Because these countries are run by nanny-state do-gooders who heard the phrase "so much fun it oughta be illegal" and thought it was meant to be taken literally.
I get it, people have literally been killed by dodgy Chinese cast wheels before. Same for steely banding done wrong. Though this is not the standard across Europe. Many European countries are quite happy to allow a wheel swap and exhaust change, here in UK I just have to make sure my insurer is aware of the change, that the wheels don't protrude from the wheel arch (simple arch extensions are fine to counter this) and with exhaust, I still comply with sound and emissions laws.
To me, it smells of the California "visual inspection" garbage. The way California works, it doesn't even matter if your car sniffs cleaner than it did stock, if certain parts (intake tubes seem to be one of them) haven't been approved by the California Air Resources Board, then the car is an Evil Gas Guzzling Planet Destroying Hot Rod and must not be allowed to drive on the street. It's BS and everyone knows it's BS, but too many people are making too much money off it for it to ever go away. The stuff that happens in Europe seems to me to be the same thing, only sanctioned on a national level and even more intrusive/expensive/annoying. Considering what I've heard about Italy - no one approved to homologate modifications operates within their borders, so they just tow you off for anything right down to a non-stock tire size unless you go to Germany to get approved - it sounds like it might actually be an EU thing rather than a national thing, in which case it's even worse (blatant and petty erosion of national sovereignity).
No, its a national thing not an EU thing. And if my car is cleaner than stock? That's perfectly fine by the law here, if it's dirtier then that's an issue, but I can file some paperwork and just pay more tax on it
It's not like that anymore, but you still need to have your registration certificate updated and the vehicle inspected and approved upon extensive testing. Which is perfectly fine to me.
Really! See, I am an avid modifier of vehicles... I can do just about anything that I want to my car and no one will bat an eye. As long as factory emissions systems are still in place (or better than standard), the brakes can stop the vehicle in a shorter distance than the highway code, I have some form of a muffler under the car (can be straight through even), and the factory or better suspension components are in place... I can do just about whatever I want. I even asked my insurance company (progressive) and they said that as long as the car's structural integrity isn't messed with in any way and the brakes are functional, they will still cover me. There are almost no limits to what I can do.
On the topic of legal vehicle modifications, the great state of Ohio wins again. No regulations of engine modifications, size, or emissions in all but 6 counties (even then, the emissions standards are lose). Exhaust must be muffled and can allow no more than 70 dB under 35 mph, or 79 dB above 35 MPH. There's limits for how high a vehicle may be lifted, but not lowered. And there's limits for sound systems that the one I put in my car most definitely doesn't follow.
Huh... I didn't even know there was such a thing as a sound system regulation. I live in PA (next state over from Ohio for anyone that doesn't know) and our regulations seem to be very similar except on just one count... We need to have yearly vehicle inspections (depending on who you get to do them you can get some truly shocking stuff to pass... talking from experience here) where as, I have heard, you guys don't? How exactly does that work? Does a cop just pull you over and tell you that you have to get the car fixed when they deem it to visually look unsafe or what?
Pretty much exactly like that. Say you have a white bulb where an amber one should be: you'll be pulled over and fined an absolutely outrageous amount. It's basically a trust system thing. Works well from what I've seen.
I don't think you'd ever get pulled over for something like that. Around here at least, in east Tennessee. If you get pulled over for having a white bulb where an amber one should be, the cop was just looking for a reason to mess with you. You'll maybe get pulled over for a taillight or headlight out, but even then it's still sort of a "bored cop looking for someone to mess with" type of thing. And it's a pretty cheap ticket.
In florida, pretty much anything with wheels and a VIN# can be registered and insured. People actually can get license plates on things like golf carts and donks that are raised 3 feet. I have also seen trucks with over 5 feet of ground clearance next to me at a stoplight where its undercarrage was above the roof of the stock pickup I was in (they probably needed to use a helicopter to get in). Trust me, having regulations can sometimes be a good thing when done properly.
No wonder americans rice the sh*t out of their cars. The worst i've ever seen on the road was an exaggerated F&F-style body kit, and some slightly oversized wheels. Meanwhile you yanks are dragging around 10 foot high spoilers and ridiculous camber settings that make the car look like it really needs to use a toilet. Either that or all the lifted bro-trucks that likely won't see a speck of dirt in their lifetime, and are prone to rolling over as soon as the cross-winds become any stronger than a toddler's cough. I'm incredibly jealous, needless to say
Well... when I say I like to modify my stuff... I usually do it within reason... not like the whole rice crowd... and when I build a truck (half way through a K10 right now... its GOING to go off road... I guarantee it.
I've seen it, and I've been pulled for it. Hamilton County (next one over from mine, needs to be flattened) tried to drill me for a cool $200 for a white bulb in a turn signal. Car wasn't even mine, disputed that shit basically immediately. I won, fuck you Hamilton County Sheriff's Office.
Yeah, depends on the agency and every cop is different. Knox County deputies hate writing tickets, but Knoxville police officers will give you a ticket for 5 over. Back when I kept exploding headlight bulbs in the Yukon I passed probably 10 deputies at night with a headlight out and didn't get pulled over. I think that cop had it out for you.
My dad drove around for the better part of two years with a smashed headlight and no turn signal after hitting a pole in his 4Runner and no one batted an eyelash. It definitely depends on where you are.
