MR MOHAMMAD Sahar Sulaiman was driving back to Singapore early Dec 26 when he was stopped in Johor Baru by the traffic police.

The supervisor in a freight forwarding company claimed that the police wanted to fine him for his tinted car windows and high-intensity discharge - or HID - headlamps.

After some discussion, the police let him go, he said in a letter to The Straits Times' Forum.

'Everything in my car is from Japan and approved by the Land Transport Authority. I didn't make any alteration or modification. How do you expect me to change everything when I go to Malaysia?' he asked.

This driver's experience echoed a controversy from early last year, when several Singapore cars with dark tinted windows were given tickets in Malaysia, which has stricter rules on tinted glass.

Across the Causeway, vehicles must ensure at least 70 per cent of light penetrates the front windscreen, while half the light must pass through the rear windscreen and side windows.

When contacted, Malaysia's Road Transport Department enforcement director Salim Parlan said the 'principle' was for visitors to obey the laws of the country in which they were travelling in.

However, he added that governments from both countries had reached an understanding that recognised Singapore's tinting requirements for Singapore-registered cars.

These requirements applied to the Iskandar Malaysia region in South Johor.

An LTA spokesman has advised motorists travelling out of the country to 'check and comply with the vehicle and road traffic laws of the foreign country that they wish to drive in'.

It is also illegal in Malaysia for vehicle owners to modify their headlamps with HID lights, as it is in Singapore.
However, vehicles that are factory fitted with HID lamps that meet internationally recognised standards are permitted.

This article was first published in The Straits Times on Dec 31, 2008.