20 hours ago
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Few things make a driver’s heart sink like seeing that dreaded defect sticker on their car. And while most car owners do their best to abide by the rules, this BYD Shark 6 owner was caught off guard when he saw a yellow defect sticker after returning to his parked ute.
According to the owner – who posted his experience on the BYD Shark 6 Owners Club Australia Facebook group – it must have been his wheels that led to the ‘defect’ warning, but was absolutely shocked to discover the notice was for something completely unexpected.
“There I am, standing on the side of the road thinking ‘great they’ve finally ventured out onto [sic] my suburb, but what the hell is wrong with my car?’,” the Shark 6 owner explained.
While the owner confessed the cops may have penalised him for his wheels which he claimed, “poke out past the guards by about 20mm”, they were shocked to find the yellow sticker was a marketing tool from car enthusiast clothing brand ‘Defect the Dogs’.
The yellow sticker – which looks official given its close resemblance to legitimate WA Police defect notices – reads, “A NOTICE HAS BEEN ISSUED BECAUSE YOUR CAR IS ... SICK. At the time of inspection, it was found to attract unusual levels of attention due to how it looks, sounds or general attitude”.
The clothing brand sells fake defect stickers for $2 on its website, in addition to custom hoodies.
“The vehicle may require admiration, photos and a limmi for respect before continuing to operate,” the sticker reads.
Truth be told we have no idea what ‘limmi’ means but according to online reports from car enthusiasts, the term is allegedly used to describe revving up the car to its limits.
While some drivers would condemn the actions of the responsible party, the BYD Shark 6 owner was in good spirits after being pranked.
“This was marketing genius. Absolute diabolical brilliance. Whoever came up with that idea deserves a raise, a medal, and possibly a villain origin story. Well played,” they said.
Though the BYD owner found the notice hilarious, it's worth noting using false documents – such as defect notices or parking tickets – to advertise any goods and services are generally illegal in most Australian states and territories.
According to Consumer Protection WA, "it is unlawful to make false or misleading representations about goods and services when supplying, offering to supply or promoting these goods or services."
Fines for breaching these rules can incur a maximum criminal penalty of $500,000 for an individual and $10 million for a body corporate.
“The Western Australia Police Force discourages the practice of issuing illegitimate defect notices as a marketing tactic," a spokesperson for WA Police told Drive.
“The item being circulated is clearly not a legitimate notice. The wording does not resemble a genuine defect notice and is likely to cause unnecessary confusion within the community. If the individual is identified, they may be subject to an appropriate sanction."
Ethan Cardinal graduated with a Journalism degree in 2020 from La Trobe University and has been working in the fashion industry as a freelance writer prior to joining Drive in 2023. Ethan greatly enjoys investigating and reporting on the cross sections between automotive, lifestyle and culture. Ethan relishes the opportunity to explore how deep cars are intertwined within different industries and how they could affect both casual readers and car enthusiasts.
