loud pipes violate rights?

Question

Although loud exhaust for cars and motorcycle are unlawful in most states. How come the police are not enforcing the law? The nosie is a violation of personal rights, whereas operating a motor vehicle is a privlage.

Answer 1

Come on Officer....drop the dough nut, step away from the coffee and quit eye balling the waitress in the mini skirt and enforce the law. Do you remember "Serve and Protect".

I'm a retired Police FTO and still a motorcyclist..Harley with stock pipes. Loud Pipes Don't Save Lives, they block hearing, prevent the rider from hearing traffic and emergency vehicles. Quite a few of the loud riders wear ear plugs.

Remember, Operating a motor vehicle is a PRIVILEGE NOT A RIGHT.

You scum bag bikers want respect...EARN IT!

When it comes to safety. Educate don't Intimidate

Answer 2

I don't get it either and I'm a long time motorcyclist. I think the cops and some communities get too technical about Db levels, then they say they don't have the equipment or training to use them properly if they even bought some decibel meters.

I think the answer is much simpler. The bikes have to pass EPA tests for sound levels. The aftermarket pipes and mufflers clearly state right on them "for off road use only" to get around that. It's rediculous, why can't a cop look for the stamping? I don't know any state that doesn't have a law about "mufflers" or "equipment" and they all are worded nearly the same.

I know around the Chicago suburbs the towns all followed one another in inacting noise ordinances which were geared towards the "boom box" cars, but should work with loud exhaust too. They essentially say that if they can hear your car (bike) from 50 or some 75 ft away, you are too loud. They issued a ticket for a couple hundred, impounded the vehicle one day, you pay for the towing and impound fee. Some of these fee's and tickets got up to $1000 or more. I bet that would quiet people down.

It's a quality of life issue and even on the Department of Justice website they have a section dedicated to this issue, and what to do about it.

Oops, forgot one other thing. I bet it would be easy to go after the aftermarket exhaust and stereo companies with a class action lawsuit and drive them and the installers out of business.

Answer 3

You'd be surprised at all the laws not being enforced out there. Here in Georgia, the Governor (a broken-toothed cracker named Perdue) has announced "Zero Tolerance Week"- meaning that if you are caught driving DUI, you will ACTUALLY be punished - presumably this is as opposed to the rest of the time, when the cops will simply "tsk tsk" and send you on your drunken way.
How can we expect people to drive sensibly and keep their machines legal (no loud pipes) if the police are given this kind of discretion?
The answer is, you can't.
Have you ever seen the "This Lane Ends in 1500 Feet" sign and then seen idiots who continue until the last INCH of that lane, forcing the people in the next lane to let them in FROM A DEAD STOP, which of course causes backups on the highways. Was this a crime? Yes! Did they get ticketed? They did not.
Have you ever experienced a five-mile backup because there was an accident ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE HIGHWAY and people were rubbernecking? Was this a crime? Yes! Did they get ticketed? They did not.
Have you ever been stuck for cycle after cycle at a red light because some IDIOT pulled HALFWAY THROUGH THE INTERSECTION and got caught there when the light changed and blocked the traffic from using the cross street? Was this a crime? Yes! Did they get ticketed? They did not.
This kind of stupid, ill-mannered driving is what caused our American roadways to be congested and dangerous, when there are dozens of alternate routes, and the roadways are more than capable of carrying every vehicle currently licensed in smooth flowing comfort, 24-7-365.
The police tolerating this kind of stupid, ill-manner yahoo-ism on the part of some penally-challenged scheiss-kopf bikerboys is why the rest of us have started packing heat.
If the cops would just hand out "driving stupidly" tickets, and issue tickets in a regularized fashion, all the time, and not just during some idiotic "zero tolerance week," then the roads would be much more safe and pleasant for all of us to use.
So I agree with you on the noise ordinances. If the Effing Worthless POS COPS would just do their g-danged jobs most of the time, this would not be an issue.
But they don't.
Blast them to Hell.

Answer 4

Loud Pipes DO violate rights....no less the blowing cigarette smoke in a persons face. If second hand smoke is so bad, why do we need to suffer first hand noise?

As for Loud Pipes Saving Lives......If your that Chicken S--t, sell your bike. Most motorcycle accidents happen from the front...the sound is projected to the rear as well as sound compression with the Doppler effect it doesn't add up. Why not point your pipes forward? Do that and you can enjoy further your noise. Besides. What gives the biker the right to force their hobby on me?

If you want respect....respect others. Freedom is a two way street.

By reading this answer list I can see their are quote a few self centered sociopaths

Answer 5

You're absolutely right....But in most states...a loud muffler or exhaust is an equipment violation...not a moving violation which would count towards suspension or revocation of one's license. And the criminal charge of disturbing the peace is usually a misdemeanor or petty offense with a relatively small fine. Another problem that comes up is How Loud is Loud?? Most Police Depts. don't have equipment to measure exactly how loud (in decibels) the exhaust is. This would be important evidence in prosecuting the case in front of a judge. Also to consider is how busy is your Police Dept. with other, more serious crimes and offenses. Unfortunately, many lesser offenses are not as high a priority as say, burglary, theft, battery etc. You probably can also file a complaint yourself, by signing complaints and appearing in court to give testimony and evidence. You'll need to accurately identify the offender (driver) and his vehicle (license plate and description) and report that to the police dept. Are you willing to do that???

Answer 6

Law enforcement would be overwhelmed if they enforced every law that was on the books.

When a law is being broken and becomes a community problem then the police will take action. Normally this needs to be brought up in a town meeting.

Once a majority complain or sign a petition then the police will enforce that law more in their region.

Around here years ago the kids go bad enough with the BOOM BOOM stereos that most townships and cities enforced the noise ordinance law and fined the kids. Even put up signs warning of the fines. Today we rarely get a BOOM BOOM going through but its sad that when we do, the cops again do nothing to them.

Answer 7

While every Hardly rider will tell you that "loud pipes save lives" (which, by the way, isn't entirely true), the true reason that the fringy leather clad, chap-wearing, closet poofer crowd like the loud pipes is because it gets them noticed. Most of their neanderthal brains are unable to comprehend that when people "notice" them, its usually accompanied by a "what an ******" or "I bet he has a really small pee-pee" or a, "my God, does he realize how completely gay he looks in those buttless chaps and fruity fringe leather vest?" comment. Seriously, nobody thinks its cool. Harley guys also get the added thrill of adding another 2 or 3 horsepower to their already underpowered/overweight turds by adding loud pipes. I'm beginning to see more and more community involvement in this area and my guess is it will be just a matter of time before enforcement becomes more commonplace.

Answer 8

Another answer is this, what is loud to you might not be loud to someone else. You may not like loud pipe but you may loud music that other people do not want to hear so if everyone took in consideration on what loud is we all would be pretty quiet and not having a discussion on something that irritates you. Loud music is annoying but I am complaining, because all of this is an expression on individuality. That is the belief that this country is suppossed to be built upon.

Answer 9

Actually, in some areas the police actually do have sound meters and will issue tickets for excessive noise. Denver and San Francisco are two that I know about and there are probably plenty more.

Loud pipes don't save lives. They cause excessive fatigue and actually increase the likelihood of an accident. They also mask other sounds and increase the likelihood of missing a critical sound and avoiding an accident.

Answer 10

It's hard to monitor decibels precisely and probably expensive, too.

I agree, I'd like to see all loud pipe violators punished, but I don't see a practical way to do it just yet.

People who run excessively loud pipes are selfish louts who need psychological help for their inferiority complex.

I'm a long time bike rider and while I enjoy a healthy exhaust note, ultra-loud pipes are useless and obnoxious. Harley riders are the worst, as you might imagine but some small displacement trail bikes are pretty bad, too.