Recent Alaska Shipping News

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The location of your blind spot when you are driving
How to safely check your blind spot
Final word
 

The location of your blind spot when you are driving

The position of your blind spot when you are driving is behind and to the side of the driver on each side of the car. Specifically, the blind spot is the area that is not visible in the side mirrors or rearview mirror. It is normally located over either of the driver’s shoulders and extends diagonally toward the rear of the car.

Failing to check your blind spot before merging onto a highway or changing lanes can lead to disastrous consequences. It can result in a crash with another vehicle, which can cause significant damage to either car, injuries, and even death. Blind spot collisions cause over eight hundred thousand deaths per year and several hundred fatalities according to the NHTSA.
 

How to safely check your blind spot

Checking your blind spot is a simple process, but one that must be done correctly and never haphazardly. You can safely check your blind spot in Alaska by:

1. Adjust your mirrors – Adjust your sideview mirrors to ensure they are positioned correctly to minimize your blind spot. You should be able to see the sides of your car in the mirrors as well as the space directly next to the side of your car. If you cannot see both with your sideview mirrors, then they are not correctly adjusted.
2. Check over your shoulder – Prior to changing lanes, turn your head and look over your shoulder in the direction you intend to go. This will help you identify any cars, pedestrians, or other obstacles that might be in your blind spot.
3. Use blind spot assist technology – Many newer vehicles come equipped with blind spot assist technology. This feature will alert you if a vehicle is in your blind spot using visual warnings and/or physical assistance. There are a few different types of blind spot assist technology. In general, a warning light will either appear on your windshield or sideview mirror. With really advanced blind spot assist technology, this can be paired with steering and/or braking assistance.
4. Use your peripheral vision – Even with your mirrors adjusted correctly, it’s still important to use your peripheral vision to scan your surroundings while driving. This will help you identify any potential hazards, including those in your blind spot.

However, you should be aware that using your peripheral vision or your car’s blind spot assist technology will not be a substitute for actually turning your head and physically checking your blind spot. You will still need to completely check your blind spot before you change lanes or merge.
 

Final word

It’s crucial to prioritize your safety and that of other drivers by checking your blind spot before merging onto a highway or changing lanes. Despite thoroughly examining your side and rearview mirrors, cars in your blind spot will not be visible. Therefore, it’s imperative to rapidly turn your head towards the direction you intend to merge and check your blind spot before proceeding. If you are considering shipping a car to Alaska and are wondering how much it might cost or how long it will take, you can always get an estimate for your specific shipping needs by using our Alaska car shipping calculator at anytime!

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The benefits of leasing a car
The drawbacks of leasing a car
Final word
 

The benefits of leasing a car

Leasing a vehicle is a great way to be able to drive around in a new car without having to spend tens of thousands of dollars buying a new one. However, there are both positive and negative aspects to leasing a car.

The benefits of leasing a car begin with your ability to have a new car without having to pay the extremely high price of buying it outright. Even if you buy a new car through financing, your monthly payments for leasing the same vehicle will almost always be lower by at least 30%. Leasing a car will also allow you to drive the newest and nicest cars that you likely could not afford otherwise. In addition, when you lease a car, the dealership will typically cover most of or all scheduled maintenance such as oil changes and tire rotations.

When you lease a car, the biggest advantage might be driving a new car not because it is nice or raises your social status but because new cars always have the least problems, are typically the safest and usually perform the best. Finally, when your lease is up, you just bring your car back to the dealer and renew your lease, get a new lease on another car or buy/finance a car, you will not need to worry about selling or trading in your old car. Selling your car or negotiating the best trade-in price can take weeks. When you choose to lease a car, you will always avoid that.
 

The drawbacks of leasing a car

As we mentioned, there are also several drawbacks to leasing a vehicle. You will only be able to use the car for two-to-three years. At the end of the lease, you will be able to renew it or, in rare cases buy it (if you selected “lease to own” at the time of signing your lease). You will have a very limited number of miles in which to use the car for. If you exceed this limit, you will be contractually obligated to pay penalty fees which can vary but will be somewhere between $0.20 $0.50 per mile. Most two-to-three-year leases will only allow you to put ten to fifteen thousand miles on the vehicle. If you do not keep the car in near perfect condition, you will also have to pay penalty fees for “wear and tear”. This includes interior damage like stains and rips as well as exterior damage such as scratches and dents. There also can be termination fees at the end of the lease. Leasing a car also prevents you from making any customizations to the car with few exceptions such as moderate window tinting.

The biggest disadvantage to leasing a car over buying a car is the same disadvantage between renting an apartment and buying a house – the payments never stop. Obviously the payments end when your lease does but so does your ability to use that car. When you have a car financed you will have payments, but those payments will eventually end at which point you will own the car.
 

Final word

Leasing a car has its pros and cons. On one hand it is a great way for you to have full access to a beautiful brand new car for a few years. On the other hand, you will need to be conservative in both the way you drive and how much you drive because there are penalty enforced limits on both the condition of the vehicle as well as the number of miles that you put on it. When you lease a car, you are essentially just renting it long term for a much lower overall rate than if you actually rented an equivalent vehicle from a car rental business like Avis. This is a good option for those who know that they need a car, want a really nice one and think or know they will not be able to afford typical financing payments.

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Speed and safety
Courtesy
Final word
 

Speed and safety

As with all other areas of driving, safety is always paramount when you are driving your car in a parking lot in Alaska. This applies not just for your safety but for the safety of all other drivers and pedestrians that are in the same parking lot as you.

There are several steps you can take in order to maximize safety when you are driving in a parking lot:

• Keeping it nice and slow – You should always drive very slow in any parking lot in Alaska. Never exceed 15 miles per hour in a parking lot for any reason. You never know if a car or pedestrian might pop out in front of you suddenly.
• Signal your intent – It is very important to signal when you are driving through a parking lot and you intend to turn or pull into a spot. Doing either of these things without signaling will not give any warning to the vehicles and pedestrians near you which will minimize their ability to react to your maneuver. That means that there will be the highest chance of a collision with a vehicle or pedestrian.
• Focus and stay on the lookout – As we said, cars can shoot out of a space suddenly as can a pedestrian. If you are distracted by your phone, the radio or a conversation, you could lose a critically important moment or two that you could have used to react quicker.
• Park with precision – How you end up parking will affect the safety of yourself and others as well. For example, if you park somewhere with a restricted view in one or more directions, you end up being much more likely to get hit by an oncoming car as you pull out or potentially hitting a pedestrian.

Courtesy

There is also the hot button issue of courtesy when it comes to parking lots both in Alaska and just about anywhere else parking lots exist. Most people do their best to remain courteous to other drivers in a variety of ways but there are definitely those who do not do so. The main issue with not being a courteous driver whether you are in a parking lot or in traffic is that it leads to aggressive driving and even road rage sometimes.

Driving in a courteous manner in parking lots will start with giving pedestrians the “right of way” in all instances. You should do the same for other drivers whenever it is possible as well. For example, if you see someone backing out of a space, do not speed up in an effort to pass them before they can completely pull out. Instead, stop and give them the room that they need in order to complete backing out.

Another integral part of parking lot courtesy in Alaska will be parking. We mentioned that you need to park a certain way in order to maximize safety but you will also need to park in a fashion that takes into account the cars parked next to you as well as pedestrians in the vicinity. When you park, you should do so equidistant from each of the painted parking lines in your space. Doing this will ensure that you give enough space to each of the cars next to you for the passengers to get in and out of the car with relative ease.

You should also make sure that you pull far enough into the space but not too far. Pulling too far into a space can cause you to partially enter the space in front of you which can prevent another person from parking there. If you do not pull into a space enough, you can partially impede the traffic that will be driving by in the parking lot.

Finally, parking lot etiquette does not end when you get out of your car. It will include watching how quickly and far you open your door when there is a car next to you so that you do not ding or scratch another vehicle. It also includes returning a shopping cart that you used to the store or to the designated cart return so that it will not roll into a nearby car or block someone else from entering a parking space in the near future.
 

Final word

Proper parking lot etiquette in Alaska includes taking both safety and courtesy measures for your own good as well as the good of all other drivers and pedestrians in the lot. You should always drive slowly, stay focused, use your turn signals, give the “right of way” to other drivers and pedestrians, park correctly and be mindful as a pedestrian yourself. If you ever need your car moved to or from Alaska, you can easily set up its transport by calling us at (907) 331-3100 anytime!

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Safety measures
Speed reduction
Final word
 

Safety measures

Speed bumps are large and long intentionally made bumps in the road either consisting of the same asphalt and pavement as the road that they are on or rubber and plastic. The purpose of speed bumps are to force people to slow down in areas that have a lot of pedestrians crossing the street. You will only find speed bumps on streets or in parking lots that have speed limits that are 30 miles per hour or under, otherwise the potential for damage to cars driving over them at the posted speed limit would be too high.

You can often find speed bumps in school parking lots, hospital or nursing home parking lots, residential streets, and business park parking lots. Speed bumps are typically on placed on a street or in a parking lot where it can be proven that there is a certain amount of traffic (typically the requirement here is at least several hundred vehicles per day), that these vehicles are driving under a certain speed and that there is a current necessity for the speed bumps.

Speed bumps have been proven to reduce speeds in big ways. Here are some statistics that prove how effective speed bumps are at getting drivers to drastically reduce their speeds thus keeping pedestrians safe:

• Speed bumps can be linked to almost a 60 percent decrease in passerby injury or death
• Streets that have speed bumps were found to have almost 40% less accidents
• Speed bumps have been found to reduce overall traffic speeds by at least 15-20 miles per hour

Speed reduction

Speed bumps are extremely effective at reducing speeds in any given area. Drivers know that they can inflict very serious and expensive to repair damage on their vehicles if they do not reduce their speed enough prior to driving over the speed bumps.

It is critically important to reduce your speed to the posted speed limit in any areas that have speed bumps in order to avoid damaging your car. You might be able to get away with going five miles faster than the posted speed limit over a speed bump, but not much faster than that. The faster that you drive over a speed bump the worse that the damage will end up being.

If you drive over a speed bump too fast, you can damage your car and the cost to fix these things will not be cheap. If you damage your vehicle driving over a speed bump these will be the costs to repair specific issues:

1. You can throw your car’s alignment off – This can cost you between $50 and $200 to repair depending on how many wheels need to be aligned.
2. You can damage the suspension system, including the shocks, ball joints and the struts – This can cost you between $1,000 and $6,000 to repair depending on which components were damaged and to what extent.
3. You can damage your tires including a drop in pressure or even causing your tire to blow out – This can cost you between $50 and $250 to repair per tire depending on the type of tire and vehicle.

Final word

Speed bumps can be extremely beneficial to the safety of both pedestrians and motorists in the area where they are located. They effectively get all or most drivers to drastically reduce their speeds which leads to a tremendous reduction in both pedestrian fatalities due to speeding as well as the number of car accidents in a given area. If you need any type of vehicle transported to Alaska from any US state or if you need a car transported from Alaska to any US state, you can always get a free quote by visiting our homepage at any time.

Jump to section:
Increasing speed
Signaling and checking your blind spot
Alaska’s highways and speed limits
Final word
 

Increasing speed

On-ramps are an essential part of any highway, parkway or road that has significantly higher speeds than the streets or roads around it. Without on-ramps, a highway must have traffic lights in order to allow traffic from surrounding lower speed roads to get onto that highway safely.

The issue is that in order to match the speed of the slowest lane of traffic, the traffic entering the highway will need a few hundred feet to appropriately accelerate. Matching the speed of the slowest lane of traffic on the highway is crucial because otherwise drivers on the highway would need to slam on their brakes each time someone entered the highway.

So, when you get onto an on-ramp in Alaska or anywhere else, you must use that on-ramp to increase your speed to the minimum speed of that highway. The minimum speed of a highway, assuming there are three lanes, is typically twenty miles below the speed limit or maximum. So, if you were entering a highway with a speed limit of 65 miles per hour you would need to use the on-ramp in order to increase your speed to 45 miles per hour which is likely somewhere close to matching the speed of the right-most lane of traffic.
 

Signaling and checking your blind spot

When you enter a highway using an on-ramp, increasing your speed will not be your only objective, you must also take a few safety precautions as well. Think of using an on-ramp to get onto a highway the same way you would as if you were changing lanes, you would never change a lane without first checking to ensure it was safe beside you to do so.

It is critically important for your safety and the sake of staying out of an accident that you check your mirror and your blind spot prior to officially merging onto the highway. This will all need to happen quite quickly as you will be accelerating, and an on-ramp is only a few hundred feet long. So, check your blind spot very quickly as soon as you are ready to merge and keep your eye on your left sideview mirror as you do merge. If at any point while you are merging onto the highway you hear a horn in close proximity, then you should quickly pull onto the shoulder as long as it is clear and safe to do so. You can then attempt merging onto the highway again once traffic clears using the shoulder as a space to accelerate and match the speed of those on the highway.
 

Alaska’s highways and speed limits

Just as a reference so you know how much you will need to accelerate if you use an on-ramp in Alaska, here is a list of Alaska’s largest highways and each of their speed limits:

• Sterling Highway – The speed limit ranges between 45 and 60 miles per hour
• Elliot Highway – The speed limit ranges between 50 and 60 miles per hour
• George Parks Highway – The speed limit ranges between 45 and 60 miles per hour
• Richardson Highway – The speed limit is 60 miles per hour
• Denali Highway – The speed limit is 30 miles per hour
• Seward Highway – The speed limit is 65 miles per hour
• Dalton Highway – The speed limit is 50 miles per hour
• Klondike Highway – The speed limit is 40 miles per hour

Final word

When you are margining onto a highway using an on-ramp the point is to match the speed of the traffic on the highway that you are getting onto. Without on-ramps, there would need to be traffic lights along highways which would limit their usefulness in allowing motorists to reach a destination in a minimum amount of time. When you are using an on-ramp and are ready to merge onto the highway be sure to check your blind spot and your side-view mirror before you do so. If you are shipping a car to or from Alaska and would like a free instant quote, call our vehicle transport experts at (907) 331-3100!

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Legal use of your high beams
Safe use of your high beams
Final word
 

Legal use of your high beams

Your “high beams” are what most people refer to as your brights. These are the lights that all vehicles have right next to their headlights that more brightly illuminate a much larger portion of the road for use in a situation where you are driving in extremely dark conditions. For example, there are several areas in Alaska where street/highway lights are far and few between. It can also get as dark as possible in Alaska for very long periods. Hence, the use of your high beams may be more frequent here than most other places.

It is not always legal to drive with your high beams on. Alaska does not have a specific law against particular use of your headlights but it does have a law that states “the glaring or high-intensity portion of the light is not projected into the eyes of the oncoming driver.” Thus, you can get pulled over for using your high beams in Alaska if a police officer deems that you are either fully or partially blinding oncoming drivers. If you are using your high beams and want to avoid being pulled over for doing so, then you should do the following:

• Turn your high beams off within two hundred feet of any approaching oncoming driver.
• Do your best to limit your use of your high beams in general. Only use them on very dark and desolate roads.
• If you do use your high beams, do so intermittently. This means you can always use your high beams to see when driving in a particularly dark area but once you are out of that area, ensure that you switch to your normal headlights.

So, to be sure that you are only using your brights legally there must be no approaching oncoming cars within several hundred feet and there must also be a legitimate need for you to be using your high beams when you do use them.
 

Safe use of your high beams

The safe use of your high beams will include turning them off at times but also includes knowing when to definitely use them, especially in Alaska. So, as we mentioned, your high beams can temporarily blind oncoming drivers that are approaching. If this occurs, a head on collision is a definite possibility. Head on collisions are one of the most dangerous type of collisions because the impact of the force during the crash gets magnified exponentially due to the forces of both vehicles working in opposite directions. Head on collisions were the second most deadly type of collision in 2020, behind only T-bone collisions according to the Insurance Information Institute.

You should also know when you need to use your brights in order to maximize safety when you are driving in Alaska. Driving on dark roads without much auxiliary lighting or other traffic is one such example of a time you should definitely use your brights. Alaska actually has several notoriously dark and dangerous roads. The darkest roads in Alaska are:

1. Richardson Highway
2. Dalton Highway
3. Seward Highway

Another time in Alaska that you should always choose to use your brights will be when you approach an area marked with signs for animal crossings. In Alaska, there are many animals that could be in the roadway or crossing it at any time. Some of the animals are extremely large like bears, moose and deer. If you strike one of these animals with your vehicle, the damage to your car could be catastrophic. It can also land you or your passengers with some very serious injuries. Even if you are able to swerve out of the way of one of these animals as a last second reaction, doing so can still easily cause you to end up in a serious accident. When you drive with your brights on, you will be able to see a maximum distance in front of you as well as to both peripheral areas in front of you.
 

Final word

Alaska has some of the darkest stretches of roads in the entire country. Overall, it has some of the least sunlight of anywhere in the world during certain periods of the year. This is why some people will frequently drive around with their brights on here. Some drivers use them as if they were regular headlights. However, if you are using your headlights and oncoming traffic is approaching, you could temporarily blind a driver which could directly cause a head on collision possibly leading to a fatality. If you are overusing your brights in Alaska you can also possibly get pulled over and ticketed. Always turn your brights off when approaching oncoming traffic is within a few hundred feet. However, you should always use your brights when it is necessary and safe such as on a particularly dark stretch of highway and/or when you approach an area of highway at night with frequent animal crossings.

Jump to section:
Increased risk of an accident
Legal and financial consequences
Final word
 

Increased risk of an accident

Whenever you speed, you risk serious damage to your vehicle, serious injury, legal liability, death as well as the safety of other drivers and pedestrians. The statistics about speeding are proof that it is not worth driving above the speed limit in order to arrive at your destination a few minutes sooner. When you speed, it will take you longer to slow down and stop which increases the likelihood of a collision occurring. Speeding also increases the force with which you are traveling, so if you do get into an accident, it will be much more severe.

The following are some eye-opening statistics about speeding and how it impacts safety on the road:

• Almost one third of crash fatalities were from speed related accidents in 2020. – iihs.org
• Over three hundred thousand people were injured in speed related accidents in 2020. – NHTSA
• Speeding related fatalities increased 17% from 2019 to 2020 across the entire country. – NHTSA
• The difference in the distance that it will take you to stop between traveling 50 miles per hour and traveling 80 miles per hour is almost two and a half times as far. At 50 miles per hour your vehicles stopping distance would be just under 200 feet. At 80 miles per hour your car would take just under 440 feet to come to a stop. – Automotive Fleet

Legal and financial consequences

There are legal consequences when you speed whether you are involved in an accident as a result or if you are caught and pulled over by a police officer. Alaska is no exception to this. The laws regarding speeding in Alaska are strict and for good reason too.

If you are pulled over for speeding in Alaska these are the consequences depending on how fast you were going:

• Under 10 miles over the speed limit – You will be fined $8 for every mile over the speed limit.
• 10 to 19 miles over the speed limit – You will be fined $8 for every mile over the speed limit.
• 20 plus miles over the speed limit – You will be fined $12 for every mile over the speed limit
• “Driving faster than is reasonably prudent” – This is when you are driving at or under the posted speed limit in Alaska but you are driving too fast for inclement road conditions. For example, if the rain is very heavy and other vehicles are driving about 30 miles per hour in a 55 mile per hour zone and you are driving 52 miles per hour, you could receive this ticket if you are pulled over. The cost for this ticket is a flat $90.

So, if you are caught speeding 15 miles over the speed limit in Alaska, you will be fined $120. If you are caught driving 22 miles an hour above the speed limit in Alaska, you will be fined $264. These amounts do not include the applicable fees and taxes which can end up costing you an additional $100.

There are also very costly repercussions when it comes to your auto insurance when you are ticketed by the police for speeding in Alaska. On average, your car insurance rates will increase by 24% or just under $400 per year.

If you get a ticket for speeding and plead guilty or are convicted, you will inevitably receive points on your license. The point system for your driver’s license is a way of determining when someone’s driving infractions have reached a point where they should have their license suspended or even revoked. You can also even receive time in jail if you get a certain number of points in a certain time period.

The points that you will receive on your license if you are caught speeding in Alaska is as follows:

• If you are caught speeding between one and ten miles over the speed limit you will receive two points on your license.
• If you are caught speeding between ten and nineteen miles over the speed limit you will receive four points on your license.
• If you are caught speeding twenty or more miles over the speed limit you will receive six points on your license.

Finally, and most importantly, if you are involved in an accident and it is proven that you were speeding, you will very likely be held legally and civilly responsible for the damage you caused to any other vehicles or people involved in the crash. So, this means you or your insurance will need to cover the cost of the damage to the other cars and any other damaged property in addition to your own car. You can also be sued if you caused any injury in the accident. This can literally cost you millions of dollars. If you were deemed to be driving recklessly, then you could be convicted of a serious crime up to and including vehicular homicide or involuntary manslaughter if the crash resulted in someone else’s death.
 

Final word

When you make the decision to drive over the speed limit in Alaska, you are not just taking a risk yourself, you are selfishly putting everyone else on the road at risk. Someone could be seriously injured or even killed as a result of you speeding. Even if that is not the case, you face expensive consequences when you are inevitably caught and ticketed by the police which includes your annual insurance premiums increasing significantly.

Jump to section:
What to do when you are behind a stopped school bus
Try not to drive in the busses blind spot
Final word
 

What to do when you are behind a stopped school bus

Driving safely and paying attention when you are driving near a school bus is not just important to avoid a collision with the bus itself but also to avoid possibly colliding with a child that just exited the bus. If the bus is stopped, you must remain completely stopped behind the bus until the flashing lights cease and the stop sign on the side of the bus is retracted. Even after that, drive very slowly and pay extremely close attention to the next few hundred feet, because the children that just got off the bus could be crossing the street without warning.

Beyond the moral and ethical ramifications of driving around a stopped school bus, there are strict laws and penalties for doing so as well. In Alaska, if you are caught driving around a school bus that is stopped and dropping off children you will face:

• A two thousand dollar fine
• Six points on your license
• Three months in jail

Six points on your license will certainly raise your insurance rates as well as put you only 6 more points in the same twelve-month period away from a one-year suspension.
 

Try not to drive in the busses blind spot

As you might imagine, school bus drivers have a very difficult time seeing cars to either side of them. This is why they have such large side-view mirrors. However, it is still quite easy for them to not see someone who is driving in their blind spot. So, if you are in a school busses’ blind spot in traffic either pull ahead of the bus, even-with the front of the bus or completely behind it. This way, the driver will be able to easily see you in case they have to change lanes, pull over or turn.
 

Final word

Driving in any way other than safely and focused in the vicinity of a school bus is egregiously hazardous. If you drive around a school bus that is stopped and dropping children off then you risk colliding with a child and/or stiff legal penalties. Always remain stopped thirty feet behind a stopped school bus until its lights stop flashing and it retracts its stop sign. If you need any type of car, motorcycle or even a specialty vehicle shipped anywhere to or from Alaska, give the automotive logistics experts at Alaska Car Transport a call today at (907) 331-3100!

Jump to section:
Roof rack basics
Roof rack safety
Final word
 

Roof rack basics

A roof rack is a great way for you to increase the amount of storage space that your car has without having to sacrifice passenger space and/or views out of any of your vehicle’s windows. A roof rack is most typically used to secure a roof box. A roof box is simply a secure and aerodynamic box that will hold whatever you want so long as the dimensions fit the box. However, roof racks can also be used to secure bikes, kayaks, surfboards, skis and other things.

In order to install a roof rack on your car’s roof, you must first check the compatibility of your specific car’s make, model and year with any roof racks that you are considering using. Not all vehicles are compatible with all roof racks. Once you have found a suitable roof rack, you can move onto the actual installation. Whichever roof rack you get will come with specific instructions on how you can install it. These instructions will depend on which type of roof rack you are using.

The primary three types of a roof rack for a vehicle are:

1. Bare roof – “Bare roof” roof racks are designed for vehicles that have no components on their roofs to support a roof rack. Some vehicles will have raised bars or rails and others will have grooves or tracks. Both of these features are intended to support easier installation of a roof rack. With a “bare roof” roof rack, you will have a roof rack that will usually clip on to the edges of your roof using a clamp system.
2. Raised rail – Raised rail roof racks can only be used with vehicles that have the raised bars on the roof. These roof racks are almost always the easiest to install.
3. Track – A track system roof rack is only to be used with vehicles that have the tracks or grooves in the outer part of the roof itself. The installation is fairly uncomplicated.

Roof rack safety

When you are driving with a roof rack, you will always want to put safety first. The ability to drive completely safely with a roof rack will begin with ensuring you have safely installed your roof rack. If your roof rack is not correctly and securely installed, it can easily slide off while you are driving your vehicle.

Once you are certain that you have correctly installed your roof rack, there are several other measures to take in order to ensure complete safety while you haul something with your roof rack. First, when you are positioning a roof box or anything else, you must be sure that you secure it as close to the center of your roof rack as possible. If you are using a roof box, you should also be sure that you pack the heaviest items towards the bottom of the box so as to ensure proper weight distribution.

Whenever you drive with something attached to your roof rack, you should be aware of your car’s new height. In the case that you are going through a tunnel, drive-thru or under a bridge with a low clearance, the additional foot plus of height can be the difference between making it and disaster. Finally, never exceed your roof rack’s weight limit. In fact, you should try not to come that close to meeting your roof rack’s weight limit either.
 

Final word

Roof racks can be the difference between being able to take everything with you on a trip or having to ship several things. They can also prevent you from having to store too much in your car during a trip which can directly decrease passenger space and comfort as well as negatively impact your ability to see out of your car’s windows which can be extremely unsafe. When you do decide to make use of a roof rack be sure that you do your research and choose one that is compatible with your vehicle. Upon installing your roof rack, ensure that you do so correctly and securely. Once your roof rack has been installed, take all the necessary precautions to remain safe as you drive including properly distributing weight in a roof box and being mindful of your car’s new height.

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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:
  1. 24-inch height maximum – 4,500lbs and under
  2. 26-inch height maximum – 4,500lbs and 7,500
  3. 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.