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LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) The car shop made famous by MTV's "Pimp My Ride" has
been a little too aggressive in some of its ride-pimping, a federal agency says.
West Coast Customs and another TV customizer, Unique Autosports of Uniondale,
N.Y., are facing fines for disabling or removing safety equipment from vehicles
as part of the overhaul work they do. The fines are part of a crackdown on
illegal customization by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
"It's not only a bad idea to disable the air bag, it's against the law," agency
spokesman Rae Tyson tells The New York Times."If you have a DVD player there
instead of an air bag, it's not going to protect you in a crash."
"Pimp My Ride," one of MTV's most popular series, follows the Inglewood, Calif.,
crew of West Coast Customs as they turn decrepit hoopties into accessory-laden
automotive artworks that often feature in-car TV and video-game systems,
hydraulics and immaculate paint jobs. The NHTSA fined the shop $16,000 forremoving air bags to install video monitors in the steering column of some cars.
Unique Autosports, which will be featured in an upcoming series on cable's Speed
Channel, was fined $5,000 for a similar offense.
In addition to the federal air-bag law, most states have laws that make watching
television in the front seat of a car illegal. The video navigation systems
that are now a regular feature of luxury cars are excepted.
been a little too aggressive in some of its ride-pimping, a federal agency says.
West Coast Customs and another TV customizer, Unique Autosports of Uniondale,
N.Y., are facing fines for disabling or removing safety equipment from vehicles
as part of the overhaul work they do. The fines are part of a crackdown on
illegal customization by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
"It's not only a bad idea to disable the air bag, it's against the law," agency
spokesman Rae Tyson tells The New York Times."If you have a DVD player there
instead of an air bag, it's not going to protect you in a crash."
"Pimp My Ride," one of MTV's most popular series, follows the Inglewood, Calif.,
crew of West Coast Customs as they turn decrepit hoopties into accessory-laden
automotive artworks that often feature in-car TV and video-game systems,
hydraulics and immaculate paint jobs. The NHTSA fined the shop $16,000 forremoving air bags to install video monitors in the steering column of some cars.
Unique Autosports, which will be featured in an upcoming series on cable's Speed
Channel, was fined $5,000 for a similar offense.
In addition to the federal air-bag law, most states have laws that make watching
television in the front seat of a car illegal. The video navigation systems
that are now a regular feature of luxury cars are excepted.