[Aussie Mike]

It can be a fairly expensive process. An engineering report can run $800-$1500.

The car is registered as a new car and the government want their slice of the pie so you have to pay stamp duty on the car which is %4 in Victoria. They base this on market value so when you go in to first register your car you have an aditional $2000 to pay on your $50K Cobra.

Some of the things not allowed under the ADRs are not very Cobra friendly ie you are not allowed any chrome or pollished surfaces facing the driver as they might impair vision. this includes the bezzels around the guages, steering wheel, windscreen frame, T handles on the bonnet etc. Seat belt anchors must be at a certain height above the shoulder which is difficult to achieve in an open top roadster. There are plenty more rules like this and a lot of them come down to how fussy your engineer is.

As Ledge mentioned the car has to meet all of the current Australian design rules and this includes emissions. This does limit your engine choices somewhat. You can get an older motor registered proving you can prove that it meets the current emissions requirements. Making an older motor meet the current reggs is very difficult and the testing is very expensive so this is an option very seldom used. Most people prove they meet the current emissions by using a motor, emissions equipment and electronics from a car already known to meet the requirements.

As Boxhead infered most Cobras are built legal for rego and then tweaked after the fact. But the same could be said for many cars on the road. How many 4x4s would pass the requirements for pedestrian protection and crash safety once they have been fitted out to go bush?

Cheers