Carolina squat trucks have come under fire recently, for such reasons as “causing fatal accidents” and “being extremely dumb.” After their ban in North Carolina, neighboring Virginia is now getting in on the action by banning any vehicles modded in the squat style.
The ban, part of state law SB 777, takes aim at a host of suspension modifications in order to limit how much a car’s front end can stick up. There are a number of limits on overall height, with some even varying based on a vehicle’s Gross vehicle Weight Rating, but the core of the bill is this:
No passenger car or pickup or panel truck shall be operated on a public highway if the suspension, frame, or chassis has been modified by any means so as to cause the height of the front bumper to be four or more inches greater than the height of the rear bumper.
The law does make a number of exemptions, including vehicles designed or modified for races or other non-highway use. Those vehicles, however, must be towed to their events — your Silverado can’t suddenly become a “race truck” when you get pulled over for your Carolina squat.
A smaller section of SB 777 also addresses trucks with body lifts. It limits the maximum height a truck’s body can sit above its frame rails, saying:
No vehicle shall be operated on a public highway if it has been modified by any means so as to raise its body more than three inches, in addition to any manufacturer’s spacers and bushings, above the vehicle’s frame rail or manufacturer’s attachment points on the frame rail.
While the ban on body lifts may come under fire, the focus on Carolina squats is an admirable one. These trucks are often so modified that their headlights simply can’t be re-aimed to any useful angle — forcing them to blind oncoming traffic with even their lowest of beams. Virginia may be enthusiastic in its legislation of motor vehicles, but at least this law seems to have noble intent.