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A groupĀ of motor vehicle collectors and enthusiasts has been calling on the federal government, so far with little effect, to eliminate the Luxury Car Tax (LCT) on vehicles more than 30 years old as a way of encouraging jobs in a corner of the Australian car industry which, at its equivalent in the UK, generates more than four billion pounds ($A7b) in economic activity a year. This story is written by John Mellor of Go Auto News.

The group says it is being caught in a tax intended for new vehicles to protect a car industry that no longer exists, and is being applied by bureaucrats to vehicles that can be more than 100 years old.

The Australian Historic Vehicle Interest Group (AHVIG) has been documenting the extent of the historic vehicle industry in Australia to boost its case in Canberra and in doing so has highlighted its potential to become a more significant employer of both traditional automotive technical skills and, more recently, high-tech skills in fields like cutting-edge 3D additive manufacturing.

The group has identified about 200,000 vintage, veteran and classic cars in Australia but believes there are many more. Its data shows that the owners spend an average of $5000 a year on their cars across maintenance, restoration, storage, insurance and transportation, although some owners can spend many tens of thousands of dollars restoring a single car.

The data shows that this work goes to a coterie of specialist restorers which are smallish businesses located mostly within regional Australia.

A back-of-the-envelope calculation says that the Australian historic car industry is generating $1b a year in economic activity with the AHVIG arguing that revenue goes to preserving not only cars of great heritage value to Australia but also the traditional skills of body fabrication, casting, machining and trimming.

As parts become increasingly rare, these skills are being expanded into 3D printing of new parts using the latest additive manufacturing systems.

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