For Firms - selling illegal vehicle
For Manufacturers, distributors, and retailers of vehicles that do not comply with the applicable laws, here is a guide to how much trouble can descend upon them.
1. The CPSC can fine them. The number is, as I recall, 1 MILLION dollars per incident, or per vehicle, or per day, depending on the issue. That can add up fast! And since it is a cash positive activity for the CPSC, I suspect that they really, really like to find such situations. The primary way that the CPSC finds such cases is simple - business competitors report them. This can be done in 5 minutes over the Internet, no need to even make a phone call.
If you are annoyed with a competitor who is disregarding the law, check it out: http://www.saferproducts.gov/CPSRMSpublic/Section15/
If you are a concerned consumer, there is one for you as well: /www.saferproducts.gov/CPSRMSPublic/Incidents/ReportIncident.aspx
2. Imported vehicles that do not comply can be seized at the border. This is also called 'confiscation' and means the vehicles become very expensive fodder for a giant trash compactor. Other penalties may apply as well. The Customs officials learn about non-compliant vehicles either by reports from business competitors, or by investigation. And once an importer (company or individual) has been found to be a violator, their ability to import anything becomes more difficult.
Again, it can be done over the Internet: http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/trade/trade_programs/e_allegations/
3. Product Liability Lawsuit. If a consumer was to be injured on a non compliant vehicle - no matter what wiggle words were pronounced by the seller (see below: "Wiggle Words") the court can decide to hold the maker, distributor, retailer, responsible to the tune of millions of dollars - and anyone who has any assets that can be reached by the US government should be very respectful of how catastrophic this can be. These lawsuits usually start when someone is injured or thinks they were injured, in a situation that somehow involved the illegal vehicle. They call a plaintiffs lawyer, who, once they learn about the details, checks to see that the offending companies have money and if they do, brings a lawsuit against them.
To find a plaintiffs lawyer in the USA, all you need to do is read a billboard, watch TV, Google it. (1,710,000 results on Google!)
4. Insurance Company Ducks and Runs - if a product is deemed "illegal", you can be sure that any insurance company that was thought to be covering product liability will use this as an excuse to deny coverage.
5. Wiggle Words - There is a popular idea that if the illegal vehicle has a sticker on it that says "for off road use only" that there is no worry about complying with laws concerning vehicles used on the public roadways.
Such a sticker will actually result in a conversation between the plaintiff’s lawyer, the jury, and the judge that goes like this: "Those were words that everyone involved knew were a fiction. This vehicle was intended for use on the roadway, and in such use this ILLEGAL vehicle injured our client - the nice lady in the wheelchair over there...." The judge and the jury are very likely to agree and decide to shower the plaintiff with all the assets of all the companies that were involved in creating and distributing the illegal vehicle.
[A note on the safety of using bicycle parts for a vehicle traveling at motorcycle speeds...it is not a good idea. The reason that motorcycles have beefier tires, suspension, brakes, and lights...is because they are needed at speeds in excess of "bicycle" speeds. But we note that many of these high-speed bikes are literally bicycles in every aspect except their ability to achieve a higher speed. That could result in injuries caused by vehicle equipment that is not sufficiently robust and was never intended to be used at such speeds. And that is a case for a product liability lawsuit in itself.]
6. And then there is state law.... States have a variety of bad attitudes and sanctions to apply to people who sell vehicles that do not comply with local and federal law. This can result in a wide range of penalties, from fines to jail, to loss of business license and more.
from a cop may not mean he actually bothers to stop you, if you aren't riding "fixie style". You know what I mean, watched the movie quicksilver once, then bought a bike. 
