Roof Light Bar Illegal in Texas

Please read the full memo before offering conjecture.

 

No, you’re not likely to be pulled over for having a light bar on your roof. However, know that it will give probable cause for a stop.

If you like to have 2-3 beers at dinner, or partake in other herbal extracurricular activities, this could lead to face-to-face encounters you don’t want.

 

Did anything else come of that memo from 2016? Looks like the author was looking for ways to clarify.

 

I bet you’d be less likely to run into trouble with a rack and other accessories accompanying said light bar. Baseball bat and glove mentality

 

No; the statutes referenced have not changed.

I don’t expect them to, either. Most police don’t want to lose the probable cause for a stop.

 

Right, but they have to state the reason for being pulled over. When they change it to "improper placement of aux lighting" then you can challenge that later. But yes, once determined a cop will do anything he can to get you to do what he wants.

I also like how it says that they have to dim withing 300-500 ft... Umm ok i need your bright flashing cop light to dim when im passing you on the side of the road. Half the time they are so damn bright i have to look away from the lane im in. Now how safe is that?? Not to mention how many lights you install on those damn things! How much money they spend buying & installing all those lights!

Also they strobe, so if someone is epileptic then they could cause a wreck. I mean who are they really trying to fool here.

 

Was driving through small town Texas (Brownwood) on my way from Lubbock -> Austin. Made eye contact with a cop going the other way, he immediately went to his radio. 'bout 5 miles later I got pulled over. Cop said my off road light setup was illegal along with my halos.

I've taken the roof bar off since, but mostly just because I realized it didn't look good and the light output was shit

 

Here in PA, we can have up to 4 lights (2 headlights and 2 fog lights or 2 headlights and 1 light bar). The fogs can be mounted anywhere on a rack, roof, or bumper, but any more than (2 fogs or 1 light bar) have to have a cover on them while on the road.

You can have a spotlights too, but they are the same way or they have to be able to turn down (like a cop car) and we can't have any ground effect lighting either.

 

What is the law in Texas about having the lights covered? I know certain states like California require it, and I thought I had read somewhere that Texas does too. I have a pair of forward-facing lights on the cowl that are uncovered...always have been, even when I had them on my Jeeps. Never had an issue, but don't need a reason for getting pulled over.

 

When I got pulled over, I bullshitted with the cop for about 20 min. He said something about if a light is covered they're not classified as a light or something something. Was a couple years ago tho

 

There is no requirement for them to be covered, and 547.330 uses “equipped”, so it wouldn’t make a difference anyway.

I’m keeping mine, but it’s worth noting.

 

Keeping mine, maybe even buy some more at cali raised and run them all the time

 

Read this article and went to get tacos, but stopped for gas along the way. 3 motorcycle cops pulled in directly behind me....I thought I was done for lmao.

 

Maybe that had less to do with the lights, but maybe instead it was that you skipped the gas station entrance all together and used the curb, sidewalk and shrubs to make your entrance?

 

In that mall crawler?

 

This particular station, I've actually done that quite a few times lmao.

 

LOL!!!!

 

Traffic gets so backed up the only way in is the sidewalk/curb only for about 10 feet or so