RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — Among a list of 11 North Carolina bills Gov. Roy Cooper signed into law last week was one generically called “Restrict Certain Vehicle Modifications.”
The inconspicuous new law, also called House Bill 692, will essentially do away with a polarizing (and some say dangerous) height adjustment of pickup trucks called the “Carolina Squat.”
The squat is much like its name — the back of a pickup truck is lowered or kept the same and the height of front of the truck is raised. That makes a truck appear as if it is “squatting.”
Some say this is dangerous because the driver is positioned well above the front of the truck with a view obstructed by the angle of the vehicle. The driver is not able to see down the road or cars just in front of their truck, critics of the design say.
The new bill outlawing the modifications goes into effect on Dec. 1.
The new law says that a vehicle would be violating the law “if the suspension, frame, or chassis, the height of the front fender is 4 or more inches greater than the height of the rear fender.” The language of the bill also describes how the measurements are obtained.
The penalty is “mandatory revocation of license” for at least a year.
More than 70,000 people signed an online petition demanding representatives make the modification illegal.
The “Carolina Squat” trend started ” an emulation of off-road racing trucks that feature a lower rear to help land jumps,” according to Autoweek.
— WSPA-TV contributed to this report