A&Q about Lotus
Q:
I got pulled over today on 95 around Vero Beach
There was a car going faster than me and I pulled over to the right lane and then a Benz got on my rear so I sped up a little. Then I see lights flashing in the left lane and figure the cop is going after the car that passed me. Then he pulls over behind me and I slow down, and he pulls over on the shoulder after about another 5 seconds and almost stops. I see some tire debris on the side of the road and figure he is either stopping to remove it or something happenned and he is getting over to the side of the road to look for a car that might have gone off the side of the road into the embankment below. He then pulls out onto the road and goes flying down the road and gets behind me again, so I pull over.
He said the he stopped me because I was going 92 Mph and gave me a ticket.
It said he was using Stalker Dual DC46675 Mov Rad Front. So I figure he was driving and using front mounted laser and either got a reading on the Benz that was speeding up on me or maybe the car that passed me. He was only directly behind me for about 5 seconds before he pulled over to the shoulder and by that time I was doing well under the limit. I think he may have been upset since i didnt pull over to the shoulder as soon as he was behind me the first time and that might be why he gave me the ticket.
I know our speedos are off so I would have had to be doing about 100 in order to actaully be doing 92. I think I was only doing about 85 or 90 on the speedo which would be more like 78-83.
I had servicing done about a week ago and had only driven 150 miles since then. I am wondering if an ecu dump would have been done and if it would show my highest speeds and the times as of the service date. The work order shows the mileage and if the printout was done it would show that the car has been running for xxx hours and the highest speeds and rpms in 6th gear were at yyy hours.
If I have another printout done I would be able to show that since the last one I had about 6 hours earlier that the maximum speed and RPMs hadn't increased since the last ecu printout, so there was no way I could have been going that fast. Even if I didnt have an ecu printout at the last servicing, it should show the last 5 highest speeds or RPMs and the running time. If there is nothing showing above 92 within the last 50 or 60 hours of running time, could I use that as evidence that I wasnt doing 92. I am going to keep my speed under 75 until I can get an ECU printout done so that I wont have any high speeds registered since getting the ticket.
However since I was doing around 80, would I lose in court. I never admitting to speeding to the officer and said I didnt think I was going that fast and never offereed an estimate of my speed so there is no admission of guilt.
However since the ECU records top speeds, and my highest was once over 130,and I have gone about 90 or 100 a few other times would they say , he has a history of speeding and just find me guilty anyway? Or could I say that I took the car on a track and that is why the other speeds were so high. The officer asked me a bunch of questions after giving me the ticket, like who makes the car and what does the speedo go up to and what is the top speed on the car so maybe he thought the faster looking car was the one that was doing 92
I guess if they looked at my total time in each gear at at each RPM it would show that I dont drive at maximum speed and my average speed is normal so I could prove that I dont normally speed. Also I only gotten 1 speeding ticket in my life and that was about 15 years ago.
Do you guys think I should get the printout and use it as evidence or just pay the $200 fine and take driver ed classes to avoid the points, since my record is good to begin with.
I dont want to go to the hassle of trying to fight it in court if I am just going to lose anyway. Anyone know if the judges in Indian River County are tough or not or if the printout would be admissable in court.
It would be fun if Kim Ogaard-Nielsen (former CEO of Group Lotus) is at his place in Orlando now for the winter and could be a witness or sign something on my behalf to authenticate the printout results
I
A:
No, ECU doesn't tell you the time and date of the car speedometer.
A:
I would fight it! It's up to you if it worth the hassle but it sounds like there are alot of variables involved that could work in your favor.
A:
it's too bad it's not cleared every time there is a service and then just require that they keep the previous times on record. You'd be set.
A:
No, but your lawyer can.
A:
FIGHT THE TICKET when cops use Lidir or whatever the front mounted radar that activly tracks speed it NEVER EVER holds up in court with a good lawyer. Mostly due to the fact that the radar has to been calibrated properly, road traffic has to be disclosed, angle and many other things. If you get a good lawyer they will have it thrown out of court so fast its not even funny. Trust me I know this considering Ive had 15 speeding tickets and ONLY 2 on my record before I met some good lawyers Oh and word of advise never midigate, or try to represent yourself in court for anything. Traffic courts are natorious for not giving you the time of day regardless of the research and due dillagence you do before hand.
A:
if you were speeding(whatever the true speed was), pay the fine, go to the school, and slow down, unless your tracking the car.
why do people seem to feel THEY are priveledged and should not get ticketed, just because they are driving a nice car like the Lotus?
You want to play(fast) you are going to pay.
Careful not to get too many tickets, you might end up taking the bus with freaks like agentXXX, and the freaks I would think cannot stand more than one Lotus driver on "their" bus at a time.
sounds to me like whatever the true speed # was, you were speeding...................
Sorry, but you did ask, and I am not part of the"chior" anymore
Fishguy
A:
Originally Posted by fishguyAZ
if you were speeding(whatever the true speed was), pay the fine, go to the school, and slow down, unless your tracking the car.
why do people seem to feel THEY are priveledged and should not get ticketed, just because they are driving a nice car like the Lotus?
You want to play(fast) you are going to pay.
Careful not to get too many tickets, you might end up taking the bus with freaks like agentXXX, and the freaks I would think cannot stand more than one Lotus driver on "their" bus at a time.
sounds to me like whatever the true speed # was, you were speeding...................
Sorry, but you did ask, and I am not part of the"chior" anymore
Fishguy
So let's say you get into a bar fight with some guy and punch him in the face, then later the same night the guy gets killed (though not by you). If the police arrest you for the murder would you plead guilty just because you did assault him?
Yeah, that's an extreme example, but speeding fines and the potential consequences are based on the amount over the speed limit. If he's guilty of doing 10 over, why on earth should he plead guilty to doing 20 over?
A:
Originally Posted by m3m750
So let's say you get into a bar fight with some guy and punch him in the face, then later the same night the guy gets killed (though not by you). If the police arrest you for the murder would you plead guilty just because you did assault him?
Yeah, that's an extreme example, but speeding fines and the potential consequences are based on the amount over the speed limit. If he's guilty of doing 10 over, why on earth should he plead guilty to doing 20 over?
then he needs to prove his speedo is off/correct, and to prove that the cops thing is not reading the right speeds. sounds like a ton of work. would be much easier to just drive a few mph slower. I try to never go over 10 mph over the posted limit. a cop told me that +9 is a misdemeanor(mister meaner), and its thier discretion as to whether they want to pull you over AND ticket you. 10+, and they must ticket. I set my criuse controll at +8 whenever on the freeway.
in defense of the Lotus driver. I know that the limits are rediculously low for what the car can do, and handle safely, but there are many"normal" cars on the roads, and thats what the limits are posted for is the safety of the general public.
I did learn the hard way on my last ticket 12 years ago, i blew off going to the traffic school, as i thought i was to busy. the insurance rate increase, and the fact i couldnt get coverage from haggerty classic insurance after a ticket for 5 yrs. made me realize, go to the school whenever you have the choice.
I have kept a clean record for 12+ years, and own allot of sports cars, including the lotus ,and MR2 spyder which are chick/cop magnets.
trackdays are a great outlet, thats for sure!
A:
Speeding fines have little to do with safety, and everything to do with raising revenue. It's never been shown that lower speeds cause less accidents, injuries, or deaths. The whole thing has turned into an absurd cat-and-mouse game. Many speed limits are ridiculously low, so almost everyone drives faster than them. Around here the limit on the highway is 55mph for a hundred miles. NOBODY drives 55mph. It would cause a terrible traffic backup if a few people blocked all the lanes of the highway at 55mph. Unless you're driving exceedingly fast for the road conditions, then you're just a victim of the system if you get a speeding ticket. Unfortunately, the cars we drive make us stand out in the crowd. I bet if the original poster had been driving a Camry, the cop would have picked someone else to give the ticket to. So, do whatever you can to make the ticket cost more to the municipality than it does to you. Plead not guilty, go to court, etc. At the very least you'll probably get it reduced, possibly dropped, and you'll have done your part to make the system less effective at raising quick cash.
A:
Originally Posted by Shiftlock
Speeding fines have little to do with safety, and everything to do with raising revenue. It's never been shown that lower speeds cause less accidents, injuries, or deaths.
A:
Originally Posted by xxxotic
It said he was using Stalker Dual DC46675 Mov Rad Front. So I figure he was driving and using front mounted laser and either got a reading on the Benz that was speeding up on me or maybe the car that passed me.
FWIW, there is no lidar units that can be used while the police vehicle is moving. Moving radar, yes, lidar, no.
Since it was radar (from the sounds of it), they just report the fastest signal, and from your description, that wasn't you.
In any case, if you are not guilty of the speed that you were sited for, get a lawyer and fight the ticket. The costs and ramifications to your license and your future insurance rates will be high.