Hey guys. what are your thoughts on NSW's recent war "drag racing" and "hoons"?

I think the current approach is a joke. The toughening of road laws has not stoped young drivers killing themselves and has just made it stupidly difficult for everyone else to get their license. The recent NSW government is adopting a "over protective parent" persona relating to this issue.

The recent media coverage borders on unprofessional, labeling every motor accident as a "drag racing" incident. The majority of the time it's reckless under-educated bogans flogging their VK comodores around thinking they own V8 supercars - They're ox-carts with big engines! Stop killing yourselves and ruining it for everyone else! And don't even get me started on w@nkers and their "rexies" or fake GTR's. The media has no idea what they're talking about. This sort of ***** just doesn't happen in organised street meets. I don't condone rekless driving but i expect the media to get it right and not paint a foney picture.

Sorry for the rant but i am fed up with all this "War or hoons" malarky in the paper. It's diminishing popular car culture and ruining the modified car scene. It's come to the point where, if a car even looks slightly modified, they are followed by the cops.

at least there might be less wrx's & skylines on the road!

true corzza. but id rather have fully sik wrx's and skylines on the road rather then being pulled over as soon as i get out of my driveway.

There is nothing us true car enthusiasts can do about it.
Its the small minority who wreck it for all of us.
Maybe more education will help, racing is for the track or dragway not on the street.

dude the poo poo dont really even glance at the rollas hey! on my way home from work today on epping rd R33 near maquarie pulled over. further down near epping station red wrx pulled over. its funny man!

I think it's fine, in fact it's a good thing.

Do nothing wrong and no harm will come to you

if only that were the case...

Just don't race like a fackwit.

We are enthusiasts not hoons, the media does make it seem like everyone with an exhaust is a criminal.

it IS the case... they may pull you over, sure, but after that, no harm, no foul.

I've been 'random breath tested' 3 times in the last month once in Stivo and twice in the MR2 both time the had a quick look over the car got me to count to 10, checked by license and I was on my way...

I actually like that they are doing their job and keeping dopey feckers off the street.

Agree keep the silly fooks off the road so that it's safer for all others to use, yes it may be an inconvenience to be pulled over for a 'random breath test' but if you've done nothing wrong, and the car is all above board you'll be back on your way in minutes.

Fack, feck and fook... We are so polite here at TOCAU

What the fecking hell are you talking about

Further to this, the recent death of two elderly people being hit by others who were racing (3 cars racing I think?) highlights why these things come about.

ABC News - http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/07/30/1991383.htm

This further illustrates my point. They were commos. Most likely, none of them on their P's due to the new power/weight ratio restrictions for P platers. Yet this sort of shyte still happens. You really must wonder if all the new restrictions have done anything to prevent deadly car accidents. I don't expect the authorities that govern our right to drive to get it right every time. But I do expect them to not just legislate for the sake of appearing to solve a problem they seemingly can't solve.

The only way to solve it is not by legislation but to have more police on the street.
Now that is actually happening people are complaining...

I disagree, Dylan. Ruling with an "iron-fist" never solved any problems I'm aware of. Unless there is a cop on every street and back alley in NSW, I don't think that is the answer either.

There's a difference between policing and harassment.
I'm not saying the second doesn't happen, as I know it does, but I've never had any issues with any of the cops I've ever dealt with, even the one who gave me my speeding fine and 3 month suspension.

Police can make a difference just by having a presence, there is only a need to book someone when they do something illegal.
In most cases, when people see a police car on the road, they take more care, this is all I'm saying.

thats fair enough... i also agree with the increased "interest" that police have been putting into road safety. time will tell how long this "interest" lasts.

dont race and there are no probs. easy.

^^^ditto

anyone who is daft enough to do double the speed limit when there are alot of other cars on the road are asking for trouble! Esecially in common spots!

^^^^^^^^^^^ Uber-true.

We must think up different ways to do this, but in a much more safer way.

Pete, I challenge you to a soap box race.

1 simple solution ..... speed limit every car to 110 ...... cant get to these "excessive" 160+ speeds then ..... yeah ok u can still get to 110 in a 40 zone but then 160+ vs 110 is probably better ..... So who's first ? lol

tack on to my earlier point: if you aren't doing anything wrong, why worry?

my understanding is if your not breaking the law, the cops cant get you for anything?


correct me if i'm wrong

I just read in the paper that a Corolla and some other car got impounded by the police for drag racing. no one on this forum i hope.

To bring things back on track. My gripe is not with the police or policing of the streets. My gripe is with the way it's all being played out i.e The "war on hoons". it's created a moral high-ground for everyone one to stand on and point and name-call. As i always maintain - only a special kind of liar can always stay within the speed limit. I agree that racing at double the speed limit is stupid. 120 in a 60zone is silly. 80 in a 40zone? Hmmm...who's guilty of that? (rhetorical question. please don't answer)

at the end of the day, speed and safe driving are/should/have always been a question of common sense. Those who don't possess it deserver what they get. However, I dread the day the whole issue becomes one of those an@lly-taboo subjects just because we've been conditioned to react in that fashion.

you said those who dont have common sense get whats coming to them, my issue is that they often take others with them when they get whats coming to them.

that said i know for a fact cops dont look at corollas and family cars unless they appear to be obviously unroadworthy or they see you doing something illegal, i mean its a family car, and i have gotten this info from two seperate cops.

In one street race that made the news on the weekend, the offending vehicles were a standard 1998 model Camry (V6 at best) and a little Daihatsu Charade dumped on 17's being driven by a bloke whom has never held a licence yet is banned from driving until 2017 or something.

The only time I've ever been pulled over the officer asked me what the car was and it doesn't even have a RunX badge like Mickey's! Lol

Also we still don't have a bloody track down here, the drag strip is deadset 15mins from the city but they closed it years ago

Sure, it's easy not to get followed OR pulled over OR accused of doing anything unsavoury. Just sell your car, quit your job, lock yourself in your house, switch off all your lights, unplug your refrigerator, divorce your family and renounce your religion Everyone knows street racing is stupid, if any more people stand on pedestals then I'm going to be talking to myself down here.

I'd say the problem lies with education and attitude adjustment, both of which require more money and effort than just raising the stakes of doing anything more animated than sitting in a church pew on a Sunday morning.

I know a few people from PGA here in Canberra (one of them my mate). One of the members had his car impounded because his wheels chirped slightly when going out of a servo in the wet. 90 day impound.

He received the detail of the impounding when he picked it up the other day. Something to the tune of:

"Car stepped out sideways going out of the Service station. Rear wheels clearly spinning."

Yes...Pulsars have ALWAYS been RWD.

Some Policemen are honest, some are just ******wits.

Btw yes he IS contesting it and seems to have a good chance, given that N13 pulsars are FWD. Stupid copper.

Dam right, the education of drivers is the issue. Quite a few years back in NSW (not sure if it is the same in other states) the RTA made attendance of a practical course part of the requirement for getting your motorcycle licence, apparently the number of motorcycle deaths dropped drastically, I found having attended the course also made me a safer driver. If only they could introduce something like that for cars and perhaps take the attitude that driving is truly a privilege and not a right and if one fails there test then perhaps they should not get a licence

lol... that's hilarious

did he retain bus tickets so he can claim the reimbursement while he was without transport

Hahahaha..... same thing happened in Wollongong a few years ago, except with a turbo Starlet. Embarrassed cops didn't take it any further after the owner pointed out that his car is a bum-dragger.

*Snaps fingers* Gold lol.

Tats: I really...really...really worry about police officers at times lol.

Government should build more tracks (cheap admin fee) in the cities, so hoons can test their cars in a controlled environment. This way the police have better things to do and the public will sleep peacefully all night long!

If they wanna kill themselves go for it, but just don't take other people's live with ya!

(btw, good thing we're not AS bad as the people in USA, but good thing the Gov is doing something!)

on the news they said that WSID offers drags on wed at an average of $10/run but i checked the site n it says $40/run... now thats a rip not everyone can afford $40/run... as leon pointed out they should make it free or at least make it heaps cheap...

OR... imagine if they open up an autobahn the perfect solution... combined with a few toll booths along the way for any standstill races

No, WSID is $40/night with as many runs as u get in. depending on the night it can vary.

autobahn isnt the answer. Mandatory Driver Training has and always will be the right answer

thats mad then $40/night...

n i wasnt serious with the autobahn... germany is excused because their cars are built to handle the autobahn... just imagine a commodore trying to brake down to 0 from 200km/h thats sheer suicide... Mandatory Driver Training is a PERFECT solution to help inexperienced drivers get out of dangerous situations BUT u'll need a miracle when u're doing speeds over 120km/h...

yeah i knew u were joking

i think the autobahns are actually being speed limited now, which is probably a good thing.

And your exactly right - mandatory driver training is a step forward but when u are in excess of 120km/h and something happens u've got buckley's chance of avoiding an incident, and if u do manage to its not skill its pure luck.

i guess the next solution is speed limit all cars to 120km/h. however, it would be interesting to see stats on fatal accidents below and above 120km/h.

u can kill someone just as easy at 30km/h as u can at 120km/h.

To me, the whole problem comes down to respect and common sense. A car is a weapon. driving is probably the most dangerous thing normal people do in their daily life, however we are all so ignorant when it comes to driving. respect that what you are doing is dangerous, and what you are in control of can be a fatal weapon. And use some common sense. How many incidents have their been lately cos of street racing? i've lost count.

the problem is that it will be left up to the stupid cops with a chip on their shoulder because daddy wouldn't let them have a fast car to Define "racing" and thats where the problems will arise from...

There are many different reasons as to why the autobarn's are safer to drive on. But I think the main one, in my opinion, is the fact that in Europe a driving licence is a privilege. They don't come cheaply. When people here realise that driving is not a right then things can start to move forward. I think there should be a war on old blind deaf drivers......
(but I'm not saying I am a role model driver, but Northy thinks I'm a grandpa )

rob lets go for it dude!

speeding isnt the only factor wen it comes to fatalities... ONCE out of necessity i had to drive 1 or 2 km and i was a LITTLE tipsy and i'm NEVER doing that again like i was driving normally but i could sense that IF anything goes wrong then i'd be screwed... and thanks to the stupidity of the new P plate laws we'll be seeing more and more drunk drivers behind the wheel out of necessity... the problem is they'r trying to fix the problem with an iron fist... IT DOESNT WORK... coppas need to work with drivers and p platers to find a propper solution...

another thing is police attitude like there are some action addicted coppas u know... they can't wait to go break down doors with their guns drawn metaphorically u know...

oh and another thing is road condition especially on Paramatta Rd towards the city... it's so SCREWED UP... like the roads can't handle anything u know... like if you do speed or if anything happens, the road is in such bad condition that i'd label it as dangerous... on a number of occasions i'v been over potholes at high speed and if i wasn't attentive my car would've either hit the gutter or worse swerved to the opposite lane... now imagine if that's a drunk driver... one pothole at 70km/h and thats it instant carnage...

2c

apparently i was "hooning" the other night and my exhaust was "too loud" and "it mustn't be standard" ....... and it needs to be pitted ..... until the engineering certificate came out hahahahahahaha

Just adding a quick 2c..

I'm pretty certain that the Autobahn has, in fact, always had speed limits on it. Each lane is actually designated as a seperate road, similar to transit lanes in the larger cities down south. Your vehicle has to be capable of safely sustaining the limit in each lane in order to utilise it. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

(Pretty sure the 'fast lane' is topped at 300)

for reference the autobahn has a 'suggested speed' of 130km/h

police turn a blind eye to those that choose to go over this as long as they are safe about it.

OWNED

Gold. WHY ARE THERE NO PICS!!!???

haha i love that man. Copper was probably having a field day, thinking "**** yeah i got him", till the slip came out hahaha.. What did they do? just pack up and ***** of i'd assume?

hahaha

what attracted their attention to me was stupid on my behalf but i wont get into that as it was neither breaking any laws of the road or causing any harm to anyone but it warrented them pulling me over ..... but after giving me numerous speeches they just eventually let me go and sent me on my way .....

haha. thats so funny. cops must have felt like ****. i dont tthink they see much people with engineers certificate. its a good thing to have. how long does it take for a engineer to do all the stuff he needs to do to give you the certificate? woudnt mind getting one for my car after exhaust.

probably wouldn't take too long, although i think its more cost than time.

give us a heads up billy boy?

I wonder when they will ever get it right....
They are just using bandaid patches hoping that these patches will eventually solve the problem. The problem then is if they did it properly once, it most likely would of been cheaper.