Posted on 08/24/2007 8:27:53 AM PDT by devane617
MILWAUKEE - Cities from New York to Denver are giving motorcyclists the silent treatment.
That worries riders rights groups, which fear that a wave of ordinances aimed at muffling Harley-Davidsons, hushing Hondas and stifling Suzukis will create a confusing patchwork of laws that motorcyclists won't be able to navigate. The motorcycle industry is concerned it could turn these frustrated riders away.
'From our perspective, this creates enormous problems for us because people notice the one motorcycle that makes a lot of noise,' said Bill Wood, spokesman for the American Motorcyclist Association. 'They don't notice the 50 that pass that don't. So there's a perception that motorcycles are noisy.'
Ordinances come in many forms. Some are against certain types of products, like mufflers that would rattle the apples off of trees, but others are aimed more on the intent of the driver, who may want to turn some heads or rile up the neighbors on a Sunday afternoon.
•As of July 1, riders in New York City are subject to a minimum $440 fine for having a muffler or exhaust system audible more than 200 feet.
•In Lancaster, Pa., starting this month riders and all motor vehicle drivers could be ticketed for drawing attention to themselves, whether by creating too much noise by revving their engines or doing hard accelerations. Tickets start at $150.
•As of July 1, motorcyclists in Denver could be ticketed $500 for putting mufflers on their bikes made by someone other than the original manufacturer, if the bike is 25 years old or less. These so-called after-market products can be louder than their manufacturer-made counterparts.
Denver's plan is unique because it targets the after-market equipment. Wood said it limits riders' freedom to choose what products to use. Many motorcyclists who need to replace parts use these products, rather than go to a dealer, which can be more expensive, Wood said.
Ordinances restricting motorcycle noise have been around for years. The American Motorcyclist Association does not track the number of ordinances and often hears about them only as they're being passed, Wood said.
The association would rather see an ordinance that targets all vehicles or uses a decibel test to measure actual noise output.
The changes leave riders confused, said Pamela Amette, vice president of the Motorcycle Industry Council, the industry's trade group. Enforcement can be subjective, too.
The Council is working with the American Society of Engineers to establish a sound test that would help equalize enforcement. A similar test has been set for off-road bikes, and several states have adopted it, Amette said.
The group hopes to have the test ready next year. The new tests could even heighten demand for quieter systems, she said, because riders will know what they need.
'Unless it's very precise and adopted uniformly, then it's just really not fair to the riders and to the industry,' Amette said.
The stakes for the industry are big. There were 1.1 million new motorcycles sold for $9.8 billion in 2005, the most recent year available, the Council said. Parts, including those after-market mufflers, accessories and riding apparel, were an additional $2.8 billion.
Noise complaints of all types are on the rise, as more Americans feel they are losing control of their neighborhoods, said Ted Rueter, who leads a national antinoise group. Denver's ordinance is music to his ears.
'I think more and more people are putting pressure on communities,' said Rueter, director of Noise Free America, based in Madison, Wis. 'That fact that Denver has done so is going to give a lot of encouragement to people who love peace and quiet.'
Harley-Davidson, which tried in the 1990s to trademark its products' distinctive rumble, is monitoring the growth of antinoise ordinances that target motorcyclists, said Rebecca Bortner, a Harley spokeswoman.
The Milwaukee-based motorcycle maker feels the issue is less about the equipment and more about what riders do with it. The company asked its dealers a few years ago to stop carrying the loudest of after-market mufflers, straight unmuffled pipes, Bortner said.
All motorcycles sold for road use in the United States are subject to federal noise laws keeping them within a certain range of decibels, below 80 decibels from 50 feet away, said the industry council's Amette. A good rule of thumb is that your average motorcycle, as approved by government standards, should hum like a sewing machine, she said.
rights with regulations?
No.
Noise level is a relative thing...but only tyrants try to regulate the relatives. For me, maybe the noise your blender makes is too loud...or your lawn mower, or your cat, or your hedge trimmer, or your kids laughing, or your -fill-in-the-blank.
This really has more to do with those evil dirty nasty bikers than anything else. And when your logic is applied to the loud things you CHOOSE to participate in then you will cry bans to be unreasonable.
The regulations you might see might apply to car stereos, & exhausts in cars too....but I doubt it...for the busybodies dare not have their OWN STUFF regulated...their own ox gored...for they will surely cry foul.
maybe we’ll start a campaign in your neighborhood to ban fireworks on the fourth of July because of the ear-splitting racket that disturbs other people just trying to sleep or enjoy the use of their own property.
...or put noise monitiors on your street in case your children laugh and play too loudly because of the ear-splitting racket that disturbs other people just trying to sleep or enjoy the use of their own property.
...or ban your LOUD guns because of the ear-splitting racket that disturbs other people just trying to sleep or enjoy the use of their own property
...or ban LOUD mouths with ignorant comments because of the ear-splitting racket that disturbs other people just trying to sleep or enjoy the use of their own property.
...or ban municipal airports and traffic & Sheriff helicopters because of the ear-splitting racket that disturbs other people just trying to sleep or enjoy the use of their own property
...or ban LOUD protest marches because of the ear-splitting racket that disturbs other people just trying to sleep or enjoy the use of their own property.
...or ban church bells because of the ear-splitting racket that disturbs other people just trying to sleep or enjoy the use of their own property.
...or ban...fill-in-the-blank because of the ear-splitting racket that disturbs other people just trying to sleep or enjoy the use of their own property
...or Friday night high school football games because of the ear-splitting racket that disturbs other people just trying to sleep or enjoy the use of their own property.
...see, when it’s YOUR ox, then it’s an apparent different story...so don’t gore my ox.
BMFLR
DB meters are cheap. My tech has one with a “Hold” button, and memory.
Forget about goring and oxes and all that. You can’t enjoy riding your bike without making an earsplitting racket? Is that an essential part of the experience? I enjoy riding mine just fine with stock mufflers. I wouldn’t even mind moderately louder aftermarket pipes. But when I can hear some idiot with straight pipes accelerating away from a stop sign 3 blocks away they’re TOO DAMNED LOUD!
I don’t mind a certain amount of noise, and some loud noises are unavoidable. I live near an airport and at some times of the day planes are usually coming on approach, and less often climbing out over my house. A necessary evil. The kids next door can be noisy sometimes, but kids will do that - I’m not some sort of nut that would try to ban kids, or ban kids having a little fun. When the guy next door runs his lawnmower (or me mine), that’s noisy and annoying, too. But it’s usually only once a week or so for less than an hour, and again it’s understandable. If I started mowing my lawn at the crack of dawn in the summer (around 5am or so), I’d not be surprised at all to get a visit from the cops and a citation. So why do I have to put up withm my idiot neighbour across the street starting up his Harley at 5:30 and letting idle in the driveway for 10-15 minutes (nevermind what kind of piece of crap needs that long of a warm-up, anyway - that’s another discussion) What need or useful purpose is served by making an ear-splitting racket with your bike, other than to draw attention? And no, I don’t really care for extremely loud sport bike exhaust systems, either. There’s nothing particularly clever or amusing about making a whole bunch of noise just because you can.
I agree. If a vehicle meets federal regulations and is legally licensed in one state (or province, since the US and Canada have coordinated regulations), that should be good enough for any jurisdiction.
So you're obviously OK violating EPA noise guidleines by changing pipes on YOUR bike, but also want to be the new bully onthe block to decide what is too loud for everyone else eh?
Even by your examples you hae appointed YOURSELF to be the Lord Of The Noise...where all noise is loud only according to YOUR standards.
LMREO
typical tyrant answers!
In other words the EPA rules are too strong for YOU, so it's OK for YOU to break those rules...but EVERYONE else has to do what YOU say?
I heard about that atitude in church...
Your sin on YOU needs forgiveness.
Your sin on ME need condemnation.
Hypocrite!
...and FWIW...my pipes ain't "ear-splitting"...which is a relative term, and actually not even a legal or medical definition...'nuther story altogether tho.
any way...listen to yourself & then get real!
...by the way...you wouldn't just by odd coincidence happen to serve on a HOA board of directors would you? Live in a HOA community? you would make a great HOA brown shirt!
“The loud bike makes up for the small penis.”
I’ve been in the custom bike business for almost 20 years. My opinion is that an exhaust that is MODERATELY louder than stock can be helpful...most often while traveling on the highway. I have about 175,000 miles of riding under my belt and an exhaust (either on a Sportbike or a cruiser) that is MODERATELY louder than stock...one that still has the internal baffles intact is usually just loud enough to attract the attention of a car driver without being obnoxious.
We have a traffic light about 150 feet from my shop... it never ceases to amuse me when some total DWEEB-WANNA-BE...on a Sportbike or a Cruiser constantly blips the throttle...non-stop at a red light. Someone needs to tell these a-holes that unless your sitting on a 250 CC two-stroke at a starting line of a sanctioned race...there is absolutely no need for it.
I don't know if your pipes are ear-splitting or not. Ok, that's not a technical term. Do they cause children to cover their ears, adults to glare at you in disgust, and animals to cower in fear when you ride by them? Then they're probably too loud.
Yeah, I think the EPA regulations are probably too strict. Unfortunately idiots who have to go way over the top and have the loudest possible pipes are ruining it for all the people that actually have an ounce or two of sense in their heads.
Infantile whiners and bigots?
Now really, isn't that a little too rich for this broth?
Here's the argument as I see it:
Some people like peace and quiet.
Other people--far fewer were someone to bother to count--feel that any desire that they limit the gratuitous noise they make is a violation of their rights, an affront to their dignity and a threat to their safety.
Which one is infantile?
LOL! A couple of years ago I pulled up next to 2 wheeled vibrator and the nut job kept blipping the throttle. I was on my Gold Wing and asked him (in my many dB voice) if he had to keep doing that to keep that POS running?
I would not change the pipes on my Gold Wing to make it louder but I can make it look just like a HD by pouring a quart of oil on the ground under the Wing.
Yea. Particulary the ones that shake my house at 5:00 AM. NOTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT.
Well now, we wouldn't want that, would we?
Here's a free clue: Install quiet mufflers on your bike and you won't violate any of the laws!
There. Now that wasn't so hard, was it?
As a matter of legal principal, the law should target the actual behavior, no the presumed precursors to it.
Set a friggin maximum A-weighted dB level at the pipe and it will be fair, objective and predictable!
The brand of pipe doesn't tell you a thing about how loud it will be.
There are lots of conditions which can make the audible range vary, and the loudness of the bike is only one variable.
Just make anything >80 dB (or whatever limit makes sense) at the pipe (regardless of throttle position / RPM) illegal.
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