illegal exhaust = jail.
Posted: Mon Jan 18, 2010 5:05 pm
Darrin, you may want to revise your opinion about the OEM catback (from SPT, of course). It is available in dealers as a purchase-price item. That is, you can have that part (as well as the SPT intake) delivered on your car. This weekend (I made a post then, but I think it went splat because I closed the window without submitting), I was threatened with outright arrest and "forcibly removing you from the car, handcuffing you, putting you in the back of my vehicle and from there to jail." I wish I was embellishing.
On Saturday we were returning from a funeral in Ashton (BFE) and I happened upon what looked like a traffic stop where the offender had just pulled away. Having noted the cop, I looked down and checked my speedo, and I noticed I was going 55 (yes, I drive like an old woman most of the time). As we pulled away, I kept my eye on the cop muxed with traffic. Sure enough, the turn signal came on and he did one of those hat-trick manouvers they all do, and accelerated at what must have been WOT. He immediately came to my trunk, when I put one hand up in the car so he could notice I had seen him. I turned on my hazards, and slowed to 45. The cop was never further than six front from me after that.
The shoulder of 66 inbound from the spur off of 267 was not only soaking wet, but it was cold, and of course it's a "soft shoulder" with lots of gravel. I didn't stop on the shoulder, waved my hands in the rearview to let him know I was still aware he was there. I proceeded to get off at the exit before Westmoreland (I think... it's the first exit on the inbound 66 after the spur), and the cop went completely batshit insane. He jumped the curb, a con, and a inter-lane barricade to put his car in front of mine. (Remember, both of us had been very close, and had never exceeded 45)
I was then stopped on the ramp, and the cop rushed out of the car, hands on his weapon, but not drawn (I have a carry permit, which shows up any time my license is checked in VA; I customarily get asked "are you carrying?" when I get pulled over) and came to my window, which I rolled down. He was out of breath and said "What the (expletive) are you doing?" I told him that I was pulling to the next exit because I didn't feel the shoulder was a safe place (and I really worried that we'd rain gravel on his car!). He gets all assertive and says something akin to "you're going to that driveway there, and stay in it till you're arrested." Wow, I thought, what happened?
I pull next to him after parking on the indicated driveway, and asked him to explain. After telling me to shut up a bunch of times, he finally answered the question, saying he had been using his radar gun and my car was louder than his gun. Sure enough, he said, when he looked at the radar, there were cars speeding, and I wasn't one of them. Because I was not speeding and I was loud there was no doubt that my car was illegal, specifically illegally loud. How's that for some of the most backwards logic you've ever heard?
I confirmed that I was not speeding. He asked me for PAPERS PLEASE and I gave him everything. He came back and said, okay, you're getting arrested for fleeing arrest and an illegal muffler ($30 ticket...). I explained that in every drives ed class I've had, they say, if you're a woman and it's dark, pull to the nearest lit[/i] offramp, and stop, leaving your hands on the wheel (which I did except for the XX chromosomes). I also added to this that the MSF courses say the same thing, and I was conscientiously signaling to him with my hand, hazards, and slowing down. He said (correctly) that I am not a woman, and that he didn't think the shoulder was unsafe (but due to the muffler ticket, I deigned not to tell him that the car was powerful and tricky in situations like that), and that I should have pulled over.
He told me I had been fleeing arrest for 1.3 miles and he had to cancel the call for backup(!) that was coming after me, "low-speed chase". At any rate, he runs the plate (it's my wife's!) and my infos and whatever else and notices, correctly, that I am not the sort of guy who does that. He then gets down to the muffler. I said, hey, grab a flashlight, and you'll see it's got Subaru written on it. Let me show you under the hood, the seats, the intercooler and intake, the giant (relatively) wheels and rubber (245s) or even my owner's manual. At this point he got stupider and told me that the fitment of the muffler and associated parts was not up to OEM standards and therefore must be illegal. Additionally, he told me that dealers frequently add aftermarket parts to cars, and I had likely been the victim of this. Again, I pushed to show him the manual. My wife grabbed my arm in a "don't fsck with the cop" manouver. He again told me to shut up. Went back to his car again, and I realized that Coleman's sells bikes with aftermarket parts on their bikes from time to time, so it must be possible, but everything I had on my car was Subaru, CARB and EPA approved.
He wrote me this GIANT ticket and told me to go home. He asked me which direction I was going, and approved my going up westmoreland to the next exit, getting on 66, and going back to arlington (home). Along my route were two more staties on the shoulder. Perhaps coincidentally, but I doubt it, as he called for backup numerous times (in 1.3 miles!!!).
Relevant details:
my car is stock. The exception to this is a SPT axle back and an SPT intake and heat shield. I don't have any fancy turbo or fmic, nothing between the turbo and the axle-back (like a DP, UP, headers, etc).
The guy who pulled me over was a VA trooper.
He did not cite me for speeding because I *wasn't*.
He was driving a crown vic, not the chrysler cars they have down on 95N into DC.
Officer was incredibly abrasive. Numerous times he told me if I said another word, I was going to jail. I never once raised my voice, I never once disobeyed his orders, and I asked to speak with him every time I had something to say because his cadence was a little weird. Eventually we had a sort of conversation. Most of it was him berating me.
He did acknowledge that I am allowed to pull off the freeway if it's unsafe. He said that in the future I should just pull right over, right then. I don't think that's true. It also upsets me that if my wife had been driving, there would have been no problem because she as magical chromosomes.
Officer's name is written mostly legibly as "TPR. 3,A. Naylor" there's an additional note saying his "code" is 7241. I don' know what that means.
importantly, Don Beyer has given me (well, is giving me) the order for the installation on every part on the car. I have all my maintenance logs including gas (!) and every detail of maintenance has been done at DBS. I still have my window sticker. We're just now at 32,000 miles and the folder we use for organizing the Z and the 'Ru is monstrous.
It might be difficult for other people to slip out of this than for me (I fully expect to win that $30 back!) because we have all the paperwork. From what I can tell at tacos (RIP) is the car is quieter than anyone else's. I also park next to a guy who has a WRX that clearly makes a lot more power than I do, and he has gotten the illegal muffler ticket so many times he restored to the stock pipes. I have now gotten eight pull-overs for this exhaust. Only one ticket, but jeez, it's an awful pain.
Sorry this is so long. I am just so stunned this happened. Of all things I could get a felony for, "fleeing" the police is the last thing I'd ever be arrested and jailed for.
On Saturday we were returning from a funeral in Ashton (BFE) and I happened upon what looked like a traffic stop where the offender had just pulled away. Having noted the cop, I looked down and checked my speedo, and I noticed I was going 55 (yes, I drive like an old woman most of the time). As we pulled away, I kept my eye on the cop muxed with traffic. Sure enough, the turn signal came on and he did one of those hat-trick manouvers they all do, and accelerated at what must have been WOT. He immediately came to my trunk, when I put one hand up in the car so he could notice I had seen him. I turned on my hazards, and slowed to 45. The cop was never further than six front from me after that.
The shoulder of 66 inbound from the spur off of 267 was not only soaking wet, but it was cold, and of course it's a "soft shoulder" with lots of gravel. I didn't stop on the shoulder, waved my hands in the rearview to let him know I was still aware he was there. I proceeded to get off at the exit before Westmoreland (I think... it's the first exit on the inbound 66 after the spur), and the cop went completely batshit insane. He jumped the curb, a con, and a inter-lane barricade to put his car in front of mine. (Remember, both of us had been very close, and had never exceeded 45)
I was then stopped on the ramp, and the cop rushed out of the car, hands on his weapon, but not drawn (I have a carry permit, which shows up any time my license is checked in VA; I customarily get asked "are you carrying?" when I get pulled over) and came to my window, which I rolled down. He was out of breath and said "What the (expletive) are you doing?" I told him that I was pulling to the next exit because I didn't feel the shoulder was a safe place (and I really worried that we'd rain gravel on his car!). He gets all assertive and says something akin to "you're going to that driveway there, and stay in it till you're arrested." Wow, I thought, what happened?
I pull next to him after parking on the indicated driveway, and asked him to explain. After telling me to shut up a bunch of times, he finally answered the question, saying he had been using his radar gun and my car was louder than his gun. Sure enough, he said, when he looked at the radar, there were cars speeding, and I wasn't one of them. Because I was not speeding and I was loud there was no doubt that my car was illegal, specifically illegally loud. How's that for some of the most backwards logic you've ever heard?
I confirmed that I was not speeding. He asked me for PAPERS PLEASE and I gave him everything. He came back and said, okay, you're getting arrested for fleeing arrest and an illegal muffler ($30 ticket...). I explained that in every drives ed class I've had, they say, if you're a woman and it's dark, pull to the nearest lit[/i] offramp, and stop, leaving your hands on the wheel (which I did except for the XX chromosomes). I also added to this that the MSF courses say the same thing, and I was conscientiously signaling to him with my hand, hazards, and slowing down. He said (correctly) that I am not a woman, and that he didn't think the shoulder was unsafe (but due to the muffler ticket, I deigned not to tell him that the car was powerful and tricky in situations like that), and that I should have pulled over.
He told me I had been fleeing arrest for 1.3 miles and he had to cancel the call for backup(!) that was coming after me, "low-speed chase". At any rate, he runs the plate (it's my wife's!) and my infos and whatever else and notices, correctly, that I am not the sort of guy who does that. He then gets down to the muffler. I said, hey, grab a flashlight, and you'll see it's got Subaru written on it. Let me show you under the hood, the seats, the intercooler and intake, the giant (relatively) wheels and rubber (245s) or even my owner's manual. At this point he got stupider and told me that the fitment of the muffler and associated parts was not up to OEM standards and therefore must be illegal. Additionally, he told me that dealers frequently add aftermarket parts to cars, and I had likely been the victim of this. Again, I pushed to show him the manual. My wife grabbed my arm in a "don't fsck with the cop" manouver. He again told me to shut up. Went back to his car again, and I realized that Coleman's sells bikes with aftermarket parts on their bikes from time to time, so it must be possible, but everything I had on my car was Subaru, CARB and EPA approved.
He wrote me this GIANT ticket and told me to go home. He asked me which direction I was going, and approved my going up westmoreland to the next exit, getting on 66, and going back to arlington (home). Along my route were two more staties on the shoulder. Perhaps coincidentally, but I doubt it, as he called for backup numerous times (in 1.3 miles!!!).
Relevant details:
my car is stock. The exception to this is a SPT axle back and an SPT intake and heat shield. I don't have any fancy turbo or fmic, nothing between the turbo and the axle-back (like a DP, UP, headers, etc).
The guy who pulled me over was a VA trooper.
He did not cite me for speeding because I *wasn't*.
He was driving a crown vic, not the chrysler cars they have down on 95N into DC.
Officer was incredibly abrasive. Numerous times he told me if I said another word, I was going to jail. I never once raised my voice, I never once disobeyed his orders, and I asked to speak with him every time I had something to say because his cadence was a little weird. Eventually we had a sort of conversation. Most of it was him berating me.
He did acknowledge that I am allowed to pull off the freeway if it's unsafe. He said that in the future I should just pull right over, right then. I don't think that's true. It also upsets me that if my wife had been driving, there would have been no problem because she as magical chromosomes.
Officer's name is written mostly legibly as "TPR. 3,A. Naylor" there's an additional note saying his "code" is 7241. I don' know what that means.
importantly, Don Beyer has given me (well, is giving me) the order for the installation on every part on the car. I have all my maintenance logs including gas (!) and every detail of maintenance has been done at DBS. I still have my window sticker. We're just now at 32,000 miles and the folder we use for organizing the Z and the 'Ru is monstrous.
It might be difficult for other people to slip out of this than for me (I fully expect to win that $30 back!) because we have all the paperwork. From what I can tell at tacos (RIP) is the car is quieter than anyone else's. I also park next to a guy who has a WRX that clearly makes a lot more power than I do, and he has gotten the illegal muffler ticket so many times he restored to the stock pipes. I have now gotten eight pull-overs for this exhaust. Only one ticket, but jeez, it's an awful pain.
Sorry this is so long. I am just so stunned this happened. Of all things I could get a felony for, "fleeing" the police is the last thing I'd ever be arrested and jailed for.