That cop is full of it. You are liable for traffic citations, parking etc. But not equipment crap like tint and license plates on the front. He was just trying to intimidate you. Where I was was on a road that is known as the mid-west's hot bed of street racing called Woodward Ave in Detroit. I was doing 35 mph in a 40 mph zone and got pulled in my Mustang. Yep, cops just love the Stangs. He didn't notice my plate until I gave him my license and he noticed I was from Canada. He still tried to intimidate me and eventually let me go. Business as usual.
If you buy a car in Michigan for instance and want to register it in Indiana, you have to have it conform to Indiana's equipment standards, i.e. smog test or whatever.
