Is it just me or? (Traffic Law)

[Alex_V]

Sighting like that are common, and exactly what I'm talking about.

Originally Posted By: supton
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!

 

[jeepman3071]

Having worked in auto insurance, safety inspections are a good thing.

1. They prevent hazardous vehicles like the ones pictured above from causing accidents.

2. If you get in an accident, an insurance appraiser WILL inspect your vehicle and WILL find any safety/maintenance hazards they can use as leverage against you.

 

[steve20]

I'm very happy they abolished the real safety inspections in NJ--took way way too long and was very much a hassle--guess someone finally listened.
Last December inspection was computer hook-up only--not even the gas cap test. I failed once for a supposed bad gas cap---now I use the same "new" gas cap on all my cars for inspection only-- just install it before inspection, remove it after and put it back in the box--aren't going to get me again on that one.
Reading thru these posts, if you considered all the "ifs" that could happen while in a vehicle--you'd never get in it to begin with
Steve

 

[gathermewool]

Originally Posted By: steve20
I'm very happy they abolished the real safety inspections in NJ--took way way too long and was very much a hassle--guess someone finally listened.
Last December inspection was computer hook-up only--not even the gas cap test. I failed once for a supposed bad gas cap---now I use the same "new" gas cap on all my cars for inspection only-- just install it before inspection, remove it after and put it back in the box--aren't going to get me again on that one.
Reading thru these posts, if you considered all the "ifs" that could happen while in a vehicle--you'd never get in it to begin with
Steve


There doesn't appear to be an easy solution that will keep everyone safe from the few vehicles that truly should not be on the road without being excessively cumbersome to the rest of us. Let's be clear, though, with some poorly maintained cars it's not an "if", but a when will something fail. The more important questions will be: will others be affected by this INEVITABLE failure and how badly?

Anecdote: I parked next to an old beater in my company parking lot with tires so bad, I could literally push in the badly checked sidewall. When I shook the car, the tires wobbled back and forth like balloons! I hope the owner lives nearby and drives only to work and back, because this was atrocious!

Anecdote 2: I saw some dude trying to bang on newly purchased "chrome" hub caps in an Autozone parking lot. As I continued past I noticed a crack running the length of his windshield and a smashed-in head light. Priorities for he common motorist...

 

[MNgopher]

Can't find it offhand now, but several states have studied if having annual inspections actually make any difference to safety and accident rates. The studies I have seen make it pretty clear there is no statistically measurable difference. It ends up being something that makes people feel like something is being done for safety but doesn't translate to any difference in the real world...

That's a big part of why many states have been dropping the requirement - along with finding how often people were pressured into unnecessary work or repairs by private shops that did the inspection...

 

[Benzadmiral]

Oh, we have a state inspection -- yearly, or now you can pay double and get a 2-year sticker -- called the brake tag. In the parish where I live, the main city, there are 5-6 contract stations you can go to. In neighboring suburban Jefferson Parish, you can go to any gas station or car wash that displays the orange state inspection sign. The inspection is supposed to test lights, horn, braking, window tint, and other things. No emissions (which was all Colorado cared about, in the late '90s anyway).

In my area at least, the stations are pretty lackdaisical about it. This month I had mine done. The guy glanced at my registration and window tint, went to the rear and called to me, "Left signal? Right? Reverse?" to check my lights. Then he came back up, said "$25, please," and that was it.

As for seat belts, I can't imagine driving a car without wearing one. I've never been in a bad accident, but I know too much about physics to think that my body wouldn't keep moving when the car stops, if I'm not restrained.

In one of his 1950s novels, John D. Macdonald compares the damage to the (unbelted) human body in a car crash at 60 mph to the damage done to a person who swan-dives off a 6-story building. The destruction, he said, is identical. (I'm quoting from memory; I may not have the exact speed or the building height.) That bit of data alone would be enough to make me buckle up!

 

[bunnspecial]

Life long Kentuckian here-born and bred.

That's just the way 'tis here. I do see a lot of cars that shouldn't be on the road, but just do my best to stay away from them.

BTW, seatbelts weren't a primary offense until about 10 years ago. I think the change happened alongside the default interstate speed limit being raised to 70 from 65.

 

[dlundblad]

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


Why wouldn't you at least do little stuff that's necessary? Isn't this your wife's car?

Cheap ball joints, TRE's, brake lines etc. are ~$5 at Rock Auto.

 

[Gasbuggy]

Someone I knew from school died recently while on vacation. Some guy a beat up truck had a tire blow. He sailed across I wide median and struck a brand new jeep Wrangler.

 

[weasley]

Some input from across the ocean. Here in the UK we have an annual road worthiness check, called the "MOT" (it stands for "Ministry of Transport"). The first one happens when a car reaches 3 years old, then it is every year after that. It includes a variety of mechanical and electrical tests and also rudimentary emissions. It is so ingrained into our society that not having such a testing requirement is truly unbelievable.

It is an offence not to have a valid MOT certificate if your car is being driven on the road. Additionally you have to have an MOT in place before you can buy the (also mandatory) annual vehicle excise duty (aka "road tax").

So, to summarise: to drive on the road you must have:

- valid MOT (if >3 years old)
- valid VED (tax)
- valid insurance

To get the VED you have to have the insurance and MOT in place. If the VED expires you must formally declare that the car is off-the-road and can not drive it on the road until you renew the VED. You must also have continuous insurance cover unless you have formally declared that the car is off the road (and that means, literally, off the road - you can not park it on the road outside your house whilst you wait to get VED or insurance sorted out).

The MOT test costs around £20-£55 ($25-$70) - that is just the cost of having the test done. If you pass then it's all you have to pay. If you fail then you need to fix it and get it retested; there are some allowances for a partial retest within a certain timescale (ie if you get something fixed there and then they only retest the failed thing and the MOT fee is waived). The MOT tests can only be carried out by workshops that are authorised by the Ministry of Transport; many of these are workshops that will also do the remedial work (if needed) but some MOT stations are set up where they only do the testing, not any fixing, so are less inclined to fail a car in order to generate revenue from repairs.

If you're interested in what the MOT covers, it's here.

Consequently, whilst there are some beaters on the road here, it is nowhere near as bad as in places with no testing requirement. I've seen some real eye-openers in other countries (USA included).

 

[jeepman3071]

I'm not a huge fan of government involvement, but the number of cars I see with only one functioning brake/tail light on a given day is incredible. I saw a car driving at night once that had only one functioning headlight and one functioning front marker light. None of the other lights on the car were working, and it was a dark blue or black vehicle.

 

[Matagonka]

I'm a firm believer of wearing seatbelts. I don't get why so many are bothered by it and refuse to wear it. I always need to have it on.

 

[DBMaster]

My dad used to make my brother and me wear seat belts, even in the back seat. This was in the days of lap belt only in the back. That had its own hazards. My ex-wife and I both required my kids to wear seat belts (It may have already been law in Texas by then.). My daughter and three of her friends were hit head-on in the middle of the night on a highway near Houston. The other driver was drunk and driving the wrong way on a divided highway. He died instantly (in a 2004 Toyota Camry). All four of the occupants in the car my daughter was in survived, with serious injuries. If she and the guy in the back with her had not been wearing their belts the story would not have had as happy an ending. If you saw what the car looked like (2004 Jeep Liberty) you would not have believed the accident survivable. Seat belts are just a way of life for my family.