Another Ridiculous Ticket
 

Last night, I got pulled over by San Marino PD. The cop approached my window and asked for all my info. He said, "You know why I pulled you over". I said, "No front plate?". He said the first thing he was going to cite me for was for my front tinted windows (I only have tint on my rear windows). I said I didn't have tint on my front windows, just the rear so he made me roll them up and down so that he could look into them with his flash light to make sure (My front windows are super clear). He was WRONG so he moved on by saying he was going to cite me for my "neon blue lights". I said I didn't have neon lights..He said all your exterior lights are "neon" and are illegal along with "halogen" lights. I argued with him but that did not work. He then cited my for my Greddy SP2 exhaust system (I have my stock cat on). I had this same problem months ago so I went to a State Referee to have them give me proof in a written form with a sticker to know that my Greddy SP2 is legal, they wrote on the form that it was for my Greddy SP2 exhaust. I showed it to the cop and he said they are wrong and that you cannot have any exhaust on there but the one it comes with from the dealership. I HAD PROOF! The judge had told me to keep this paper with me so that I could show to any cop that bothered me for my exhaust in case I got pulled over again. The last reason he was going to cite me for was for having no front plate, this I admit was my fault. He then gave me a ticket for "No Front Plate", "Illegal Exhaust", and "Illegal Neon and Halogen Lights". After, he started to tell me that my car was a target for any cop and that I should not have a carbon fiber hood, a body kit, rims, and any other modification done. These were his last exact words, "I'm just letting you know all of this because cops are going pull you over again for these things, at least San Marino PD and I will. WHAT AN ASSHOLE!

OH YEAH, I was going 31 MPH and he wrote down that I was going 40 MPH..He said that I need to slow down. SPEED LIMIT WAS 35 MPH!

I feel for you :(

But yea never admit anything if they ask you why you were pulled over. They will tell you. In fact, they have to tell you.

I would file a complaint against the officer. There obviously no neon lights on your car (or any car for that matter) and every single stock bulb is halogen. WTG professor!

Everything will get thrown out except the front plate regardless.

wow that's retarded. I'm gonna assume you're gonna fight it.

If I lived in CA or FL, I think I'd keep a digital voice recorder in my car.

I'm going to fight this for sure. I just have to zip tie my front plate on my bumper..

I can't believe the crap you have to deal with in California. I couldn't handle it.

What bulbs are you using for your front lights? 8k? If so, those will get you pulled over all the time.

Keep in mind that in California, police officers can now pull over a car simply for not having OEM parts. (ie; wider tires, body kits, etc) This was done to crack down on illegal racing and to track down stolen parts (since stolen parts go hand in hand with street racing)
The reality is you're going to keep getting bothered, my suggestion is you NOT volunteer any information about things like your front plate.

Looks like you're going to have to fight the exhaust ticket, good luck.

California has pathetic laws. The government loves taking our money.

Atleast you didn't need to get a VI done.. -_-

Vehicle Inspection? I've had that done to me before and will probably happen again..

I think tubingchamp was referring to Vehicle Inspections to get your registration.

It's very annoying....

Na, I had to get one because of my exhaust.

Apparently I was offending the rush hour traffic.

that damn rush hour traffic is SO sensitive!

I'll just wait till these headers, midpipe, and the hymee kit come in.

I'll be pulled over every 2nd day probably.

Yeah..

Vehicle theft is a big problem. My friend works on the task force here in San Antonio and there are like 4-5 cars stolen a night that are directly related to street racing. That's why if everyone knows what you have your are at a greater risk to get jacked.

This is ridiculous but I wouldn't be surprised if this type of thing starts happening more and more and cities look to their pd's to take in more revenue. Sorry about your troubles man don't let em get you down.

Fight it
I bet the cop does not show up in court for this one, and if he does, the judge will throw it out.
You have the exhaust certified as legal, you were only 5mph over the limit, but the front plate is a fix it ticket that will cost a few bucks.


You are getting off easy.
Next time, just shut the fck up. NEVER argue with a cop, and NEVER tell them why you think you got pulled over. (It is considered a confession, therefore the ticket will be written)

I hope you asked for his badge number.

^

Don't they need to write that on the ticket?

Agreed, the cop took a look around the front of my car and everything after pulling me over for my exhaust being too loud, and didn't write me up for no front plate :P

I get pretty lucky with cops. I've been pulled over four times in AZ and NC and have never gotten a ticket.

1st incident: Got busted going 70+ in a 55. Written warning
2nd incident: Ran a redlight at 2 AM on a Saturday morning. Verbal warning
3rd incident: Pulled over for having 2 month old expired plates. Verbal warning
4th incident: Got busted going 55 in a 40. Verbal warning

I've never withheld info (played dumb) before, and I've always fessed up to what I did wrong. I guess cops like the honesty (nobody likes to be bullshitted). But yeah then there are my friends who get $300 tickets for going 10 over. I guess it depends on each situation. I've been told I have a very magnetic personality so that might help too. And of course it depends on the cop involved.

Again, I don't think that whole 'never give out info' thing really works. The cop knows what you did wrong, and he knows that you know what you did wrong. Pleading ignorance doesn't change anything, nor does acting like an oblivious idiot. Just come out and say it. You know what you did was wrong and you're sorry and its not going to happen again. In my mind it shows more respect to the cop and you're more likely to get off with a warning.

Yeah..he was coming straight towards me down the street and be made a U turn right when he passed me. Also, it's good to argue back, I proved him wrong by showing him paper work and he still cited me for my exhaust. He is an idiot..

No that would be a violation of our 4th amendment rights. They must have probable cause, body mods are not good enough.

However the officer was right about 1 thing, the exhaust is illegal. The referee can not certify it as anything.

There are 2 section the officer could write, 27151(a) or 27150:

27151. (a) No person shall modify the exhaust system of a motor vehicle in a manner which will amplify or increase the noise emitted by the motor of the vehicle so that the vehicle is not in compliance with the provisions of Section 27150 or exceeds the noise limits established for the type of vehicle in Article 2.5 (commencing with Section 27200). No person shall operate a motor vehicle with an exhaust system so modified.

(b) For the purposes of exhaust systems installed on motor vehicles with a manufacturer's gross vehicle weight rating of less than 6,000 pounds, other than motorcycles, a sound level of 95 dbA or less, when tested in accordance with Society of Automotive Engineers Standard J1169 May 1998, complies with this section. Motor vehicle exhaust systems or parts thereof include, but are not limited to, nonoriginal exhaust equipment.

Notice is refers to 27150.

27150 states:

27150. (a) Every motor vehicle subject to registration shall at all times be equipped with an adequate muffler in constant operation and properly maintained to prevent any excessive or unusual noise, and no muffler or exhaust system shall be equipped with a cutout, bypass, or similar device.

(b) Except as provided in Division 16.5 (commencing with Section 38000) with respect to off-highway motor vehicles subject to identification, every passenger vehicle operated off the highways shall at all times be equipped with an adequate muffler in constant operation and properly maintained so as to meet the requirements of Article 2.5 (commencing with Section 27200), and no muffler or exhaust system shall be equipped with a cutout, bypass, or similar device.

(c) The provisions of subdivision (b) shall not be applicable to passenger vehicles being operated off the highways in an organized racing or competitive event conducted under the auspices of a recognized sanctioning body or by permit issued by the local governmental authority having jurisdiction.

The key is the bold and underlined section. Loud or unusual is up to the officer. If the exhaust is louder then stock, well its illegal. if the officer knows this, you wont win. Then only way to fight it is have a stock RX8 tested and if they are the same, then you win. If the greddy is louder, you will loose. Sorry

all that would do is piss the cop off more, since it is already written on the ticket.

But generally when a cop pulls someone over its because they did something that just can't be proved in a court of law. He didn't care if the charges were valid or not, he wanted to get you and waste your time, because he couldn't tag you for what he really wanted.

And Socket7 if you act like a dick and anything but respectful the cop will find something, even if he has to make it up like the OP suggested.

You need to re-read that.

Its only illegal if it is louder than the noise Ordnance.

Greddy is not louder than what is permissable.

only if a nonoriginal exhaust exeeds 95dB...

Wow, from all the stories I've heard I'm glad that Canadian law enforcement doesn't seem to crack down on modified cars as much their American counterparts. However, in my experience polite and honest answers go a long way when dealing with police officers.

Nope, I have it right. Its 27151 says if its louder then 95DB or in violation of 27150 which says loud or unusual. Loud or unusual has been interpreted by the courts as louder then a regular car of similar make, model and engine.

I just got a ticket for having a red license plate LED light. That's even stronger than the OEM one. Hes like I cant see it -___- blind idiots.

24601. Either the taillamp or a separate lamp shall be so
constructed and placed as to illuminate with a white light the rear
license plate during darkness and render it clearly legible from a
distance of 50 feet to the rear. When the rear license plate is
illuminated by a lamp other than a required taillamp, the two lamps
shall be turned on or off only by the same control switch at all
times.

I feel for you. Every time I would see a cruiser I would get worried. Glad I got out CA. The motor rules are extreme.

I have learned that what the police see on their speedometer, is totally different than what rx8 says on its speedometer. I suspect the police speedometer locks highest instantaneous speed at a 1/1000 second snapshot, totally different than the averaged mpg speed shown on rx8 speedometer.

LoL

Lol. I just got stopped twice in less than 15mins. First guy gave me a ticket for tints (35%). Turned into the highway and the Law is on my arse again. Second guy asked me to roll my window up and I just handed him the ticket the first guy gave me. He just said "Oh" in a stupid voice and took my Lic. and sat in his car for about 5 mins. He said this time he was going to let me off with a warning.

A week ago, I got a written warning for my Borla exhaust. And the week before that it was the "Move over law." Three lane highway and i'm in the middle lane with cars to my right and Optimus Prime to my left.:sad: Trooper on the shoulder sped up just to talk to me. No point in pleading anymore. I just sit there and take it like a man.:) I beginning to think they have an APB out on my vechicle.

boo hoo..WE LOSE

Cops... Meh tellem you pay for them to be on the streets busting crack heads and drug dealers not pulling over cool cars.
Some cops are just dicks but out in Vegas they just crooked :rofl:

Not all cops have a good reason for pulling you over, they just want to see if your a degenerate or not. Admiting guilt to something if they have no proof is stupid.

Curious, how can you claim it good to argue? Arguing did absolutely nothing positive for you. In fact, the fact you were 'talking back' to the officer could have made him a bit more pissed.


What's the deal? I've been driving LA, OC, and everything in between catl-ess, resonator-less, with the HKS hi-power for over a year now and am yet to get a ticket. I've been pulled over once coming home from work but I'm sure it was because it was 12:30AM and I tried to sneak past her (she was facing the oposite direction at a red light) going 15mph feather throttle in a 55mph zone :lol:

::KNOCKS ON WOOD::

Lol! It's hard for a VR to sneak pass anyone. :lol2: I can't wait for the fast and the furious 4 to come out. I might have to park it for a week.

cause i can use that against him in court? i showed him proof of my exhaust being legal and he chose to ignore it and act like a dick first..so i CHOSE to argue with him to try to convince him that he was WRONG so that pissed me off..the point is that he was a dick face and he is going down

my recomendation to you guys is when it comes to dealing with an officer is be very respectful. fact is that thers a law for just about anything you do to the car, so cops can find a million diffrent things to pull you over for.

the trick to not getting pulled over is not to bring attention to yourself. diffrent color rims, spoilers, rims, special paint jobs, dark tints, lights, balls hanging from a hitch and such will get you pulled over for sure. i know it sucks because i went through it when i bought my first vehicle.

i can only tell you this because i myself am a cop, but i dont think like most of them. i do understand that people modify their cars and speed and do all kinds of stuff while on the street but i also know that most people dont deserve to get multiple tickets for stupid stuff specially now a days when a ticket is almost 200 dollars and most people live paycheck to paycheck.


as far as arguing with a cop on the street or in court do know that you are never going to win, because of the fact that the judge is going to believe to cop over your side of the story...

again i am a cop and actually became a cop because i was tired of getting treated like shit by them. now a days i train the rookies and teach them that they dont have to be dicks with people to get their point across specially when they themselves have comitted the same mistakes prior to being a cop.

if you guys ever have any questions regarding cops or tickets feel free to pm me.

darn..now i am hopeless..the government is corrupted for sure

keep in mind that every job in the world has people that abuse of the power that the job gives them.

i know..it will always be like that..miami is lucky to have you as a cop

Since the first time I saw it, I have felt this such a ridiculous trend!

lmao

http://www.yournutz.com/store/images...me%20truck.JPG

if i had a history of speeding or any other dangerous traffic violations, i would understand why i am a target..this is just unfair but i am just going to have to deal with it