pedal, something hard to replicate without an emergency reaction. As soon as you touch the brake having jumped off the accelerator the car almost instantly brings the brake system up to its maximum level, providing maximum braking almost instantly.
SOURCE: RACV – Author Toby Hagon
The RACV has written a piece on using technology to help improve safety on country roads. We hope you find this an interesting read.
Innovative technology will reduce crashes at high-speed rural intersections which claim the most lives on Victoria’s regional roads, according to RACV and other road safety experts.
A new variable speed-limit system on highways is triggered by sensors that detect cars approaching from side roads and temporarily reduce the highway speed from 100kmh to 70kmh. One of the first sets of electronic ‘side road activated speed signs’ is now on the Glenelg Highway in the Western District, with plans for about another 30 dangerous rural intersections.
In the past five years, 70 per cent of fatal intersection crashes in regional Victoria happened on high-speed roads, and the risk increased where minor side roads met main roads.
Emily McLean, RACV roads and traffic senior engineer, says the reduced highway speed-limit sign is only active when cars are sensed on side roads, so do not cause unnecessary delays to highway traffic by imposing permanent lower speed limits. She says lower highway speeds significantly reduce the severity of a crash if it happens.
“Where you have side roads meeting high-speed main roads, it’s a recipe for disaster,” Emily says.
She says the new system improves safety by warning highway drivers there is traffic approaching from a side road while allowing motorists on side roads a safer opportunity to join the highway traffic.
Scott Lawrence, director of the Safe System Road Infrastructure Program, Regional Roads Victoria, says intersections in regional areas are high-risk.
“It can be difficult for drivers to find a break in the traffic to turn across or onto a main road – and if a crash does unfortunately occur, the impact at such high speeds can be devastating,” he says.
We’re installing this new technology to reduce both the likelihood and severity of crashes at these intersections, to prevent serious injuries and save lives.
“We’re installing this new technology to reduce both the likelihood and severity of crashes at these intersections, to prevent serious injuries and save lives.”
His organisation, along with the Transport Accident Commission, is spending $350,000 per site out of a $1.4 billion ‘Towards Zero Action Plan’ budget to reduce Victoria’s road toll to less than 200 by 2020.
The new technology is “exciting”, according to Dr Blair Turner, a chief technology leader at the Australia Road Research Board (ARRB) and member of the Australasian College of Road Safety’s executive committee.
He says the technology was first introduced in Sweden, and then New Zealand from 2012, where two studies showed reductions of up to 89 per cent in fatal and serious crashes.
He says the ARRB has conducted multiple trials of the technology around Australia and found its success was “staggering” compared to more costly and complex infrastructure measures.
A New Zealand Transport Agency spokesman says original trials of the technology at 10 New Zealand rural intersections showed a significant drop in fatal and serious crashes and a 51 per cent drop in the overall crash rate.
David Moloney, the Southern Grampians Shire director of infrastructure, and acting sergeant Darren Smart of the Hamilton Highway Patrol, support the initiative and are waiting on preliminary findings on the Dunkeld site.
SOURCE – RACV – Author Sue Hewitt
