Garda car or impersonator?

mecco · 22-03-2011 12:30pm

Sully wrote: »

Have you never heard of the unmarked Garda cars? They are unmarked for a reason. They generally have lights at the side of the car and in front and back windows. Big hint there - move out of the way or do as requested.

Somewhere along the line, I've managed to hear of them alright and you are agreeing with me via the bit in bold. As i say, they are lit up like a christmas tree so it's obvious you should comply/let them through. I'm in need of neither the hint nor the preaching to do as i said previously and allow them through.

tankbarry · 22-03-2011 9:22pm

I have 1 of those set of lights..... I have taken the piss before with them but not on a public road..... Drove into a housing estate in Waterford once turned them on the Place emptied in about 2 seconds some crack

fitzeyboy. · 23-03-2011 1:54am

Wilde_37 wrote: »

Was driving on the bypass earlier and a car comes up behind me - no light on except what appeared to be a flashing red/blue LED on the windscreen. I was barely doing the speed limit so he must have been pushing it to get up past me. As he got to me he started beeping. He passed and waved at me to slow down and then pointed to his flashing light. As I say - I was doing the limit so he had to be doing 120 to go past me. I assumed he was a cop - but the car was a RED 06 D mondeo. (I didn't get the full number) He just drove off and left the bypass at the WIT exit - I was carrying on to the toll bridge.

Anyone know who this guy is? The light appeared to be something like a strobe light like the app you can get for your iphone. He has absolutely no other lights on in the car - and it was dark at this stage. So is this guy a cop or just some impersonator?

OP were you in the overtaking lane not overtaking anything?

Icky Thump · 23-03-2011 5:41am

they prob felt the op was going a little fast. i know the op said they where doing the limit but if you where coming upto the toll or if there was a high volume of traffic not far ahead they might have just thought you where going a little too fast. at the end of the day its about road saftly. they didnt pull you over because you wherent breaking the law but they asked you to slow down because they felt that you should.

ive see unmarked cars with red and blue lights.

ive also seen unmarked cars without the second anthena or with the insurance disk with hub caps.

some unmarked cars you wouldnt be able to recognise at all. the drive around in every type of car now so they wont be detected. some of them dont even have lights while others have makeshift lights.

when in doubt just comply. use your common sense keep to the law and dont push your luck. getting cheeky is not the answer. if you feel you need to question the legitimisy then call your local garda station and make sure the car was actual garda. if it was no worries. if it wasnt then you would have ridden us from a menace.

as for tankbarry........... mate grow up. i hope if you do use these again you are caught red handed. these are not toys and its not a game. the roads are not a playground.

23-03-2011 6:06am

OP, where were the lights, exactly?

Gardaì only use red lights when rear facing (that is, if the lights were facing forward, on the dash board for example, then they'd not be allowed to use red). If the lights are rear facing (out the back window) then they can use red (though I've not seen red used on an unmarked car, personally).

There's a red Mondeo around here (Drogheda) but it's rarely got it's lights or siren turned on (it's a detective car I believe, so not used for petty crime or speeding or such).

In such a scenario, if you think some cowboy is acting the fool, let them overtake you, but speed up behind them to get the reg number off the car, and ring the local station.

If it's an actual Garda car, and they see you speed up behind them, they may stop and pull you over, but in such a scenario, I'd say they'd fully understand if you were checking their legitimacy and were ringing the station (ultimately; you're trying to assist them, after all).

Morons on the road with flashy lights are the sorta fools that'll end up doing a lot of damage by speeding around and acting like idiots. Exactly the kinda people I'd report, personally.

Cabaal · 23-03-2011 7:04am

tankbarry wrote: »

I have 1 of those set of lights..... I have taken the piss before with them but not on a public road..... Drove into a housing estate in Waterford once turned them on the Place emptied in about 2 seconds some crack

The housing estate is still a public road...

tankbarry · 23-03-2011 10:29am

i wouldnt use them for moving traffic out of the way thats just wrong and I dont have them wired to my car only done that on 1 occasion... I have them for use in work on different vehicles...... Have to admit it still was really funny....

Biggles1980 · 24-03-2011 2:37pm

man.about.town wrote: »

ive seen marked cars with red/blue lights, though i think they were 11 d or 10d cars. maybe the mondeo got fitted with the new lights

Traffic Patrol cars have been using red lights on the rear of the light bars since 2006. This has been extended to all marked patrol cars in the new 2011 cars. But they are on the rear only. They are called warning lights. They are used when a Garda has a car pulled in. They can activate the red flashing lights and turn off the blues. Its less distracting while still warning approaching motorists of their presence.

Some marked and unmarked patrol cars have red flashing lights fitted to their rear fog lights.

There are NO patrol cars, marked or unmarked, that have red flashing lights to the front. Its white and blue only. This was definitely not a Garda car!

seanybiker · 24-03-2011 10:34pm

Just asked the brother and he said there is a red light. He was running out the door so I didn't explain to him properly what the op explained.
*edit* explained it properly and he said no. I know someone else already said it wasn't right but no harm asking him anyways

rescue16 · 25-03-2011 9:17pm

tankbarry wrote: »

i wouldnt use them for moving traffic out of the way thats just wrong and I dont have them wired to my car only done that on 1 occasion... I have them for use in work on different vehicles...... Have to admit it still was really funny....

What kind of job are you in?

lanno25 · 19-04-2011 11:54am

Seen this lad today going past masons with the sirans on going through the lights, and i doubt very much his a cop he looked about 22-23.

Sully · 19-04-2011 2:25pm

lanno25 wrote: »

Seen this lad today going past masons with the sirans on going through the lights, and i doubt very much his a cop he looked about 22-23.

A lot of young Gardai in Waterford, even had me wondering their age. Young Gardai tend to be in the unmarked cars a bit from what I saw also.

Faq · 19-04-2011 4:45pm

Seen many 22-23 garda but its not the first time someone went around with lights in there car i remember reading in the Munster of to guy caught using lights in town received massive fines

Coriolanus · 19-04-2011 5:11pm

There was a fella pulled on HArcourt St in Dublin last year. Drunk driving in an imitation Specials car. Had the sirens, antennae etc. :rolleyes:

seanybiker · 19-04-2011 5:36pm

Nevore wrote: »

There was a fella pulled on HArcourt St in Dublin last year. Drunk driving in an imitation Specials car. Had the sirens, antennae etc. :rolleyes:

My father was stationed there years ago.

Coriolanus · 19-04-2011 5:44pm

seanybiker wrote: »

My father was stationed there years ago.

Apparently this fella was known to the Gardai as being a bit of a fanboy. Failed to get in or whatever and was living vicariously.

seanybiker · 19-04-2011 6:03pm

Nevore wrote: »

Apparently this fella was known to the Gardai as being a bit of a fanboy. Failed to get in or whatever and was living vicariously.

Lol the poor chap. Ah sure at least he tried

puppetmaster · 21-04-2011 2:42am

Cabaal wrote: »

The housing estate is still a public road...

Private housing estates arent considered "public" roads.

Biggles1980,

You seem to know what your talkin bout, But im positive I saw Two cops in a black astra pull over Two guys and arrest them late at night about 3 years ago in Waterford. The only flashing lights on the car was a fairly will fitted Blue and red flashing LED strobe. If they weren't Gardaí They went to alot of troble buyin uniforms and Radios to pull two fella's out of a car in the dead of night. Didint look like a traffic violation seemed to be more serious.

CantGetNoSleep · 21-04-2011 8:53pm

A public place is any place to which the public have access

Sully · 22-04-2011 12:27am

CantGetNoSleep wrote: »

A public place is any place to which the public have access

Don't think so. You can get access to my land, but its still private property.

Housing Estates are either Private or Public -- if public, the council own them (more so the estate land in terms of maintenance rather than council houses)

Cabaal · 22-04-2011 7:53am

My point being is a housing estate is a public road in the sense that the rules of the road and laws still apply.

Driving into an estate with lights to impersenate a gardai car could gey you in heaps of trouble for doimg something so idiotic....rightly ss

Of course if you think its not publuc and no laws apply then work away and speed and do donuts.....see how that works out when reported to the gardai

Garda car or impersonator?

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