Weird Colorado Law: This Car Habit Is Common, But Surprisingly Illegal
Warming up your car in the colder months seems harmless, right? Did you know that in Colorado, it’s illegal to do that? It’s crazy but true!
I know I’ve been guilty of this in the past, zero doubt about it! Why? It’s just so easy to do and makes a huge difference when these Colorado temperatures drop in the Fall and Winter. Starting your car, letting it warm up, and defrosting the windows seems pretty innocent! Problem is, in our lovely state of Colorado, and many others, starting your car and leaving it to warm up unattended is against the law! Why? Even though it’s called “puffing” the law doesn’t have anything to do with what toxins your car running put out, it’s all about theft!
Stealing a car is pretty tricky, I’d imagine. Unless, that car is running, without anybody inside of it or anywhere around! At that point, it’s an easy snag! These “bad guys” drive around neighborhoods looking for cars “puffing” so that they can steal your ride in a matter of seconds! Two people in a car, the passenger gets out, gets into your unlocked, already running car, and you come out to an empty driveway! Not even coffee can fix that kind of morning!
I’m not certain how often this happens, but if a police officer were to drive by your unattended vehicle “puffing” you could be given a ticket with a roughly $60 fine. That fine amount will vary depending on where you live and which Police Department writes the ticket. If all you get is a ticket though, you’re lucky! Not all, but a large number of vehicle thefts come from puffing.
If you’re trying to outsmart the system and choose to warm up your car inside the garage, we wouldn’t recommend that at all as that’s bad for the health of yourself as well as the others in your home! The best safe and legal way around this is a remote start as those are legal since your car is locked and most remote starts have an engine kill built in to shut off if someone steps on the brake without the key. Some even stop as soon as you open the door!
You can see the entire Colorado “Puffer” Law, HERE
Also, my pal AJ wrote an open letter to his "Puffing" Neighbor HERE!