Illegal Lighting?

lgbr · 03-14-2004, 03:08 AM

So I was rolling my way down the street the other day, looking fly in my car, when I notice something fishy. A police officer has been following me around for two miles. I immediately become suspicious. The day before, I installed lights on my misters and back of my mirrors, they were blue and purple. The officer pulls into the lane to my left and speeds up to get in front of me. I realize what he's doing, and I figure i'm in a lane that is about to be forced to turn right, so if I keep ahead of him, I can get away. As I get near my goal, he hits the brakes and turns his flashing lights on. I pull into a Mexican restaurant, and he tells me that my lights are illegal and it is a $110 fine.

Does this seem outrageous to anyone else? In my state (Washington) it is illegal to have even underglow, as it is claimed to be distracting. Apparently my blue lights were illegal because that's the color that emergency vehicles use. Apparently the Washington State Legislature forgot to realize that on emergency vehicles, the lights are rapidly flashing.

And they call this a free country...

gambit32 · 03-14-2004, 03:18 AM

Yup...I'm pretty sure they are illegal in WA. I heard of people getting pulled over for blue washer nozzles. I think red may be illegal as well. I have red side markers on my car but haven't been pulled over yet...even when passing a cop.

NovaKane · 03-14-2004, 04:37 AM

my brake lights are red, will i get a ticket for that? I better stay out of washington...you guys too strict.

belmontboy · 03-14-2004, 05:18 AM

all unnessecary lighting is illigal in the uk

Gutter · 03-14-2004, 10:45 AM

Certain colors are illegal in most places.

TruckinMP3 · 03-14-2004, 11:24 AM

This is the case in the US for all states that use federal highway money (all states that I know of)

lgbr · 03-14-2004, 12:26 PM

I don't see what the big deal is though. Its not like someone is going to stare at your lights for more than 5 seconds, and if they do they're not taking their eyes off the road. And it wouldn't fool someone enough to trick them into thinking you're an emergency vehicle.

[iG] · 03-14-2004, 12:42 PM

Most colors are illegal in most states actually. With the exception of green/purple and some other shades that are not associated with any other emergency vehicles.

Now i had both purple and red underbody lights and passed by few cops with them on, no-one stopped me there.. Maybe because it was mostly late at night, but either way... It depends if you get one of those powertrip triggerhappy cops or not. I'd say most dont give a s**t.

StratusPh34r · 03-14-2004, 12:42 PM

The reason is this: blue or red lights on the front of yor car makes people believe you are a cop. This is not MY reasoning, but the police's. White and or yellow lights won't get you pulled over, but any other color most likely will.

Almost a Ghost · 03-14-2004, 12:59 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by lgbr

I don't see what the big deal is though. Its not like someone is going to stare at your lights for more than 5 seconds, and if they do they're not taking their eyes off the road. And it wouldn't fool someone enough to trick them into thinking you're an emergency vehicle.

But somebody quickly glancing their review mirror with you behind them will more than likely make them jump and get distracted. And yeah, it is a free country, but with responsibility.

BoraXP · 03-14-2004, 01:29 PM

i have white sidemarkers, white forward blinkers and rear blinkers. In california, white lights in front only, and any blinkers need to be orange

been pulled over once for the sidemarkers and once for the rear blinkers

i keep the bulbs in the trunk and tell them, "are you serious, i just put them in today, the bulbs are in the trunk, ill change them back now if youd like...."

usually works

gospeed.racer · 03-14-2004, 01:31 PM

I guess I will just never understand WHY the colored lights are needed in the first place. It is one thing to have euro marker lights or clear altezzas or whatever that are FUNCTIONAL...but why would you want the colored add ons unless you were trying to attract attention? That is their only purpose, and judging by the ticket, it worked.

Thunderknight · 03-14-2004, 01:46 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by [iG]

Most colors are illegal in most states actually. With the exception of green/purple and some other shades that are not associated with any other emergency vehicles.

In New York, green is also illegal.. Green is used by volunteer EMS members. Blue by volunteer fire. Red are emergency vehicles. In fact, the state police wanted to put blue on the rear of the vehicles in an attempt to increase snow visiblity and the state attorney general told them they were not permitted to do so, that blue was specifically for volunteer fire members.
There are some police agencies in NY that have blue lights on their cars, but they are in apparant violation of state law.

wizardPC · 03-14-2004, 02:13 PM

RICER!

Mr.Sinister · 03-14-2004, 02:54 PM

AFAIK, it's illegal in MA to have blue lights on your car (aside from blue-tinted headlight blubs). I'm assuming that the same goes in other states too.

If you look at the packaging that comes on aftermarket lighting, a lot of them say that they're for offroad / showcar use only. A matter of fact, *ALL AFTERMARKET* HID kits are technically illegal, since they're not DOT approved. Personally, I think that's bullcrap, but that's the law for you. I can somewhat understand it for headlights, since it's considered a safety feature of the vehicle. Some of the kits stop your highbeams from working which is a BIG no-no. The good kits replace the entire housing, giving you the correct beam pattern. Of course, these kits cost an arm and a leg (and the soul of your first born child). In the end, it's still technically illegal to drive your car with those headlights too. Your chances of getting a ticket for them are low though, unless the cop who pulls you over knows that the car doesn't come standard with them.

As for aftermarket "accent" lighting, IMHO they're the worst thing to ever be unleashed on the public in general. 99% of the time, they make the car look like crap. .9% of the time, they're put on cars that SHOULDN'T be attracting attention in the first place (.... I can't make this up.. I saw them once on a first generation Hyundai Excel. Yeah.. there's a car that needs to draw attention to itself.

It also had the patented Folgers® Exhaust system on it. I think it could do 0-60 in 3.7 days.

). Out of all the cars I've seen with some sort of accent lighting, only .1% actually looked good with them, mainly because the driver used some restraint and didn't cover every square inch of the car with them.

User Name		Remember Me?
Password