Line Locker was initially disabled by Ford in the Australian market due to government regulations, as it is illegal to burn out. This modification is INTENDED FOR OFF-road or track use ONLY. Mustang Motorsport does not recommend or condone the use of Line Locker and is not responsible for its use on public or private roads. Ford`s line lock feature has made its way from the GT V8 to the four-cylinder Ecoboost model, but it`s unlikely we`ll see it here at Oz. Ford Australia actually had to disable the line lock for Australian mustangs in response – and I`m not kidding here – to Australia`s “anti-hooning laws,” which essentially make burnout illegal on public roads. Under these laws, a person who is unlawfully caught in the act of burnout can have their car confiscated. “We introduced lane closure for the Mustang EcoBoost because we didn`t want these customers to miss anything,” said Mark Schaller, for the Ford Mustang`s global marketing director. Jasmine Mobarek, Ford Australia`s head of communications, declined to speculate that stakeholders had changed the subject. Given the pervasive nature of our anti-hooning laws and the arguably unfair flogging of Ford Australia that overcame the Focus RS`s drift mode, we don`t suspect. Jack Haley, senior director of policy at the National Roads and Motorists` Association, argues that the drift mode favors illegal activities in the same way as Line Lock.

The fact that Ford Australia defended the drift mode present in its Focus RS (from a controversial unfair condemnation by the media) would lead us to believe that if Ford could see a legal way to keep Line-Lock active on Australian Mustangs, it would be. “With thumb switches mounted on the steering wheel, a driver goes through a menu on the instrument cluster to activate the electronic line lock. Once turned on, the system increases the pressure on the front brake calipers. Another push of a button keeps the pressure on for up to 15 seconds, allowing the driver to press the accelerator and spin the rear wheels while holding the car in place,” Ford says of the feature, which is now powered via the car`s digital instrument cluster. It is assumed that the electronic line lock feature in Australian Mustangs is simply inactive, meaning it can be enabled with a software patch. Ford Australia controversially omitted the feature in 2015, saying it violated Australia`s anti-hooning laws. The “line lock” feature was originally limited to the V8-powered GT Mustang, but has now been extended to the four-cylinder Mustang Ecoboost as part of updates for 2018. Available in most countries with manual and automatic transmissions, the line lock function stops the front brakes, while the rear wheels can trigger a smoke storm. The bad news for Australians is that thanks to the legal hurdles Ford faces, neither the GT nor the Ecoboost will have an active Mustangs Line-Lock. Developed for drag racing, Line Lock technology locks the front brakes, allowing the driver to rotate the car`s rear tires for up to 15 seconds. The feature theoretically allows drivers in a safe environment to warm up their tires before a start, thus getting the best possible time of a quarter mile. Burnout can also clean tires of debris and put a layer of rubber on the starting line to improve traction.

“Any prolonged loss of traction on public roads is illegal,” Haley said. To get a visual addition to the event, cars with the 12-inch instrument digital display receive a timer, a rev bar, and an animation of a wheel that smokes it. Australia and New Zealand will likely continue to be the only markets in the world that don`t offer the Ford Mustang with a burnout mode. Line Locker can only be activated for the following vehicles: – 2015-17 Mustang GT – 2018-20 Mustang GT – 2019-20 Mustang EcoBoost ** Unable to be activated on the 2021 Mustang GT and 2015-17 EcoBoost ** Ford`s head of global performance has already expressed disappointment at the omission of the feature in Australia, which is usually activated at the touch of a button. “Burnouts never get old, no matter how old you are and how many times you`ve committed them.” Who would have thought that we would see an EcoBoost Mustang generate 15 seconds of anger in this way? You have to love those crazy things that Ford does. “We don`t have that feature in the current Mustang, and there are currently no plans to include this feature anytime soon,” Damion Smy, head of product communications at Ford Australia, told MOTOR. Ford is so eager to make four-pot burnouts appealing to owners that it even has drift formula champion Vaugh Gittin Jr. driving an Ecoboost to pick up strangers and have them tear tires in a pony. “A warning won`t stop an idiot from trying to do it on public roads,” Scruby said in an interview News.com.au. “We urge Ford to reconsider its decision to recall these vehicles and disable this driving mode.” TCI Line Lock, Roll Stop®, For Chevrolet, For Pontiac, Kit This argument did not prevent Ford from disabling drift mode in the Australian Focus RS.

Harold Scruby, head of the Pedestrian Council of Australia, is one of those leading the crusade against drift mode. “We will announce the specs closer to launch,” Mobarek said. All it would really do would be to punish those who want to use it responsibly. If you want to activate Line Locker on your Mustang, our professional team at Mustang Motorsport has the right equipment and software to do it correctly and safely! We will also give you a brief overview of how it works and teach you how to smoke tires! Australia may be the country where the term “hooning” comes from, but things aren`t always difficult for car enthusiasts there. There`s been a recent controversy over the Ford Mustang`s Line Lock feature, which thinks the front brakes are pretty burnouts, and now everyone`s popular new hot hatch has been criticized. The 2018 Mustang is expected to arrive in Australia next year, introducing sleek styling and a new 10-speed automatic transmission. â The number of people opting for EcoBoost performance continues to grow worldwide, and with the increased torque and new features of the new Mustang, customers will not be disappointed.â This can only be done internally at Mustang Motorsport, and the process takes less than 30 minutes. Granted, no one who owns a Focus RS (or any other car, really) should try to drift on public roads, but turning off the feature completely seems draconian. As is the case with the Mustang and Line Lock, defeating the mode does not deprive the car of the inherent ability to lose traction. Even without drift mode, Hoons will find a way to perform all kinds of lateral movements on public roads. “A warning will not stop an idiot from trying to do so on public roads,” said the head of the Pedestrian Council of Australia.

TCI Line Lock, 1/8-inch NPT input/output, natural aluminum, kit For a while, it seemed like drift mode wouldn`t come to the Australian Focus RS for the same reasons, but the company decided in January that it would, according to a report from Motoring. It was a nice gesture for Ford Australia`s safety advocates, but it was also a hollow move – the Mustang can easily run out without Line Lock. In any case, it is the only Mustang market in the world where the feature is disabled. Become a member of carsales and receive the latest news, reviews and tips right in your inbox. “I think someone`s propensity to exhaust themselves at a stop is much greater than someone who wants to drift down the road,” Ford Australia president Graeme Whickman said in an interview with Motoring. “Seriously, when you`re driving, how often do you see people actively trying to drift their cars compared to someone who wants to let their wheels float from the beginning.” Security advocates working in Australia are in turmoil, according to a report News.com.au on the new Focus RS and its drift mode. Despite the increasing pressure, Ford Australia has no plans to disable the RS`s track or drift modes, as a disclaimer is displayed on the dashboard stating that these modes are intended for use only on the track.