Speedo reading low?
Thread Starter
Out Of Control!!
Joined: Oct 2004
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From: Maryland, USA
2007 CLK350 Sport, 2006 E320 CDI, 1978 Cessna 152
Speedo reading low?
So I recently managed to get a speeding ticket in VA for a speed I honestly wasnt going (it was 8:15am so rush hour was a major factor of not speeding!) and as part of the defense, my lawyer suggested getting the speedometer calibrated. Knowing that Germans exclusively read high, not low as if I recall the German law makes them all read low, I assumed it would be worthless, yet none the less found a place to do it.
I brought the car in, found $75 in EXACT change as specified by the owner of the shop, filled out a form stating the speed of my ticket. Although I did not stick around to watch, I got a call 20 min later saying the car was ready. The results, at low speed the car was fine, at higher speeds the car read low by up to 3mph.
So my question is....did my $75 in exact change + innocent looks + being slighty flirty with a woman older than my mother buy me 3mph off my speedo or could the car really read low?
The car has stock 17s, I have had the brakes upgraded and recently made the switch from badly worn Summers to All Seasons.
I brought the car in, found $75 in EXACT change as specified by the owner of the shop, filled out a form stating the speed of my ticket. Although I did not stick around to watch, I got a call 20 min later saying the car was ready. The results, at low speed the car was fine, at higher speeds the car read low by up to 3mph.
So my question is....did my $75 in exact change + innocent looks + being slighty flirty with a woman older than my mother buy me 3mph off my speedo or could the car really read low?
The car has stock 17s, I have had the brakes upgraded and recently made the switch from badly worn Summers to All Seasons.
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I have an Escort 9500i radar detector with GPS that includes speed display. According to it, my car's speedometer is fast. When the car says 85mph, I'm at 83mph on the Escort.
Oh, and good luck fighting the ticket - I always fight them. In my experience, the only way to win is to have the cop not show, or to have them make a mistake, like when they run LIDAR traps and the LIDAR operator is not the cop who signs the ticket. Otherwise, it's a kangaroo court and the defendant is always found guilty. Once when this happened, I filed an appeal to a "real" court and then the ADA kept wanting me to plead, I didn't and they finally threw out the case.
Oh, and good luck fighting the ticket - I always fight them. In my experience, the only way to win is to have the cop not show, or to have them make a mistake, like when they run LIDAR traps and the LIDAR operator is not the cop who signs the ticket. Otherwise, it's a kangaroo court and the defendant is always found guilty. Once when this happened, I filed an appeal to a "real" court and then the ADA kept wanting me to plead, I didn't and they finally threw out the case.
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From: A Canadian in Dubai, United Arab Emirates
'05 C200K SS, '05 Kleemann CLK500K, '08 Hummer H3 & '92 Z34 5sp (track car in Canada)
Same with mine Rod, I've GPS'd both my CLK & C and they both read high, 5% over the GPS. I'll never tell the wife though, I'm sure it's saved me a few bucks from her "speeding".
Thread Starter
Out Of Control!!
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 20,773
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From: Maryland, USA
2007 CLK350 Sport, 2006 E320 CDI, 1978 Cessna 152
Thanks guys. When you get a ticket, its like a cruise ship docking, everyone gets paid! Court, lawyers, etc. And VA made 80+ reckless which is the same level as a DUI. I assume it wont just get tossed unless it was a mistake they made, but, getting it knocked to something stupid and keeping off my record would be the main goal. Time to get a laser jammer or just stay out of VA!
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Actually, I've defended all of my tickets myself. Most of them I got out of by just requesting continuances so the officer forgot to appear (or quit, was fired, etc.) The one where the officer did show, I appealed from the municipal (city) court to district (county) court. Like I said, the ADA kept hounding me to plead out, take driving school, etc. The reality is, the county has enough real crime that they don't want to deal with traffic fines. I stalled, and they dropped the case.
