$185 to have a barnacle removed from my car??

[Shaun @ Tru6]

We are truly a country of entitled ****s who can't be bothered with following laws. I'd make it a felony (it could be already) for anyone tampering with boots or barnacles or anything else. Just pay your ****ing tickets.

[Cairo94507]

I completely agree Shaun.

[Shaun @ Tru6]

^^^ excellent!

You just need a sticker with big ****ing letters on any device: IT'S A FELONY TO TAMPER WITH THIS DEVICE.

Don't need jail time or anything like that. Try passing a background check for anything and see how much a felony on your record helps you get a job, rent an apartment, etc.

Funny story: I was a bit of a speed demon with a 240Z with Webers and headers in high school. Lot of speeding tickets. Blew them off. One night while working on the line at the best restaurant in town (owner was a huge cocaine fiend, it was the 80s), two officers came into the kitchen and asked for me. We were slammed, the chef ask if they could wait, they did, came back in 5 minutes later, chef asked again, they did, 5 minutes after that they came and escorted me out of the kitchen, we went downstairs, cuffed me, put me in the car, brought me to the police station which was across the street, put me in a cell, bail was $60. I happened to have $60 on me but I had to sit in the cell for an hour until someone else came down to the station to process the money and let me out. I got out, walked across the street, went back to work. Went to court a few weeks later, paid all the tickets.

Always paid tickets of any kind after that.

[GH85Carrera]

Long ago at my first job, I often made deliveries of the photos we too to good clients. Typically there were some spots, open but it was a dime to park for 15 minutes. A ticket was a dollar if paid in cash at the police department that same day. I figured I had 10 to on odds. Unless I saw the meter maid, I just took the risk. I got caught two times, and piad the dollar each time. I park illegally many more dollars worth. That was my extensive criminal career.

The last time I had to park on the street was in downtown Gettysburg, PA. I had to download an app to my cell phone to pay for the meter. Times had changed. And it was a couple of bucks just to park long enough to get something to eat.

[Steve Carlton]

Originally Posted by Shaun @ Tru6

We are truly a country of entitled ****s who can't be bothered with following laws. I'd make it a felony (it could be already) for anyone tampering with boots or barnacles or anything else. Just pay your ****ing tickets.

Calm down, big fella. I don’t think anyone here is serious. Those that remove the barnacle, their cars are known and I’m sure the penalties will be severely. Let them try.

[VINMAN]

[Zeke]

Originally Posted by unclebilly

Cheaper to replace the windshield…

If you know where to buy it and install it yourself. Otherwise IDT so.

I'm so against those things I'd kick my windshield out.

Also, I think an 18" long drill bit in a cordless drill would reach the cups and ruin the thing at the same time. That's from the side, With a depth stop you could drill straight down. With any finesse, not a big chance you would hit the glass

On the defroster idea, the article said the device self adjusted the pressure. But that could soften the rubber. I have a professional glass suction cup. It would not be easy to put a credit card under the edge, but a plastic skewer would work. That too would ruin the cup. They are very delicate around the edges.

In fact, and I just thought of this as a user, you would have to clean a dirty WS first. The whole idea is stupid and I doubt it will last.

Shaun, you should buy stock in the company.

[stevej37]

From the linked article....

"We get real-time GPS locations. So if someone tries to drive off with it we get notifications. And if anyone is trying to tamper with it we also get live notifications.”

There's even an alarm that will sound if someone tried to take the Barnacle off the windshield. So unless they have a sunroof, there's no way drivers are taking off with it.

[masraum]

I don't get it either, but then I've always paid my tickets, and that's the worst trouble that I've been in, tickets. I think I've only had maybe 1-2 parking tickets in my life, but when I was younger I had tickets for moving violations. They always got paid or I took defensive driving or something. I may have paid a couple a little late, but always went to pay before "they" came to find me.

I don't get the "I can park where I want for free because there's not much parking". 10:1 the guy that said that in the video in Houston had a week or a month to go get a parking pass and either went after the date or went on the last day.

[GH85Carrera]

The very first parking meter ever, was in Oklahoma City. Invented locally. Even back in 1935 parking was a big problem.

https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/worlds-first-parking-meter-installed

Now that almost every on the planet want to make money on parking, they are everywhere.

[Zeke]

Originally Posted by stevej37

From the linked article....

"We get real-time GPS locations. So if someone tries to drive off with it we get notifications. And if anyone is trying to tamper with it we also get live notifications.”

There's even an alarm that will sound if someone tried to take the Barnacle off the windshield. So unless they have a sunroof, there's no way drivers are taking off with it.

They have thought of all the scenarios except for the one where the thief drives the car off with the alarm blaring. Who even pays attention? No one here in the hood.

KIA stolen across the street last month. Cats stolen on my block number at least 6. That's out of 24 houses.

[stevej37]

[QUOTE=Zeke;12231492]They have thought of all the scenarios except for the one where the thief drives the car off with the alarm blaring. Who even pays attention? No one here in the hood.



Each Barnacle has a built-in GPS tracker in it. I would think that when the thing is attached someone would note the license plate number of the car....I hope.

[Zeke]

Sure, there are trackers and license plates and descriptions of drivers/thieves. All that assumes there are police around. I haven't seen even a boot in Long Beach but I can tell you that the police are much busier than paying attention to someone messing with a parking violation device.

I haven't seen anyone stopped for only a traffic violation on city streets in years. You know, cop writing in a little book while the driver sits in the car. Only traffic stops I see are with people sitting on the curb. We got rid of motorcycle cops years ago. At least it's been years since I've seen a city motor officer.

CHP motors, yes. But they stay on the freeway. And they give tickets. On the freeway.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by GH85Carrera

The very first parking meter ever, was in Oklahoma City. Invented locally. Even back in 1935 parking was a big problem.

https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/worlds-first-parking-meter-installed

Now that almost every on the planet want to make money on parking, they are everywhere.

I've worked in downtown Houston off and on (mostly on) since '08. Back when I started, parking in a surface lot where you stuffed money into a slot in a box was $10-15/day (no security, no shade), and garages were $20-40/day. Monthly contracts for parking in garages were $150-350 (reserved spot vs not reserved, location, etc...).

I stopped going into the office when covid hit, and had to start going back into the office last year. The lot that I'm in now is normally $40/day (>4hrs = 1 day). I'm not sure what the contract is, but I'm sure it's probably $200 and up. But the "early bird special (before 930am) is $12/day. I only go in ~10 days/mo. I guess I could check into a contract, but I suspect it would be more expensive. It used to be that to get "early bird" was usually before 730 or 7am. I think they're hurting for revenue since covid and RTTO (return to the office).

[Zeke]

^^^Glad the parking lots might be hurting. They are thieves. I knew a guy that had the contract to operate several lots near LAX. Let's just say after paying all the juice necessary, he was doing extremely well. Pretty shady cat too. You could have type cast him into a mobster movie.

[stevej37]

We're still in the middle of the month for the police crackdown on 'hands free' law enforcement. I see cops parked on the side roads, car lots, behind other parked vehicles....anywhere that they can spot a driver with a device in their hands.

I'm hoping they can catch a lot so that word gets out.

Over all, our Police are well-staffed and very friendly....never had a problem with one and I have had my full share of tickets over the years.

[stevej37]

I also should say that living in the Grand Rapids area....I've never seen a Boot being used in the area, or a Barnacle.

[rattlsnak]

Wait.... You pay and get a code to take it off. Then you have to bring it back to to the police station? eF that!.

[A930Rocket]

Originally Posted by Zeke

…I haven't seen anyone stopped for only a traffic violation on city streets in years. You know, cop writing in a little book while the driver sits in the car. Only traffic stops I see are with people sitting on the curb. We got rid of motorcycle cops years ago. At least it's been years since I've seen a city motor officer.

CHP motors, yes. But they stay on the freeway. And they give tickets. On the freeway.

In Mount Pleasant, which is just over the river from downtown Charleston, I see the local police pulling cars over all day long. Then, you have the state patrol going up and down Highway 17 and Charleston county police/sheriffs office patrolling. It’s ridiculous.

[pksystems]

Cordless drill through the plastic? You are free to go.