Have you ever been stopped by a cop?

[Ray Horton]

Beauford's post about his two mile drive for a Coke got me thinking about the times I've been stopped by a cop while I was driving my A. It might be entertaining, if not informative, to share some stories. One of my memorable stops was coming home about 9:00 pm on a dark country road with my 3-month old daughter asleep in the back seat (no carrier, it was 1970). First the county deputy wanted to tell me I only had one tail light. I explained that away. Then he wanted to make sure my horn worked. Then my headlights. It became apparent he mostly just wanted to talk about the car. I finally said, "Officer, I have a baby asleep in the back seat. Could we wind this up?" He fell all over himself apologizing, and actually escorted us the last five miles home with lights flashing.

Then there was the time I was stopped by the CHiP for going too slow on Hwy 101 approaching the Golden Gate Bridge from the north. But I'll save that for next time.

[tbirdtbird]

Ray that is such an excellent story, especially the part about only one taillight!!!

I was stopped for speeding in my A when it was all stock (no Mitchell, etc). I was about 10-15 over. The cop didn't write me up, he was more amazed the car would go that fast. The look on his face was priceless

This is gonna be a good thread!

[Beauford]

Glad I could contribute to useful dialogue HAHAHAHA!!

[Curly]

I was pulled over returning from Homer, Alaska. It’s a 7 to 8 hour drive and I was tired and my ass was sore. I was not amused when I discovered he just wanted to look at my Model A and hear the horn. I’m a diplomatic man so I was short but polite. My short wife is not diplomatic so she was not at all polite.

[BNCHIEF]

Curly maybe your wife needs to go to charm school so she can be more like you.:rolling

[Curly]

Few people are blessed with my charm. She’s perfect, but quick to put people in their place as needed.

[Patrick]

I was stopped in town this summer by an apparently new LEO. He had to inform me that I was going 33 in a 30 and had to warn me of the consequences of such an act. I explained that I was appreciative of diligence and insisted he issue me a 'coupon' in order to teach me a lesson. I think he thought I was nutz and refused to write me up and left.

[Ray Horton]

I think they send rookies out to practice on safe situations.

[2manycars]

I have been stopped and ticketed too many times to count in newer cars, but never in the model A. I once drove from Connecticut to the Canadian border in my tudor with 1929 plates, before that was allowed, and had a few cops look at me, but never stopped me. I thought that was remarkable, since the CT 29 plates are red, and all CT plates have been blue since 1957.

[Captndan]

It was raining hard. I pulled into a wide spot to wait it out. Cop right behind me. He got out of his dry car to ask me if everything was alright. I said yes and he said he knew that A wiper wasn’t worth a hoot.

[BNCHIEF]

This is kind of cop related, many years ago we went on model t tours and a gentleman Ralph Zajik and his wife Marcy were from texas Richardson if I remember right. They had a paddy wagon and they drove this car everywhere. My boys were little and Ralph and Marcy dressed as keystone cops they were being ornery and I said you better behave the cops are here so Ralph arrested them they were laughing until Ralph put them in the slammer. Ralph said have you learned your lesson and they promised to be good so he let them out and said I will keep my eye on you and they went out of their way to avoid him. They still remember that.

[Tom Wesenberg]

Well, this one is more like I stopped a cop. I was downtown Minneapolis and had my left arm out to make a left turn. The cop was on the road to the right of me and had the right of way. He turned left and stopped beside me to ask what I wanted. I told him I was just signaling a left turn. He felt a little embarrassed and drove on.

[Grover]

A few years ago we were on our way to the regional in Omaha on a Sunday morning. Stopped in a town for a short break. I was in the back and called the leader on the cb that we were in a no parking zone. He answered "If a cop shows up, tell him my brother-in-law is the chief of police". We of course one showed up and was not really very nice but I told him what the leader had said. He got nice and let us go. When we came back thru a week later he followed us thru town but didn't stop us. The next year we had a regional in Wichita and the group from Omaha had some car trouble in the same town and pulled into the city park to fix it. During that time a couple guys pulled out a cold one for refreshment. They were stopped on the way out of town and luckily was only given a warning. We are still careful when we travel thru that town even after 15 years.

[shark81]

I was just riding around town one day getting a bunch of thumbs up and waves. I started to notice we sort of had a following, so I made a few turns to confirm my suspicions and yep an officer was following me no lights or nothing so I continued on my way to a little park nearby and got a screw driver out of the toolbox and made some "carb adjustments" when . a young officer pulls up asks me what year the car was, and then continues to tell me how much he likes the car and just wanted to check it out, so he dose. I then tell him to "go a head climb in and have a seat "! with a big grin on his face he then hands me his phone and asks would you take a pic of me and your car? Sure!! I wish had taken on of me, him, and, the "A".

[CarlLaFong]

When my friend got home from Vietnam, we decided to get his old A-Bone running. After removing the head and freeing up a few valves, it fired up. "Let's hot lap this baby around the block." Now, since it had a hot rod four cylinder, Isky cam, Jahns pistons, Thomas duel intake, etc., it barked pretty loud with no muffler. Additionally, the fuel line was leaking from the electric pump to the carbs. We, brilliantly solved that minor issue. I sat on the right fender and disconnected the wire to the pump when gas squirted out and reconnected it when the engine began to stumble. Perfect!! We pulled out of his dad's driveway and drove about 20 feet when we got lit up. The cop gets out of his car, walks over to us and says, "What the f**k are you two morons doing???" "Why nothing ossifer." He asks for license and registration. He has neither. The cop starts writing. No license, no reg, no horn, no lights, no brakes, no muffler, broken windshield, bald tires and probably a few more. He let us go on the reckless driving with me on the fender. Pretty nice guy, actually. It was just a big fix-it ticket which, BTW, he never fixed

[Chevmn56]

This isnt cop related but still pretty cool i think......drove the A to the grocery store after i first got it. When i was pulling up to park an elderly lady probably about 92 was walking buy, she stopped and talked to me about the car and then asked for a ride. I gave her a ride around the parking lot. I can remember looking over at her when we got going and she was just grinning ear to ear. when i dropped her at her CAR!!!! she shook my hand and thanked me at least 10 times with tears in her eyes.That truly made my day and year!!!! i really wonder what she was thinking...i was a little choked up and couldn't ask LOL

[BILL WILLIAMSON]

In Minerva, I pulled out of Bad Buds' Station, in front of a COP He pulled me over, for NO tail lights, apparently, my arm had moved the light switch, slightly, the headlights WERE on. Moved the switch & all was well. He said, "Don't pull out like that, in a SLOW Car"-----"Minerva isn't SLOW, watch me take off, SMART ASS"!
SA KDad

[old31]

I got stopped once while being towed in a A frame, yes frame. I was 16 and found a model a frame out in a field. Went up to the farmer and asked if it was for sale. He said yup, $5.00. I figured not a bad price for a full frame with engine. Well my friend and I wrapped a chain around it and towed it home. I was sitting on the bare frame, steering it while my buddy pulled me.

We were going down the highway at about 35 and got stopped. The cop said what do you guys think you are doing. I very proudly said I just bought this Model A and we are bringing it home.

He said hurry up and get that thing home before I give you a ticket.

That was 50 years ago and today my friend and I still talk about that and just shake our heads. What a couple of idiots.

[Ted Duke]

How did we survive?

[Jeff/Illinois]

Being picked up by the Fuzz is always painful...............

[tbirdtbird]

hell, the neighbors hated my ass and called the cops every time i was out buzzing around on my go-karts at age 7.
"License and registration"
You gotta be kidding, right? What kind of moron are you anyway. Sure every 7 yo has a freakin' license. Go lock up a freakin drug dealer, idiot

I didn't even have a centrifugal clutch, couldn't afford it. I was direct drive and my buddy just push started me

[BNCHIEF]

This is not a cop story so much but when I was say around 10 my buddy and I built a wind wagon so to speak it was a radio flyer wagon like we all had well we took some wood built a bracket used a little canvas to make the sail and mounted it on the back of the wagon we then drug this thing 1 mile south of where we live because it was downhill all the way north to home but the hill was a slight grade the wagon was going downhill but not enough to roll on its own. So one day the wind was out of the south good breeze set it up and away I went right down harrison street(yeah it had traffic) headed to the house this thing worked like a champ drove it right into the drive and my dad pulled in right behind me(he was supposed to be at work) Well i needed a hurricane to cool my backside down for that stunt.

[Ted Duke]

LOL

[Ed H]

I was stopped in town this summer by an apparently new LEO. He had to inform me that I was going 33 in a 30 and had to warn me of the consequences of such an act. I explained that I was appreciative of diligence and insisted he issue me a 'coupon' in order to teach me a lesson. I think he thought I was nutz and refused to write me up and left.

As a retired LEO, you should have called his chief, insist on a ticket, then the judge, prosecutor would laugh him out of the court room.
That was not a justified stop.

[JDupuis]

image.jpegimage.jpeg I was the Cop! Used my car for a movie shoot! Jeff

[BNCHIEF]

Whitewalls wasting taxpayers hard earned money again or that cop could be bought.

[Fred K]

In driving around town the other day, the local officer driving the other way, just waved at me as we passed

[Fred K]

I asked our daughter who is a police officer what they think about when they see one of these "old rigs" going down the road. Do they look for problems with the thing, do they want to get the rigs off the roads, are they going to slow, etc. Her answer was they just admire them as they pass by.

[Greynomad]

A couple of years ago, while on our way to a National Model A rally in Darwin (a trip of about 2,500-3,000 miles) we were settled in for a nice meal and a couple of drinks at the Daly Waters Hotel. (google it - it's in the middle of nowhere!) I had had a couple of drinks and after a long day's drive, I felt like they needed company. My wife was concerned about "what if we get pulled up on the way back to the camp, a drive of about 12 miles. Nah, we agreed "What's the chances of seeing a cop out here?" No sooner had I put the glass on the table but a police car pulled up out front and stopped in the middle of the road. The officers started walking around our cars so we took the initiative and went out to them. All they wanted to do was talk about the cars and the trip we were doing. Turns out they were on patrol from their station at Mataranka, about 150 miles away. After a few photos and lots of laughing, they left asking that we pay them a visit as we went through next day. When we stopped there, they were horrified that we had driven the cars after they left. (Still laughing about that one.)
We told one of our guys who doesn't maintain his car all that well that we had been asked by the cops to stop so they could do a roadworthy inspection on our cars. Just as well he was sitting on his @ss at the time or it would have fallen off. Panic set in till we came clean. He hasn't forgotten that - neither have we. The cops wanted a picture of all of our cars lined up in front of the station along with theirs. Other Model Aers on their way past thought we had been busted for carrying drugs or something!!! It was the talk of the meet.
Fun thread.

[bill.messmer]

I'm new to the forum, but have had my 28 sport coupe, since 1965. Back in the day 1967, I was stopped on the Garden State parkway for not maintaining the speed limit minimum. I was asked to speed up or get off the toll road. So I continued on my way on secondary roads content to do 45 mph, and enjoying watching
the world passing by.