Title 46.2, Title 46.2. Motor Vehicles

No tire on a vehicle moved on a highway shall have on its periphery any block, stud, flange, cleat, spike, or any other protuberance of any material other than rubber which projects beyond the tread of the traction surface of the tire. It shall be permissible, however, to use on …

No person shall sell to any resident of the Commonwealth a tire which shall have on its periphery any block, stud, flange, cleat, spike, or any other protuberance of any material other than rubber which projects beyond the tread of the traction surface of the tire. Farm machinery…

The Commissioner of Highways and local authorities in their respective jurisdictions may, in their discretion, issue special permits authorizing the operation on a highway of traction engines or tractors having movable tracks with transverse corrugations upon the periphery of suc…

It shall be unlawful to sell or offer for sale any (i) muffler without interior baffle plates or other effective muffling device or (ii) gutted muffler, muffler cutout, or straight exhaust. It shall be unlawful for any person to operate on the highways in the Commonwealth a motor…

No motor vehicle registered in the Commonwealth and manufactured for the model year 1973 or for subsequent model years shall be operated on the highways in the Commonwealth unless it is equipped with an air pollution control system, device, or combination of such systems or devic…

No person shall drive and no owner of a vehicle shall permit or allow the operation of any such vehicle on a highway unless it is equipped with an exhaust system in good working order and in constant operation to prevent excessive or unusual levels of noise, provided, however, th…

It shall be unlawful for any person to operate or cause to be operated any motorcycle not equipped with a muffler or other sound dissipative device in good working order and in constant operation. No person shall remove or render inoperative, or cause to be removed or rendered in…

A. The governing body of any county, city, or town may, by ordinance, regulate noise from a vehicle operated on a highway that is not equipped with a muffler and exhaust system conforming to §§ 46.2-1047 and 46.2-1049. B. The provisions of subsection E of § 46.2-1300 shall not ap…

A. For the purposes of this section: "Exhaust system violation" means the operation of a passenger car or a commercial motor vehicle, as that term is defined in § 46.2-341.4, that has an exhaust system that emits noise in excess of 95 A-weighted decibels (dBA) or is in violation …

A. As used in this article, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Front side windows" means those windows located adjacent to and forward of the driver's seat. "Holographic effect" means a picture or image that may remain constant or change as the viewing angle is cha…

Notwithstanding the provisions of § 46.2-1052, a motor vehicle operated by or regularly used to transport any person with a medical condition which renders him susceptible to harm or injury from exposure to sunlight or bright artificial light may be equipped, on its windshield an…

A. It shall be unlawful for any person (i) to drive a motor vehicle on a highway in the Commonwealth with any object or objects, other than a rear view mirror, sun visor, or other equipment of the motor vehicle approved by the Superintendent, suspended from any part of the motor …

Every permanent windshield on a motor vehicle shall be equipped with a device for cleaning snow, rain, moisture, or other matter from the windshield directly in front of the driver. The device shall be so constructed as to be controlled or operated by the driver of the vehicle. E…

Every Virginia-registered motor vehicle manufactured for the 1969 or subsequent model years and required to be equipped with a windshield shall be equipped with a windshield defroster or defogger. The defroster or defogger shall be in good working order at all times when the vehi…

It shall be unlawful for any person to drive on any highway a motor vehicle registered in the Commonwealth and manufactured or assembled after January 1, 1935, and designed or used for the purpose of carrying persons for compensation or hire or as a public conveyance to transport…

It shall be unlawful for any person to drive on a highway in the Commonwealth any motor vehicle or reconstructed motor vehicle, other than a motorcycle or autocycle, registered in the Commonwealth that was manufactured, assembled, or reconstructed after July 1, 1970, unless the m…

It shall be unlawful for any person to replace any glass in any vehicle with any material other than an approved type of safety glass. Safety glazing materials other than glass approved by the Superintendent as provided in § 46.2-1056 may, however, be used to replace safety glass…

Every motor vehicle driven on a highway shall be equipped with a working horn capable of emitting sound audible under normal conditions for at least 200 feet.

It shall be unlawful for any vehicle to be equipped with or for any person to use on any vehicle any siren or exhaust, compression or spark plug whistle, or horn except as may be authorized in this title. It shall be unlawful for any vehicle operated on a public highway to be equ…

Every law-enforcement vehicle, every vehicle authorized to be equipped with warning lights pursuant to §§ 46.2-1022 and 46.2-1023 shall be equipped with a siren, exhaust whistle, or air horn designed to give automatically intermittent signals. Such devices shall be of types not p…

The Superintendent may promulgate regulations relating to the construction, mounting, use, and number of warning devices for which there shall be an approval fee as prescribed in § 46.2-1008.

No person shall drive on a public highway any motor vehicle registered as a passenger motor vehicle if it has been modified by alteration of its altitude from the ground to the extent that its bumpers, measured to any point on the lower edge of the main horizontal bumper bar, exc…

No motor vehicle whose front-end suspension has been modified by the use of lift blocks shall be driven on any highway in the Commonwealth.

Every motor vehicle driven on a highway shall be equipped with steering gear adequate to ensure the safe control of the vehicle. Such steering gear shall not show signs of weakness or breaking under ordinary conditions. The Superintendent may promulgate regulations establishing s…

Every motor vehicle when driven on a highway shall be equipped with brakes adequate to control the movements of and to stop and hold such vehicle. The brakes shall be maintained in good working order and shall conform to the provisions of this article. Every bicycle, electric pow…

On a dry, hard, approximately level stretch of highway free from loose material, the service braking system shall be capable of stopping a motor vehicle or combination of vehicles at all times and under all conditions of loading at a speed of 20 miles per hour within the followin…

Every motor vehicle and combination of vehicles, except motorcycles or autocycles, shall be equipped with emergency or parking brakes adequate to hold the vehicle or vehicles on any grade on which it is operated, under all conditions of loading on a surface free from snow, ice, o…

Every motorcycle manufactured after July 1, 1974, and driven on a highway in the Commonwealth shall be equipped with either a split-service brake system or two independently actuated brake systems which shall act on the front as well as the rear wheel or wheels. It shall be unlaw…

Every semitrailer, trailer, or separate vehicle attached by a drawbar, chain, or coupling to a towing vehicle other than a farm tractor or a vehicle not required to obtain a registration certificate and having an actual gross weight of 3,000 pounds or more, shall be equipped with…

No person having control of a motor vehicle shall allow such vehicle to stand on any highway unattended without first effectively setting the emergency or parking brake thereon, stopping the motor, and turning the front wheels into the curb or side of the roadway.

It shall be unlawful to sell or to drive on any highway in the Commonwealth any motor vehicle which does not have stamped on or cut into its motor its motor number or which does not bear a permanent serial or other identification number assigned by the manufacturer or by the Comm…

The Commissioner may charge a fee of $125 per vehicle, for the examination, verification, or identification of the serial or identification number of any vehicle, motor vehicle, trailer, or semitrailer. The Commissioner may also receive applications for the issuance of an identif…

The owner of a motor vehicle, trailer, or semitrailer on which the engine, serial, or other identification number has become illegible or has been removed or obliterated shall immediately apply to the Department for a new identification number for such motor vehicle, trailer, or …

Any person who, individually or in association with one or more others, knowingly removes, changes, alters, or conceals any motor number, serial, or other identification number, decal or device affixed to a motor vehicle, trailer, semitrailer or motor vehicle part as required by …

Any person who shall knowingly have in his possession a motor vehicle, motor vehicle part, trailer, or semitrailer whose motor number, serial number, identification number, decal or device as required by federal law has been removed, changed, or altered without the consent of the…

It shall be unlawful for any person willfully to remove, alter, deface, or tamper with any number, plate, bracket, sticker, decal, indication, or other device indicating the manufacturer's gross vehicle weight rating of any vehicle which (i) has a manufacturer's gross vehicle wei…

A. No person shall drive, cause to be driven, or permit the driving of a "for hire" motor vehicle on the highways in the Commonwealth unless the legal name or trade name of the motor carrier as defined in Chapter 20 (§ 46.2-2000 et seq.) or Chapter 21 (§ 46.2-2100 et seq.) operat…

A. No motor vehicle registered in the Commonwealth shall be equipped with, nor shall there be used therein, a television receiver when the moving images are visible to the driver while the vehicle is in motion. The operator of a motor vehicle that is not required to be registered…

It shall be unlawful for the operator of any motor vehicle on a public highway to display or permit the display within the vehicle of any image, motion picture, or video display that is obscene as defined in § 18.2-372 if such image, motion picture, or video display can be seen b…

A. It shall be unlawful for any person to operate a motor vehicle on the highways of the Commonwealth when such vehicle is equipped with a mobile infrared transmitter or any other device or mechanism, passive or active, used to preempt or change the signal given by a traffic ligh…

It shall be unlawful for any person to operate a motor vehicle, bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, or moped on the highways in the Commonwealth while using earphones on or in both ears. For the purpose of this section, "earphone…

A. It shall be unlawful for any person to operate a motor vehicle on the highways of the Commonwealth when such vehicle is equipped with any device or mechanism, passive or active, to detect or purposefully interfere with or diminish the measurement capabilities of any radar, las…

It shall be unlawful for any person to possess with intent to sell or offer for sale, either separately or as a part of the equipment of a motor vehicle, or to use or have as a part of the equipment of a motor vehicle, or to use or have as equipment on a motor vehicle operated on…

A. Every farm tractor, self-propelled unit of farm equipment or implement of husbandry, and any other vehicle designed for operation at speeds not in excess of 25 miles per hour or normally operated at speeds not in excess of 25 miles per hour, shall display a triangular slow-mov…

No person shall drive a motor vehicle on a highway in the Commonwealth if the vehicle is not equipped with a mirror which reflects to the driver a view of the highway for a distance of not less than 200 feet to the rear of such vehicle. No motor vehicle registered in the Commonwe…

No person shall operate on a highway any motor vehicle or combination of vehicles having a licensed gross weight in excess of 40,000 pounds unless the motor vehicle or combination of vehicles is equipped with rear fenders, flaps, or guards of sufficient size to substantially prev…