Race-ial profiling?

There seems to be a common pattern to a lot of the violations in this thread — mostly 20-something and under people driving highly modified cars while making a point that everyone knows their car is modified. Like with a bunch of stickers, an airplane wing on the back, on and on.
Newflash. If you drive a car like this, you might as well be putting a target on your car with a sign 'pull me over, please', because cars like that aren't designed to drive 55, if you know what I mean. Everyone knows their drivers like to race, and a sad majority of those street race. So for the cops, it's a case of deterence. If they ticket you for 'rolling stops' and minor speeding violations, eventually it'll reach the point that your licence will have so many demerits that you won't be able to afford to drive, or you'll wise up get rid of the car and drive something that doesn't draw demerits while parked.
Personally, I applaud the cops for their work to keep dangerous drivers and their vehicles off our streets. I don't want some 18-year-old who thinks he's the next Bill Elliott driving up my butt at 100 miles per hour over the speed limit, and the more the police do to keep those kinds of drivers off the road, the better.
So instead of dreaming up ways to beat speeding tickets, why not take a different approach and take the speed to the strip or the track? Makes a lot more sense that getting yourself and a bunch of others killed.

Umm that's called profiling. It's not legal in the US, but happens all the time. What if someone had a car just like the one that you've described and only raced it at the track? It wouldn't be fair getting pulled over for the small stuff, because other people with minivans who do the same thing don't get pulled over. Second: people 16-24 usually can't afford to go to the track. They often require roll cages, fire suits, etc which young people on a budget simply cannot afford. They'd rather mod their cars than spend it on safety equipment.

not in the right state of mind now, but nonethe less...

stop trying to start shit.

Umm that's called profiling. It's not legal in the US, but happens all the time. What if someone had a car just like the one that you've described and only raced it at the track? It wouldn't be fair getting pulled over for the small stuff, because other people with minivans who do the same thing don't get pulled over. Second: people 16-24 usually can't afford to go to the track. They often require roll cages, fire suits, etc which young people on a budget simply cannot afford. They'd rather mod their cars than spend it on safety equipment.

Past experience tells me that people who have cars like that and drive them on city streets tend to be far from innocent. Been blown by on city streets and highways by said cars too many times not to think that. Odds are very, very high that if said car is on the street, it isn't following the limit very often. Where on the other hand, minivan drivers for the most part are older, more mature and don't drive like lunatics. I'd say for the most part the profiling in question would be, say 80 per cent accurate or greater and if that has cops keeping me from getting killed by some kid in a Mugen'd up Civic, the happier I am.
Second: if kids 16-24 can't afford the safety equipment, they shouldn't be buying the speed equipment. I know that sounds harsh, but when you have a car capable of 150 miles an hour or more doesn't it stand to reason that you'd like it to be able to save your life if you suddenly can't control it?
I have nothing but admiration for those guys with the Civics of Doom who break them out at the track and run times that would make a Boss Mustang owner blush, their dedication to their craft is awesome. But on the roads I drive, I'd much rather they keep their cars on the trailer than in the street.

Past experience tells me that people who have cars like that and drive them on city streets tend to be far from innocent. Been blown by on city streets and highways by said cars too many times not to think that. Odds are very, very high that if said car is on the street, it isn't following the limit very often. Where on the other hand, minivan drivers for the most part are older, more mature and don't drive like lunatics. I'd say for the most part the profiling in question would be, say 80 per cent accurate or greater and if that has cops keeping me from getting killed by some kid in a Mugen'd up Civic, the happier I am.
Second: if kids 16-24 can't afford the safety equipment, they shouldn't be buying the speed equipment. I know that sounds harsh, but when you have a car capable of 150 miles an hour or more doesn't it stand to reason that you'd like it to be able to save your life if you suddenly can't control it?
I have nothing but admiration for those guys with the Civics of Doom who break them out at the track and run times that would make a Boss Mustang owner blush, their dedication to their craft is awesome. But on the roads I drive, I'd much rather they keep their cars on the trailer than in the street.



ok look just cause the car is modified doesnt mean their gonna wanna race you n they speed on all the time thats bs. come on their r just as many other cars out on the rode who are doing more then the speed limit who risk other peoples lives n r careless drivers. u need to get ur shit straight n start thinkin logically.

ok look just cause the car is modified doesnt mean their gonna wanna race you n they speed on all the time thats bs. come on their r just as many other cars out on the rode who are doing more then the speed limit who risk other peoples lives n r careless drivers. u need to get ur shit straight n start thinkin logically.

Not speed all of the time, just a good portion of the time, and when they do often it's at levels that would get them and many others killed. That's thinking logically and with my shit straight, to take your turn of phrase.
Now, in all honesty, I would much rather have a done-up car with a highly tuned suspension and steering doing the speeding that some crap-tacular junker with parts flying off, but the fact remains anyone who drives at the kind of speeds we're talking about on public roads is asking for trouble.
You just have to look at the 'speeding ticket' thread in this same forum to see just how many people are doing exactly what I'm talking about. And it's funny, many seem proud of it. Kind of says it all, doesn't it?

Not speed all of the time, just a good portion of the time, and when they do often it's at levels that would get them and many others killed. That's thinking logically and with my shit straight, to take your turn of phrase.
Now, in all honesty, I would much rather have a done-up car with a highly tuned suspension and steering doing the speeding that some crap-tacular junker with parts flying off, but the fact remains anyone who drives at the kind of speeds we're talking about on public roads is asking for trouble.
You just have to look at the 'speeding ticket' thread in this same forum to see just how many people are doing exactly what I'm talking about. And it's funny, many seem proud of it. Kind of says it all, doesn't it?


yea ur right these people who are driving at that high of speed are dangerous n shouldnt be driving. but to start profiling and saying all this bs like:

" Like with a bunch of stickers, an airplane wing on the back, on and on." "mostly 20-something and under people driving highly modified cars while making a point that everyone knows their car is modified"

Yet there r just as many muscle cars trucks, n every day drivers doing the same thing so instead of directing it to the sport compact/import scene, you should be just directing it to the public in general.

yea ur right these people who are driving at that high of speed are dangerous n shouldnt be driving. but to start profiling and saying all this bs like:

" Like with a bunch of stickers, an airplane wing on the back, on and on." "mostly 20-something and under people driving highly modified cars while making a point that everyone knows their car is modified"

Yet there r just as many muscle cars trucks, n every day drivers doing the same thing so instead of directing it to the sport compact/import scene, you should be just directing it to the public in general.

True enough, but the point of the post is that people who drive these obviously modified cars get targeted by the cops, and in a lot of cases rightly so. Now, you can bet that if a cop pulls over say, a 26 year old or so in a moded-to-death Cavalier Z-24 with the stickers and everything, and his record check doesn't pull up anything worse than a failure to signal while changing lanes, for example, then there's a chance he'll go a lot easier than he would on an 18 year old with two dangerous driving charges and 12 speeding tickets in the same car.
Not ALL mod-drivers are speed-maniac jerks, and from what I've read on this site a lot of you guys are pretty sensible. But on the same hand there are a lot of idiots out there (Fast and the Furious, anyone?) that give every mod-driver a bad name. Which is why the cops act the way they do to you guys.

tru more then likely half the time they dont even have to have the body mods all they need is exhaust n its a dead give away for cops of course the stickers help but usually their asking for trouble.

Sleepers Is All Im Going To Say!

-Younger drivers do mod their cars, do give them power, do make them go fast, but not because they drive like mad speeding maniacs trying to kill everything they see on the road.

These modifications are for show. They prefer to tell someone what modifications they have done to their car then to drive it at top speed. The stereo? the flip down tv screen? the body kit? the graphics? the big rims? hmmmm are these the tools of a reckless driver? or the pride of a teen?

I drive on the highway, through cities, in residential areas everyday, what I see is everything from grandma merging at 60km/h to I'm experienced so I can drive as fast as I want 40 year old.

Daily Sightings:
1) 30-40+ year olds driving 150km/h+
2) Women driving 130km/h - 140km/h With a Micheal Shumaker face on.
3) Women driving 100-120km/h with a Scared out of my mind face on.
4) Women driving 100km/h in the left lane(doesn't go well with #1)
5) Two hands on a steering wheel and the top of grandmas hat(slowly cutting people off)
6) Silver topped old man being hounded by silver topped old women in passenger seat.
5) Person in the Porsche with a license to speed
6) Person in the mercedes with a license to speed
7) Person in the BMW with a license to speed
(how convenient these cars do not need to be modified to go fast)
8) How can that mini van be going that fast?
#9) 16-20 year olds trying to avoid numbers 1-8

92 horse powered Compact with all the aftermarket goodies..... hmmm 150 horse power if they're lucky, most squeeze out 120-130 horses.


But wait these fast and dangerous cars only have half the horse power of mid class sedans?
Am I wrong? are the cars with 160, 200, 300, even 400 horse power not all over the roads?
Something tells me the people driving these cars are not the younger drivers who can't afford a car that comes stock with 140 horse power engines.

So it may seem that the younger drivers catagory happen to be driving the least powerful cars?

I enjoy seeing a nicely modified car, I am also humoured at civics, sunfires, cavaliers, neons, accords, probes, accents, etc... with a loud exhaust that make them sound "fast" well I know the lawnmower I push certainly isn't fast, and neither are these cars.

As for seeing damage on cars caused by some sort of accident, I see all types of cars with all kinds of damage. I could list that too, but what it comes down to is the Civic comes out with a small scratch on the front bumper from a speed bump or high driveway curb.



These modified cars stand out, you are more likely to remember what you saw someone doing in one. Just as when you buy a new car it seems like everyone has one.

I have watched street racing before, 3am in the morning, out in the country. You can guess what kind of cars are there, but there is something different, they have a little bit more money put into them.. and the drivers are not aged 16-20, but 28-35, the majority being 28-30. So they participate in illegal street racing every two weeks, beyond that, they are everyday people who drive their cars in a civilized manor.


Next time you see a teen with a moderately modified car, stop and have a talk to him, ask him what he's done to his car, he will immediately list off everything he has done, ask him why? you will be inlightened by what you will find.

very well put

-Younger drivers do mod their cars...what you will find.

Excellent...:cheers:

Good point(s), man. I definitely agree, there are a lot of people who are worse, worse drivers out there than what we see from mod cars. My lord, I can't think of anything worse that some of those 75-80 year old ladies who drive 20 kilometres per hour while randomly switching lanes . . . on a two lane street!
And I have a personal story to tell, from today, nonetheless. Drive down Main St. 50 kph or so (the speed limit) with some ass-monkey in what looked like an old Buick dead on my ass for about three blocks. I pull into Blockbuster, look back, and he fires up the ole engine and squeals the ole tires while blowing by me and flipping the bird. Hooray! Cool looking dude, too, what with the greasy mullet and truckers cap. About 20 or so.
Now the other side. A couple days ago I was driving along, one of the first above zero days we've had in months, and a dude in some sort of heavily mod-ed car (I wish I paid more attention) was out cruising. Big wing, a thousand stickers, flashy paint. Seen that car before, and truthfully, I wouldn't race that thing for anything. Too much of a chance of undoing all that hard work. . .
I would like to talk to someone about a car like that, just to see how much time, money and effort they put into it. Would be an interesting tale, for sure . . . and I'd also like to find out if he does whip it up and down the streets (there are a few in town, I've heard tales) and if he's been stopped a few times . . .

hehe i drive a stock car... but shes got some muscle and i want to race some times and i rev up on some of these mustangs and even a corvette and none race... just because u can most dont

Both sides have made good points - there are TONS of bad drivers out there who are either stupid or drive dangerously (has anyone mentioned SUV supermom's??), and just because a car has been modded or tricked out doesn't mean its being used/intended for breaking the law.

Nevertheless, our thread starter is correct in his observation that cops these days are out to hassle young punks in attention getting cars. It’s plain and simple. Whether the cops are using phony emissions or safety stop checks to search for weapons or drugs, or simply detest the current sport compact culture and/or young punk image, bottom line is they're DOING it. So people shouldn't act surprised if the cops happen to notice when they're begging for attention with either outrageous effects and kits, stupid loud and obnoxious exhaust tones or beats blasting from their car, or when posing like hot shit when they're driving (if I were a cop and saw some silly little kid sitting so far back and low in his chair that his eye's barely cleared the side window or front windshield, I'd pull them over in an instant - if anything just to verify there wasn't an underage CHILD driving the car).

It’s as if kids these days compound their follies. It’s bad enough to have a car that stands out - you know cops are going to be looking at you, – so what do ya do? How about ignore them, turn your stereo up a bit louder, and continue to look straight ahead while bobbing your head up and down, pretending like you’re the only one on the road. Pricks or not, cops are on the road to do a job. They are looking for stolen cars, suspicious persons in neighborhoods/areas they look out of place in or would have little reason to be at, and they’re also observing other motorist’s driving behaviors and actions (not just where the car is going but what the driver is doing). All most cops are looking for is eye contact – if you’re eyes are moving around enough (like they should be anyways) you’re bound to see them. Your chances of being pulled over will be drastically reduced if you simply make it a point to acknowledge when cops are around by giving them a nod or semi-wave. I do it whenever I can, and I’ll tell you there’s been a few times where I’ve turned and noticed a cop giving me the look of death (for who knows what – exhaust or no front license…), but soon as I gave them a nod they totally lightened up (still ran my plates but didn’t bother me afterwards).

We can bitch about how unjust profiling is or how cops can be super-pricks at times, but really this game is nothing new. My old man and his brothers and friends were all hassled when they were younger ripping around in their Cuda’s and Charger’s… back in my teen years you couldn’t pull out of my high school parking lot in a 5.0L Mustang wearing a baseball cap without getting stopped halfway down the street… and now it’s the kids driving their little rally cars and sport compacts – call it whatever you will. Eventually it will pass, and something else will come along to attract all the heat (and all you young fellas will have grown up and won't care about this stuff anymore).

Great opinion :)
but If I were a cop and I saw an old lady peering through the small arch under the steering wheel, I would pull her over just to see if there was anyone driving the car!

I'm 19 and my car has some modifications done to it. I don't race it because I can't afford to tear it up. But wait if you modify your car your a streetracer come on give me a break! I've been followed and basically stocked by cops who wait for me to screw up, but its just a waste of time for them. I have had one speeding ticket and that was because I didn't notice the slower speed limit.

Profiling isn't acceptable so what if its 80 percent correct its still unfair to the other 20 percent!

I'm 19 and my car has some modifications done to it. I don't race it because I can't afford to tear it up. But wait if you modify your car your a streetracer come on give me a break! I've been followed and basically stocked by cops who wait for me to screw up, but its just a waste of time for them. I have had one speeding ticket and that was because I didn't notice the slower speed limit.

Profiling isn't acceptable so what if its 80 percent correct its still unfair to the other 20 percent!

You're absolutely right, and I agree its unfair.

But thats life. You can be a wise guy around the cops or you can keep to doing things right and tough it out.

my car is modded, but not really externally, and even with my loud exhaust and beats, cops don't seem to pick me out over anyone else. that's probably because in california, it's the norm to drive faster than the speed limit, and 1 in 10 cars are modded similarly. i don't stick out at all when i'm cruising in my car, and haven't been pulled over in it yet. the profiling around here is beater cars. my old stang, which was looking pretty raggedy there at the end, got me pulled over countless times, because cops are looking for mexicans without green cards, drug dealers, and what-not...they just pretty much ignore us young punks, because there are too many of us and everyone else drives like us anyways.