Posted on 02/08/2005 2:25:38 PM PST by martin_fierro
Bill Would Limit Motorcycle Noise Riders Say Loud Pipes Save Lives
POSTED: 10:46 am EST February 8, 2005
CONCORD, N.H. -- A bill before the Legislature is aimed at making motorcycles quieter.
The bill would make motorcycle exhaust pipes or engines that produce more than 110 decibels of noise illegal.
Police said the measure would make it easier to enforce noise limits at events like Laconia's annual Bike Week. But enthusiasts said louder engines make a bike flashier and safer because others can hear the machine coming.
Currently riders can modify their exhaust systems as long as the sound stays under 106 decibels -- similar to the noise emitted by a snow blower.
A car horn is about 110 decibels.
Not when I get irritated with the moron next to me and I bump him off! :D
actually the ability to modify pipes is progress.
The real problem is the getting the police to use a proper decible meter.
For example even a totally legal car system can exceed legal limits in an acceleration.
The proper test is cruising and idle speed.
They test window tint with a meter, it seems only fair.
The real issue is to stop local city BS ordinances and have the who exhaust laws controled by a uniform state law.
Thanks for the ping.
Let freedom ring, as long as its my freedom, not yours. (sarcasm)
Just ride.
I'm out of warranty now, by my SE II"s didn't void my warranty.
2004 & 2005 is when it kicked in, as per the info I got just tonight. SE Muffler replacement is OK on a stock system. But you can't throw a Rhynhart or a Thunderheader collector system on the new ones without HD pulling your engine warranty.
Damn. Just damn.
Hey, I'm tooling up I-95 today at 95mph and this '89 or 90 toyota corrolla passed me so fast I had trouble seeing what color it was!! :-)
That was a Damn, Just Damn, moment! :-)
Must agree with the air horns idea. I ran them on my Norton in '74. Worked fine.
H-D has had this policy for years. As long as the dealer installs the Genuine Harley-Davidson exhaust system components(And corresponding intake system components if applicable), the warranty will not be voided. Not only that, but the accessories themselves will be covered under the two-year vehicle warranty if installed at the time of purchase and included in the sales contract.
BTW, at the most recent H-D Dealer meeting in Grapevine, TX, Harley announced a new "Active Performance Exhaust Kit" with the performance characteristics of Screaming Eagle Pro race use only exhaust but with EPA and CARB approved sound and emisson levels. The catalyst equipped system utilizes an electronic servo-controlled (Yes Harvey, it has "Muffler bearings".) butterfly valve and an onboard computer. The system is 50 state street legal when used with the Screaming Eagle Stage 1 Air Cleaner Kit on stock Twin Cam engines. (ECM calibration required)
At the Winter Dealer Meeting, Harley-Davidson President, Jim McCaslin, reiterated the Motor Company's position on noise, namely that Harley-Davidson opposes modifying motorcycle exhaust systems so as to produce more noise. Its bad for the sport and bad for the industry. He said that the Motor Company will continue to develop exhaust systems and components that enhance the motorcycleing experience and preserve the unique character (Meaning the sound, one supposes) of Harley-Davidson motorcycles without increasing the noise to objectionable or illegal levels.
HD Biker Logic:
Loud Pipes Save Lives
Helmets Do Nothing So I will Not wear one.
Sigh....times are a changing I guess. I see a day where even my modest SE II's become the object of someone's scorn. I question the motor company every day. First they ruin the Sportster then they go on the anti-noise crusade.
Nonsense. I have a full face HD helmet that matches my 100th Anni paint job. It's a valued part of my rain gear. :)
I have to disagree with you about the Sportster. Having actually ridden them from the 1969 XLCH to the current 2005 XL1200R I can assure you that the '05 Sportsters are far superior to any previous models. They make much more power and can easily be made to deliver even more. They are lighter and handle better and have stiffer frames, better brakes and tires and more reliable and less maintenance intensive powertrains. And of course, they don't vibrate the fillings out of your teeth.
It might be nice to talk about the '69 XLCH in the garage, but for a bike to ride to work everyday - give me a 2004 (Rubber mounted evolution engine) or later.
And I DO ride to work everyday.
As for the Motor Company's position on noise; if the industry and the motorcycling community don't do somethng about it now, the legislatures of the several states will do something about it for us. Its already happening.
Thank you for the update and insight!
My "hooker tuneable exhaust" giving me a false 2-into-1 on my garage built Evo, makes the badguys smile, the goodguys listen, and the cell phoners close their windows. It's just right. :-)
Ride safe.
I couldn't disagree more. First of all, let's correct the the things you got wrong. The 2004 and 2005 models are not lighter, they're heavier than the 2003 models. The dry weight of the 2003 was 486 pounds. The dry weight of a 2005 is 554 pounds. Almost a 10% weight gain.
The new models don't handle better either. The newer customs have 29 degrees of left and 31 degrees right of lean hangle. Compare that to 34 degree for the Hugger of all bikes in 2003, and a whopping 37 degrees for the 2003 1200S. BTW, your model can dip all the way to 32 degrees. Not bad for a cruiser, but not up to snuff for previous years. The 2003's will corner rings around the newer, heavier, quicker to drag parts Sportsters.
Finally, they don't make "much more power" as you claim. The 883's are 10% heavier yet make the same power as 883's in previous year. The 1200's did a bit better and make about 10% more power. Exacly enough to offset the 10% increase in weight. The power to weight ratio didn't budge an inch on the 1200s and is substantially worse on the 883's. Cycleworld's 1/4 mile times for the 2004's were slightly higher than in 2003. A step in the wrong direction.
Hell man, that's bad enough, and that's just what you got wrong.
Let's talk trap doors. There isn't one on the 2004 and up models. That's a huge, huge, huge mistake. It's built in obsolescence is what it is. It's now $1000 dollar operation at the dealership to just GET TO the transmission, let alone work on it. The removal of the trap door alone is a deal breaker.
Let's be honest, the only real "improvement" on the new Sportsters is that the engines are now rubber mounted. The Sportster became more a Honda Shadow in 2004, and in the process lost a lot of it's Sportster heritage.
I'm a member of a large Sportster afficianado group, and I think you'll find that amongst the true Sportster devotees, my opinion is pretty common.
My memory goes back a bit farther than yours apparently as I was thinking more in terms of the pre-evolution bikes that everyone around here seems so enamored with. You are correct that the rubber mount bikes are slightly heavier and that the horsepower improvement has been incremental over recent offerings in previous years
However. I had the opportunity last year to ride the 2003 and 2004 XL models, back-to-back, on the race track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway for Harley's "Back to the Track" event. This was not so much for us to compare older to newer Harleys as for us to compare offerings from other manufacturers but they did have some '03 Sportsters and, since I own a much modified '91XL and I had not yet ridden the '04, I took the opportunity to compare. I can tell you unequivocally, your statistics notwithstanding, that the 04 goes around the track faster and with much less fuss and effort from the rider.
By the way, contrary to the rumor, Harley-Davidson has no plans to bring back the panhead. OTOH, the new Street Rod iteration of the VRSC family is everything the Sportster ought to be in terms of power and handling (But it doesn't look like a '69 XLCH). I'm seriously thinking of selling my old Sportster (There is, after all, a limit to how much performance you can coax out of the old girl) and buying a new Street Rod.
(Doesn't that just fry ya?)
I missed that one, but there is always the 93incher from Accurate Engineering..:-)
My personal experience with HD doesn't begin until the dawning of the Evo age. 1980 was the first riding season once I got my license at 16 in Colorado, and I rode small Hondas for several years before stepping up to my first Harley.
I've rode 04's and my '03 back to back several times. I'll admit that I'm impressed with the rubber mounting. I truely do envy that smoothness, but that's about all I envy. My current steed seems to be more able in almost every other respect.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.