Police Raid Car Enthusiast Gathering, Generate Revenue

[Old Moparz]

Again, why do you think it's up to you or anyone else to decide what people need? Would you like to come over to my house and explain to me why I don't need my guns or my fishing poles or my Kitchen Aid mixer or fuzzy covers on my toilet lids? Is it really your concern?

THOSE FUZZY COVERS SUCK!! 

I was over someones house once that had one that was so thick & padded the lid wouldn't stay up. I lifted it trying to relieve meself, & right in the middle of going, it fell back down. Scared the crap out of me when it slammed down & not to mention how freakin' wet it got since I was flowing full stream.   

I'm glad my wife doesn't like them or I'd pull it off & burn the damn thing. 

[twenty mike mike]

Unfortunately, older cars in CA are NOT exempt from smog laws, they are just exempt from the inspection every other year if they're 1975 or older. By law, the smog junk still has to be installed and operational. Until a couple of years ago, there was a rolling exemption so the year of the cars that required inspection would ratchet up every year, but now it's stuck at '75.

Soooo, a Mopar Club meet in a parking lot could be subject to the same harassment as the ricers. CA required smog equipment long before other states, so all Chargers here must have (by law) all the CA smog equipment. Yeah, I know it's not realistic, laws often aren't.

It's probably not likely that the cops would harass people at an organized event, or bother with the older cars, but the option is open for them. If you get stopped for speeding or some other vehicle infraction, the cop can certainly check for smog equipment and add that to your ticket.

[HITMAN 149]

Again, why do you think it's up to you or anyone else to decide what people need? Would you like to come over to my house and explain to me why I don't need my guns or my fishing poles or my Kitchen Aid mixer or fuzzy covers on my toilet lids? Is it really your concern?

THOSE FUZZY COVERS SUCK!! 

I was over someones house once that had one that was so thick & padded the lid wouldn't stay up. I lifted it trying to relieve meself, & right in the middle of going, it fell back down. Scared the crap out of me when it slammed down & not to mention how freakin' wet it got since I was flowing full stream.   

I'm glad my wife doesn't like them or I'd pull it off & burn the damn thing. 

OMG!!! LMFAO!!!!!!!!!! 
funny cause i'm on both sides of the fence on this one!!! hmmmmm illegal street racing kills lots of kids & innocent people!! and then again on the other hand... kinda douche that you take your blood sweat & tears car that you worked your asssss off to buy parts for & fix up... and next thing you know your getting tickets for just for hanging out!! and yesssss... what's stopping this from happening at ANY show that we bring our muscle cars too?!?!? yes most likely...when they were gonna leave the show.. they would prob have gottin into a few races..or speed away down the road... JUST like when a bunch of muscle cars leave a show... I'M sure NO ONE HERE HAS EVER BURNED OUT!?!?!?!? lol!! 
it's tough being an enthusiast and a copppper too.

[defiance]

If you can CLEARLY explain why someone NEEDS a blower attached to their 440 or NEEDS NOS attached to the car they drive to and from school or whatever Id certainly like to hear it.

First you CLEARLY explain to me why you NEEDS a 318 in a dodge charger and not a 1.x liter in a honda.  It will do the things you've listed QUITE well.  And you keep going back to 600HP - That's stock in some cars.  Oh, and while you're at it, how much you want to bet over half those ricers didn't have as much power as your 318?  How can you miss the hypocricy of criticizing their search for more power on the basis of "they don't NEED it" while you've got a car with more?

[68charger383]

OMG!!! LMFAO!!!!!!!!!! 
funny cause i'm on both sides of the fence on this one!!! hmmmmm illegal street racing kills lots of kids & innocent people!! and then again on the other hand... kinda douche that you take your blood sweat & tears car that you worked your asssss off to buy parts for & fix up... and next thing you know your getting tickets for just for hanging out!! and yesssss... what's stopping this from happening at ANY show that we bring our muscle cars too?!?!? yes most likely...when they were gonna leave the show.. they would prob have gottin into a few races..or speed away down the road... JUST like when a bunch of muscle cars leave a show... I'M sure NO ONE HERE HAS EVER BURNED OUT!?!?!?!? lol!! 
it's tough being an enthusiast and a copppper too.

Well I think it was said a few posts up, we paid our dues or tickets and now its their turn. Cops aren't going to bust in on a cruise night with drivers and spectators who are in the 30-60 age bracket who have the $ and the voice in the community to raise some hell. I saw a recent video of coffee and cars which goes on every Saturday in Irvine, CA and it was a whose/who of motorsports, a congressman, Ferrari's...people with power&cash. They were doing burnouts on the way out of the show. These kids in Riverside, I wasn't there, but would guess they were under 25 in age, are easy prey. Just like we were at that age, they meet up to show off the car, drink beers, meet some girls, maybe race! 

Almost every one of the cars will have something illegal or wrong with it which would allow them to get a ticket. They don't have the pull in the community to make the cops think twice about doing it or appear in court and fight it. Young kid/Ricer=guilty. Just like when we were younger. I'm not saying its right, but that is usually how it goes and how it has gone for a long time.

[Musicman]

We use to have a drag strip here in CT, but they shut it down years ago.... Consumer Reports uses it now for vehicle testing. However, a recent article has surfaced in the news which stated that Street Racers (Tuners) have become such a problem in the populated city areas (another big surprise) that they are now talking about reopening the local drag strip, which will hopefully encouraging these folks to use it.

As far as cops harassing car guys... we see them here too, but only at the Tuner events. As many others have already stated... Tuner and Muscle car guys are for the most part, two separate worlds of thought and behavior. As a Muscle car owner, I do not go out of my way to harass Tuners. I do not attempt to chase them down or get on their ass. I do not pull up to the stop light and challenge them. I do not weave and hover around them in traffic. However, when I am out driving in my 67, the tuner guys see the car and start acting like mosquito's at a picnic. Their a nuisance, you swat one, and a few seconds later theres another one bothering you. Not all mind you... many of them are just car guys like you & me... they just happen to be tuner guys... and there's nothing wrong with that. Unfortunately, they seem to be somewhat of a minority. If tuners are having trouble with the police harassing them, then they have probably brought it upon themselves. I don't agree with it, but I really don't think its that much different than the 50's when the police would harass the street rod crowd. A lot of drag strips popped up out of that era.

[Drache]

I dont know maybe its from losing a friend from street racing (wasnt racing just driving home from work) that I believe that something needs to be done! Everyone is taking this way out of hand and is getting a little pissy on it, hell I was just having fun ruffling some feathers. But I do believe that people need to EARN the right to drive their high powered vehicles, there's a reason you can lock out the top gear on new corvettes and such.

and jeez bull, did I SAY anything about taking away guns, hell I use a gun, I was trained with guns and Ive used them for work. What I was saying is there is no need for handguns or fully automatics or silencers outside of law enforcement or the military. But someone comes to take my hunting rifles and shotguns, then they better come armed.

And Im not saying only ricers ARE to blame for street racing, but they are the current major factor just as Chargers and such were back in thr 60s and 70s! And yes I know about cars with 600hp stock and personally I think they are nothing more than major league penis enlargements! One car magazine stated that 10% of Dodge vipers are destroyed 10minutes after purching and 90% of dodge viper accidents were with the cars in 1st or 2nd gear! I dont think just anyone should be able to dump down a shit load of money and buy a car they cant even handle!

Now bull to keep your testosterone levels down before an old man like you has a heart attack... I personally believe that everyone here can handle their vehicles because of experience. That was the point I was trying to make. As for these kids, Id bet that at least a quarter of them were known street racers and the cops just had them all together.

You streetrace with your Charger and yeah I hope you get slammed to the wall along with these punks, but I doubt you would. There is no argument or defense for street racing! In my fathers day it was the thing to do but they never did it down town Vancouver or some major city where if they lost control of their cars they could wipe out pedestrians or other innocent drivers. They took their Chargers, Chevelles, Mustangs and such outside city limits into the "back roads", staked it off, and raced that way, and you know what, the cops back then turned a blind eye to it because the only people hurt would have been the drivers.

[Brock Samson]

i found a car for ya' Drache...
 

   http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/toronto/archive/2008/04/03/163847.aspx

[Drache]

i found a car for ya' Drache...
 

   http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/toronto/archive/2008/04/03/163847.aspx

actually if you read a post I created Im picking up a '76 Aspen on Monday or Tuesday

and bull do fuzzy toilet seat covers really do anything?

Feels like this smiley suits me right about now:

[Brock Samson]

yeah,.. they keep my buns warm while in the Library, but the clean up is a beiotch... 

[Drache]

there you go Cody, the heat is off you and back onto me! 

[pettyfan43]

Maybe Im just the rare one here that thinks street racing is wrong... personally if someone has NOS on their car its no different that a huge assed blower sticking up from the hood. You don't need those things in a daily driver!

You drive around here with a huge assed blower sticking out of your hood you will get pulled over, simple as that. Same with illegally tinted windows! Some of these laws were put in place to save lives of innocent people! No one needs a 600hp daily driver anymore in my opinion, but you want to have that car on the track/strip, I'll be the first person in line drooling over it.

So you honestly think that performance modification of a vehicle is wrong?  You think it's wrong of me to shoot for 600hp in the build I'm building right now, simply because I "don't need it"?  Well, you know what, YOU don't need a CHARGER either.  Such a heavy body is wasteful and pointless, and the engine has WELL beyond the amount of power you need for daily driving, so you should not be allowed by law to own or drive it.  Seriously, you don't NEED more than a honda, so why should you be allowed to have it?
Think what you want, as long as I can think what I want about the hypocricy inherent in your opinion.  But when legislation begins making these decisions for us, something is broken.

At least we agree that the warrantless searches were wrong.


Having said that, in another article about this subject, there were reports that the owner of the parking lot had complained repeatedly and that the center's customers had been endangered, and that there were rampant skidmarks and burnout marks around, so not quite as black & white as this article paints.  Not condoning the actions of the police, simply saying there is more to it.

Holy CRAP!!!!! Defiance and I actually AGREE COMPLETELY on this issue!!!!!!!!!!!!!  IS the earth's rotation reversing, DID Hell actually FREEZE OVER?!?!!?!?


IF they were somewhere they were asked NOT to be, then they asked for it! If that's how it happened, then they should have stayed away when asked to.

As far as Drache, My 66 and 73 Chargers BOTH came with 318s originally, my 66 now has a 440 in it with a LOT more power and torque that was original in the car.

MY car should be IMPOUNDED according to your bent logic and reasoning. Defiance shouldn't own his car because he has customized his car and is building a NICE engine for it. Who are YOU to decide what OTHER people should have?  Just because a car is rebuilt for BETTER performance, DOES NOT mean the owner is a BONEHEAD who will street race, and if I want 500 HP worth of 440 in MY car, which was built by ME and using MY MONEY, I have EVERY RIGHT to do EXACTLY that, and YOU have no bearing in what I am able to do.

You may forget, the CONSTITUTION of this country GUARANTEES - LIFE, LIBERTY and the PURSUIT of HAPPINESS.  YOUR opinion DOES NOT change that and DOES NOT override that!!!! IF you don't like that I have a hot rod, GET OVER IT!  Everybody DOES NOT build their car to suit YOU, they build them for THEMSELVES.

In other words, your opinion don't mean much!

[pettyfan43]

Maybe Im just the rare one here that thinks street racing is wrong... personally if someone has NOS on their car its no different that a huge assed blower sticking up from the hood. You don't need those things in a daily driver!

You drive around here with a huge assed blower sticking out of your hood you will get pulled over, simple as that. Same with illegally tinted windows! Some of these laws were put in place to save lives of innocent people! No one needs a 600hp daily driver anymore in my opinion, but you want to have that car on the track/strip, I'll be the first person in line drooling over it.

So you honestly think that performance modification of a vehicle is wrong?  You think it's wrong of me to shoot for 600hp in the build I'm building right now, simply because I "don't need it"?  Well, you know what, YOU don't need a CHARGER either.  Such a heavy body is wasteful and pointless, and the engine has WELL beyond the amount of power you need for daily driving, so you should not be allowed by law to own or drive it.  Seriously, you don't NEED more than a honda, so why should you be allowed to have it?
Think what you want, as long as I can think what I want about the hypocricy inherent in your opinion.  But when legislation begins making these decisions for us, something is broken.

At least we agree that the warrantless searches were wrong.


Having said that, in another article about this subject, there were reports that the owner of the parking lot had complained repeatedly and that the center's customers had been endangered, and that there were rampant skidmarks and burnout marks around, so not quite as black & white as this article paints.  Not condoning the actions of the police, simply saying there is more to it.

Wow... just wow....

So just because I dont believe that someone needs a 600hp daily driver means I shouldn't be looking at chargers. Im talking about a STOCK vehicle compared to a vehicle that is done to the nuts with things like NOS and Blowers. A hemi is stock at what, 425hp? Oh well, its a STOCK CLASSIC VEHICLE. The only engines ever been in my chargers were 318's and they were just fine for what I wanted to do.

I helped build a couple "drag vehicles" that were also road worthy and each one of them ended up in the ditch, wrapped around a pole, bounced off a tree, etc. Not because they were bad drivers, but because with that much power most people want to use it when they shouldnt.

If you can CLEARLY explain why someone NEEDS a blower attached to their 440 or NEEDS NOS attached to the car they drive to and from school or whatever Id certainly like to hear it.

"Not because they were bad drivers, but because with that much power most people want to use it when they shouldnt."  OK Which is it, first you say it wasn't the driver, THEN you say it was. Which is it? I have NEVER had a car hit a tree, pole or ditch because it just decided it had enough and couldn't take it anymore!!!!

It's like the argument about Guns being a reason for crime. A gun is just a fancy paperweight until someone PICKS IT UP and shoots someone else.

Cars generally sit idle, until SOMEONE gets behind the wheel.  Even then, the car doesn't make too many of the decisions, (SARCASM ALERT) it is generally the DRIVER who choses to be responsible, or stupid. 

[Mike DC]

       

How to take a right away from the public, and get their consent every step of the way:


1.  Establish that it has killed one person.  Doesn't matter if it also saved millions, it just needs to kill one (white) person.

2.  When you start to "crack down on the violators" stick to distrusted minorities (that includes most teenagers) at first.

3.  Gradually expand the law's coverage wide enough to make a normal behavior into something technically illegal.



You can now issue regular fines to the public for something relatively normal, which functions as a tax. 

The richer classes live in less-patrolled areas and they can afford the fines.  So they are unaffected.  (But they are also terrified of minorites, so they will thank you for protecting them against this "threat.")

The poorer classes are disproportionately minorities, live in heavily-patrolled areas and also cannot afford to pay a lot of fines.  So now your society has one more tool to selectively criminalize and imprison the poor with.

[TheGhost]

Wow... just wow....

So just because I dont believe that someone needs a 600hp daily driver means I shouldn't be looking at chargers.

Who says they were daily drivers?

[70charginglizard]

Waste of time and money. Petty, nitpicking BS plain and simple. If they want to do some good there are hundreds of better uses for that money than to "raid" a bunch of ricer owners sitting in a parking lot.

I dont particularly like Import vehicles but in this case it doesn't seem like they were doing anything wrong here and should have been left alone.

[bull]

Again, why do you think it's up to you or anyone else to decide what people need? Would you like to come over to my house and explain to me why I don't need my guns or my fishing poles or my Kitchen Aid mixer or fuzzy covers on my toilet lids? Is it really your concern?

THOSE FUZZY COVERS SUCK!! 

I was over someones house once that had one that was so thick & padded the lid wouldn't stay up. I lifted it trying to relieve meself, & right in the middle of going, it fell back down. Scared the crap out of me when it slammed down & not to mention how freakin' wet it got since I was flowing full stream.   

I'm glad my wife doesn't like them or I'd pull it off & burn the damn thing. 

The fuzzy ones aren't as bad as the plastic padded ones. My mom just had to have those padded ones when I was a kid and I just got used to taking a leak while standing sideways to hold the lid up with my leg.

[TK73]

Hey Drache,

Just curious, why do you NEED rifles for hunting if there is a grocery store in driving distance... I don't ever recall NEEDING to hunt for my food, I just drop in Micky D's or Safeway... Are you that far out in the Great White North?

[Drache]

Hey Drache,

Just curious, why do you NEED rifles for hunting if there is a grocery store in driving distance... I don't ever recall NEEDING to hunt for my food, I just drop in Micky D's or Safeway... Are you that far out in the Great White North?

I don't eat beef as game meat is ALLOT more leaner and better for you. Until Save On Foods or Safeway stocks moose, deer, and bear, the only meat I buy from them is chicken breasts.