Now, the 'front mudguards/fenders' issue is something I'd paid some attention to a few years back when I was thinking of building a Volksrod and rather liked the bare front wheels look. I have to admit that I couldn't find much relevant information back then and both my taste in cars and the World generally moved on anyway so it wasn't much of an issue for me.
But the question has sort of cropped up again as a matter of general interest on this forum so I took a couple of minutes at the end of my shift this evening to ask a colleague with near thirty years experience in Roads Policing whether front mudguards are a requirement?
The answer? As an individual officer, that particular scenario would be filed under 'too difficult to deal with' and words of advice would be given rather than a prosecution sought. Generally speaking I have to agree with his opinion on that one and if I were to stop a 'rod with no fenders myself for some legitimate reason I'd probably be too busy admiring the detailing to worry too much about the, erm, details. But I have to say that where vehicle condition and the use it's being put to is concerned, there are other bits of legislation apart from 'construction and use' that may apply depending on the circumstances.
So, in this little bit of West Norfolk you'd probably get by fine with no fenders on the front of your 'rod so long as the sun's shining. But there are officers who are far more 'clenched' than I and no doubt have a more thorough understanding of the finer points of the road traffic act, so if your front wheels are throwing rooster tails in your face when you fail to see the jam sandwich lurking at the roadside then don't come crying to me that you've got points on your licence...
