As a result the motor vehicle dealers association says consumers are paying thousands of dollars more for used cars.

This comes after one dealer had to go to court, to get a second hand ferrari on the road.

After nine months in the courts and $70,000 spent fighting Land Transport New Zealand (LTNZ), car dealer Jerry Clayton's now got his second hand ferrari on the road

"It's just a shame it took so long and cost the taxpayers a lot of money, having lost the case the LTNZ has had to pay," says the ferrari importer.

LTNZ was forced to pay $40,000 in costs

Clayton challenged a law that says used car dealers have to go to the agents that sell new cars to get safety certificates. Without those safety certificates used cars aren't allowed on our roads.

But it's not only top end cars that are affected by this ruling that could mean cheaper cars for all of us.

"This issue is much wider than ferraris...whatever price range you're in, whatever model you're in these people importing these vehicles want to bring them in a sell them to New Zealand consumers," says David Vinsen, Independent Motor Vehicles Dealers' Association Chief Executive.

The judge in this case says at the moment the rules can allow the local agents to pursue their own commercial interests.

Clayton agrees.

"The only people being protected are the new car manufacturers because they have a commercial advantage," he says.

But despite the court ruling LTNZ says the system is working.

"The current process allowed 150.000 used imports to be bought in last year, we're talking about a small number of vehicles at the margins," says Andy Knackstedt from the LTNZ.

That said the LTNZ has announced a working party will look at the current system to make sure it's fair.

Tokyo Motor Show kicks off with focus on environment

Chiba - The 39th Tokyo Motor Show started Wednesday with media previews at the Makuhari Messe in Chiba Prefecture as 240 carmakers from around the world are increasingly focusing on how cars can run without damaging the environment. The show is to run for two weeks from Saturday through Nov 6 with nearly 600 cars and motorcycles on display.

As the participating companies pursue state-of-the-art technologies to become less dependent on gasoline, such as hybrid, fuel cell and electricity powered systems, the motor show is expected to weigh much on the industry's future, JAMA said.

Mazda upgrades RX-8 sports car

Tokyo - Mazda Motor Corp said Tuesday it will launch two upgraded versions of its brand icon RX-8 sports car in the Japanese market.

The "RX-8 Sports Prestige Limited 2" in six-speed manual and four-speed automatic transmission models has such features as newly designed seats with mixed suede-like artificial leather upholstery and leather covers, for a luxurious look. It also has a specially tuned suspension, large-diameter disc brakes and a special front suspension cross member to raise driving performance, the automaker said.

Court winds back the clock to get speedo man

A former importer of used Japanese vehicles has been convicted for rewinding odometers in the mid-1990s eight years after legal proceedings were first filed.
Judge Roderick Joyce, QC, yesterday found Andrew John Gummer guilty on 24 fraud charges and not guilty on one.

Gummer was the target of self-styled whistle-blower and justice campaigner Dermot Nottingham the former car salesman who went public with allegations of widespread odometer tampering in 1997.

Mr Nottingham took an unsuccessful private prosecution against Gummer after accusing the Serious Fraud Office of failing to act.

But Gummer was acquitted: in 2000 Auckland District Court judge Phil Gittos found that though Gummer imported vehicles with odometers wound back, Mr Nottingham failed to prove he had conspired with anyone to do so.

After that, when the SFO pursued its prosecution, the courts had to decide whether Gummer was a victim of "double jeopardy" he said he had been cleared and should not stand trial again.

Last week the SFO finally got its case to trial, saying Gummer's company, Hillcrest Marketing Ltd, imported used vehicles that were sold through a North Shore car yard. It argued that odometers were either wound back on his instructions or with his knowledge.

Judge Joyce gave his verdict yesterday afternoon. Gummer will be sentenced in November.

Mr Nottingham welcomed the result. He said he had first filed court papers in 1997 and spent "hundreds of thousands" of dollars building a case against Gummer. "Fantastic. Justice at last."

Hybrid cars burst onto scene at Frankfurt show