A Southland man who drove a car with no seats or a bonnet said he was a mechanic and thought he could test drive the "death trap".
David James Oswald (60) appeared in the Invercargill District Court yesterday for a hearing in front of justices of the peace Sharron Ayto and Craig Rodgers.
The defendant, who represented himself, pleaded not guilty to operating a vehicle with no registration, operating a vehicle that was not up to warrant of fitness standard and failing to wear a seatbelt.
The court heard the car had not had a warrant since 2018.
The police called Senior Constable Sally Brown as their witness.
On October 14 she was on duty driving down Dipton-Castlerock Rd and saw a car coming towards her with no bonnet and plastic flapping around the motor.
Her first thought was"goodness, that should not be on the road".
She activated her flashing lights but Oswald paid no attention, so she turned on her siren.
He kept driving about 30m to his house, got out and walked towards the officer’s car.
"He was ranting and raving and flapping his arms about in an intimidating manner."
The driver was using a wooden box to sit on while he drove.
The vehicle also had no bonnet, no number plates and there was a plastic bottle attached inside the motor.
"In my opinion it was a death trap waiting to happen," the witness said.
Oswald argued vermin had eaten all the wiring in his car and he was trying to get it up to warrant-of-fitness standard.
"I was of the understanding that I could repair my vehicle and test it for a warrant of fitness," he said.
"The fizz bottle doesn’t come under any warrant-of-fitness regulations."
The bottle was there to catch antifreeze in place of an overflow container.
"Every car has one. Your car has one," he told Snr Const Brown.
"I do not believe my car has a fizz bottle," she replied.
The JPs found Oswald guilty of all charges, but did not enter any convictions.
"Being a mechanic he should have a greater understanding of regulations surrounding warrant of fitness," Mr Rodgers said.
Oswald was fined $300 and ordered to pay $90 costs.
The vehicle was now warranted and registered, the court heard.
