I'm in California and my dealer has informed me that they can't install the splitter per California law regarding ground clearance. Has anyone heard of this? I was thinking of leaving it off anyway due to my parking garage but was just wondering if this was a law? Thanks in advance.
2013 splitter install and ground clearance
- Thread starter 1320nut
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California is the dumbest state in the union, but here you go:
California Car height laws:
1. 24008. It is unlawful to operate any passenger vehicle, or commercial vehicle under 6,000 pounds, which has been modified from the original design so that any portion of the vehicle, other than the wheels, has less clearance from the surface of a level roadway than the clearance between the roadway and the lowermost portion of any rim of any wheel in contact with the roadway.
Amended Ch. 462, Stats. 1984. Effective January 1, 1985.
2. Frame and Floor Height
24008.5. (a) No person shall operate any motor vehicle with a frame height or body floor height greater than specified in subdivisions (b) and (c).
(b) The maximum frame height is as follows:
[This table lists the maximum frame height for various types of vehicles.] *
Vehicle Type Frame Height
(1) Passenger vehicles, except housecars 23 inches
(2) All other motor vehicles, including housecars, as follows:
Up to 4,500 pounds GVWR 27 inches
4,501 to 7,500 pounds GVWR 30 inches
7,501 to 10,000 pounds GVWR 31 inches
(c) The lowest portion of the body floor shall not be more than five inches above the top of the frame.
(d) The following definitions govern the construction of this section:
(1) "Frame" means the main longitudinal structural members of the chassis of the vehicle or, for vehicles with unitized body construction, the lowest main longitudinal structural members of the body of the vehicle.
(2) "Frame height" means the vertical distance between the ground and the lowest point on the frame, measured when the vehicle is unladen on a level surface at the lowest point on the frame midway between the front axle and the second axle on the vehicle.
(3) "GVWR" means the manufacturer's gross vehicle weight rating, as defined in Section 390, whether or not the vehicle is modified by use of parts not originally installed by the manufacturer.
* The bracketed information has been added editorially to meet accessibility requirements and is not part of statute.
Amended Ch. 718, Stats. 1987. Effective January 1, 1988.
3. Depending on the state that you live in the laws will vary. In most cases I don't believe there is a minimum ground clearance, however I believe your headlights must be 21 or 22 inches from the ground.
That law does not pertain to the splitter. The splitter is an OEM installed part of a 50 State US certified vehicle. The dealer can and should install it (if that is what you desire.)
If the splitter was lower than the lowest part of the rim. (About 3") from the road. It would be illegal.
If the splitter was lower than the lowest part of the rim. (About 3") from the road. It would be illegal.
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yea I just posted what I found, some states have the law that the center of the headlights have to be a certain height from the ground. The splitter installed on a stock height car still leaves almost 6 inches of clearance. But she does not want it on anyway, so its really a moot point
If your dealer is really refusing to install the factory splitter because of some obscure law that may or may not be applicable my advice would be to find a new dealer, quickly.
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yeh, Cali does have some strange laws but this is the first time i've heard this one.
i will say that it scuffs on the face super easy. i've had two and the first one almost looked like someone used a grinder on it with a lot of little burrs and short strands hanging off the edges. must be some soft stuff. really gotta be mindul of every little curb. i try to back in as much as possible when parking to reduce the chances of this happening.
Cali trivia: it's a $100 fine if you smoke in your car with a kid under age 12 in it at the same time ; on the positive side, a car and a motorcycle can occupy the same lane side-by-side at the same time and it's perfectly legal (in stop-and-go heavy traffic out here, bikes go flying at about 45mph between the lanes of cars)
i will say that it scuffs on the face super easy. i've had two and the first one almost looked like someone used a grinder on it with a lot of little burrs and short strands hanging off the edges. must be some soft stuff. really gotta be mindul of every little curb. i try to back in as much as possible when parking to reduce the chances of this happening.
Cali trivia: it's a $100 fine if you smoke in your car with a kid under age 12 in it at the same time ; on the positive side, a car and a motorcycle can occupy the same lane side-by-side at the same time and it's perfectly legal (in stop-and-go heavy traffic out here, bikes go flying at about 45mph between the lanes of cars)
That dealer needs some training. So far out of everyone (including myself) that I know that have purchased '13 Shelbys in CA have had their splitters installed by the dealer (or at least given the option to).
The GT500 splitter is not installed at the factory for shipping reasons and can be installed by the dealer or customer. No law against it in California.
The dealer evidently is using the Laguna Seca for reference.
From the 2013 Boss 302 Owners Manual:
Front splitter (track use only - see Warranty information for more details) The front splitter included in the Laguna Seca Package is intended for race track use only and is not legal for on-street driving. It may degrade crash performance and void the vehicle
warranty. The front splitter must be installed by the customer.
The dealer evidently is using the Laguna Seca for reference.
From the 2013 Boss 302 Owners Manual:
Front splitter (track use only - see Warranty information for more details) The front splitter included in the Laguna Seca Package is intended for race track use only and is not legal for on-street driving. It may degrade crash performance and void the vehicle
warranty. The front splitter must be installed by the customer.
Mine gave me the same bs story as well here in GA. I told then I've had cars much lower than the Shelby but since I was already at the dealership a good two hours I decided to just install it myself.
Bottom line - They were being lazy.
Bottom line - They were being lazy.
Sounds more like your typical lazy California dealer. Most of them are PHD's (Poppa Had Dealership) now their punk kid owns and tries to operate it.
Just like ICEMAN said, it is a 50 state legal car. Manufacturers abide by all laws and know this before building the car.
The dealer is wrong and lazy.
But the splitter is really easy to put on or take off by yourself. I wouldn't give them a squirt of any more time. Do it yourself.
I bought my car (James Ford, Half Moon Bay, California) over the weekend when the service/parts department were closed. When I brought the car back on Monday for a minor tweaking to fix a rattle, the dealership GM pretty much insisted that I get the splitter installed and walked me back to the service department to ensure it happened right away. The car was on the rack in about 2 minutes. Then he walked to the parts department to make sure they tracked down the right car cover right away. I'm a first time buyer at the dealership with no connections to the place.:coolman:
No idea what your dealerships real story is.
No idea what your dealerships real story is.
I lived most of my live in CA, born and raised. Been around cars for ALL of my adult life, from about 14 years old on.
The "general rule of thumb" for a car being too low has always been the bottom edge of the rims.
That is to say, if you were to take all 4 TIRES off of the wheels and set the car on the ground, nothing else can touch the ground.
I didn't real through all of the legalese and it is probably clearer than that but I don't know of a cop in CA that would cite you for having a factory supplied, DEALER INSTALLED part on your car, regardless of height (sans the Boss LS splitter that clearly says "OFF-ROAD USE ONLY").
I think FEDERAL LAW (the 1968 Federal Safety Standards Act) says something about min. curb height, which is the height of a 'standard curb' (what, 5 inches? 4 inches??).
Tell your dealer to cite the law he's using. If he can't, tell him to install the damn dam!
FWIW, I have a FR-3 handling pack on my car (lowers it by 1.25" Fr. & 1.5" Rr.) and with the '13 air dam on it, I can't hardly drive it without scraping it. I *thought* I was getting up/down my driveway curb (we have the curved type of gutters) and I was wrong. My lower lip was scuffed up pretty badly. Easy to fix with a micro torch and a mechanics glove. Heat it, smooth it with your finger and it looks like brand new again.
HTH,
Phill
When I was searching for my 13 Shelby James Ford would not budge from a 5K admin so they have plenty of margin for good service. Although the dealer I bought mine from at MSRP had the cover in the trunk and splitter installed when I picked it up.
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There's NOTHING illegal in CA about the OE '13 splitter on ur stock height Shelby, but you'll be in splitter-scrapping hell here in SoCal with it on. Almost ALL curbs & many home/business entry's will cause the front OE splitter to scrape, even driving slow and/or at an angle!
I raised my splitter ground clearance from 5" to 6" with larger MPSS tires & now have 95% less scrapping. I have a new front splitter waiting to replace my ragged OE one when I know how to avoid all the places that scrapping still occurs! I will leave it off before I scrape my new one since it's only NEEDED for 202 mph driving!!
I raised my splitter ground clearance from 5" to 6" with larger MPSS tires & now have 95% less scrapping. I have a new front splitter waiting to replace my ragged OE one when I know how to avoid all the places that scrapping still occurs! I will leave it off before I scrape my new one since it's only NEEDED for 202 mph driving!!
Ok... So technical question... At what point does the front splitter really contribute to downforce at the front of the car?
Jameel discussed the various downforce mods to the '13 Shelby with the front splitter providing an important part of that force in order to safely reach 202mph. I would love to see a graph of the downforce vs forward velocity!
With my steep driveway, I couldn't lower my 09 GT 500 at all. Looks like the splitter is a no-install if I get a New '14...
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