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As others have pointed out, the inspection standards are wildly different. Here’s [0] an amusing and eye-opening look at what is needed to restore an older vehi

As others have pointed out, the inspection standards are wildly different. Here’s [0] an amusing and eye-opening look at what is needed to restore an older vehicle to pass inspection. For example, removing surface rust on a spare tire mount. Even then, he still failed inspection [1], and goes into much more detail on the rigorous checks performed. In contrast, there are U.S. states with zero inspections of any kind. No emissions, no safety, nothing. The problem is complicated, but IMO it boils down to lack of widespread public transit, and low salaries. Unless you live in a metro that has reliable and inexpensive public transit, you generally need a car to get to work. You also need to pay for fuel and insurance, so things like preventative maintenance are often put off for lack of funds. When repairs are finally needed, chances are you’ll opt for the cheapest part available, even if it won’t last nearly as long. Same with tires: good tires are far more expensive than bad ones. My wife’s Mazda CX-9 has Michelin CrossClimate2 tires. They’re $307/ea right now on TireRack. There are also off-brands available for literally half that. I (and probably most people on this site) am lucky enough to have a job that allows me to buy the best tires, but that is definitely not true for most Americans. $1200 (plus mounting and balancing costs) for a set of tires is completely out of the realm of possibility. So now you have a car with parts of dubious reliability on tires that don’t grip as well, and remember, in some states there are no checks that your tires even have tread depth left, let alone their stopping ability. If every U.S. state (or the federal government, but that’ll never happen) were to require the level of safety checks that Germany does, I guarantee you that a solid 1/4 – 1/2 of cars I see on the road would fail. It would be a devastating blow to the U.S. economy, purely from the sudden drop in worker availability. Finally, re: speed limits, it’s unclear to me how you think Newton’s 2nd Law doesn’t apply. [0]: https://www.jalopnik.com/heres-everything-i-fixed-to-prep-my-250-000-mile-diesel-1845180414/ https://www.jalopnik.com/heres-everything-i-fixed-to-prep-my... [1]: https://www.jalopnik.com/i-took-a-250-000-mile-minivan-through-germanys-rigorous-1845197100/ https://www.jalopnik.com/i-took-a-250-000-mile-minivan-throu...

ryao 2y ago
Here is the NYS vehicle inspection program requirements: https://dmv.ny.gov/new-york-state-vehicle-safetyemissions-inspection-program https://dmv.ny.gov/new-york-state-vehicle-safetyemissions-in... If there is anything missing that is needed for road safety, I am sure that the NYS legislature would be happy to add it. You can write to them with your findings. In any case, there is an inspection program that keeps vehicles to a minimum standard in NYS. Other states could easily adopt it. If a significant percentage of vehicles are deemed unsafe to drive because of this, then removing them from the road would be a good thing. > Finally, re: speed limits, it’s unclear to me how you think Newton’s 2nd Law doesn’t apply. It is unclear to me how you think I think that. This sounds like a strawman to me.
- sgarland 2y ago
  That’s great, good for New York. Now go get Alaska, Arkansas, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, and Washington to do the same. Also, remember that licensing reciprocity means that if I have a vehicle titled in South Carolina, nothing stops me from driving it into North Carolina. I think you missed the entire part of my post where I discussed how a significant portion of the population is unable to properly maintain their vehicles, and also lack access to reliable public transit. Re: Newton, you said that “Actual data does not support the idea of low speed limits.” You did not cite your source, and without that, I am defaulting to the basic physics principle that an object moving faster will impart more force on another if they collide.
  - ryao 2y ago
    > That’s great, good for New York. Now go get Alaska, Arkansas, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, and Washington to do the same. Also, remember that licensing reciprocity means that if I have a vehicle titled in South Carolina, nothing stops me from driving it into North Carolina. Germany is no different. There is licensing reciprocity with the rest of the EU and even other countries beyond the EU. I could drive in Germany with my NY license: https://de.usembassy.gov/driving-in-germany/ https://de.usembassy.gov/driving-in-germany/ People can even drive in Germany with licenses issued by any of the states you mentioned. You can even drive cars registered in the U.S. in Germany: https://www.zoll.de/EN/Private-individuals/Travel/Entering-Germany/Duties-and-taxes/Temporary-importation-of-a-vehicle/temporary-importation-of-a-vehicle_node.html https://www.zoll.de/EN/Private-individuals/Travel/Entering-G... The only restrictions occur when you wish to do it for longer than 6 months. > I think you missed the entire part of my post where I discussed how a significant portion of the population is unable to properly maintain their vehicles, and also lack access to reliable public transit. This does not pose a problem in NY. Other states could easily follow suit. I think you missed that. > Re: Newton, you said that “Actual data does not support the idea of low speed limits.” You did not cite your source, and without that, I am defaulting to the basic physics principle that an object moving faster will impart more force on another if they collide. The German autobahn is the most obvious source. There is also a huge body of work around the 85th percentile principle. Do I really need to say more?

ryao 2y ago

Here is the NYS vehicle inspection program requirements: https://dmv.ny.gov/new-york-state-vehicle-safetyemissions-inspection-program https://dmv.ny.gov/new-york-state-vehicle-safetyemissions-in... If there is anything missing that is needed for road safety, I am sure that the NYS legislature would be happy to add it. You can write to them with your findings. In any case, there is an inspection program that keeps vehicles to a minimum standard in NYS. Other states could easily adopt it. If a significant percentage of vehicles are deemed unsafe to drive because of this, then removing them from the road would be a good thing. > Finally, re: speed limits, it’s unclear to me how you think Newton’s 2nd Law doesn’t apply. It is unclear to me how you think I think that. This sounds like a strawman to me.

sgarland 2y ago
That’s great, good for New York. Now go get Alaska, Arkansas, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, and Washington to do the same. Also, remember that licensing reciprocity means that if I have a vehicle titled in South Carolina, nothing stops me from driving it into North Carolina. I think you missed the entire part of my post where I discussed how a significant portion of the population is unable to properly maintain their vehicles, and also lack access to reliable public transit. Re: Newton, you said that “Actual data does not support the idea of low speed limits.” You did not cite your source, and without that, I am defaulting to the basic physics principle that an object moving faster will impart more force on another if they collide.
- ryao 2y ago
  > That’s great, good for New York. Now go get Alaska, Arkansas, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, and Washington to do the same. Also, remember that licensing reciprocity means that if I have a vehicle titled in South Carolina, nothing stops me from driving it into North Carolina. Germany is no different. There is licensing reciprocity with the rest of the EU and even other countries beyond the EU. I could drive in Germany with my NY license: https://de.usembassy.gov/driving-in-germany/ https://de.usembassy.gov/driving-in-germany/ People can even drive in Germany with licenses issued by any of the states you mentioned. You can even drive cars registered in the U.S. in Germany: https://www.zoll.de/EN/Private-individuals/Travel/Entering-Germany/Duties-and-taxes/Temporary-importation-of-a-vehicle/temporary-importation-of-a-vehicle_node.html https://www.zoll.de/EN/Private-individuals/Travel/Entering-G... The only restrictions occur when you wish to do it for longer than 6 months. > I think you missed the entire part of my post where I discussed how a significant portion of the population is unable to properly maintain their vehicles, and also lack access to reliable public transit. This does not pose a problem in NY. Other states could easily follow suit. I think you missed that. > Re: Newton, you said that “Actual data does not support the idea of low speed limits.” You did not cite your source, and without that, I am defaulting to the basic physics principle that an object moving faster will impart more force on another if they collide. The German autobahn is the most obvious source. There is also a huge body of work around the 85th percentile principle. Do I really need to say more?