Source:
AUTO SHOPS PROFIT FROM ILLEGAL RACING
Copyright: KFMB
San Diego, CA - AUTO SHOPS PROFIT FROM ILLEGAL RACING
A recent string of deadly street racing accidents has police taking a closer look at the auto shops that build these drag racers. In most cases, the vehicles involved in street racing are anything but street legal. But that doesn't stop the auto shops from making big bucks off the ever-growing sport of street racing.
During one undercover police raid on illegal street racing, officers arrest drivers, impound cars and write tickets for illegally modified engines.
But, despite these crackdowns people who know street racing say the sport is as popular as ever.
"Within the last three to four years it's doubled if not more in popularity," said Justin Lim and auto shop worker.
Street racing is now a lifestyle for many young drivers. And for the shops that build the cars it's big business.
"A lot of the shops can make quite a bit of money off this. We're talking about a sect type of market that right now is in the billions of dollars," said George Lane with the California Bureau of Automotive Repair.
And street racers are willing to spend a lot of money to make their cars go fast.
"I've seen anywhere from $200 all the way up to $20,000," said Lim.
The State Bureau of Automotive repair says most of that money is spent on high performance engine modifications that violate California smog laws.
"Illegal superchargers, turbo chargers, fuel cells, nitrous kits, anything that they can do to increase the horsepower of the vehicles," said Lane
The cars themselves may be illegal, but the auto shops that build them get around the law by making customers sign waivers, legal contracts, promising the modified vehicles will not be operated on public streets.
"Basically, all customers that have work done here have to sign a waiver. We're not condoning any type of illegal street drag racing. We're just providing a service to a customer," said Lim.
They may not condone it, but state officers say shops that cater to street racers know full well that the cars will be driven illegally on public roads.
"How many cars do you know that are not going on the road that have license plates on them? How many cars that are not going on the road have stereo systems that they spend money on inside of these things?" Said lane.
"The Bureau of Automotive Repair has - on rare occasions - shut down auto shops that perform illegal engine modifications.
But only when warnings are ignored and when officers are able to prove that the shop is willfully violating state smog laws.
As for the drivers, if they get caught street racing, police impound their vehicles for 30 days and write them citations that require illegal engine modifications be removed.
That can get really expensive.
"I have seen a lot of times where parents are called in to pick up their child involved in such activity...not knowing that their vehicle was so highly modified and altered... that it could not pass the smog check program," said Lane.
Once a driver gets a citation, the options are limited.
"They either come back and have us re-install the stock products. Do it themselves or they sell the car outright," Lim.
Police say parents need to keep track of the modifications teenagers are making on their cars - especially if the car is owned by the parent.
There are legal drag races held at Qualcomm Stadium with safety rules in place to protect the drivers.
