My white 1998 Nissan Frontier festooned with Republican bumper stickers never seems to attract cops. Maybe it's the giant lit car top pizza sign that has been on it's roof for the better part of 334,000 miles that saves my ass. I dunno. I have been pulled over in it, but neither of the two speeding tickets that I have gotten in 20 years and 700,000 miles of driving have been in it. I don't drive it slowly either as I am usually 10-20 over the speed limit, but they always let me go. Being a pizza delivery driver is like diplomatic immunity!
@Ben Wojdyla: Well, I am trying to finish College right now and go on to the University soon. As much fun as pizza delivery sounds, it gets a bit boring when you have a 163 IQ.
This is the dumbest article I've read, today. Sorry, but it's not the vehicle you drive but how you drive it. If I went out and bought one of these cars, I would be 0% less likely to get a ticket. Maybe...possibly this correlation is more linked to the fact that these cars are tuned towards soccer moms and the elderly, with the exception to the 6, which I never see on the road, anyhow.
I am a self-proclaimed lead foot, but I still stand by the argument that speed doesn't always equate to safe/unsafe driving habits. Quite the contrary, it seems to me that people who drive slower (and get less speeding tickets) are the same people who are intimidated by merging, passing larger vehicles, and the right lane.
So here's a study for you. Let's take those same 10 vehicles and see if we can coorelate them to accidents, insurance claims, and driver error.
Oh, and for the record, if you're speeding and you're in plain sight of the cop, you're going to get tagged. Doesn't matter if you're in a pickup truck or a Buick, doesn't matter what year or what color. The only thing your vehicle of choice might determine is whether or not the cop decides to let you off the hook once he's pulled you over (or write you up a few more citations). It might also change the reason he pulled you over in the first place (hint, a muffler won't add horsepower).
@Ninety-9: As the author of this article, I feel comfortable in saying "screw off." If you can't appreciate an article for its humor I don't want you reading it. Go read AutoBlog.
Consider yourself on the "tentatively banned for being a boring asshat" list.
@Ben Wojdyla: And I was just going to tell him that mufflers can, in some circumstances, add horsepower. Especially when coupled with a cat- or turbo-back exhaust.
So anyway, I'm this horrible person because I think this article is complete BS.
So Ben, you wrote this article or this came from another source? Either way, when I read: "Vehicle: 2009 GMC Sierra 1500...Why it isn't ticketed: It's a big pickup truck. Unless you're outfitted with the entire JC Whitney off-road catalog, pickups are as good as invisible on the streets."
Thanks for such an insightful argument.
So, I own 2 cars and I have a work truck:
1. Infiniti G20, very quiet, low profile, sort of a rust bucket.
2. Nissan Sentra (V6 swap). Red, LOUD AS FUCK!! Exhaust dumps. Hits 100 in about 10-11 seconds.
3. Stock 2008 Nissan Frontier, White.
So far, 2 tickets in the truck, 1 ticket in the infiniti, 0 tickets in the Sentra, I drive them about equally on the street. Now, I'm sure my situation will never match up with the average and I'm not refuting your data, but still: right place, right time, all about the person behind the wheel.
Your article is clearly tuned as to "Why" these vehicles are pulled over less. Here are your answers (in order): "Pickups are invisible," "It's a Buick," "Nothing says "I'm not worth your time officer" better than a minivan," "Platform prostitution at its finest."
Sorry, I don't agree those are the reasons why a vehicle model falls so low on police radar. The reason they have less collective tickets, it's because they are ACTUALLY DRIVEN slower, as an average. These cars are tuned towards older drivers who generally don't break the speed limit. It's not stereotyping, it's not brand imaging, it's not blending in, it all falls back on who's behind the wheel.
My 63 Chevy II Nova Wagon got me more tickets than any car ever will. The Talon Tsi seems to attract cops fairly well, but my wife's A6 Biturbo is practically invisible. I love passing cops on the freeway in that thing. They don't even look at it, it must be because it's white. Or, I look like a Republican in it.
I've got a silver 4Runner. About a week ago, I didn't see the cop leaning out of his cruiser with a radar gun until it was too late. I was doing 85+ in a 70 with no cars within 300 feet of me in either direction. When I saw him start to pull out, I thought he had me dead to rights.
The black Crossfire I blew past 10 seconds earlier got busted instead. The only way that truck could be more invisible is if it was literally transparent.
If FromaBuick6 has to watch one more Chevy commercial, he's going to punch Howie Long in the face was starred
If FromaBuick6 has to watch one more Chevy commercial, he's going to punch Howie Long in the face was unstarred
I picked up a '99 Miata a little over a year ago. Average 1,000 miles a month in it. Drive it like an absolute idiot, like it was designed to be driven- redline shifts out of every light, squealing tires through the corners.
I am astounded that I've never even been pulled over and given a warning, to say nothing of a ticket.
I think it has everything to do with the Miata's reputation as a "cute" car, rather than the sports car that it is.
Ya know, I think it also has a lot to do with driving style.
Here in Portland, Oregon, the most pulled over cars fall into the "Ricer" category.
However, I drive a Honda Civic. It's rather amazing that not only have I not gotten any tickets what-so-ever, it also hasn't been jacked into which the guys claim is a miracle.
This has nothing to do with the type of car and everything to do with buyer demographics.
I'm surprised the "White Camry" demo didn't make this list. Anyone who drives one of those has zero ambition and nowhere important to be. Then again, they're also frequently asleep at green lights, so there you are.
I got pulled over in a 1988 Buick LeSabre once. The cop was finishing up giving a ticket to another guy when I blew past him on a curve a little too fast, and in my rearview mirror I saw him dash back to his cruiser. So I did the only reasonable thing to do, and floored it - right through a yellow light. YEAH, I TOTALLY GOT AWAY, I thought, but the cop ended up blowing through a red light and nabbing me literally a few feet away from my destination. Turns out it was the cop that always hung out at the high school to pick off stoners, and my friend was dating his hot blonde daughter.
Oh, and did I mention I was driving a 1988 LeSabre, whose speedo only goes up to 85mph? (It maxes out way more than that, however.) So, all bets are off.
Grand Marquis are also invisible, same reason as Buicks. Although other people mistake these for cop cars and slow down in front of you, hang back when they're passing--I was going to get a stick on the left rear that said "Not A Cop. Please Drive Normally." Tedious. But it also tends to get waved through gates, checkpoints and such. It just appears to be a benign, decent, respectable car for pleasant, respectable people.
Appearances are deceiving. And when it gets a little older and more dinged up, I'm definitely going to rat it up. There will be some SN (Spousal Noise) but hey, when is there not?
I've seen a fairly random mix of cars pulled over. I can't say I've seen any pattern to the kinds of cars stopped by the police. When a cop is sitting on the side of the road and some car blows by well above the speed limit how the car looks is pretty much irrelevant. For a car to truly stand out from the crowd it's either got to be painted in some garish color, equipped with an overdone body kit, or is some sort of exotic. And outside of places like LA where celebrities get their hands on exotics, how often does anyone see one that isn't trundling along at the speed limit?
I suspect the reason the cars on this list are pulled over less frequently has less to do with the car itself and far more to do with the sort of people that tend to drive them.
11/25/09
11/25/09
11/25/09
11/25/09
11/25/09
I am a self-proclaimed lead foot, but I still stand by the argument that speed doesn't always equate to safe/unsafe driving habits. Quite the contrary, it seems to me that people who drive slower (and get less speeding tickets) are the same people who are intimidated by merging, passing larger vehicles, and the right lane.
So here's a study for you. Let's take those same 10 vehicles and see if we can coorelate them to accidents, insurance claims, and driver error.
Oh, and for the record, if you're speeding and you're in plain sight of the cop, you're going to get tagged. Doesn't matter if you're in a pickup truck or a Buick, doesn't matter what year or what color. The only thing your vehicle of choice might determine is whether or not the cop decides to let you off the hook once he's pulled you over (or write you up a few more citations). It might also change the reason he pulled you over in the first place (hint, a muffler won't add horsepower).
11/25/09
Consider yourself on the "tentatively banned for being a boring asshat" list.
11/25/09
11/25/09
11/26/09
So anyway, I'm this horrible person because I think this article is complete BS.
So Ben, you wrote this article or this came from another source? Either way, when I read: "Vehicle: 2009 GMC Sierra 1500...Why it isn't ticketed: It's a big pickup truck. Unless you're outfitted with the entire JC Whitney off-road catalog, pickups are as good as invisible on the streets."
Thanks for such an insightful argument.
So, I own 2 cars and I have a work truck:
1. Infiniti G20, very quiet, low profile, sort of a rust bucket.
2. Nissan Sentra (V6 swap). Red, LOUD AS FUCK!! Exhaust dumps. Hits 100 in about 10-11 seconds.
3. Stock 2008 Nissan Frontier, White.
So far, 2 tickets in the truck, 1 ticket in the infiniti, 0 tickets in the Sentra, I drive them about equally on the street. Now, I'm sure my situation will never match up with the average and I'm not refuting your data, but still: right place, right time, all about the person behind the wheel.
Your article is clearly tuned as to "Why" these vehicles are pulled over less. Here are your answers (in order): "Pickups are invisible," "It's a Buick," "Nothing says "I'm not worth your time officer" better than a minivan," "Platform prostitution at its finest."
Sorry, I don't agree those are the reasons why a vehicle model falls so low on police radar. The reason they have less collective tickets, it's because they are ACTUALLY DRIVEN slower, as an average. These cars are tuned towards older drivers who generally don't break the speed limit. It's not stereotyping, it's not brand imaging, it's not blending in, it all falls back on who's behind the wheel.
11/24/09
11/24/09
The black Crossfire I blew past 10 seconds earlier got busted instead. The only way that truck could be more invisible is if it was literally transparent.
11/24/09
11/24/09
11/24/09
11/24/09
#tips
11/25/09
Hmf?
11/24/09
I picked up a '99 Miata a little over a year ago. Average 1,000 miles a month in it. Drive it like an absolute idiot, like it was designed to be driven- redline shifts out of every light, squealing tires through the corners.
I am astounded that I've never even been pulled over and given a warning, to say nothing of a ticket.
I think it has everything to do with the Miata's reputation as a "cute" car, rather than the sports car that it is.
Not that I'm complaining...
11/24/09
Perhaps the police are scared of frisking a homosexual?
Just sayin... stereotypes are pretty damn widespread.
11/24/09
11/24/09
Here in Portland, Oregon, the most pulled over cars fall into the "Ricer" category.
However, I drive a Honda Civic. It's rather amazing that not only have I not gotten any tickets what-so-ever, it also hasn't been jacked into which the guys claim is a miracle.
11/24/09
I'm surprised the "White Camry" demo didn't make this list. Anyone who drives one of those has zero ambition and nowhere important to be. Then again, they're also frequently asleep at green lights, so there you are.
11/24/09
12/02/09
11/24/09
11/24/09
11/24/09
Oh, and did I mention I was driving a 1988 LeSabre, whose speedo only goes up to 85mph? (It maxes out way more than that, however.) So, all bets are off.
11/24/09
11/24/09
Appearances are deceiving. And when it gets a little older and more dinged up, I'm definitely going to rat it up. There will be some SN (Spousal Noise) but hey, when is there not?
11/24/09
I suspect the reason the cars on this list are pulled over less frequently has less to do with the car itself and far more to do with the sort of people that tend to drive them.
11/24/09