Just got pulled over for driving too much!

freak said:
Yeah I'm breaking the law and I know it but I drive my car on the weekend for maybe 6 months out of the year. It's kinda like the fireworks law here in Ohio. It's called the liars law. You have to sign a document when you buy fireworks in Ohio swearing you will take them out of state to set them off. Everyone signs the paperwork but no one actually does that.
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Indiana used to have that rule about promising you were going to use the fireworks somewhere else (maybe Ohio!). Seven or eight years ago, however, they said "oh, the hell with it, just buy them and use them, 24/7 anywhere you want." A lot of municipalities passed ordinances restricting use to just nine days, June 29 through July 9.
 
Part of the cost of a license plate goes for upkeep of roads, bridges, and so on. The Ohio antique plate you describe costs only a tiny fraction of what an ordinary plate costs. Yes, I know, you're only using the roads and bridges a fraction of what a regular car would use them, but the police are just doing their job, which is to administer the law.
 
"administer the law." might be time to try to get the law modified a bit for antique vehicles usage in your state, but my feeling is with all the serious crime, all over, might the taxpayers money (his pay and vehicle, gas, insurance etc etc.) be better served trying to catch the bad guys doing some real crime, unless you live in an area were there is no crime.... just my opinion , your mileage may vary.
 
Synchro909 said:
With the wording quoted above, I can see why the copper said what he did. FWIW, With our system, we can drive the car for 45 days a year after filling in a log book to keep count of the days. That costs about $76 and double that for 90 days. There is no option to go more than 90 days. The car can be used for any purpose so long as it is not for commercial gain, ie, it is for private use. Most of the cost is to cover personal injury insurance.
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The Vintage Car Movement in New Zealand has spent a lot of time and money lobbying our politicians so we don't end up with something like this.

So far we are winning. Full registration costs me about $50 per year per vintage vehicle and I can drive (private use) any of them anytime, anywhere and on any road. The only restriction I have is a lighting certificate on the 1910 Hupmobile which means I can't drive it at night unless the carbide lights are on and give me at least 100 m of vision - I have carbide, which works well, but still its easier to use something else at night. Personal (no fault) injury is completely covered in that registration fee .

I would be distraught if I could only use my cars for 90 days a year!- Karl
 
Synchro909 said:
With the wording quoted above, I can see why the copper said what he did. FWIW, With our system, we can drive the car for 45 days a year after filling in a log book to keep count of the days. That costs about $76 and double that for 90 days. There is no option to go more than 90 days. The car can be used for any purpose so long as it is not for commercial gain, ie, it is for private use. Most of the cost is to cover personal injury insurance.
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dumb person said:
That's still nearly every weekend, and with 90 days, you have many to spare.
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I drive my cars almost every day not just on weekends. Why would you own an expensive or indeed any vehicle that you can only use a quarter of the time ?

My understanding was in Australia you could pay standard (and expensive ) registration if you wished and drive your vintage when ever you wanted-Is this correct ? -Karl
 
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Police work is a job where no matter what is done, someone isn't happy. Unlike TV cops, it's everything from barking dogs to homicides. For every person that gets stopped for something minor and complains the cops should be spending their time arresting real criminals, there's a taxpayer complaining the cops don't do enough about the speeders on their street or the neighbor's car that blocks their driveway. They have supervisors and bosses they have to answer to and at times are assigned to do the type of things that some people feel aren't important.
 
In NW Arkansas (Rogers) every car over 25 years has an antique plate and they use them as daily drivers. You know they are not collector cars because they are old beaters. You often see 8 or 10 antique plates just driving across town on a week day. The antique plate is permanent and saves registering ($$) every year. Technically I think there are restrictions, but they just don't enforce them.
 
Karl said:
I drive my cars almost every day not just on weekends. Why would you own an expensive or indeed any vehicle that you can only use a quarter of the time ?

My understanding was in Australia you could pay standard (and expensive ) registration if you wished and drive your vintage when ever you wanted-Is this correct ? -Karl
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Karl, Yes. For the full registration (and insurance) fee we can drive anywhere any time. Part of getting a car registered is obtaining a Certificate of Roadworthiness to keep bombs off the road. The problem with that is that very few testers know enough about these cars to do a check. They refuse so how do we get a RWC.
All that said, the system is about to change. No one knows yet exactly what the new system will be but I've heard it will not be required that the owner be a member of a car club. It's all up in the air!
 
Synchro909 said:
Is there some limitation on the amount you can use the car written in the registration rules and regs or is it just the policeman's opinion? Has he counted the days and documented it? Sounds to me like he is a bit picky (or maybe jealous!)
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You can get an Ohio BMV historical license plate if your vehicle is:
At least 25 years old.
AND
Used only for special events and activities, such as parades.
The historical plate is a one-time fee of $10 PLUS a $21 license tax.

Maybe if you belong to a local club you can put a sign in the window advertising the joining of the club and maybe it would be classified as a special event membership drive.:cool:
 
Here is another one I love to see in New Jersey, people who use Historic Plates (25 or more years old) on daily driver vehicles. That unfortunately gives a black eye to the hobby and may contribute to increases in the cost of automobile insurance.
 
Enough already! We all know the restrictions on Antique Plates. If you decided to violate those provisions be prepared to put on your "Big Boy" pants and deal with it. Daily drivers put regular plates on your car. With over 30 years as a State LE officer I have heard it all. If unjust that is what the court system is for. No place for this kind of chatter on this forum. Let's get back to discussing Model A's ! Thanks
 
For once I am glad I live in NY. Historical plates here have no restrictions that I have ever heard of. Got pulled over once after making a turn and using hand signals, cop thought I was making an obscene gesture at him. After explanation by me ( he was very young) he said sorry and drive safely.
 
NH says the following -

259:4 Antique Motor Vehicle or Motorcycle. – "Antique motor vehicle or motorcycle'' shall mean any motor vehicle, including a truck regardless of its weight, over 25 years old which is maintained for use in exhibitions, club activities, parades, and other functions of public interest, but not for use in commerce. For the purposes of this section, "maintained for use'' shall mean a motor vehicle or motorcycle in its original condition or restored to original or better condition and not intended for daily use.

The key words are "but not for daily use" and "functions of public interest"
Unless the officer is a hard butt one can explain functions of public interest but it is hard to cover up daily use

By the way if the vehicle is over 60 years old there is no inspection requirement.
 
I have "Collector Car" plates on my pickup, and carry "agreed value" insurance thru Allstate. There are no restrictions on how I use it. When I was working, I drove it to work almost every day. Tags cost the same as my modern cars. I could register it as a "Historic Vehicle" which is a one time cost of $25, but then it would have all the above mentioned restrictions.

My friend has Historic plates on his car. He says he considers any time he takes his Model A out it is "an event".
 
A member of our club once received a ticket for "impeding the flow of traffic" on a country road. He was going 40MPH in a 45MPH zone.??
 
henry's 31 said:
A member of our club once received a ticket for "impeding the flow of traffic" on a country road. He was going 40MPH in a 45MPH zone.??
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Here in Alaska, on the state highways, we have the 5 car rule: If you have 5 or more cars behind you, you must pull over and let them pass. They do make it easy though, there are "truck lanes" and "slow vehicle turnouts" quite frequently.
 
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