"Street legal" definition? (And I know it varies wildly by state)

Added my nearly complete Spec E46 build to my car insurance policy (liability only) and intend to register/plate the car, essentially as a just-in-case that either I feel the need to shake it down between track days and my super duper bouncy tertiary road won't get it done, or if it really tickled my fancy to drive it "into town".

My buddy found the notion ridiculous, because it "isn't street legal" and I asked him if I had it on DOT tires, exactly what was so egregiously "illegal". All of the various lights work, the brakes work, it has fresher suspension/bushings than most cars in my area. What is the issue? Which really got me pondering, what would I end up getting a ticket for? Things I know: there's no horn. It no longer has cats. 6 point harnesses kosher?

Just got my wheels turning, because while he's right, this is ridiculous to have plates on, I'd sort of like to know exactly why. Thought exercise only. Car won't make it further than 2 miles from my house without being on a trailer.

NC  Lights. horn, wipers       

YRMV

I had a customer with a first generation Camaro with a cage, no seat belts except for 5 point harnesses, and 18" wide DOT "slicks" (that I have no idea how Mickey Thompson got DOT approval for).

He wrecked it badly on the Interstate during a freak rainstorm that he got caught out in.  All four corners mangled.

He wasn't cited for having an unsafe car, and his insurance picked up the tab for repairing it.

BTW - The car didn't have an ignition key or locking steering column, just switches in the console, because it WAS a drag car with a Dedenbear throttle stop, a transbrake, solenoid activated shifter(*), and all of the other goodies.  But it also had a full interior and was used primarily as a street cruiser. 

On the flip side, I was told by a police officer once that my car wasn't street legal because it had red doors on a silver car.  Someone decided they wanted what was inside it and popped the driver's lock, then discovered that the door handle didn't work so they popped the passenger side lock.  So I had to replace the doors and I couldn't be choosy about color.

* - Always amused me.  You take an automatic transmission, spend a lot of money to convert it to a manual valve body, then use an expensive ratcheting shifter and an electric solenoid that shifts the transmission automatically via an expensive control box that uses RPM "pills"...

In CT: If it passes emissions. There's no mechanical inspection.

I have my fully caged (previously) 94 spec Miata registered. I didn't have a trailer when I bought it back in 2017, so I threw a Magnaflow cat on it and put it on the rollers.  Then, it turns out it's fine to drive to events and a lot less hassle, so I never got around to getting a trailer.   I've put somewhere around 30k miles in it, at least 10k of that is on track.

In reply to Pete. (l33t FS) :

My stepdaughter's new boyfriend showed up to pick her up the first time in a Mustang with a cowl induction hood, nitrous, and those Mickey Thompson's.  I said, "Hold on buddy. That car's not legal".

He debated with me and noted they were DOT legal.  
 

Perhaps he's right.  Doesn't mean he won. 😂

Insurance and tags. The rest is just arguing on the internet. 

Well, no cats is obviously illegal. 6pts can be legal, but you need very special dot ones very few companies make. Basically is comes down to having a red button. Meh. Most track cars probably wouldn't pass sound ordinance as a lot of state have something like it can't be louder than stock. DOT tires- My state specifically says if they say 'Not for highway use' they aren't street legal. That kills a lot of the under 200tw tires.  Probably a lot of little stuff if they wanted to go over it with a fine tooth comb. As you said the typical track car is WAY safer than a lot of the buckets of rust out there on the road.

Paul_VR6 (Forum Supporter) said:

Insurance and tags. The rest is just arguing on the internet. 

If you have to bribe the inspector to get a sticker, it's not street legal.

Driving a car with a cage on the street is legal -- dumb, but legal. :)

You can get away with a lot if you drive your "questionable" car legally or nicely.

You can attract a lot of attention driving your legal car illegally...

way back in the olden days I drove my big block 67 Mustang for 3 months with open headers and never got pulled over. Very light throttle and lots of coasting

In Texas, it needs to pass a rudimentary safety inspection (lights, horn, etc.).  In the big cities, it has to pass emissions if OBDII...which amounts to plug-in scanner with no CEL's lit and readiness (allowed 2 not ready).  Visual inspection for cat...or something that looks like a cat. ;)

At better than 25, the One Lap CRX (gutted/caged) is plated "Antique", so it has zero inspection required.  I drive it on the street when testing/tuning all the time...never gotten pulled over.  I do usually pull the aero off, though.

In NC it has to pass inspection if it's under 35yo. Where I live that's just mechanical. The inspection station I used to use(RIP) really just checked lights, wipers and tire wear. My new inspection station at least puts it on a lift. 

I had a trooper give me grief about my then 38yo racecar not having a muffler and therefore not being street legal. My straight piped 100hp turbo diesel is quieter than a stock Camustarger but alas the law here isn't about decibels, but existence of a muffler.

We don't have emissions testing, but no cats is still a problem (actually got that ticket once in my younger days after antagonizing a State Trooper. 4 tickets in one stop, none related to my driving. He got out that proverbial 'fine toothed comb'.) 

No horn would fail me for our required annual state safety inspection, not sure what else would get me. No front windows matter?

In Ontario you need to do a safety inspection whenever a vehicle ownership is transferred (exception being from one spouse to another but other family still needs inspection). Those inspections are getting tougher with government issued ipads to do the inspection on step by step, I've been told the process is slow and expensive.

After that no annual safety for passenger vehicles but police can pull any vehicle over and pull the plates on the spot if they feel the vehicle does not meet that standard or modified in a way they don't feel is safe.

We used to have annual emissions testing, it started as rolling road dyno back in the day with vehicles 25 years and older being exempt, then the 25 year exemption was eliminated (1988 was the cutoff), then it went to an OBDII plug in test and finally a few years ago it was eliminated. The data was showing that such a high percentage of vehicles were passing by that point that it was more of a nuisance. I feel like a few track cars got plates again when that happened though lol.

In SC, if you have a vin and insurance they'll give you plates. No inspection needed.

With exemptions for older cars, "show & display" exemptions, rat rod exemptions, and so on, I think it's silly to worry about a car with better brakes, handling, visibility, and safety than most other cars on the road. But back to the question, I think your issue is not mechanical, its everything  else; emissions, pedestrian safety, noise regulations, DOT requirements. 

One that got me in PA was a windshield washer bottle and pump.

buzzboy said:

In NC it has to pass inspection if it's under 35yo. Where I live that's just mechanical. The inspection station I used to use(RIP) really just checked lights, wipers and tire wear. My new inspection station at least puts it on a lift. 

I had a trooper give me grief about my then 38yo racecar not having a muffler and therefore not being street legal. My straight piped 100hp turbo diesel is quieter than a stock Camustarger but alas the law here isn't about decibels, but existence of a muffler.

20 years for emissions, not 35. I keep watching because I have an '05 Elise, haha. https://www.ncdot.gov/dmv/title-registration/emissions-safety/Pages/emissions-inspections.aspx

30 years gets you eligble for an antique plate with no safety inspection either, but then there are additional restrictions. 

Regardless of whether or not you pass a test or are even subjected to one, TECHNICALLY, any tampering with the emissions system is illegal at a federal level, no? So while something may be passable, it is not legal. If the law says you have to have a muffler, you have to have one, even if there is not an annual test. Now, would I define a turbo as a muffler? Well, it is a *device in the exhaust system that reduces the sound level*, so yeah, I'd argue semantics there, haha

No safety inspections in the Willamette Valley. Most vehicular offenses are also considered secondary now which means they can cite you for them if they pull you over, but can't pull you over for them. EVEN EXPIRED REGISTRATION. Luckily cars don't rust away here.

There is a LOT of sketchy E36 M3 on the roads here. From  XJ Jeeps with light bars instead of headlights, Modern Mopars with purple, blue, red and green headlights, but the worst is collapsing 70's and 80's RV's pulling camper trailers that are actively falling apart.

Spearfishin said:

No horn would fail me for our required annual state safety inspection, not sure what else would get me. No front windows matter?

I wish we had safety inspections sometimes. So many people driving around in cars with with bald tires, worn brakes, rusted to the point of having no structure, etc. It'd be nice to have antique and motorsports exceptions, but DD should have a little more review. I wonder what the fail rate is in states with inspections? Is it just one of those things where the juice isn't worth the squeeze?

In reply to theruleslawyer :

We had annual safety inspections up until 1995. It was determined that the inspection process did nothing to make vehicles safer and mostly led to corruption and the fleecing of people who didn't know better. 

For the longest time, I would stop at the local inspection shop late in the afternoon when the owner was 3/4 drunk, offer him $20 in cash and he'd hand me a sticker. The only inspection was to make sure the $20 was real. 

My theory...around here, we do not have regular emission or safety inspections.  We can get pulled over for various reasons, including a stop check at any time, and be sent for a safety.

So, avoid driving like a fool, keep the exhaust note reasonable, and the police will likely let you get away with no air bag, full cage and a race seat.  Drive like a douche, and you are toast.

As long as you don't get pulled over on a roadside inspection.  Which, it occurs to me, would have Americans frothing about liberties and reasonable search rules, but I'm Canadian.  

In Delaware the DMV does safety and emissions inspections in house.

Safety consists of:

• headlights hi/lo, brake lights, turn signals
• 4/32" tire tread
• wipers work and have blades
• horn
• windows exist
• brake dyno - even force left/right, reasonable balance front/back
• all warning lights light up and go out during startup
• no rust holes in body

If it's 1996 or newer it needs to pass an OBD-II plug in test.

Inspection is only at renewal. For cars less than 5 years old, you can register for up to 5 years. For older cars, you can register for 1 or 2 years at a shot.

Paul_VR6 (Forum Supporter) said:

Insurance and tags. The rest is just arguing on the internet. 

Except for a few of them pesky little thinks like laws, that people are supposed to obey. 

Here in BC, there is an inspection manual and Motor Vehicle Act documents that shops have to follow.  In theory, everything that was there needs to be there, and remain operational.  Beyond that, it really depends on the Inspector, and how willing they are to play the game.  "Just make me check a box."

Having said that - inspections are not "required" but can certainly be mandated by a cop.  Don't give them a reason to pull you over.

To me: "Street Legal" means "You haven't been pulled over yet."

Toyman! said:

In reply to theruleslawyer :

We had annual safety inspections up until 1995. It was determined that the inspection process did nothing to make vehicles safer and mostly led to corruption and the fleecing of people who didn't know better. 

For the longest time, I would stop at the local inspection shop late in the afternoon when the owner was 3/4 drunk, offer him $20 in cash and he'd hand me a sticker. The only inspection was to make sure the $20 was real. 

 

Yeah, the argument is that the inspection pays too little to be profitable alone, so a shop is incentivized to find something to make it worth their while. Or cut enough corners to not lose money on the time involved. 

It's funny, studies show no statistically meaningful correlation between inspections and severity or frequency of accidents, but you can't drive through Michigan and have any doubt there's no inspection. If nothing else, vehicular blight is improved with inspections, but I'm not one to burden someone else with the responsibility of making sure I like how their car looks. 

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8296297/

"the other studies showed either a small reduction in crash rates (around 9%), no association, or a higher crash rate in vehicles with more inspections."

As distracted driving becomes more prevalent, I imagine that further reduces any correlation between accidents and inspections. Whether your brakes work or not doesn't matter if you don't hit them...