10 Cars The Cops Love to Ticket
Published On: February 7, 2009
Thanks to U.S. News and World Report for their article on the 10 cars that cops love to ticket. It’s a pretty fascinating list with some surprises (at least to me). I’ve culled the Internet to find representative photos of the cars and added an interesting link to each one for your reading enjoyment. In line with this article, I would suggest that you read A Guideline for Handling Traffic Tickets by Michael Klijian, Esq.
The data in their article was produced by a survey conducted by ISO Quality Planning, an outfit that helps insurers spot and assess risks. This is a polite way of saying that ISO helps insurance companies determine which cars deserve the highest insurance rates.
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Here’s the list:
1. Hummer H2: Per the Hummer site: “In a world where SUVs have begun to look like their owners, complete with love handles and mushy seats, the H2 SUV proves that there is still one out there that can drop and give you 20. And with a more spacious, comfortable interior and a host of standard features, the H2 strikes a perfect balance between interior comfort, on-road capability, and off-road capability. Starting at $63,765.” It can drop and give you 20? With testosterone to spare.
2. Scion tC: Designed to appeal to the Generation Y market, it ranks as an affordable car with the following stats:
- MSRP: $17,000 – $17,800>
- Invoice: $16,150 – $16,910
- MPG: 20 City / 27 Hwy
Not so affordable, though, it it’s a ticket magnet.
3. Scion xB: What’s with the Scion’s? Look down the list and you’ll see that the Scion xA rates as the number 7 most adored by our men in blue. Well, according to Edmunds.com the x8 is “Attracting the coveted 18-to-34-year-old age group is job one for Scion, the youth-oriented division of Toyota, and its xB wagon is the fashion centerpiece of the brand. Although the Scion xB has the body of a miniature delivery truck, even in its second generation this box still casts a distinctive silhouette.” Apparently the silhouette looks like a solid object when zipping down the highway and byways.
4. Mercedes Benz CLK63 AMG: Luxury, speed, beauty and handling. Unfortunately, you may get slowed down by the red lights flashing behind you. Auto-power-girl.com says “Cars from the AMG division of Mercedes-Benz have always been considered as something rather special. With the introduction of the Black Series models, this is more evident than ever before, and the CLK 63 AMG Black Series is considered by many as the ultimate driving machine. At Kleemann however, they saw it as just another interesting challenge, and the result is one of the most fascinating and uncompromising Kleemann cars ever.”
5. Toyota Solara Coupe: This looks like such a benign car. What is it about this car that attracts the law? It’s essentially a 2 door Camry. Well, I’m stumped on this one. Here are the 2008 stats from Yahoo: “Upon introduction, the SE 5-Spd MT is equipped with a standard 2.4-liter, I4, 155-horsepower engine that achieves 21 mpg in the city and 31-mpg on the highway. A 5-speed manual transmission with overdrive is standard. The SLE Convertible is equipped with a standard 3.3-liter, V6, 210-horsepower engine that achieves 18-mpg in the city and 26-mpg on the highway. A 5-speed automatic transmission with overdrive is standard.” From the low $20,000’s.
6. Mercedes Benz CLS63 AMG: According to Leftlanenews.com“It’s Mercedes-Benz’s stab at trying to convince the consumer that a four-door sedan is in reality a coupe. But it has been thoroughly massaged by Mercedes’ in-house tuner, AMG, to supply the ultimate in go-fast goodstuffs. Sharing lots of platform underpinnings from its E-Class sister-ship, it looks like it could also have been the better-looking, separated-at-birth sibling of the Chrysler 300C.” Bottom line is that this is a sleek, fast, sporty car that has caught the attention of the law.
7. Scion xA: Again, an innocuous looking car that’s been able to capture the imagination of law enforcement. Well, maybe the gas mileage of 32 city, 38 highway will compensate for the ticket that one might get in this 1.5 liter compact.
8. Subaru Outback: I like what US News and World Report says about this car: “Subarus have a reputation of being yuppie grocery getters, but the Outback manages to prove that stereotype wrong by being one of the top ten most ticketed cars. Apparently, the Outback is the car of choice for people who need to get tot Whole Foods in a hurry, and maybe park illegally once they’re there.”
9. Audi A4: Maybe the U.S. News and World Report Review of the Audi A4 will shed light on why the police love to ticket the Audi A4: “The 2009 Audi A4 steals a page from Ferrari with its Audi Drive Select system. It allows the driver to select from three performance profiles, changing the car from a quiet commuter to an aggressive sport sedan to a solid wet-weather gripper. But the car is still not as powerful as other German luxury sedans. Continue with our full Performance Review for details on the car’s two available engines.”
10. Toyota Matrix: Credited for bringing SUV styling to small cars, it is now credited with bringing insurance rate increases to its owners. Another cute car that’s setting the road on fire. I found a link to the Toyota Matrix Owners Forum. Maybe that site will provide some insight into this phenomenon.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this article. Although most of my blog postings focus on legal issues as they relate to personal injury, I thought that this information was both entertaining and informative while being somewhat relevant to the clients that I represent. After all, aren’t traffic tickets designed to deter people from driving dangerously? I hope so.
