Is It Legal To Drive Without A Speedometer?
If you have a broken speedometer, you may have found yourself in quite a dilemma. Should you keep driving your car? Or should you retire it to your garage until you get the speedometer back in working order?
In some states, the speedometer has to work to pass inspection. But what about driving with a broken speedometer? Will you get a ticket if you’re caught driving with a broken speedometer?
The short answer is it depends on the state you’re in. Read on for the long answer.
It’s Illegal In Some States
In some states, you’ll get a ticket for driving with a broken speedometer. You’d get a ticket for an equipment violation or something like it.
It would be difficult for the police officer to catch the issue, though. They would have to ride in the passenger's seat at any speed to notice that your speedometer is busted. If you use a broken speedometer as an excuse for speeding, you can get two tickets:
- One for an equipment violation
- One for speeding
What's better than keeping mum and driving with a broken speedometer? Fixing or replacing the speedometer ASAP.
It’s Never Okay To Drive With A Broken Speedometer
You may be able to get away with driving with a broken speedometer. Yet, it’s never a good idea. If you have a broken speedometer, you want to get it fixed as soon as possible. This post lists good reasons to replace or fix a broken speedometer. To sum it up:
- Your Risk Of Getting A Speeding Ticket Is Reduced
A broken speedometer means you’re not getting the correct reading for your vehicle’s speed. This is a surefire way to get a speeding ticket. Speeding ticket costs add up over time, and you’d be racking up points against your driver’s license. Why not just spend the money on speedometer repair or a replacement now?
- Other Gauges Can Be Broken Too
A broken speedometer is obvious. It’s not always so obvious when other gauges are broken too. So it’s possible that a broken speedometer means that you have more broken gauges, too. That can be quite detrimental to your vehicle’s overall health. For example, if you have a broken oil pressure gauge, you won’t know if the oil pressure gets too low. That means you won’t address the issue in a timely manner. When the engine isn’t getting enough oil, you’ll face serious engine issues sooner or later.
Don't waste any time wondering if you would be able to get away with driving with a broken speedometer. Instead, focus on getting it fixed or replaced. You can turn to ISS Automotive to address this issue.
ISS Automotive Can Fix Your Speedometer
Whether you want to repair or replace your speedometer, we have what you need. We offer two options:
- Replacement instrument clusters: If you have a hunch that other gauges are broken too, you can replace your instrument cluster. At ISS Automotive, we offer replacement instrument clusters for GM vehicles and several other makes. Check out our catalog here.
- Instrument cluster repair: You can remove your instrument cluster and then mail it to us. Our skilled technicians will start repairing your instrument cluster within 24 hours of receiving it. We’ll not only fix your speedometer, but we’ll also look for other issues within the instrument cluster. Read more about our repair services here.
Do you have any questions about our replacement instrument clusters or repair services? You’re welcome to get in touch with us here!