M/C noise laws - What is your opinion?

Hey if they ban loud exhausts. I'll just go back to my stock cans which I can sneak up on a paranoid mouse with. But for now I am going to enjoy my Loe vince carbons.

what will all those hardly guys do?

 

Personally I am not a fan of overly loud pipes and I think straight pipes are right out. That might be why I spent the time and effort to custom fit VTR1000 pipes on my VFR and ditch the cobras. I think the worst is when people with super loud pipes sit and rev through town or at stoplights for no reason. It just does not need to be done.

 

First, anyone with any knowledge of acoustics can disprove the BS myth that loud pipes save lives. This crap is right up there with the myth that a helmet can kill you if you crash.

Bass or low freqs are omni-directional. It is simply not possible to hear or feel the rumble & instantly be able to determine where the noise comes from. You will only know that you feel the low freq "rumble". This is why you can place your subwoofer anywhere in your room & the bass sounds the same. Now, in a car, if a bike with some ridiculous level of low freq noise (V2 cruiser, etc) coming out of it's pipes is nearby, you will only feel the rumble. Then, you will actually have to actively search for the source. Now you are distracted & no longer paying attention to your driving. If anything, the pipes made things LESS safe.

Treble or high freq are directional. If you have a pipe with the hi rpm zing (inline 4 sport bike) you will most likely not be aware of it until it's almost past you & then it most likely startled you, again making it LESS safe.

Don't get me wrong, I am no fan of more retarded Gov regulation since I live in the Communist People's Republic of NJ. NJ likes to make rules just in case you forgot the old ones. I've had an aftermarket pipe on every bike I've ever owned. Non of them have been ridiculously loud. On the VFR, I simply wanted to give the bike some soul since the stock boat anchor was about as inspiring as a Singer sewing machine. On the Hawk GT, I had no choice but to get a full system since the previous owner got rid of the original and put a TBR system on it. The TBR made the forward cylinder run hotter than the rear & it was impossible to tune the bike correctly. It now has a full M4 & believe it or not is significantly louder than my VFR. Neither is objectionable & I have asked my neighbors if either bike annoys them. They all said no since my one neighbor has 4 HD's & they are LLLOOOUUUDDD, car alarm loud. As others have very correctly pointed out, riders have no one to blame other than other riders. We as a community are our own worst enemy. Whether it be idiot squids riding stand up wheelies thru small town America or a pack of 73 choppers with open pipes, riders are the ones pissing each other & cagers off.

KC-10 FE out...
lane:

 

Head light modulators seem to improve safety by making a bike more conspicuous. If these guys with loud pipes are so concerned with safety (which I question), why don't they equip their bikes with headlight modulators?

 

Loud pipes=Loud mouths. Harleys are just like the European perception of American tourists-Noisy, heavy, and tacky! Why would the same knuckle dragger that says loud pipes save lives spend $1000 on chrome straight pipes but only $10 on a plastic biker beanie? Because he only has $10 worth of brains!

 

I'm generally in favor of noise abatement legislation, with a couple of stipulations:

1) Evenly and fairly applied to all motor-vehicles.
Gotta go after rice-rocket cars and especially Harleys with open exhausts.

2) Also include asinine loud car stereos.

I'm all for a more peaceful environment.

I think the 'most effective' and uniform enforcement would be actual noise level testing via decibel meter.
However, the actual nuts-&-bolts writing of the regulations would be very time consuming, and the resulting law likely ponderous, and thus open to loopholes and exploitation, not to mention certain exceptions.
Special Interest groups get involved and make the entire matter a time & money wasting experience.
Regulation/enforcement by actual physical testing would require equipment and special training, not to mention facilities & time better utilized for other automotive regulation such as Driver's Licensing, registration, pollution control, etc.
I doubt many states would go for it.

It would seem that a 'non-O.E.' requirement would be simpler to implement and enforce.

*Cop uses judgment/experience/Probable Cause to stop you on suspicion of "too loud' exhaust; Issues Fix-It Ticket.
30 Days to report to a DMV for physical inspection.
Citation dropped if exhaust system is marked appropriately as "DOT Approved."
Special 800-number to report violators (Harleys, mostly) for follow-up.
If you are respectful with an aftermarket exhaust you should be fine; piss off your neighbors and get busted.
In other words: grow up or pay the piper.

I suppose that would challenge aftermarket manufacturers to develop exhaust systems that sound better, but are within DOT and other noise-level Regs required of O.E.M.s.
Nowadays O.E. motorcycle exhaust systems are generally so good that unleashing any more 'free' horsepower is getting less and less likely.

Bike doesn't make enough HP to suit you?
Buy a bike that does.
I've owned a number of very powerful bikes, and it seems to me that, with the exception of World-Class Racing, a completely stock GSXR1000, ZX10R, FJR1300 or Councours14 makes enough power for anyone.

Maybe (actually definitely) I'm getting older.
It used to be that I couldn't leave any bike stock - a "better" exhaust system (louder) was an automatic "upgrade".
Nowadays, I'm satisfied with a reasonable horsepower level (about 100 rwhp seems sufficient), and prefer a stealthier mode of travel.
The less unwanted attention I get the better!

I will vote down any proposed legislation regarding vehicular noise control, UNLESS it is evenly applied for all vehicles, in which case I am likely to vote in favor (after reading and considering the fine print).

FWIW - Many summer evenings I sit watching TV and occasionally longingly listen to the crotch-rockets tearing up the road not far away (I love the sound of an I4!), but I LOATHE the Harley's drowning out the TV from 1/4-mile distant, and occasionally setting off obnoxious car alarms that I then get to listen to for 2 more full minutes...
(visions of moving-target practice dance in my mind...)

My Two Bros C/F can sounds deep and mellow at low revs, and even at more aggressive levels seems to warrant little notice.
Still, I'm ready to go back to O.E. if necessary - a small price to pay to still be able to simply ride a motorcycle.

 

:biggrin: I couldn't agree more!