Mitigation of Illegal Street Racing
The Bureau of Automotive Repair (BAR) regularly assists local police departments, sheriff’s departments, and the California Highway Patrol in training officers on how to mitigate illegal street racing and sideshow activity. BAR’s role is to educate attendees on how to identify illegally modified emission control systems on street racing vehicles. The owner of a vehicle with an illegally modified emission control system can receive a citation for violation of Vehicle Code section 27156(b), which then requires the vehicle to be taken to a referee station for an inspection of the emission control system. Additionally, once the citation is given, the vehicle may only be driven home, to a repair facility to correct the illegal modifications, or to a referee station. The vehicle must otherwise be removed from public roads until the illegal modifications are corrected and it has passed a Smog Check inspection at a referee station. These factors make it difficult for street racers to continue their illegal activity and help to ensure modified emission control systems are repaired correctly.