Illegal GPS mounting

[TyroneandGladys]

Was stopped by a Arizona Highway Patrol officer for having my GPS mounted on the middle of the windshield. Was told that it was only allowed on the windshield in the bottom right or left lower corner. Luckily only got a warning,
What is funny is it illegal to mount your GPS in the center of your windshield in Arizona but it is not illegal to text while driving.

GPS mounting by state

[OFDPOS]

Well then I'll throw a ringer in the ring about the GPS placement, I removed the rear view mirror and mounted my rear view camera in it spot. Takes up about a 2 inch difference from above and below of what space the mirror itself took up.
As for the GPS , its mounted to a holder that sits in one of the cup-holders on the doghouse(eng cover)

[JohnG3]

donn0128 wrote:
Yea, illegal anywhere on the windshield in CA too.

Not so. As long as it is close to the dashboard and does not interfer with the driver's view of the road it can be on the dashboard. The drivers who put the GPS halfway up the windshield directly if front of them are illegal.

[Dtank]

4aSong wrote:
Just another day with another Law? Don't you just love it.

Yes.

Actually a very logical & practical law.

Be informed and you won't have problems.

.

[spoon059]

GoPackGo wrote:
I agree with Pitch. That paragraph seems to talk about how a vehicle is loaded or the number of people packed into the front seat.

You can't ignore the unbolded portion - 'or when there are in the front seat such number of persons' as that goes to the heart of the paragraph.

I don't believe this paragraph has anything to do with a windshield mounted GPS. Not saying the mounting of a GPS isn't addressed in a different section - but it ain't in this one.

I'm not ignoring it, I simply removed it to make him understand that it is different than the number of persons in the front seat... hence the OR.

I have a friend who is a NYPD officer. That charge is used for GPS and has been upheld in court. I really don't care if you or Pitch agree. I know that it is illegal and want to share my knowledge with others to save them a ticket. Personally, my wife is my navigator when we pull the trailer so it doesn't affect me. When I don't have her, I listen to the voice.

Do what you want. I'd rather spend that $60 on 2 nights camping than provide it to the State of New York.

[westend]

More NY law--Vehicle laws

From section 12a-"No person
shall drive any motor vehicle with any sign or other nontransparent
material other than a certificate or paper required to be displayed by
law upon the front windshield or the sidewings or side windows on either
side forward of or adjacent to the operator's seat."

[GoPackGo]

I agree with Pitch. That paragraph seems to talk about how a vehicle is loaded or the number of people packed into the front seat.

You can't ignore the unbolded portion - 'or when there are in the front seat such number of persons' as that goes to the heart of the paragraph.

I don't believe this paragraph has anything to do with a windshield mounted GPS. Not saying the mounting of a GPS isn't addressed in a different section - but it ain't in this one.

[spoon059]

pitch wrote:
spoon you edited the sentence to make it more closely align with what you want it to say. That section prohibits your girl friend from sitting with her back against the door or on your lap. Says nothing about a windshield mounted device.
It is 100% legal where I work and live,so I will leave it wear it is. When out of state I will take my chances like I always have.

I provided the ENTIRE paragraph to you. You indicated you couldn't understand what I wrote. I took out all the periphery and wrote the portion that was relevant to your flawed argument. Read it again. Pay attention to the bolded words and the word "OR".

spoon059 wrote:
From New York State Vehicle Traffic Code;
S 1213. Obstruction to driver's view or driving mechanism. (a) No person shall drive a motor vehicle when it is so loaded, or when there are in the front seat such number of persons as to obstruct the view of the driver to the front or sides of the vehicle or as to interfere with the driver's control over the driving mechanism of the vehicle.

It simply cannot be loaded in such a manner that it obstructs the windshield... OR when there are too many people in the front seat. Not BOTH, one or the other is a violation of the law.

You could have one piece of cardboard loaded in your car. If it is laying down in the backseat, it isn't loaded in such a manner as to obstruct the windshield. Conversely, if you have that one piece of cardboard blocking the entire windshield, it is loaded in a manner to obstruct the windshield.

The law also makes no statement about how much of the windshield is allowed to be obstructed. It simply states that it CANNOT BE OBSTRUCTED.

Websters dictionary defines the word "obstruct" as such;
-to be in front of (something) : to make (something) difficult to see

A GPS unit mounted on your windshield that prevents you from seeing the out the window is an OBSTRUCTION OF YOUR VIEW. That is illegal in New York. It is a safety issue, something that is taken pretty seriously in traffic court.

Whether or not they enforce that law is something different. Just because you don't like the law doesn't make it any less valid or binding. I'm not sure why you are coming at me like I am wrong. Its the law in YOUR state. You can drive any way you see fit, with any obstruction you see fit. If you get pulled over and cited, that is YOUR fault. I am simply trying to correct the wrong information that you provided, so someone else doesn't mistakenly rely on your incorrect interpretation of the law and find themselves getting stopped and cited for having a windshield obstruction.

[pitch]

spoon you edited the sentence to make it more closely align with what you want it to say. That section prohibits your girl friend from sitting with her back against the door or on your lap. Says nothing about a windshield mounted device.
It is 100% legal where I work and live,so I will leave it wear it is. When out of state I will take my chances like I always have.

[Dyngbld]

The EZPass folks here are VERY specific on how to mount the EZPass transponder.

As far as the OP I manufactured a bracket that allows me to mount the GPS/XM/Phone ect.. to the front of the dash, out of direct view of the windshield. Works like a champ. I think every thing is illegal in VA.

[spoon059]

pitch wrote:
And by what stretch does that sentence have anything to do with windshield mounted GPS?

spoon059 wrote:
No person shall drive a motor vehicle when it is so loaded as to obstruct the view of the driver to the front or sides of the vehicle

Maybe this will make it easier to read. I took out the other portions of the law.

Very simple law. You can't have anything other than federally approved equipment (rear view mirrors or A pillars) on your windshield or side mirrors if it would in any way obstruct your vision to the front or side.

Your GPS unit mounted directly below the center rear view mirror would be in violation of that law. Don't fuss at me though, I didn't write the laws in New York, I am just pointing out the fact that just because there isn't a specific law about windshield mounted GPS units, it is still illegal if they block any portion of your field of view.

[trail-explorer]

darsben wrote:
That is the usual reason the stop you for picayune ship.

What in the heck does the above mean?

[tpi]

I have GPS on one of those beanbag thingies. On my Honda, it sets in front of another large bright mutipurpose screen not obstructing the road at all. On the motorhome it sits on the dash but farther back in a cutout. I'll have to check to see if it covers any view of the road but I don't think it is much if any. Personally I like the verbal commands, often I don't need to look at the GPS at all. OTOH "Big Bertha" Garmin RV Navigator can sure be a screw up sometimes. If you have one of these do a firmware update it may stop locking up in big cities.

[Oldme]

DmaxWW wrote:
My GPS sits on the windshield just below the rearview mirror, how is that interfering with my view? Not illegal in my state and never been stopped about it all over the country.

In my 26 years as a LEO Va. the law was very simple.
Anything that is on the windshield or sits/hangs in front of the windshield was illegal.

The exceptions to the law were the State Inspections Sticker, City Sticker and any Military issued Base Sticker.

In 26 years, I NOT see a Judge that accepted the argument that something did not obstruct the view. The law said none were allowed
and that ended the argument.
Convicted as charged.

Follow the Law or pay the price if a Traffic Officer is doing his job.

When working traffic, there was not a car that I saw, in any direction, that I did not look at the license plates, windshield and all lights. If I was stopped behind a vehicle I looked at the rear tires. I was looking for safety violations. They are easy to see, most of the time.

That was the job, NOT just putting millage on the vehicle each day.

LEOs have been multitasking long before there was a popular name for it; work traffic, perform neighborhood patrols, respond to complaints and a hundred other duties a day.


Being retired I find it easier to comply than to donate my retirement funds to a city or state. Maybe you do not.

[OutdoorPhotogra]

So many points in this thread:
- low on the windshield could be safer because glancing at the GPS doesn't take your eyes fully off the road in the same way as glancing down at a phone GPS or paper map.
- what is center? Center below rearview mirror mounted just above dash shouldn't obscure anything. Center of driver's view over steering wheel, major hazard.
- About a cop scanning the car when stopped to help a motorist. It's called survival skills. You have to constantly watch for a danger in the car, gun or otherwise. It's the world we live in.

I'm thankful to a LEO that stopped to help outside West Yellowstone last summer when I had a blowout after dark. I had a triangle out but no flares. Very grateful for his lights to keep us from getting hit. He stayed until we were back on the road and gave us advice on finding a spot for the night since I wasn't going to make it to our campground in Yellowstone at that point. (wanted to replace my spare first).

[pitch]

And by what stretch does that sentence have anything to do with windshield mounted GPS?
I drive 300 to 400 plus miles per day professionally ,every single mile of that is with a GPS unit mounted below the mirror in the center of the windshield. My job would be close to impossible with out the aid of gps.
Never have I had even the hint of a close call due to the GPS unit.
I also have the bit in the box muted so I don't hear that unintelligible noise squawking all day long.
Apparently we in NY are just a little bit more capable than some others!