Too Short -- They WEREN'T My Drugs!

Too Short says he's been taken for a ride -- in a filthy black and white littered with contraband ... and cops are now falsely accusing him of hiding drugs in the backseat.

TMZ broke the story ... Short was popped for DUI early Wednesday. Police say when they arrived at the cop shop they found hard drugs in the backseat and Too Short is now taking the rap.

Two law enforcement sources tell us the drug in question is meth ... at least according to preliminary tests. However, sources connected to the case tell TMZ ... the drug will almost certainly turn out to be Ecstasy which was possibly laced with meth.

But Short's rep, David Weintraub, tells TMZ ... the rapper was clean in the drug department, adding, "Short was diligently searched and cuffed prior to being placed in the disgustingly filthy patrol car."

And the rep goes on ... "It was 3 AM, the cop car smelled like vomit and was littered with remnants from prior arrests of the evening." Translation: A miscreant with a penchant for meth dropped his load in the backseat.

But LAPD cops tell us ... the protocol is to thoroughly search the patrol car -- including the backseat -- after every arrest.

As for why Too Short fled on foot after he was initially suspected of DUI, the rep tells us, "In the past, Short, like many others, has been mistreated by law enforcement and these unfortunate prior incidents led to the complications after the stop."

One more thing ... Too Short's rep wants to make it clear to the easy listening crowd, "Any assertion that Short was carrying powder is ridiculous! Every rap fan knows Short's into weed."