Jaycock

I was just recently told that in California, it is not a fine anymore (as of January 2004) if you remove your airbag from your vehicle, it is now a freakin' felony??? The shop that told me just tell a cop (if he asks about it), just tell him that I bought it that way. This is problematic since I bought the car new in 1999 (I have a 99 civic 4 dr) and I'm sure he can look it up by typing in the vin #. I still have my stock stuff (I pulled them off of ebay after I found this by ending the auctions early). Currently I have a momo jet steering wheel and I put an tray where the passenger side airbag was. I just got my horn to work on my wheel too, and now I'm freakin paranoid. I also was pulled over for some stupid crap (exhaust modification, tinted front windows, and no front license plate - which I would hate to put on). The cop didn't say anything about the steering wheel (and this was when I didn't have a tray on the passenger side airbag, so obviously I couldn't use the excuse that my car didn't come with airbags). These tickets are gonna cost me well over 200 bucks if I don't get them fixed (which I probably won't, but I would save around 100 bucks). The damn cop also said "yeah, they're cracking down on you racers....which is stupid because I don't really see anybody racing anymore ever since that "car-crush" law that was passed and I am not a racer, since I just go for the look. Anyways, I was wondering if anybody else is feeling paranoid about taking out their airbags. I know that the chances are slim but I would like to get feedback if anybody in California actually got pulled over and was asked about the airbag issue. I would also like some feedback if I should just switch it back to stock (which I don't really want to do, cuz I just got the steering wheel and I love it too).

civiccrazy93

well,to be honest with you,I also drive my hatch around with no airbag.I bought the car this way and I dont intend to install a airbag.I guess that the old owner of the car had a minor accident or the bag was just stolen.I just moved out here from New Jersey and i never had a problem with the police bothering me about the lack of an airbag!What I'm trying to say is just keep your nice aftermarket steering wheel and wear your seat belt!I also am sick and tired of California laws!I've been out here like 6months and I have had to go through the stupid smog crap and even remove my hyper white signals!I was about to buy an HID kit for the car ,but am having second thoughts now.

DumpedSi

iTrader: (5)

Damn, California laws are pretty strict... In order to get a Salvage title car licensed in washington you have to go through state patrol to get it insepcted... I went through with no air bags and they passed me... Weird how laws vary from state to state

vtec69

wow that really sucks

hybrid_vtec

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by civiccrazy93 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">well,to be honest with you,I also drive my hatch around with no airbag.I bought the car this way and I dont intend to install a airbag.I guess that the old owner of the car had a minor accident or the bag was just stolen.I just moved out here from New Jersey and i never had a problem with the police bothering me about the lack of an airbag!What I'm trying to say is just keep your nice aftermarket steering wheel and wear your seat belt!I also am sick and tired of California laws!I've been out here like 6months and I have had to go through the stupid smog crap and even remove my hyper white signals!I was about to buy an HID kit for the car ,but am having second thoughts now. </TD></TR></TABLE>


I hear ya! CA sucks, Im from Virginia and have VA tags and I have been harassed and ticketed for my exhaust(which I am trying to get out of now)! Ca is a weird state and I can not wait to go back to the east coast!

As far as smog goes, I was told to smog however I am not b/c the CHP website for military members living in the state of CA says that as long as your car meets your states emission/inspection requirements then you are legal to drive on the CA highways!

Solscud007

In all honesty, I like airbags. I was in an accident, totalled a '86 mercedes benz. Airbag saved my life. Iknow the stock wheels are ugly. Only thing I could recommend is get a different stock wheel. Liek S2000, Insight, EP3 SI, RSX I think they all look nice. Then there is the ITR and CTR steering wheels.

gunnis

i have been debating an aftermarket wheel for sometime now. Also i really like the ek9 wheel but we all know there not cheap. Plus the searching to find one without paying $400-$500 bucks won't be easy either.

I have a DIY that was posted a while back about how to swap the srs centre piece from behind to wheel to a non srs from a cx of the same year(92-95).
I don't really have any worries about the cops, i don't even know the law on removal of an airbag here in Canada. I just don't want to be looking at my srs light forever or have any other kind of problems with it.

Jaycock

It would suck if I have to get a new wheel, mainly since I like my wheel and I like the fact I have a quick release on it. And in terms of saving lives, I was in an accident the first year I bought the car and I hit a truck head on (right into the gas tank too!) and my airbags didn't even deploy. Honda said it was because my car was too low and the impact (which was near the hood and not the bumper) wasn't caught by the sensors. It was funny too, the truck had a small dent in the gas tank thing and my car's front end was just FUBAR. Also, there was all this flammable liquid and gas in the truck too ...but anyways, the S2000 wheel that was mentioned earlier is pretty nice, but I'd rather have a wheel without such a fat center that all airbag wheels have. I just hate how California is punishing the wrong people, I don't race and I've been told I drive like a bitch (which means I drive pretty safe). It would really be messed up if I get a felony for something so small as this and I hope when I tell the cop this lie, "Hey, this is how the car came, I bought the base model", that he won't get off his lazy *** and acutually look it up...

Beatkidd

ok first about airbags. Just say your car was broken into and they stole your airbags...DOne


2. Dont tint your car so dark what are you a rock star or something?


3. Put your plate back on nobody is going to think your car is cooler cause you
dont have it....this is probably one of the most reasons i see people get pulled over
no front plates.

plusONE jboy

yeah cali's laws suck, but you always take a chance in modifying because pretty much everything "modified" is considered "illegal"..

Jaycock

I might just put the front license plate on, but the tint is not that dark, it's like 35 in the front, 20 in the back. And about saying the car was broken into...my car was broken into about 2 years ago, but I stated that they just stole my headunit faceplate (I caught them in the act so they ran away). Basically what I am asking is that would the police really check out my story, I could say I never reported it being broken into the 2nd time because I didn't want to bother with it because it didn't help last time (and it didn't). But if the airbags were stolen, aren't I required by law to replace them?

Spoon Spec EK

There is no way that is a FELONY. A felony is a realllllyy big deal and I doubt removing the air bags would result in that. It is possible that would be the worst case scenario of punishment but shouldn't be that bad. Need some facts to back up a statement like that one.

selasornayr

Actually, both me and him (Jaycock) have the same darkness of tint... his fronts are 35's, which is the same lightness/darkness of many other vehicles here in SoCal (well, at least in Orange County, and especially in South Orange county aka Irvine, Newport Beach, etc.)... at a stoplight or on the freeway, at least 1/4 to 1/3 of the cars has tint on the front, so tint around here isn't too much of a problem unless you have other stuff wrong with your car.

A few years ago when the state of California vowed that they were going to be more strict on window tinting, I still never got a ticket exclusively for tinted windows, and the only times I did get a ticket was because I was initially pulled over for a moving violation.

So I don't think that there's much to worry about in terms of the airbag-less steering wheel. Have a front license plate, drive like a b!tch (he already does, I can attest to that), and don't rev your engine so that the muffler screams. And if you do get pulled over, make sure that you don't look threatening in appearance and speak eloquently. And next time you take your driver's license picture, have a conservative haircut and wear a tie... sometimes that can be the difference between the cop not writing you a ticket or the cop surveying your car inside and out for every illegal thing you have.

IMO, no cop is going to charge you with a felony because of your lack of airbags... well, as long as you don't act like a d!ck.

Kamin

actually kids, its not a califonia law, its a NATIONAL law. removing a WORKING airbag from a car that came equipped with them is illegal and can be prosecuted as a felony. if your airbags have deployed at one point in the cars history then its legal to take them out and not replace them.

it would only be prosecuted as a felony if you are a shop, but just know if you do it, and get into an accident your insurance company will laugh at you and say your SOL. you will be liabel for all medical bills.

96civictyper

Cali must suck...I know if you go from GA to TN or SC they make you take a smog test if your car looks modified...mine did pass...somehow?h22 BABY

Kyles ej1

i think if u dont have an airbag u have to have a 4 or 5 point harness to be legal. and u need a roll cage if u have a harness to be safe so its a lot of work to stay legit and safe in cali, thats why im just keeping my stock wheel

Spoon Spec EK

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by egcoupe &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i think if u dont have an airbag u have to have a 4 or 5 point harness to be legal. and u need a roll cage if u have a harness to be safe so its a lot of work to stay legit and safe in cali, thats why im just keeping my stock wheel</TD></TR></TABLE>

Removed air bags are against the law PERIOD. Running a race harness is also illegal on the street.

Kamin

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Spoon Spec EK &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Removed air bags are against the law PERIOD </TD></TR></TABLE>
if the bag has gone off in a colision, you arent required to replace it.

so it is legal to remove if its deployed.

Jaycock

if this is true, im pretty much in the clear then, since I have gotten into a collision before, but the airbags didn't go off, but I doubt they would really go deep into the accident report to get that info....anyways, i would love to see a link or anything that shows that this thing is definitely true if anybody knows of anything.

Jaycock

actually this guy's the b!tch since he bumps certain music that you shouldn't bump on a powerful audio system in a car...

civictildeath

i dont know if that law is on this site but here ya go and have some laughs http://dumblaws.com/

cxSHOE

jay,

you also forgot to mention that if you happen to get into an accident and you have an aftermarket non airbag steeringwheel. the insurance agent will also see that you dont have an airbag with your car and you will instantly be denied any settlement and you will difinitely be dropped at the spot..

what does that mean:

your car is no covered, and any amount owed to the other party will not be paid by your insurance company so you will have to somehow pay for that if its your fault, then if they have any injuries you will be sued. and you will have your license suspended or even revoked, let alone any jail time .....

and actually tampering with the airbag system making it not work properly is illegal. removing it in itself is not. but driving without an airbag in an airbag mandated car is illegal. i know it confuses me to... i say if you want to drive it like that go ahead. just be safe

f1z1c

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Jaycock &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I might just put the front license plate on, but the tint is not that dark, it's like 35 in the front, 20 in the back. </TD></TR></TABLE>

In cali, you can have zero tint on the front side windows and the windshield, except that strip at the top. Be careful if you say you bought it w/o airbags, because your DMV title will say airbags. If you did happen to buy it without airbags, it was illegally sold and purchased. Just fix everything, show a cop, get your signatures, get it dismissed, and then do whatever.

99CivicExCoupe

feel so bad for u guys out there on the westcoast, we here on the east think its bad but everyday i read another complaint abt ca smog regs and it sucks. good luck, just buy some pba badges and throw em on ur windshield thats my only recommendation lolol, i got em too, they work great

Agent STFU

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by hybrid_vtec &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">


I hear ya! CA sucks, Im from Virginia and have VA tags and I have been harassed and ticketed for my exhaust(which I am trying to get out of now)! Ca is a weird state and I can not wait to go back to the east coast!

As far as smog goes, I was told to smog however I am not b/c the CHP website for military members living in the state of CA says that as long as your car meets your states emission/inspection requirements then you are legal to drive on the CA highways!</TD></TR></TABLE>

Haha man, that'd be awesome if you got out of them because aftermarket exhausts are illegal in VA too