Inventive driver who jerry-rigged a gas canister to the back of his car and added a solar panel to the bonnet cops a heavy fine from police
- An Adelaide man in a Toyota 4WD has been fined for using illegal modifications
- The driver was stopped for attaching a solar panel and a gas canister to his car
- The 56-year-old was fined for illegally tempering with his front number plate
- He has been fined $752 and his vehicle has been defected by traffic police
A man has been fined a hefty amount for creatively modifying his number plate and jerry-rigging a solar panel and a gas canister to his car.
The driver was spotted in Toyota 4WD on Belair Road in Adelaide on Saturday with a gas canister attached to the spare-tyre holder and a solar panel fitted to the bonnet on Saturday.
After stopping the man just before 10am, police examined the vehicle thoroughly and discovered the front number plate had also been tampered with.
A solar panel was attached to the front (left) of the Toyota 4WD and a gas canister was attached to the rear (right)
The front number plate had been cut in two so that both sections were affixed on either side of a winch.
The driver, a 56-year-old man from the Adelaide suburb of Brooklyn Park, was fined $752 for illegally modifying the number plate.
He was given a warning for illegally attaching a solar panel and gas bottle to his car before the vehicle was defected by police.
The driver has been fined $752 for illegally modifying the car’s number plate and was given a warning against the use of illegal modifications
The Toyota 4WD was defected by the traffic police and will need to pass an inspection
His 4WD will need to pass an inspection carried out at the Regency Park Vehicle Inspection Station.
Brevet Sergeant David Williams of the Road Policing Section said such fittings, hooks or attachments with sharp edges qualify as dangerous modifications.
‘These illegal additions create a significant safety risk in the event of a collision,’ he said.
‘Any object fitted to a vehicle must be designed, built and fitted to the vehicle in a way that minimises the likelihood of injury to a person making contact with the vehicle.’
Many people have sympathised with the driver and criticised the police on social media
The incident has gained considerable attention on social media with users sympathising with the driver and criticising the police.
‘$752 for mutilated number plate. How do they even come up with that fine. That’s stealing,’ one of the thousand comments read.
Some social media users commented it was unfair to fine the driver as long as the traffic police could read the number plate.
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