[jaguar]

do i need turn signals to be street legal in new york? i know need a headlight and brake light. does the taillight need to be lite all the time like the headlight?
thanks

There is the right way, the wrong way and the british way to do anything!

 

[JackC]

I am pretty sure you need whatever was standard on your bike for the year of manufacture. ie- my 69 honda does not need blinkers, but a 73 would. If you had a 1917 Harley with an acetyln headlight that was stock equipment, that would pass. I do remember back in the 60's a headlight was only required for night driving.... If you only drove in the day it was not needed to run on the road.

In the end it depends on the guy giving you the sticker...

 

[joe c]

actually, that was the case til 74 i think. my 77 550 has the headlight on all of the time. but pre 69 needs turn signals. the nice thing is, by looking, 95% of cops dont know what theyre looking at. i asked my dad about it. (retired cop) he said as far as being pulled over for it, its probably not going to happen. now, if they grab you for speeding, then i suppose they tack it on.

jc

 

[jaguar]

im almost done with my CB125 cafe. got the headlight and taillight in but cant seem to think of a way to put blinkers on it with out being SOOOOOO ugly. i can wire the taillight to be on all the time with the the headlight. dont think ill be doing much speeding with this bike.....though i was doking 50mph in a 35 today(first ride!)
thanks for the help


There is the right way, the wrong way and the british way to do anything!

 

[ROSKO]

Here are the ACTUAL requirements.
http://www.nydmv.state.ny.us/forms/mv529b.pdf
Nice and vague, as laws should be. I carry a printout of it with my reg. got pulled over once and very polite like "but officer, as you can see here, blinkers were not required in 1970.." that being said i run them now. (They are good at doing the job they were designed for)

Most times THEY (as in THE MAN) are more interested in the bike than citing you. Like Joe said they probably don't know the rules or care to enforce them.

BORN TO LURK, FORCED TO WORK.
www.NYCvinMoto.com
www.VinMoto.org



Edited by - ROSKO on Jan 03 2007 11:43:05 PM

 

[robertob]

Yeah, it's a state thing. California DMV doesn't require turns on anything pre '71. I also printed out a copy of the CA VC section and use that.

 

[joe c]

ooops, i meant pre 69 does not require turn signals.

my fault.

i was following a guy on a mid 60s norton a while back. it was ver strange to follow someone without turn signals.



jc

 

[Geeto67]

in new york, post 1985 has to have blinkers no matter what. Pre 1985 you have to have them if your original bike came with them. I don't have any signals on my 1978 cb750 (but all my other bikes do). Most cops won't know the difference so if you want to run without them you can probably get away with it. I personally find it is piece of mind to have some kind of signal since the drivers here suck.

The taillight does need to be lit all the time in NY.

Jaguar...if you want that jawa, e-mail me and I'll bring it over this week.

 

[teighlor]

i dont know, following people with no turn signals isnt so weird... people driving cars have them and rarely use them....im a bike messenger i should know......

 

[Chetas]

quote:
i dont know, following people with no turn signals isnt so weird... people driving cars have them and rarely use them....im a bike messenger i should know......

I am with you on this one, as I rode my bicycle in NYC and the NJ/NY metro area for a few years, before moving back ro Europe last year.


By the way, it is great to have found such a forum! I have just got my motorcycle license recently, and I would really like to get my hands on a café. Hopefully, I will get enough advice from here to help me start building a café.
Cheers!

 

[Douglas Harwood]

I have a cafe'd CB200 that wouldn't pass inspection at two different garages last spring. It's a '74 Honda with straight pipes and the stock turn signals removed. That really pissed me off.
Luckily, over the years, I've accumulated two other CB200s that I've kept stock. So, finally, I took one of the other bikes to get inspected and when it passed I just switched out the fork tube with the sticker on it. Slightly illegal, but I'm a responsible conscientious adult and there's no reason I shouldn't be allowed to ride this perfectly safe bike.

Not a solution for everyone but pretty cool when you can swing it.

 

[joe c]

i have never ever understood why they do that. the local city resident parking stickers are supposed to go on your "windshield" what if youre bike doesnt have one? they started new parking rules a few years back. they installed these new electronic parking boxes. you pay, then put the receipt that comes out of the box on your dashboard. they thought great, no more meters, everyone will have to do it. any vehicle will have to have one. at first they were enforcing it with motorcycles. (you could pull up in your car, take one off a bike, and put it on your dash. walla, free parking) they did that until a club orgnaized a protest and brought 1500 bikes into town. they took up as many parking spots as possible. the city now allows bikes to park free around town. like they should.

you should hear toms stories about going through tolls with his sidecar. nys trying to charge him for 3 axles!

just amazing they think this shit up
jc

 

[Geeto67]

quote:
I have a cafe'd CB200 that wouldn't pass inspection at two different garages last spring. It's a '74 Honda with straight pipes and the stock turn signals removed. That really pissed me off.
Luckily, over the years, I've accumulated two other CB200s that I've kept stock. So, finally, I took one of the other bikes to get inspected and when it passed I just switched out the fork tube with the sticker on it. Slightly illegal, but I'm a responsible conscientious adult and there's no reason I shouldn't be allowed to ride this perfectly safe bike.

Not a solution for everyone but pretty cool when you can swing it.

sounds like you need to make friends with your inspection agent. The NY law reguarding signals is that if your pre 1985 bike originally came with them then you have to have them. In the old days I would just concoct a story that the dealers would install the signals and they didn't do it on this particualr bike when new. Now I know so many NYS inspectors I could fart an an inspection sticker comes out.

However, even though one of my bikes does not have them I do recommend them, it makes life a lot easier.