Is it just me or? (Traffic Law)

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I grew up in Missouri and moved to Kentucky two years ago.

Missouri requires bi-annual vehicle safety inspections, but seatbelts aren't primary offense - aka, you can't be pulled over strictly for not wearing your seatbelt.

Kentucky, on the other hand, has no vehicle safety inspection - the only time it is looked at by someone with the authority to keep it off the road is when it comes into the state and a law enforcement official does an inspection for the title transfer. However, seatbelts are primary offense.

Some of the heaps I've seen come in my shop and drive by repeatedly around my small town really open my eyes to the hazards I drive by every day - tires about to blow, ball joints and tie rods that can be beat apart with a hammer without excessive effort, power steering system completely non-functional, etcetera - yet the law requires you to be strapped into it, no ifs, ands, or buts. Not to mention in my region it's perfectly acceptable to exceed a 55 MPH speed limit by 12 MPH before you run any risk of being pulled over, which makes for some very dangerous situations with passing zones, curve angles, intersections, etc. engineered for that 55 mile per hour limit. In MO it was 62-63 maximum before you drew attention, which also kept the flow of traffic less hazardous.

Does this combination of laws have gaping holes in it in anyone else's opinion?
 
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It's supposed to be a good thing that we don't get told by big brother how to keep our car but it does mean that lots of bad cars are on the road.

Myself I have stopped all maintenance on my Nissan except oil changes as I anticipate it's death
 
True - I forgot to explain that dynamic. Okay, less government oversight is a good thing, but I'd make an exception when the alternative is people that don't know a ball joint from a ball-peen hammer running their cars until they, literally, fall apart... going down the road.
 
Here in NJ they used to do a "rigorous" inspection - checked braking, checked the suspension on all 4 tires by some kind of vibrating mechanism, lifted the car if they felt it warranted and tested the car on some type of dynomometer (if I remember correctly it was for emissions). People complained it was too harsh for their cars and it broke their cars ... I never really saw a problem as if the car broke while doing that inspection then take it off the road.

Today you go there and all they do is hook the car up to their computer for whatever and check the gas cap for pressure (my new ford doesn't have a gas cap).

We also have a law that states you must remove the snow off the top of the vehicle for safety reasons; I saw someone pulled over because I assume he/she had the whole back of the car covered in snow and couldn'r see out the back window.

I'm not for big brother at all but some things should have have a watchful eye ...
 
I had an alcoholic, chain smoking uncle. He literally smoked 4 packs a day.

Before he died of lung cancer, he LECTURED us kids at that time about wearing seat belts. Even then I knew this was ridiculous.


People have no concept of relative risk. They will smoke for 40-50 years, but are terrified to drive around without a belt.
 
I can see the validity to that snow removal law - visibility as well as hazard to following cars. The way many people drive is a clear indicator that whatever the law will let them get away with, they will exercise - my mantra has recently changed from needing to learn how to drive to needing to care how to drive.

For the record, I am "middle of the road" on seatbelts. If I'm going to be in my Cruze more than a few minutes, especially on long trips, or doing any spirited driving, I'll put it on. My 1-ton (no air bags), rarely. My '67 Suburban (lap belts), never. Any kind of open vehicle like an older Jeep that's open with minimal overhead support - heck if I'm strapping myself into that, I'd rather take my chances at getting thrown clear! I acknowledge seatbelts are beneficial - statistics and physics support that. But I know two people that would be dead if they'd had it on (one was rear-ended, the other T-boned) so it isn't fool-proof. Above all I believe it should be my decision.
 
Bi annual inspections?
Sounds like a money grab from state government.

No inspections or smog testing here in Florida, thankfully.
 
I believe in seat belts even though I know that there are times that they may be detrimental. My wife was in an accident that if she wasn't wearing her seat belt she probably would have been thrown around the vehicle. In her case I believe seat belts prevented greater injuries along with air bags. Per the insurance adjuster, her head came no where near the steering wheel bag as there were no makeup marks.

I believe common sense should avail but unfortunately less people have common sense or loosing it. I've seen people backing up from a spot, on the phone (to their ear) and lighting a cigarette ... not the brightest combo of things to be doing at the time.

I wish that a motor vehicle law did exist to have a trained mechanic look at a car. NJ has state run inspection stations or you can go to a mechanic that is authorized to inspect cars. That inspection may be the only time a fully trained person looks at the car ever; here in Jersey it is a 2 year term. Having someone pick up a flaw can save someone's life, heck it doesn't have to be the car owner's life. I am diligent about my car but I know nothing, I liked the idea that during an inspection my car's brakes were tested and if you're vibrating my car and something fails - I know to get it to the shop for repair; but that's just me.

I keep hearing how they are closer to developing a flying car - just what we need - a bunch of people who can't drive, don't maintain a vehicle and now in the air.
 
Ohio now has some sniffer trucks that they post on hwy on ramps. If the car goes by when accelerating and has low emissions a notice is sent in the mail that there's no need to have it inspected. I received one. I guess the car has to pass by the truck at least twice in a 9 month period.
 
Originally Posted By: SatinSilver
Ohio now has some sniffer trucks that they post on hwy on ramps. If the car goes by when accelerating and has low emissions a notice is sent in the mail that there's no need to have it inspected. I received one. I guess the car has to pass by the truck at least twice in a 9 month period.

OMG
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That's crazy.
 
Originally Posted By: NJ_Car_Owner
I believe in seat belts even though I know that there are times that they may be detrimental.


The father of my best friend in high school was a retired New York State Trooper. He always told us. "Boys I never pulled anyone dead out of a car where seatbelts were used"
Saved my life twice.
 
Tourists die here every week, some have very little experience, and hit our roads totally unprepared. But it's sad to see Americans dying because they don't wear seatbelts. A few years ago we had a case where a people mover full of American tourists lost control and rolled several times. Those wearing a seatbelt survived, those without were flung out of the vehicle and died.
 
I used to hate the annual safety inspection requirement in NY back when I was young and drove around in junkers costing anywhere from free to a few hundred $. Most of those had bad brakes, suspect tread on the tires, lights that did not work, etc. One didn't have seat belts as the prior owner had a dog that chewed them off!

But after I got a little older and had the ability to drive cars that were road worthy, I came to understand that annual safety inspections were a good thing making us all just a little safer out on the roads.
 
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Regardless of laws, anybody that drives an unsafe car OR doesn't always use a seat belt is foolish.
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Last time I was in Kentucky I saw this S10. Dude got out, braced both feet and put his whole body into the effort to close the door.


One night I found myself driving following a single white lightbulb. When the person braked I did get a second red light, but for the most part it was a single white brake light to follow.

Every so often I grouse about our safety inspection up here, then I think about those two examples!
 
Originally Posted By: 901Memphis
It's supposed to be a good thing that we don't get told by big brother how to keep our car but it does mean that lots of bad cars are on the road.

Myself I have stopped all maintenance on my Nissan except oil changes as I anticipate it's death


That's what you keep telling yourself. Except that there's lots of stupid people on the road.

The smartest guy can be killed by the dumbest driver.
 
Oklahoma use to have an annual inspection requirement, but it got dropped a dozen or so years ago. Other than that, drive anything you want.
 
Originally Posted By: Mr Nice
Bi annual inspections?
Sounds like a money grab from state government.

No inspections or smog testing here in Florida, thankfully.


In my state the state gets a buck or two to print the sticker and to have a few state troopers run the show. The mechanic gets the rest.

I drive junky looking heaps but keep them legally inspected. I would rather choose a mechanic of my choice to inspect my car on my time table, sometime the month it's due, than to be perenially profiled, pulled over, and delayed from important stuff (like getting my kids at school) by poorly trained local cops because my car just looks shabby.
 
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