Posted on 12/31/2004 9:47:28 AM PST by Libloather
'Pimp My Ride' shop fined by feds
Replacing air bags with video screens illegal
By Danny Hakim
NEW YORK TIMES NEWS SERVICE
Posted on Fri, Dec. 31, 2004
DETROIT - Pimp the ride, pay the price.
In the first of what is expected to be a broader crackdown against auto customization shops, federal regulators this week levied a $16,000 fine on West Coast Customs, the celebrity auto body shop affiliated with MTV's "Pimp My Ride," a reality show that makes over rundown cars.
The shop, which has customized sport utility vehicles for celebrities such as Shaquille O'Neal, was fined for removing front air bags in cars to install video screens on steering wheels.
Another celebrity shop, Unique Autosports in Uniondale, N.Y., was fined $5,000 for a similar offense. A reality show featuring the shop, to be called "Unique Whips," is set to appear on the Speed Channel, a cable automotive channel, in February.
Rae Tyson, a spokesman for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, said the fines were the first of what was expected to be a larger crackdown on car customizers who were disabling safety equipment.
"We're actively pursuing several others," Tyson said, "It's not only a bad idea to disable the air bag, it's against the law. Air bags are there for a purpose, to protect you. If you have a DVD player there instead of an air bag, it's not going to protect you in a crash."
Calls to West Coast Customs, of Inglewood, Calif., were not returned. Will Castro, the proprietor of Unique Autosports, had no comment.
Most states have laws against watching televisions in the front seat, though many of the laws have not been updated to include DVD players and other new technologies.
"We know that all kinds of distractions can be a problem, but it would be hard to think of something more distracting than watching a video while you're driving. It's a really worrisome trend," said Anne McCartt, a vice president for research at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, a group financed by car insurers.
thank nader for this one.
My car doesn't have an airbag, and there is nothing that she or anyone else in the current "New Deal" administration can do about it.
"shrapnel"
We were treated at the nearest military hospital (my husband is a military retiree) and that is exactly what the doctor and nurses likened the imbedded plastic fragments to-said I was lucky none got into my eyes.
And the electric can openers and the plastic bags!
I like the episode where they replaced the airbags with a bong. I think that happened.
I enjoyed it anyways...
Wow, you were at least lucky enough to have people trained with that type of injury close by and it's a good thing your eyes didn't get nailed. I can only imagine what some people will endure with deployment on cars in the future that are being used well beyond the 'planned service life' of the vehicle. It'll be like riding around with a claymore mine strapped to the dash.
Big Brother knows best.
Personally - I think the correct thing to do would be to for customers to be allowed to sign a waver. Then if they car owner is hurt/killed due to lack of air bag, they cannot hold the customizer liable for removing the air bag.
But no - the government has to dictate everything.
I don't know - even though a lot of the junk they do to those cars doesn't appeal to my tastes, I do enjoy seeing how they bring the junk back from the dead.
And as far as powertrain is concerned, I have seen several episodes where they actually replaced engines. And one, the guy's car was SO bad and unsafe, they gave him a new pimped-out Scion.
And speaking of safety - the episode I saw just a couple of days ago has them installing a touch screen lcd that would only activate with the car in park.
Don't take your car to the dealership (or technically ANY repair shop) if they follow the law.
I have been informed by more than one dealer's service department when I called, that if I brought my vehicle in with a possible safety issue (like a flashing airbag or brake light) that they would not allow me to have my car back until it was fixed or specifically tracked down to a NON-safety issue. They could be fined if they allowed me to leave with my un-repaired vehicle. This applied to in as well as out of warranty autos.
No kidding! That was not fun at all. My husband and I both drive 2 seater cars to commute to work because we live way out in the boonies, a Miata (his) and a 300ZX (mine). We also have an El Camino and a 4X4 Blazer that I drive if I need to haul materials to a job site, of if it snows or rains a lot. His Miata, a 2002 that replaced the deer-totaled 1999 one is the only vehicle new enough to have airbombs-we will keep replacing parts forever on the other cars to avoid having those damn things in another vehicle. I just hope there is a lawsuit big enough to get those things off the mandatory equipment list.
Odd as it seems, I would actually consider watching a potential "Pimp My Bride" show. I wish FOX would hire me...
Take the car to a private mechanic you know and trust-we do that with the El Camino, because the transmission and goodies on the engine aren't stock and a dealer type shop would be so horrified they'd probably have us hanged.
If that isn't a scam to rip off car owners at dealer prices, I don't know what is-one more reason to keep driving my old vehicles...
"If you don't want to drive a car without exploding ballons, good for you. That should be your choice."
That's a choice we can't be allowed to make these days. Our country has turned into a bureaucratic, authoritarian nightmare, administered by parasites.
<< If you have a DVD player there instead of an air bag, it's not going to protect you in a crash. >>
Let US all thank God the feral gummint has someone on its dole to point that out to US, eh?
I mean -- where'd we otherwise be?
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