By Ecto96
#380558
I had my lights on a few years ago for Halloween, and had been told countless times that amber was okay, and had geeky cops. Well this one fateful day I ran into a young cop that was a complete asshole, no warning, just a ticket, court fees, and court supervision. We were in uniform, on our way to a haunted house to volunteer.

There had been one time I drove across town in summer without realizing the lights were on. Same town, the summer before, and drove past a cop. Both incidents I'm the daylight, but the accidental one, no problem.

There are geek cops out there, but also asshole ones. Pretty much put the plug in the jug being a ghosthead for me, so be warned.

Sent from my Xoom using Ghostbusters Fans on Android
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By cowbybill
#380572
This is the bar we have on our Vehicle:
Image
The only time we run the lights, or have them uncovered is if it's on display, or in a parade.
We had one incident where we were on the freeway and the cover came partway off, and got pulled over. Didn't get a ticket just a warning to keep it covered when not at a function.
By 92Ecto
#450145
My Ecto 1a Replica is accurate on the lighting, Minus the 2 chrome spot lights on the rear white canister. I run the light bars alot around town, Never any greif, a few people have pulled over, i turn them off at that point. Overall, People Love it, Even the cops...
By DefenderDarko
#450179
Yeah, I've found that most cops take a common sense approach. It's just for fun and a guy driving around a big glowing Ghostbusters car has nothing to hide. Most cops just kinda grin at me, here in Texas.

Now, I've been told that amber lights in the DFW area will get you tagged. They're permit only. Oddly enough, all blue lights are permitted in the DFW area for personal use...so when I visit that area for conventions, I plan to clear lense and add in my blue filters.

In Oklahoma, where I also frequent, its illegal to even mount the lightbars. Fortunately, officers are not really told to enforce it because so many contractors, farmers, and offroad hobbyists mount them for legit reasons. They just ask that you not light them on roadways. I bought a lot of my lighting equipment from an officer in Oklahoma and he was totally cool about it.
By SnidderEcto1
#450190
Ive had the lightbars on my MagnumEcto1 for about 3 months now.. passesd many of cops, on highways, roads,etc. Never once pulled over, ive had cops take pics of the car because they like it tho.. i leave my lights uncovered too. So in ohio ive talked to a cop here in my city. The blue lights are illegal to USE. but legal to have on ur car.
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By Ectojeff88
#4945712
Anybody have any incidents more recently?
Considering a fan film down the line with some form of an Ecto to be created.
WA state is very specific blue and red are not allowed on any vehicle other than law or emergency, even white is a no go.
By BRD 527
#4945848
It would probably be a little pricey unless you can find a good deal but if your planning to keep the lights permanently mounted to the vehicle might want to consider getting a extra set of domes in Amber and switch them to Blue when attending an event or whatever

If your doing a fan film just be sure to notify the local police and let them know what your doing.

I used to work at a railroad museum and one year for our Halloween event myself and another member put Red & Blue light bars on our cars, staged a auto accident on one of our service roads along the tracks and had a half dozen people dressed as zombies wandering around (I was dressed in a full Raccoon City Police uniform (Resident Evil) lol!) We notified local Police and Park Police via email and phone call and went door to door to the half dozen houses near where we were planning to setup to notify everyone what we were doing even tho it was on the museum property which is private property :idea:
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By SpaceBallz
#4946207
I didn't even bother looking for the blue rotators, I went straight for the LED custom colors and went with green and purple. They still looks pretty awesome, much brighter and use less battery. We only turn them on if we're parked somewhere or during a parade.
By Ghostbuster Kid
#4948215
At this point (and here in MN) using a 2011 impala as a sort of "shock vehicle", ive found that usually amber and white are the norms. I guess you COULD get reds or blues and get covers, and depending on where you went it could be okay, but I would NEVER run them on the road. Green or purple lights would be interesting because no one uses them, but both colors are technically illegal.
By Fifthrider
#4949499
Eleven years ago, the two things I was pretty certain about was (1) Sony would come after you legally if you took a dime for using your Ecto at any event, and (2) the lights are illegal everywhere.

Over the years what I discovered was that no one cares about either (anymore). Sony has never contacted me and told me to stop doing an event or check to assure there was no "unjust enrichment", the legal term whether any money was exchanged or not. In regards to the lights, the absolute most I've ever had happen was learning The Werewolf one year during Comic-Con. We turned on the lights and siren while leaving the curb because everyone wanted a picture/video, etc. Traffic is at a crawl so I figured it wouldn't hurt anything. The SDPD officer who ran up to our window had different thoughts on the topic. It was a pleasant conversation filled with lots of "yes sir" and "we won't do it again."

The absolute best examples of how much no one cares about the lights were:

Sept 2010 - We drove Ernie Hudson to the 3G gallery event. At the final intersection we turned on lights and siren to arrive, then left them on while blocking a lane of traffic. Inconsiderate? Sure. 800 lb gorilla? Also, yes. LAPD drove by many times and said we've got to move or they'll have no choice but to ticket us. I totally get it. We did our 5 min of PR then slid into a nearby parking lot. Not one mention was made of the blue lights being on. Why? Probably because it's LA and they have way bigger problems than us, but also because it's pretty obviously not a cop car, even with the blue lights.

June 2011 - We had already established a friendship with author Ernie Cline some months prior. When Comic-Con came around it was a pleasant surprise that we ran into him on the street of Comic-Con while we were parked at some random spot. Ernie happened to pass by but said he couldn't talk; the crowds were so thick he was now late to get to the event he was a keynote speaker at. That event was at Horton Plaza, many blocks away. I knew there was no way a person on foot would make it there in time even under lighter conditions. We offered to give him a ride which he graciously accepted but the real surprise came from an SDPD officer directing traffic. It was a longshot and pretty ballsy to even ask, but I inquired about taking a shortcut through a side street that was roped off for city and service vehicles only. He shrugged in way that seemed to express "why not?" then twirled one hand in the air and said "turn em on!" as we were directed to take the shortcut.

Lights and siren for three blocks through a crowded downtown San Diego, that dumped us on the east side of Horton plaza about 200 feet from the door he needed to go to. ...because an SDPD officer said so.

This is the first time I've mentioned it here or anywhere, but Ernie posted it on his blog the next day. I will never forget that. Somehow I heard the voice of that kid from Die Hard 3 when he said "Look around. The cops are all into something. You could rob city hall." I had the lights and siren on and absolutely no one cared.

Over 11 years I never misused them ( other than that one time at the Werewolf ) but I do recall the lesson which is that everyone's just to used to seeing the Ghostbusters Ectmobile with blue lights that I suspect most law enforcement look right past it. One of my neighbors is a CHP detective and he could care less when I have the car over. It's never been a topic. Sometimes I actually think if the lights had been purple or green or some other color that it would have been jarring enough that someone might have stopped to ask a question or two, maybe even write a citation. ...but those blue lights? Everyone just sort of expects them on an Ecto.
69428scj, BRD 527 liked this
By Fifthrider
#4950849
Thanks Ben, but that was my second to last post and this one will be my last. I'm totally out of GB. Things soured for me a few years ago thanks to events on this forum, then eventually at Sony. Remember when movies used to be fun, and not political w/ a side order of divisive agenda and censorship? I sure do.

I only stopped back to see if anyone even noticed what happened to my Ecto over the weekend. Not one post about it. This reminds me of the time I brought Ernie Hudson to an event in L.A. but the only thing publicized on this board was MC Chris going around Time Square in a Dodge Magnum. Those who own the platform, determine the content, then transfer blame to the speaker.

Those who work hard, reap the benefits. I just did.
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By Kingpin
#4950858
Fifthrider wrote: June 21st, 2021, 1:18 pm I only stopped back to see if anyone even noticed what happened to my Ecto over the weekend. Not one post about it.
I only found out about the auction after it'd finished. If I'd known ahead of time I would've posted a thread here. :(
deadderek liked this
By tobycj
#4950867
Fifthrider wrote: June 21st, 2021, 1:18 pm I only stopped back to see if anyone even noticed what happened to my Ecto over the weekend. Not one post about it. This reminds me of the time I brought Ernie Hudson to an event in L.A. but the only thing publicized on this board was MC Chris going around Time Square in a Dodge Magnum. Those who own the platform, determine the content, then transfer blame to the speaker.
There were quite a few posts about it in a few facebook groups over the weekend. Congrats on the sale, milky bars are on you!
By mooniteman
#4962379
How the heck does one look this up? Was going to add a small LED emergency light in green to my GF's Slime themed car. We are located in LA. She's worried she'll get a ticket just for having it.
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By Creativeguy
#4963593
I have 4 amber lights. I drive around all the time with them on the car but they are usually off except for when I'm parked or for special occasions if I'm driving. On Halloween last year I drove right past a cop car with them on. He never slowed down.
By JustAnotherGBFan
#4963865
Radar wrote: December 2nd, 2005, 11:50 pm A question for all you ECTO-1 owners out there...are the blue light bars on your car legal in your area? Has anyone ever recieved a citation or a warning from the police because of the lighting?

My father has been a firefighter for over 20 years and has told me it's illegal (here in Tennessee, anyway) for any non-emergency vehicle to have operational blue or red light bars. I know it seems absurd that someone could mistake an ECTO-1 for an emergency vehicle, but even having a blue or red light around your license plate will earn you a ticket if a cop notices.

Can anyone provide more info on this? What are the laws in your state or country? Has anybody had a run-in with the authorities concerning your official lights on a not-so-official car? I am considering fixing up an ECTO-1 sometime in the future but if I can't legally have the lighting for it I won't even bother.
I think the keyword is OPERATIONAL. So you could not wire them up at all, or put a kill switch on them so they can't accidentally be bumped on, and if asked by a cop you can flip the switches and show that nothing works (with the kill switch off)
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By Ectojeff88
#4983163
I have a pair of blue lenses mx7000 series. With the price of a full operating bar and or parts to assemble I think Im just gonna make my own silver base and center grill for show myself on my Ecto.
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By Mercifull
#4983194
In the UK you're not supposed to have anything that even LOOKS like blue flashing lights on a private vehicle even if they are no longer functional. You're allowed on private land of course so fine for filming tv shows, for example, or at a car show. But not on public roads. If you had some they would need to be entirely disconnected and then covered up. I expect this is also true for heritage vehicles, like vintage fire engines although the police probably just turn a blind eye to those rare examples.
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