Safe Speed Forums

What is the law on Bonnet ornaments?

My dad has an X-type jag and he'd like to have the leaping jag bonnet ornament. You can buy them easily enough, but what is the legality of affixing one to the car?

Would he be better getting one mounted on a display plinth and keeping it in the house (or mounting it on the dashboard)?

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COAST Not just somewhere to keep a beach.

A young loner on a crusade to champion the cause of the innocent, the helpless, the powerless, in a world of criminals who operate above the law.

i don't think they're illegal to put one on... just to manufacture with them on as it won't meet crash worthiness (or general legislation?).

then again if he had the misfortune of hitting a ped & watching the cat split them open he may decide it really wasn't worth doing.

If he is going to get done for anything after fitting it, it will be under Construction & Use.

As has already been said, they are not pedestrian friendly.

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What makes you think I'm drunk officer, have I got a fat bird with me?

Nor is the front of a JCB Fastrack but thats legal!

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Speed camera policy Kills

on the ouch scale of 1 to 10, a leaping cat ornament must be way down the list from bull(y) bars on 4x4s and for that matter, the front of the car!

I think I'll encourage him to have one on the dash instead, although I've had a wee google and found some that are spring loaded (I guess so they move when hit by a fleshy mass?)

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COAST Not just somewhere to keep a beach.

A young loner on a crusade to champion the cause of the innocent, the helpless, the powerless, in a world of criminals who operate above the law.

I thought this was a thread about unobservant pedestrians

:hides:

if you buy a Jag in the litiginous US, you GET a leaping jag:

http://www.jaguar.com/us/en/vehicles/x- ... uction.htm

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COAST Not just somewhere to keep a beach.

A young loner on a crusade to champion the cause of the innocent, the helpless, the powerless, in a world of criminals who operate above the law.

I think I read somewhere that a mascot had to be more than 4ft from the leading edge of the bonnet, smooth with no sharp bits.
He'd be in deep s**t if a pedestrian were ripped open by it!

Yes, it's in Contruction & Use:

Reg 53 - Mascots:

"Mascots
53. (1) Subject to Paragraph (2), no mascot, emblem or other ornamental object shall be carried
by a motor vehicle first used on or after October 1, 1937 in any position where it is likely to
strike any person with whom the vehicle may collide unless the mascot is not liable to
cause injury to such person by reason of any projection thereon.
(2) Instead of complying with the requirements of Paragraph (1) a vehicle may comply with
Community Directive 74/483 or 79/488 or ECE Regulation 26.01."

The EC Regs that they refer to are the "Exterior Projections" regs that are used in type Approval. You can have them but they need to have smooth edges (from memory a radius greater than 2.5mm) and they must retract or detatch when a froce of (can't remember) is applied leaving no sharp edges. I think the force is equivalent to around 10kg - it's not much.

What some people do is attach their emblem with a plastic number plate bolt that should snap off but I think these are tougher than they look! The more expensive alternative is the Rolls Royce solution where it disappears into the grille when a force is applied (also stops the pikeys nicking them!) or the Mercedes spring-loaded star that sits flush with the bonnet.

One the whole, it's best not to do it but if you are confident you could convince a (in the worst case) coroner that you complied with the above!

According to http://www.louislejeune.com/information.php/info_id/9 it's never been prosecuted but they recommend positioning it up close to the windscreen.



I think he's better off not doing it, all things considered.

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COAST Not just somewhere to keep a beach.

A young loner on a crusade to champion the cause of the innocent, the helpless, the powerless, in a world of criminals who operate above the law.

If he were to go ahead it would be best to use the nylon bolts and I would saw them through to ensure they will break off even more easily.

My Chevy Caprice has a standing mascot, it has well-rounded edges and is fixed on a spring and cable but it still doesn't lie completely flat - on it's side the "foot" sticks approx 10mm proud of the bonnet.

Gareth

'If he were to go ahead it would be best to use the nylon bolts and I would saw them through to ensure they will break off even more easily.'

I bet it wouldn't be there a day before the local 'badge collectors' had it away!

Yeah, that's why mine is left attached as normal!

I was hooning back from Plymouth a few years back and noticed the hood ornament was resting wonky and knew the local scum had a go and also KNEW the back one was probably missing - it is a large bowtie which slides aside to reveal the boot lock and would be very easy to snap off. And... yes it was, so I had to get on ebay and pay £15 for a new (s/h) one, plus £8 for a rivet tool to attach it.

Gareth

What colour is the Jag? It might be feasible to paint the mascot on the bonnet right at the leading edge in as contrasting colour.