talked my way out of a defect

[Guest]

i got pulled over yesterday for the second time for being to low. however he did not have our cars listed in his book to show the specs on how low it can be. so i told him im certain the car is only 30mm lowered max and he said 25mm is the legal limit. so he measured it but didnt tell me how low i was. then he looked at my front tint that i got done 2 days ago and said its to dark. i said i asked for the legal tint coz i dont want any illegal parts on my car and had a certificate to show how dark it was. he said it is now not legal to have any tint on the front windows AT ALL. then he said the factory privacy glass is way to dark. i said its all factory and just went through regency inspection in feb. he said no its illegal and will have to be replaced. then he looked at my tinted brake lights, and i said thats how i got the car and pleaded ignorance to the fact they were tinted which is also illegal. but after that he said 'you seem like a nice guy so i wont defect you, but someone will one day so get these things fixed up'. yes right away officer.

had the seat covers on so he didnt notice the evo 7 recaro
and he also didnt notice the 3" exhaust and muffler, the tein coilovers as low as they can go, and the newly installed vee port bov (which sounds awesome).

end of the day, let them feel like their in charge, plead ignorance and say what you "thought" legal specs were and what your car is. and maybe he will be a nice guy and let you go

 

[Guest]

Yeah, you better get that factory privacy glass replaced quick smart.

I've got some clear plastic greenhouse sheet and a roll of duct tape that should do the job nicely. Garbage bags would be too dark still.

 

[Rasi]

Sometimes pleading ignorance just doesn't work, but worth a try.

My brother got done yesterday for not displaying a safety certificate while selling his car. He has a for sale sign on the back window, but because a current safety certificate was not displayed received a $500 fine. The officer was in a grump mood. He was probably trying to fulfill a quota as he didn't even inspect the car for defects (modified skyline).

What a load of crock. What is the point of having the safety certificate displayed? anyone able to enlighten me.

sorry for the hijack.

 

[ygoslo]

Well done! The only time I've ever been pulled over (living in a country town is awesome) was in my old Sil in Ringwood. Had a good chat to the cop and had a laugh, he told me my car was too low but then said not to worry because he wasn't going to do me for it. I guarantee if I was a cock about it he would have defected me.

Bottom line is be polite and friendly, and you leave yourself with the best possible chance of getting off lightly. Act like a little know it all and prepare to clear a defect...

 

[Kristian]

Just on the tint thing, the copper is correct about no tint at all on the front windows, but those rules have only been brought in in the last couple of years, so there's nothing to say you didn't get your windows tinted before the regs came in.

With regard to privacy glass, while it may look too dark to the copper, the ADRs for VLT (visible light transmission) only apply to the darkness of the tint film applied to the windows, not to the glass itself - that's the reason why you'll see vans cruising around with 5% on the rear window without any problems. Even Regency would tell you that you don't have to replace the glass, despite the BS the police officer fed you.

 

[SiliconAngel]

In WA the law states you cannot reduce the visibility of factory glass below 35% light transmission. As the factory privacy glass is already down to 20% you can't legally apply ANY light restricting tint, although optically clear UV protecting film is ok. The fronts can be tinted down to 35%. The only way you can legally have blackout or limo tint on a van etc in WA is if it didn't originally COME with rear windows - that way you can't reduce visibility of the glass below zero.

 

[ygoslo]

Mine's got 5% on the rear window and rear side windows and I haven't had any trouble. My Celsior arrived with 5% on the FRONT windows as well. That was an interesting drive through Melbourne at night on the way home.

 

[junior]

Hi all, I was a Police Officer with the AFP in Canberra for 26 years up until March this year and I can confirm that attitude does go a long way. There is nothing more annoying that pulling over a car and talking to the driver who has the attitude of "whay the *uck did you pull me up, I have done nothing wrong. Well that is when the fun starts. If you want to be a real a..hole you go right aroung the car and "find" things to book the driver for and depending on how dumb they are (i.e. wont shut up) depends on what you book them for. From experience, the more conservative you drive and the less attention you bring to yourself/car the better off you will be.

Unfortunatly there are some out there that put on the blue uniform and think there shit doesnt stink, that is a way of life. My advice to all is be humble without licking *rse, if you did do something wrong to attract the attention in the first place, admit it and say sorry for being an idiot. I found throughout my time, the only people who continually re-offend are the ones without a brain. In other states I do understand the police are a bit more gun-hoe so take that into account when you see one driving near you. Remember, we drive cars that are not the "norm" so attraction is always going to find us.

(BTW, I can say without a word of a lie, I was not like what I just described, if anything, the complete opposite)

Gary

 

[Kitty's VR4]

In other states I do understand the police are a bit more gun-hoe

Hmmm, the one that wear the jodhpurs and combat boots around the 2580 postcode, not sure gun-hoe accurately describes their methods and attitudes...

 

[junior]

Well wearing those stupid looking pants for a start is on reason they are brain dead!!