cops (and side mirrors)
 

i got pulled over for not having external mirrors and the cop told me that i dont need a rearview mirror but i need outside mirrors. He even said i needed 2 when my car only came with 1. So i only got a fix it ticket but he told me i need them cuz im not driving in nascar, which insulted me cuz i was going 5 under Psl and have 51mpg written on my back glass. but its civic stereotyping i guess

civic stereotyping? Never heard of the stereotype of civic owners driving slowly with no mirrors. More likely he doesn't know the rules he is policing (pretty sure passenger mirror is optional anyway) and he's concerned about highway safety... being a cop.

At least it was just a fix-it. Pull up the rules in your state regarding mirrors, comply and go get your ticket punched.

Florida Vehicle Code:

"316.294 Mirrors.--Every vehicle, operated singly or when towing any other vehicle, shall be equipped with a mirror so located as to reflect to the driver a view of the highway for a distance of at least 200 feet to the rear of the motor vehicle. A violation of this section is a noncriminal traffic infraction, punishable as a nonmoving violation as provided in chapter 318. ":)

ZING! I hope your fix-it ticket has a badge number or name on it so you can file a complaint. It must be frustrating to have the police ticket you because they don't know the rules of their own road.

Since when cops can read ? They are in "write only" mode ;) </joking>

Denis.

(noting irony) :D

That sucks! I hope you can get it worked out since obviously you're in the right here.

The law's in your favor. If you have an interior, left-hand, rear-view mirror, prove that it complies with the rear road view of 200-feet and you're good.

By the way, I get the "Civic Stereotype" reference. I had a '99 Si and got crap for it often. The worst was when an officer brushed the tall spoiler purposely with his hand, like "got another one". I thought to myself, "don't touch my car!"

It didn't go well -- his attitude was already in the crapper.

In NC you have to have both a left outside and interior rear view mirror, with the exception of larger trucks where the interior mirror wouldn't do any good because of the box or trailer behind it. I wasn't sure about the law on that until a few weeks ago and I had to get one of the cars inspected and the person who does my inspections is a friend and he said he couldn't pass it until I got the interior rear view mirror glued back onto the windshield. Yeah it had been off for months, I just kept putting off putting it back on.

You are lucky that he did not give you a ticket for obstruction of view.

I belong to SRT Forum and TONS of the younger drivers with SRT4s are targets because of the taller than normal spoiler. Lots are removing them completely or replacing them with the smaller non-SRT4 versions. Unlike my Horizon, ALL the decals on my SRT4 are on magnetic backing so when I drive on the street I am in stealth mode....also is neat when my plain jane car blows away those idiots with huge tires and even hood scoops, or the poor Mustang, Camaro, GTO, Vette, or even fellow SRT8 owner gets flat blown away by a 12 second Neon!:eek:

I dunno about all this though... sure you're in the right and you don't have to comply with his faulty fix-it... but I'm a big fan of my mirrors. My father owns a trucking company and was a driver in his own company for many years. He taught me to drive and I've learned that mirrors are more important than your windshield at times. I just wouldn't want to be in a sitauation where i'm in a car with no mirrors and some tiny Lotus or kit-car single-seater is at my fender and I can't see it and i take him out.

Put in an anon call to your insurance company, too... they may deny claims if you are not using mirrors.

apparently in the area i got pulled over my car is profiled for minorities...so thats apparently why i got pulled over (my neighbor an ex-cop told me) i put the outside mirror on to get the ticket signed and the cop who did that told me i was fine w/out it so i took it off as soon as i get home
p.s. i have internal convex mirrors that allow me to see better than normal mirrors
ie i have no blind spot

I'm sorry to hear that racism is acceptable in your jurisdiction.

also from my ricer days i have a slightly loud exhaust which didnt help the civic/ricer stereotype

This is a H U G E problem for the SRT4 owners...they are loud STOCK, When pulled over and the officer makes a visual check of the chassis he sees that there are NO mufflers! This is the way the car comes from the factory so lots of us print off a page from the parts dept that shows what the stock exhaust is supposed to look like. I changed to a 3" system WITH a muffler and it is louder than stock!

That's the problem with devices that have the PERCEPTION of speed... that 3" pipe isn't making your car any better, but it sure as hell is drawing unnecessary police attention! On the flip side, what the hell does the perception of speed have to do with breaking the law? Police need to learn to back off and pull over the drunks and vacant-minded drivers instead of the kids with big pipes or no mirrors.

3" exhaust will give it a deeper tone though, could be quieter in some cases.

While heading North on I35 from Dallas near the TX-OK border, a DPS patrol car (TX state police & yes they can read ;)) followed me for several miles. My car had no outside mirrors, no front license plate, and the rear license plate is under the car & difficult to see.

After a few L O N G minutes, the officer pulled along side my magenta chopped '33 Ford sedan :turtle:, gave me a smile :) and a thumbs up :thumbup: and went on his way looking for :D Civics.

yea my exhaust is about like that its deeper than most ricer exhausts cuz its a magnaflow exhaust

<Off Topic>

Chrysler made a huge mistake with getting rid of the Neon. It simply needed a refresh instead of big, wagon-like replacement. I was always amazed by the handling -- they would seriously tear-up the autocross track (especially the ACR). Then the SRT-4 redefined "pocket-rocket" and created a following in circles such as Drag and Rally racing. Then poof -- enter the Caliber. Performance went back to expensive V-8s or 10's and out of the compact genre and others moved in.

I personally wouldn't drive a Neon that wasn't an SRT-4. I'm not a big fan of the way they look, nor the way they feel while driving. It's a personal thing though.

I helped a friend build one with more nitrous than a dentist's office, and we both knew he would blow it, but the way it happened was rather amusing:

1st pass: 14.266 100-shot
2nd Pass: 12.550 250-shot, too much tire spin to call it a run.
3rd Pass: 52.571 back to 100-shot, rod through block, slow responding tow vehicle, noone stopped the timer until the car broke the photo-beam.

It was fun to show those time slips to the guys back at the shop, we all had a beer and started building again.

I would tend to agree that it was a mistake to get rid of the Neon though. I may consider buying a used one for my wife's next car.

I'll agree -- I likely wouldn't have bought one -- I went for a Mitsu turbo at the time (not really a Mopar guy).

But having rented the milquetoast, automatic varieties, I realized that the chassis was very solid and promoted a good balance in handling. Then, there are the head gasket issues on some years and auto-trans issues.

The point being, it was the manufacturer's smallest, most affordable and efficient offering -- even with an affordable, ground-breaking sport model in the same box. It hasn't sufficiently been replaced and left a gaping hole in the segment.

-Rick

Gee.. no wonder they want a subsidy from the gov't... they keep getting rid of what we want, and replacing it with what they want us to want.

Legacy automobili.

If I were to get a Neon for my wife, or even for myself, I'd probably get a base model and swap in the Mitsu 4G61 or 4G15. (1.5 or 1.6 motors from x-gen Mirage. The 1.6 was also available in a Turbo option, making it more likely for someone like me to xfer.

Obviously, it's pretty easy to find a Neon w/a blown engine, making a perfect candidate for a swap.

They actually made a big mistake when they price the lowly Horizon/Omni out of existence in 1990. If they kept making them we could have seen their version of the VW Rabbit updated continually. You could get the Omni GLHS with 175 hp and with a few feet of vacuum line and a bleed off valve you could get over 200.

The caliber has a more refined, but heavier SRT4 model available with a whoping 285 hp from the new world 2.4!:eek:

Mine BONE stock ran 13.86-13.89 at 100+ 1st time out and now runs in the 12.7 range with a slightly modded Stage 2 set up.....and street tires.....because I am too lazy and cheap to use slicks...drive it there and drive it home. I have used NOS on cars since the late 80s and your figures show that your set up was not installed correctly. The stock short blocks on these cars can handle 500 hp so your 480 hp with the 250 shot was not over that amount. Chances are you were way too lean to run that poorly and end up hurting it.

About 90 hp shot should put that car on a 12.5 second pass when it is set up correctly.

I traded a 98 Neon with base motor for the SRT4 in Feb. The 98 ran 14.8 on a modded 2.0 SOHC and ripped of a 12.11 at 117 with a 125 hp shot. The wifes 99 Mazda Miata MX5 ran barely in the 15s on motor and a 100 shot got a 12.65 at 109 before I got kicked out for no roll bar. I used to have a 85 Omni GLH that ran 14.0 on motor and a kick ass 11.79 at 119 with 140 hp shot.

BTW, my 98 Neon would get 41 mpg all day long when kept under 63 mph!

Those times weren't using a SRT-4, they were using a (94-ish) Neon Expresso, with a stock motor (420A?).

Why would I say something about SRT-4's being the only Neon I'd drive, then laugh about how poor their performance was, even with nitrous installed?

I'm sure we were running lean, which is why the engine blew... there wasn't a straight rod in that motor when we got to it, and we had to clean off the track with a broom, because not just one, but 3 rods went out the side.

Apparently, when you're running really lean, at high RPM, with enough dynamic compression to liquefy your insides (In theory), the rods start to become squishy... whodathunkit??

We only did it for fun anyway, so he could put the SRT-4 apparatus in it. Never ended up doing it though.

Now you are clear. The Neon 2.0 motors could only take @ 300 hp on stock internals...I bet it was on the verge of blowing with the 250 hp shot, I am sure the damage already started.

The 420A is actually the tranny. Decently stout piece.

Commenting on the original topic (mirrors), the law is not on anyone's side in this case. While the aforementioned Florida state law does not speak of outside mirrors directly, you have to remember that this is merely in addition to federal laws. Federal laws are very clear that outside mirrors are required for all vehicles (the number and locations of mirrors depends on the vehicle's visibility but a non-convex driver side external mirror is a must for everyone). Check this out for more clarification: http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...html#post69331

Sorry for the lack of clarity... What is the motor code that was in the neons? (Also, the 1.8 SOHC in the Eclipse, if different.)

PM it, so we don't keep going off topic on this..

does anyone know that laws for virginia, on have side mirrors

Inspection rules say check for firm attachment and 200' visibility.
Virginia State Police

Windows tint law says that if you want to tint, you need both mirrors.
Virginia Window Tint Law
Court case about broken side mirror. Must have login to access full article from this site, free registration (August 2007):
Virginia, August, 2007, State Case law | LexisOne
based on the court case, you don't need a passenger mirror in VA if you have center and rearview.

If that is the actual vehicle code for Florida, it stands that we could get away with sideview cameras as long as we have a functional rear view mirror meeting said requirements ..