Illegal car modifications
Penalties for illegal car modifications
Final word
Illegal car modifications
Illegal car modifications are things that someone can do to a vehicle for a variety of reasons that end up posing a safety risk to the occupants of that vehicle and/or other motorists on the road. A prime example is someone who has added purple flashing lights to the underside of their car. While it is not illegal to have this on your car in many cases, it is illegal to drive while these lights are on and flashing. Each state in the country has different laws regarding illegal vehicle modifications, many of these laws overlap with similarities while some do not. Let’s take a look at some illegal car modifications in Alaska:
- Noise increasing exhaust devices – This is anything that intentionally causes driving your vehicle to produce more sound and/or louder sound. “Whistle tips” are a prime example of this. That is when muffler openings are welded much more narrowly so as to create a continuous and high pitch “whistling” as a vehicle drives which resonates for several blocks.
- Removing pollution control devices/equipment – If you reduce the function of or entirely remove any pollution control devices it qualifies as illegally modifying your vehicle. People choose to remove or disable these because then the environmental sensors in their car will always pass it for inspection without having to get any expensive repairs.
- Too high of a frame – In Alaska, car frames can only be certain heights off the ground dependent on three weight ranges:
- 24-inch height maximum – 4,500lbs and under
- 26-inch height maximum – 4,500lbs and 7,500
- 28-inch height maximum – 7,500 and 10,000
- Over-the-top-tinting – Too dark of a tint for a vehicle’s windows can be dangerous because the driver will have a considerable amount less of visibility. In Alaska, illegal tints include tints on the lower 95% of the windshield, front driver and passenger side tints that block more than 30% of light and rear passenger windows that block more than 60% of light.
Penalties for illegal car modifications
As you might imagine, if you are caught with illegal modifications in your vehicle, there are penalties and fines. For the most part it is just the fines. However, you will also need to get the modifications undone/fixed before you can drive again. If you fail to and are caught again, this can lead to increased fines, license suspension and even eventually arrest.
The following are a few of the specific penalties for having illegal car modifications in Alaska:
- Exhaust System Improperly Modified – $150 fine plus applicable fees
- Must Not be Equipped with Siren/Whistle/Bell – $60 fine plus applicable fees
- Use Of Lights In Colors Not Authorized – $50 fine plus applicable fees
- Operating Vehicle Modified To Be Too Low Or Too High – $300 fine plus applicable fees
Final word
Getting your car illegally modified in any way in Alaska or anywhere else might seem like a good way to make your vehicle look nicer or cooler, but you are sacrificing safety for vanity. Even worse, you are not just sacrificing your own safety but the safety of everyone else out on the road. You are also risking expensive fines and fees if you are caught with these modifications by the police. On top of that, you will need to spend even more in order to correct these modifications to prevent further fines and penalties in the future.
