BC man on 300 km test drive caught excessive speeding

A BC driver who told police he was on a test drive 300 kilometres from the dealership is on the hook $2,500 after he was clocked doing 60 km/h over the speed limit.

According to a July 27 BC Highway Patrol media release, police stopped a 30-year-old Vancouver man driving a grey Toyota sedan on Highway 97C near Elkhart doing 172 km/h in a 110 km zone.

“The driver told police that he and his girlfriend were on an overnight test-drive from Vancouver to Kelowna,” BC Highway Patrol Sergeant Michael McLaughlin said in a media release. “The vehicle successfully demonstrated that it can speed and that it fits on the back of a tow truck.”

BC Highway Patrol issued a $483 for excessive speed, along with the cost of the tow truck and a seven-day impound, which gets billed to the vehicle’s owner. 

Police say the driver will now have at least three years of high-risk driver premiums, bringing the total costs to roughly $2,500.

There’s no information from BC Highway Patrol as to whether the test driver actually purchased the Toyota.