[T-R3xx]

OBTW: A hooner hit a 3 year-old boy at my son's soccer game tonight. He'll be OK, but lots of parents and kids we rattled. They are everywhere.

[jubjub]

Tr3xx thats just rotten, so glad the little boy is OK.

[Moorf]

Hooners are top of my list of hates here, and one of my biggest disappointments in NZ life. They are a menace and something needs to be done, it's out of hand. :(

Whilst walking the dog a while back, along the road edge of Sumner beach (where the cars park) I was almost flattened by a hooner who decided to do a doughnut in front of me, but lost it half way round... if I'd have been a few secs earlier and a few feet nearer the road I am sure it would have clipped me...

And my reflexology lady was "clipped" by a hooner in central Chch, she ended up with a very badly bruised wrist and hand, and was bowled over as the car mounted the kerb whilst turning at a set of lights, but the car carried on going....

[Singel]

Hooners are top of my list of hates here.....,
Same here, Moorf. It is not only dangerous driving but also make hell a lot of noise from those modified turbo engines of their dirt cheap cars. It's just nuisance and annoying :no
I wonder how could they pass those WOF inspections :confused:

[Moorf]

Ah yes, the noise too - forgot about that.

Although it's quite a giggle when you hear those turbo noises but the car is hardly moving :laugh - apparently they can buy gadgets that mimic the sound :roll

Oh, and another little gem I picked up - if you see a car parked up with a notice in it that has a mobile phone number on it (some put "for sale" to make it more kosher) then that is the number you call them on to arrange a race!! It's probably not really for sale.... If you are in hooner-ish looking car they may also come alongside at lights etc and try and give you their mobile, again, to arrange a race!! All this from the 17 yr old son of a librarian who was taking his mum home in his souped up Scoobie !! (yes, his mum was in on the conversation too although she didn't look best pleased!!)

[Singel]

One of our friend's son who is 16 years old has been tacking along with those hooners (from school). His parents refused to let him get his driving licence knowing that he will go racing. Looks like parents of these hooners have a hard time with things like this.

[jubjub]

Its the noise that bugs me too, but its not just young boys, the people two doors up had a sports car, and took off doing donuts out of the drive every time they went out, it drove me nuts, luckily they have moved (yey).

But we live on a straight road, so they can get quite a noise going if they try (and they do), the speed is scary, they would not be able to see anyone in the dark quick enough to stop thats for sure...

Interesting thing about the phone nos Moorf, theres one always parked on the road about 1km away...

[kiwidebs]

A hooner hit a 3 year-old boy at my son's soccer game tonight. He'll be OK, but lots of parents and kids we rattled. They are everywhere.


That's really awful - glad the kid is ok. About time they sorted this out - it was a problem when I lived there 9 years ago. Note to self - don't buy a house on a long straight road (thanks for the tip Sal).

Debs

[jubjub]

Its not just the straight roads though, we lived in a cul-de-sac before we moved out of the rental, and they still managed to scream up and down there, but that was out in the "wild west";)

[Moorf]

They are narrowing roads in our area - that might help.

[ISan]

Do they have speed bumps in residential areas in New Zealand?

Here in the Netherlands you see them quite a lot to keep the speed down. OK granted, they can be a nuisance but so are these hooners. Tearing down a street at high speed would send them flying if they hit one of those speed bumps.

Ingrid

[Singel]

Street with roundabout instead of traffic light, is another deterrent.

[marcia]

Can someone explain to me exactly what a 'hooner' is and where the name comes from?

Are they like the 'boy racers' over here, in their sooped up Nova's with boom boxes in the boot?

[foolsgold99]

Marcia,

dunno where the name comes from, but yes your description is exactly right

[Alex]

Can someone explain to me exactly what a 'hooner' is and where the name comes from?

Are they like the 'boy racers' over here, in their sooped up Nova's with boom boxes in the boot?
Yes, but apparently they are several scales up the automotive ladder as they drive impetza's and evo's. Always cracks me up to see a cap (due to lowered seat) driving a nova or a corsa with a preposterous exhaust on it. I always think of my little finger...crooked and wiggling ;)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoon

"One Sydney barrister has defined the term as describing 'a young man from the Western Suburbs of Sydney who drives a modified motor vehicle'. In 2005 a Geelong Magistrate called for 'hoons' to be forced to display 'H Plates', similar to P Plates already in use in Australia for probationary drivers."

Some of the synonyms of hoon include "Street racing", "Boy racer" and "Car accident". :no Oh dear.

[baboonworld]

Yeah - Hoons was the word we used - and my Mum uses -in NZ

I agree that it is the lack of insurance requirement - or they would be trying to drive old bangers.

Same everywhere i guess - here they are just as bad - with the "boom boom boom" and the cars that make a hiss noise

[T-R3xx]

I should probably clarify: they don't call them 'hooners' here in Minnesota (even though it does sound like a good Minnesota word). I have heard boy-racers here. But, mostly it's "Those @#$% teenagers in the #$$% little cars."

Quote from our 5 year-old daughter last week: "When I grow up, I'm going to be a good teenager."

[Michelle and Richard]

My definitition of hoon is a moron who thinks he looks good in his battered old car with an exhaust that is bigger and more expensive than the rest of his car put together. Basically a saddo.

Don't post on here much these days but these idiots really bug me so much I just had to comment.

There is an article in the herald today about one who survived a crash in which 4 of his mates, died 3 months later he is doing the same thing again.

thats my rant over !

Michelle

[Singel]

NZ Police : Road Policing

The "Boy Racer" Act

The Land Transport (Unauthorised Street and Drag Racing) Amendment Act 2003 is aimed at street racing and burnouts in public places and came into force on 1 May 2003. There are heavy penalties for breaking the new laws. Existing laws against noisy or modified vehicles still apply.

If you drive a car in an illegal street race or accelerate in an unnecessary way on a road, or, if you do wheel spins, "donuts" or drive a car on a road in a way that causes the car to lose traction (unless authorised by law):

* You could face 3 months in prison, or fines up to $4,500; and lose your licence for at least 6 months.

* Police may impound your car for 28 days at your expense - effective immediately.

* If you injure or kill someone while doing this, you could go to prison for up to 5 years, or face a fine up to $20,000 and lose your licence for 1 year.

If you pour or spill petrol, oil, diesel fuel, or any other any other slippery substance likely to cause a vehicle to lose traction, onto any road.

* You could face an infringement fee of $600, or if it goes to Court, a fine up to $3,000.

Vehicle Impoundment

If your car is caught in an illegal street race, an unnecessary exhibition of speed, or a burnout, Police may impound the vehicle for 28 days at your expense - effective immediately.

If that happens, your car will be ordered off the road until you get a new warrant of fitness.

The new warrant can only be issued by an approved vehicle testing station run by the NZAA, On Road NZ, Vehicle Testing NZ, or Vehicle Inspection NZ. These agencies are listed in local telephone books.

The "Boy Racer" Act does not apply to street or car races which are authorised by law or held in legally designated areas - use them

:exit

NZ Herald : Boy racers fight with residents

03.10.05 5.00am

A woman was knocked to the ground and suffered a black eye in a late-night scuffle between boy racers and angry residents of the Christchurch suburb of Templeton, says a witness.

The Friday night incident follows a series of police raids on boy racers in Christchurch and surrounding towns. Police say about 25 cars have been impounded and as many people arrested on charges including dangerous driving, breaching licence conditions and performing burnouts.

The witness says a confrontation ended in fisticuffs and the woman was thrown to the ground.

:exit

NZ Herald : Public tackle noisy boy racers

12.09.05 1.00pm

Police are welcoming a national campaign to ban noisy car exhausts, which has been launched by Christchurch residents fed up with "boy racers" destroying their peace.

The charitable trust, Noise Off, is recruiting people from around the country through a website to put pressure on the Government (link at bottom of page).

The groups founders, Cashmere resident Jonathan Gillard and fellow solicitor Richard Raymond say they have been approached by people whose lives are being made miserable by exhausts as loud as 100 decibels.

The head of Canterbury's strategic traffic unit, Senior Sergeant Trevor Pullen, said moves were afoot to introduce objective tests to measure exhaust noise.

New rules introduced by the Government earlier this year stopped short of setting a maximum level.

In Britain, car exhausts can't be louder than 74 decibels, whether modified or not.

The New Zealand limit is 81 decibels but the exhaust can be modified as long is it is not "noticeably or significantly louder".

A Christchurch prosecution of a driver for having a noisy exhaust had recently failed because the car had a warrant of fitness.

Mr Pullen, who is also on a Christchurch City Council committee to look at the problem, said at present, assessing noisy vehicles was "fairly subjective".

"If the individual police officer can hear the exhaust from inside the patrol car with the windows closed from two blocks away, then it's too loud.

"But what could be permissible in the middle of the afternoon on a city street can sound quite different in the Cashmere Hills in the middle of the night -- especially when you multiply that by more than one or two of them."

The Ministry of Transport has indicated that tests for exhaust noise could be introduced at warrant of fitness testing stations next year -- but a change of Government could affect the pace of change, Mr Pullen said.

He said he had a lot of sympathy for residents bothered by "boy racers".

"Most of them are quite responsible but there is a hardcore that are a pain in the backside," he said.

"Some of the modified exhaust pipes you see look more like the business-end of a howitzer than anything else."

Police officers could "green sticker" cars with modified exhausts, essentially cancelling their warrants and ordering owners to fix the problem.

"But some of them simply drive home, take off the modified exhaust and go and get another warrant, then go straight out and refit it."

Drivers operating noisy vehicles can be fined $150, and can also be fined $250 and accrue 10 demerit points for operating a noisy vehicle "in a matter likely to cause annoyance".

Mr Pullen said police encouraged residents bothered by noisy cars to notify them.

[Alex]

Here's a question for anyone in the know...just why do the yoof have those big exhausts? I can't think why I'd want to hear my exhaust whilst driving, and surely it interferes with any radio / music / conversation in the car. Please don't tell me it's simply to make little Jimmy Numbnuts think his battered nova is actually an F1 car... :wah

[Singel]

Crash survivor goes to court over speeding charge

16.10.05
By Amanda Spratt and David Fisher

Hawke's Bay teenager Ricky Moulder, who survived a crash that killed four of his friends three months ago, is back driving despite doctors' orders and already facing a boy-racer charge.

The 18-year-old appears in court in Napier tomorrow charged with "showing an unnecessary exhibition of speed" after being pulled over by police two weeks ago.

He was also back driving around boy racer haunts in Hastings last Friday night, despite recently being released from hospital after sustaining severe head injuries from the fatal accident three months ago.

The Hastings crash - in which friend Che Orbell-Pere was driving Moulder's turbo-charged car in breach of his restricted licence - claimed the lives of Orbell-Pere, Dylan Brittin, Alex Scales and Michael Jeffries, and caused serious injuries to Jaddyn Brittin and Moulder.

Since the accident Moulder has:

* bought a $12,000 super-charged 1994 Nissan Silvia car, which has already been confiscated by police

* been charged with "showing an unnecessary exhibition of speed", for which he appears in court tomorrow

* continued to drive since his release from hospital even though doctors say it could lead to other motorists being harmed

* told friends he plans to "carry on drifting" - the practice of sliding cars sideways around corners.

A police charge against Moulder resulting from the way he drove on October 7 means he could lose his licence tomorrow.

He has been summoned to appear in court after allegedly racing his car up behind an unmarked police car.

However, Moulder's father Jeff Moulder is defending his son, saying he is a good driver: "Rick's done nothing wrong at all."

Mr Moulder denied his son had been ordered not to drive.

His son saw a neurosurgeon four weeks ago, who told him that he was "pretty much perfect", but that standard practice was to advise against driving.

The report says: "Given the indication of severe brain injury, normal advice would be that he should not drive for 12 months to ensure post-traumatic amnesia does not result in endangering himself or others".

But Mr Moulder said advice from ACC that his son could return to work as a roofer four hours a week - which involved working on beams at 12-metre heights - led him to believe he was fine to drive.

Mr Moulder said his son was being punished for allowing Orbell-Pere, who had a restricted licence, to drive the car in which the four boys died.

Moulder and the family had been abused and villified, instead of supported, since the local paper ran a "xxxxxx" story about the boy-racing charge, he said.

"The only thing he's guilty of is having enough brains not to drive a bxxxx vehicle when he's been drinking, and it's all evolved from that.

"Now he can't even walk into a shop in Hawke's Bay without people pointing fingers." The criticising public needed a "reality check" on his son, who was a good kid who just loved cars and had never had a speeding ticket before.

Mr Moulder said his son had three witnesses who say he was not 'drifting' or driving erratically on October 7.

The only tickets Moulder had received, he said, were one for a loud muffler and three for having a passenger in his car when he was on his restricted licence.

He has had his full licence for almost two years.

Faced with a son who "just wants to get on with his life", Mr Moulder does not believe he can, or should, stop Moulder from driving.

"You can't wrap them up in cotton wool. You just can't. I'd rather have a son as a friend not an enemy. As a parent, I've done everything I can to make sure he drives properly. Where's the danger?

"All he wants to do is just have a nice car and drive it. Sure, he'll rev his car up, but what boy doesn't?"

Yesterday, following the death of an 18-year-old driver - the third fatal crash in the Hawke's Bay in as many days - the region came under scrutiny by police, but Mr Moulder said statistics showed more older people were killed. He believed boy-racers were sometimes unfairly targeted.

"It's not young people that are dying on the roads. Why are they pointing the finger at boy-racers?

"Just because a car killed four people and had mag wheels?"

However, Dylan and Jayyden's mum, Sonja Nicholls, was amazed to hear Ricky Moulder was still driving - and planned to quiz specialists over his injuries and continuing to hold a licence.

"When you have a brain injury is your licence legally taken off you?"

Friends of Moulder's told the Herald on Sunday last week they were angry at the attitude of police, who did not give them an easier time when they were pulled over, despite having lost a number of friends in a string of recent fatal accidents.

One friend also said Moulder was already anticipating getting his Nissan Silvia back.

Moulder had only owned the car for five days before it was confiscated.

He bought it from Taupo resident Nathan Seay, who says it would reach 200 km/h before the engine stopped it going faster.

It also had the angle of the wheels altered, which allowed the car to be lowered below legal limits - making it more prone to sliding.

The car replaced the one in which Ricky Moulder was injured, and four of his friends died.

A former owner of the car that was destroyed in the accident has said it would reach 243 km/h.

The Herald on Sunday has also found that Moulder has owned a third turbo-charged car in the past 12 months.

The current owner of the car, a Honda Integra, said it would go "off the clock" at 190 km/h.

Hastings area commander Inspector Dean Clifford said he was currently exploring the possibility of having letters sent to parents of young drivers when they exceeded the conditions of their licence.

The plan posed some legal problems which were being explored.

Told of Moulder's driving persistance in the face of medical orders, Mr Clifford said it was almost as if there was a "stuff you" attitude among boy-racing drivers.

"They think they own the road," he said of the predominantly young drivers.

The number of road deaths would be vastly reduced, Mr Clifford said, if the number of easily preventable errors such as drink driving, speeding and making unnecessary manoeuvres was reduced.

"You drive dumb and you die.

"People are making the wrong choices.

[K&CS]

Can somebody please tell me what a 'donut' is?

Kate

[jubjub]

Donut, you spin car round in circles, so you get max tyre squeal and make a donut shape with tyre rubber on the ground.... requires high revs

See em do it on Top Gear all the time!

[ShakerMike]

Here's a question for anyone in the know...just why do the yoof have those big exhausts? I can't think why I'd want to hear my exhaust whilst driving, and surely it interferes with any radio / music / conversation in the car. Please don't tell me it's simply to make little Jimmy Numbnuts think his battered nova is actually an F1 car... :wah

I think it's the teenage equivalent of clipping a playing card to the back of your bike frame with a peg when you were 10 years old, to make it clack on the spokes.

Can I assume from all this talk of donuts that replacement tyres come cheap in NZ? This thread has probably worried me more than all the talk of high house prices, leaky building syndrome and inedible sausages!

[Alex]

I think it's the teenage equivalent of clipping a playing card to the back of your bike frame with a peg when you were 10 years old, to make it clack on the spokes.
:laugh
Ahhh, the halycon and simple days of one's youth! How times have changed...perhaps this is what inspired Blur's first album title?! :nice1

[StevieD]

How long before the curse of the speed bump arrives? Oh no!

[Singel]

Police blitz unearths dozens of death traps

NZ Herald : 18.10.05

A coffin on wheels is how police and vehicle inspectors described one car ordered off the road during a weekend blitz on boy racers in Tauranga and Mt Maunganui.

Dozens of "death traps" modified by backyard mechanics were stopped by authorities, declared unsafe and sidelined.

The combination of inexperienced drivers and unsafe cars had Western Bay police predicting it was only a matter of time before the vehicles caused serious accidents or deaths.

Of the cars inspected over Friday and Saturday night, 29 were "pink stickered" and were not allowed to be driven again until they had been repaired and passed an inspection.

Police gave 27 warnings, dished out 128 fines, and issued eight tickets for traffic offences that will require a court appearance.

The worst car stopped during Operation Compliance was seen bumping its way along Hewletts Rd at 11.43pm on Friday.

Senior Constable and crash analyst Chris Hills, who has 15 years' experience in the police, said the car was a lethal weapon.

The unwarranted 24-year-old Toyota Corolla, which was incorrectly registered, was directed to On Road New Zealand where it was examined by inspectors.

Once stationary a smell of burning rubber emanated from the car.

On closer inspection it was not hard to work out why.

The body of the car sat on top of the tyres. There were no springs suspending the vehicle above the wheels.

Turning the car was almost impossible as the tyres rubbed against the guards - the front left tyre had broken through, exposing a dangerous jagged metal edge.

"This could kill someone," Mr Hills told the male driver.

"It's an accident waiting to happen.

"It's a foolish thing to do to come out on the road with a vehicle like this."

Four others in the car stepped out from the lime-green death machine.

The driver, 16-year-old Rhys Fleming, revealed he had already popped a rear tyre earlier in the night.

He was not perturbed by the officer's news.

"More people die in normal cars than these," he said.

"I know it's a bit dangerous but I don't go on the motorways."

But the On Road inspectors confirmed how dangerous the car was.

"It scares me to think that I am on the same road as these death traps," Mr Howard Cocker said.

"By getting this off the road we have potentially saved someone's life. It's the equivalent of a coffin on wheels."

For his efforts, the young driver received $1000 in fines - $600 for operating a dangerous vehicle, $200 for an expired Warrant of Fitness and $200 for incorrect registration.

Boy racers are going to great lengths to make their cars stand out by making modifications that could have fatal consequences.

Instead of taking their cars to mechanics they are doing the work themselves.

The most common modifications included cutting suspension springs to lower the vehicle, altering the exhaust to make it louder, fattening the tyres, tinting windows and plastering stickers across rear windows.

Operation head Sergeant Lester Polglase, who has 30 years' policing experience, was shocked by the number of dangerously modified cars on the road.

"It's about their safety and other road users. It's not about tickets," he said.

"We're hoping the cars that come here pass.

"If they don't, they are unsafe and need to be brought up to roadworthy standard. It's disappointing these modified cars were not done properly.

"The kids are risking their lives and everyone else's."

Many of the cars stopped were not warranted or registered.

Some were registered for the wrong class - one being registered as a tractor rather than a car.

[sweetpea]

Hawke's Bay teenager Ricky Moulder, who survived a crash that killed four of his friends three months ago, is back driving despite doctors' orders and already facing a boy-racer charge.

Yikes. Well, that apple didn't fall far from the tree. The article initially made me think, well, maybe it's the head injury that has caused impaired judgement. Then I read Dad's comments. I hope they suspend the kid's license. Boy-racers. Bleh.

[T-R3xx]

In-All-Fairness Update: Referring to my original post, the police have determined that the driver was not at fault, was not speeding at the time, and that the little boy ran from between 2 cars. I am sure at the time the driver was guilty in everyone's eyes (a soccer field full of parents!), but what do you know - no charges: he was in the wrong place at the wrong time. The little guy is still in the hospital in serious condition with several broken bones, but is expected to make a full recovery.

[Moorf]

Hooners in Chch made front page news in The Press today - not sure where you can view their home-movie online, but they showed it on the news....

http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3449158a10,00.html

[Jason2112]

I'm actually very surprised that the police and the community seem to tolerate this kind of behavior. I know around here (Southern California) we have isolated incidents of street (drag) racing, but the people here wouldn't put up with "hooning" or the lack of respect shown by the kids in these articles. As a former drag racer myself, I know that being young + a fast car + loads of adrenaline = disaster in most cases. Has anyone in NZ proposed to create a drag strip or race track for people to legally race and get these kids off the road? People are going to race and show off anyway, why not give them a safe and legal place to do it?

[T-R3xx]

Funny you should mention that, Jason - I spent my high school years in Salinas, CA, and I have been reflecting on my own experiences, and wonder if I would have been considered a "hooner". I think the big difference is that we always found some isolated stretch of road – but race we did. For a while I had a ’67 Chevelle SS with a 396 somewhat pumped. It was very fast. However, my first car was a ’61 Olds F-85, which I totaled 2 months to the day after I got my license. I had no less than 5 friends (acquaintances?) die in accidents while I was in school. We all got arrested at least once (twice for me) and were absolutely hell-bent on suicide. I still have frightful memories, and wonder how I made it out of my teen years.

So…was I a hooner? And is it any better / worse now, at least in the States? (I can’t speak for NZ…YET.) I don't know. I am sure it does explain my general paranoia with regard to my kids and my dislike for the teen-years in general – probably some level of self-loathing, I imagine.

Signed,

A ’77 hoon-daddy

[Alex]

A ’77 hoon-daddy
:laugh
Nice one! Yes, those are interesting points you make about what we did as teenagers vs what we think of today's teens. Broadly speaking, I'm not sure there are massive differences between the attitudes of kids back then, and kids now. I do think, however, that there are massive differences in, say, the material possessions now, and what today's kids have at their disposal.

Compare my skateboard and bmx, aggravating the grannies down the local park, with today's kids in their souped up hoonmobiles, aggravating road users, residents, the local paramedics etc. Sure, we had a few grazes and scrapes, but I can't recall any of my friends ending themselves through their "hoon" actions. Having said all that, when my peers got their grubby hands on a car, a lot of them had crashes etc, and I'm sure if we had the US's and NZ's long straight deserted roads, there would have been more trouble!

So would I have been considered a hoon? Hmmm, maybe a "hoon in training" :nice1

[Jason2112]

Hey T-R3xx - I had a '67 Chevelle when I was 20 and it was a blast (though it only had a mild 327 with a Powerglide). Thankfully my dad was a classic car nut and taught me to respect the power (and value) of cars like that. I currently have an '05 GTO, and I'm often reminded of what 400hp feels like :)

I'm not sure what the culture is like up in MN, but here in SoCal the import craze is still in full effect, but it would take one really stupid kid to try to pull a donut or drift in the middle of a busy street here. Too many vigilante bystanders that would most likely pull him out of his car and give him a beating while waiting for the cops to arrive ;)

And I agree with you and Alex, kids will always find trouble, and kids today seem to have more expensive "toys" available to them. The problem is, these "hooner" kids don't seem to realize that a car is not a toy. It still sounds like these kids need a place to go to do this stuff to get them off the road.

[Debbie]

Can I assume from all this talk of donuts that replacement tyres come cheap in NZ? This thread has probably worried me more than all the talk of high house prices, leaky building syndrome and inedible sausages!

Im with you on that one, NZ might not have the terrorism threat but you seem more likly to get splattered by some prat of a driver.

You get stupid drivers racing every where but just how common is this in NZ?, It does seem that Hoons are wide spread and that you are inn the minority and lucky if you miss this aspect of NZ life.

[Singel]

The other day, I asked my kiwi colleague about why there is this culture of hooners in NZ. He said that if kids are given driving licences at the age of 15 and at that age, they normally do not care about consequences (this word do not exist in those kids' dictionaries). This is really scary :eek: