25 Ways to Get a Traffic Ticket that You Didn’t Know About
Getting a ticket is never fun. In fact, it’s often downright scary. That’s why preventing this situation from happening to you in the first place is ideal. A big key to prevention is knowledge, so staying up on your state laws will help keep you out of trouble.
Let’s face it, traffic laws are confusing. You could be ticketed for everything from the tiniest mechanical issue to driving completely recklessly.
Here are 25 things you might not realize can put a citation in your hand.
- Having headlights that are any other color but white
- In many states, you are not allowed to hang anything from your rear-view mirror that obstructs the driver’s view (even small things like air fresheners can get you in trouble!)
- Using your horn when it is not reasonably necessary
- Unsafe lane changes. Changing lanes without looking or weaving in and out of lanes can definitely get you in trouble
- Wearing a headset or earplugs that cover both ears
- Smoking in your car with a minor passenger is against the law in some states
- Any video screens being used for entertainment purposes must be behind and out of the driver’s visible area
- Your car alarm cannot sound like a siren
- A left-hand side mirror (driver’s side) is always required and must be able to reflect a distance no less than 200 feet to the rear
- Having any device in your car that changes traffic lights
- Although radar detectors are legal, any radar jamming device is not
- Playing your music too loudly (in California, if your music can be heard more than 50 feet outside your car, you can be cited)
- All passenger cars must have both a front and rear bumper
- Fog lamp colors must be in the color spectrum between white and yellow
- Two windshield wipers are typically required. Vehicles manufactured with a single wiper that meet the requirements for area covered are an exception
- Having too much window tinting. Most states have rules restricting the amount of tinting you are allowed to have on your windshield and other windows
- Tail lights that are burnt out or not working properly is a ticketable offense
- Your fuel spout must be covered at all times with the original cap, or with a cover made of non-combustible material
- Modifying the exhaust system of a motor vehicle that amplifies the sound and exceeding restricted noise level limits can get you in trouble
- Lowered vehicles (“Lowriders”) can be as low to the ground as desired, as long as no part of the car, including the frame, sits below the lowest part of the wheel rims
- Civilian vehicles cannot be painted in such a way that they resemble a law enforcement vehicle
- In 30 states, plus the District of Columbia, both rear and front license plates are required
- Most states have restrictions on the maximum frame height for cars and trucks, so be cautious when lifting your vehicle
- If your car was made after 1979, your brake lights must be red. The lights on vehicles older than 1979 must be either red or yellow
- Having an unsecured load on your vehicle, such as trucks hauling materials that are not sufficiently tied down, will get you pulled over
So, how’d you do? Were you aware that most of the issues above could spell trouble? Keep in mind that some of these laws are state-specific. But above all, obey the rules, avoid being a senseless driver, and you’ll save yourself the stress and hassle of an annoying traffic ticket.
I haven’t seen a semi pour out black smoke in ages, and the newer rigs burn an additive called “DEF” to regen the catalytic converter, has a nasty smell and the truck seems to always has that hot burning smell. Look inside the top of the stacks on those new trucks, there clean, and they stay clean.
These are actually technically banned in many scenarios. The blue tint on the headlights comes from HID Bulbs in most cases. The Blue/White headlights that mark the legal limit are the 8000K Bulbs and anything beyond that (8000K+), which does from that semi blue tone to purple and then to green. If you are at (risky) or under (preferable) the 8000K Mark, you cannot surpass the brightness level of 4300K, which is a bright white. Also your headlights must not clearly project on to the roadway in front of you for a distance of 75 feet or more, and must not be mounted in a way that could harm or endanger other drivers… So basically you aren’t allowed to be one of those jack ass people who blind everyone else on the road. Does that mean it doesn’t happen? Obviously not… But I believe this month, March 2015, marks the official start of new laws and regulations being enforced to bring these kinds of situations to an end. The newer laws are becoming a lot more strict… And while they may be sort of killing a person’s ability to personalize/customize their vehicles, I also see that it’s only getting to this point because of all those people taking it way too far. I.E. Lights so bright they blind, smoked out to a nearly invisible point, giant Diesel trucks pouring out black smoke and shattering windows with their 5″ Exhaust Stacks, “Rice Burners” with those annoyingly loud Glasspack/Cherry Bomb style Exhausts and mufflers, etc. As is with most situations… If it hadn’t become so prevalent for people to abuse those “Gray Area” Laws and cause so much danger, disturbance, and commotion, we might still be able to have some leeway and lenience with these types of laws when not being an irresponsible prick about it. Just goes back to that phrase… “One bad apple ruins the whole bunch.”
In the last decade I’ve seen those very high intensity, blue-tinted headlights. I think the color is just due to the kind of lamp being used. I’ve always found these to be particularly blinding. I haven’t seen as many in the last few years, maybe because they’ve been banned by state laws since they are so bright.
I agree they should be banned.
number 1 and number 9: False, Headlights may be any shade between yellow and white; number 9: Vehicles are required to have only 1 mirror (inside, such as rear view, or either side on the outside) so long as it has clear visibility of 200ft) source: texas state inspection handbook, and career doing state inspections
Thank you for chiming in from the great state of Texas. I’m kind of surprised about Texas not requiring a side-view mirror. To me, that is more important than a rear-view. But being a trucker, that’s what I’m used to. Also, I can tell you from personal experience that in Illinois you can get a ticket for amber headlights. (I got one once, a long time ago, when those clip-on amber lenses were all the rage back in the 80’s.) I didn’t write this article, or fact-check it. But it makes sense to me. Plus, I’m sure a lot of these vary from state to state.