the law!! plz no anti0boyracer comments!!

[saxovtr]

heres a question for the knowledgeable 1s,cops pulled a m8 over tonite sed the exhaust is makni excessive noise and its classed as anti social behavour,FAIR ENOUGH,they want it off or silenced,MY QUESTION:WHY DO THE POLICE HAVE A METER DECIBEL METER THAT READS HOW MUCH DB THE EXHAUST IS MAKING AT AT A 3RD OF THE ENGINE SPEED?but they want any aftermarket exhaust taken off,i dont see the sense in it can any1 shine sum light in it,

[landmarker]

Well if they shine a light up yer exhaust they'll probably reveal a device that makes a pee and wind machine like a Saxo sound like a powerful car.

Good luck to you, but in such a small 'catchment' area your m8 is gonna get fingered again and again until he gets it sorted.

As an ex-biker I'm partly behind the adage: 'loud pipes save lives' but there's less of a motive when your on four wheels. The best advice I'd give is er.....grow up and fit a throaty exhaust which although raspy, does not attract the attention of the lads in blue.

[JAWS]

ASBOs are a new invention so much of what is covered by them is still very open to debate and interpretation.
With regards to the exhaust itself that would depend on how it had been modified and it's condition. If the exhaust is in good condition and has a silencer manufactured for use on the road then I see no reason why you should be commiting an offence with respect to it's normal use. (Of course, that would exclude such things as running it at full revs outside somebody's home, but that wouldn't appear to have happened)

Do I understand you to say they used a meter to check the decibels being produced?
If that is what happened I would check with the manufacturer to see if the readings you have been given are in line with the noise the silencer should be producing, assuming it has not been 'modified' after purchase that is.
Did the police give your friend an actual reading or was it just a matter of "That's too loud,son, if I see you again.....!"

[JAWS]

I'm with you landmarker, I've never had to jump for my life because a vehicle was too noisy but the 'silent but deadly' ones have given me a few frights and I hate having to crawl out of ditches.

[jjc]

MY QUESTION:WHY DO THE POLICE HAVE A METER DECIBEL METER THAT READS HOW MUCH DB THE EXHAUST IS MAKING AT AT A 3RD OF THE ENGINE SPEED?but they want any aftermarket exhaust taken off,i dont see the sense in it can any1 shine sum light in it,

Well, I believe that legislation dictates that you cannot modify your exhaust in such a way as to increase the noise of the exhaust. Plain and simple, if your after-market exhaust is noisier than the original then you are breaking the law.

Why do they carry around a decibel meter? I guess that they measure the volume of the exhaust so that little neds (you know the ones - they think that taking a K-Reg Saxo, painting a yellow stripe along the bottom and whacking a big exhaust on it somehow stops anybody from noticing that they are driving around in a thirteen-year-old hatchback… oh, and getting a nedette to stand in front of it in hotpants really doesn’t hide how naff it is either) won’t have a leg to stand on when they try to argue that the policeman was just picking on them because he doesn’t like ‘boy racers’.

[landmarker]

I dont think they did Saxo's in a 'k' reg jjc.

Aftermarket exhausts can emit slightly more sound than original fitments.
The sound of a well tuned engine can stir the soul, on two wheels or four.
My own two litre Audi (K reg. incidentally) has shot a baffle and sounds rather rorty in a civilised kind of way.) It's about 'sound' rather than 'noise'

If I have to explain you wouldn't understand. I know where you are coming from on this and have sympathies with both viewpoints. Common sense is called for.As much from the Police as anyone else.

[Absolut1]

the police are having a month long campain on all vehicles as part of the new road traffic act, this covers all defects on a car or anything not complying to the new RTA so colour sidelights, neons, tints, etc would probably be a stoppable offence.

you can actually a fail a mot for excessive exhaust noise but as most mot stations dont have access to a decibel meter it is rare.

the form of measuring used by the MSA for noise regs is the same but the limits vary with the distance away & if i remeber right it should be done at approx 45 degress to the exhaust.

I think it probably has to do with enviormental heath as well as they usually check noisy parties etc.

[2little2late]

Personally I think the noisy exhausts are a lot of a nuisance. I'm all for the police pulling anyone for having a noisy exhaust. What are these so called boy racers trying to prove?, Why have a noisy exhaust?, why modify their cars?, where do they get the money from to do it?

I hope the police really crack down on this exhaust nuisances.

[saxovtr]

look i never asked if u like loud exhausts!!! they stopped and said it was too loud,it is a custom made exhaust which was expensive and the car has not long passed an MOT plus he wasnt making a noise,id liek to know why they have this meters if they dont use them and have the power to tell ppl to take them off,it is a bit noisy the higher the revs but he dosnt drive like an idiot and does no harm to any1!! infact he does not even cruise about much,id rather the opinions of those who dont liek modified cars and have to whinge about them on my post would rather not and not complain to me thanx.it is not my car iam only asking where he stands can he be made to take it off,funny thing is he has the blackest windows on the market and they didnt say a thing about it v.strange or the number plate light on the left being out,pathetic really,ive seen cars that dont even look fit for the road pass me and they dont get stopped,time to stop annoying ppl who do no harm and start doing sumfin constructive if u ask me,im sure u lot that complain wud hav sumfin to say if the coppers were busy stoping sum1 with a loud exhaust and ur house got broken into it wud be a total diff story then,ur basically saying annoy modified cars over any1else if they r out to stop cars all the time theres sumfin going wrong,all they need is traffic police

[paris]

We've just replaced the pipes on our motorbike to make it sound more meaty but a friend who works in an mot place said keep the old pipes just in case you have to put them back on for the mot as it wouldn't pass the test now as its not standard... if that's the case why sell them??

[bigjjuk]

i just think at the end of the day it is about the noise. If the levels of noise breaks the legal requirement, then the exhaust will have to be changed. It is petty by the police they are using a noise pollution law to pick on cars with modifications on it. If there is a way you can lower the noise output then I dont see a problem.

[Royster1911]

In the 60s they did not have the technology available to them as they do now. On motorbikes which sounded too loud the police stuck their trunchion up the exhaust to ensure that they were not "modified". This was the practice of removing the baffles from the exhaust to get your "throaty" sound. It was the case of fix it or else!!!!

[garycs]

According to VOSA an aftermarket exhaust may emit 2db more noise than that quoted in the vehicle compliance report (that is the report used for UK type approval), that's roughly 50% more in terms of sound pressure. So if the police carry out the test properly, i.e. correct distance, angle, away from walls or other objects that may reflect noise; and obtain an illegal reading then there's not a great deal you can do.

However I think the police should be using only one piece of legislation, if the db reading is too high then they should use the traffic laws for enforcement and not attempt to threaten folk with the criminal system.

Personally I have no objection to "boy racers" modifying their vehicles, provided they comply with legislation. I can't see anything wrong with young men/women learning how a machine works and how to improve it, the UK exports £6bn annually via the racing/conversion industry and should be encouraged to grow.

[saxovtr]

well said people,not really a boyracer myself but exhaust,air filter, etc to improve power for track days etc in this case maybe not,but the standard air filters and exhaust sytems restrict airflow so an after market exhaust lets the engine a little better well thats my theory,bigger engine more back pressure therefore more noise,in this case the car has hasdd the catalytic convertor taken off and it stil passed the MOT its only 5 years old can sum1 tell me do the police have to give a ticket for any offence?or is a verbal warning enuf to take to court for excessive noise all the times he has been stoped he has had no tickets just a warning to take things off but other people i know have been given a ticket and 21days notice to take things off,it seems to me that diff copper diff way off working thnigs but eh law is the same a bit confused on where he stands with these things.

[landmarker]

We've just replaced the pipes on our motorbike to make it sound more meaty but a friend who works in an mot place said keep the old pipes just in case you have to put them back on for the mot as it wouldn't pass the test now as its not standard... if that's the case why sell them??

To relieve you of your money of course. If they dont have the BS kite mark on them they may well fail a fussy tester.
I removed the back baffle from the 800 Drifter and it began to sound like a motorbike instead of sewing machine.. An acquaintance bought some aftermarket pipes , then took all the baffles out and it was just too intrusive. Being a fairly high revving machine he was never going to ape the 'Harley beat' potato-potato sound. The fifteen hundred gets closer because it is a much more torquey engine. Keep the stock pipes -you might well need them unless yer on good terms with your tester.

Daughter & g/s just arrived - signing off.

[grantyg]

I personally hate "pimped" cars the big fat exhaust is a pain and it is too lound (fair point on that being an advantage specially the way these muppets drive!)
Another point for you that I found out if the tyre is wider than the natural wheel arch that is illegal - also the different fonts on the number plate.
Apparently they are trying to make underlighters illegal too??
The other thing that annoys me is drivers who leave their fog lights on when there is no fog and I hate to stereo type but driving the 250+ miles a week I do it is usually citreon Saxo`s and Renault Clio`s.

Right I`m of to get a 2 tone paint job on my astra - now the suspensions lowered I can get in and out easier! - ;0)

[kara]

I got a 30 squid fine last time they were up, I have a 2.0 Subaru impreza with a cat-back magnex system (still have the 2 catalic converters on), they measured my cars BD's at 4 1/2 thousand rpm, my car will not rev past 6 and I wouldn’t drive about the street at that high revs, also I didn’t get a measurement just told it was to loud, I was told to ask them what the limit is because if you buy a Subaru STI from the show room with a PPP pack "manufactured" produced and installed before selling the DB's on that car at 4 1/2 thousand revs is not quiet but yet not altered after manufacture so perfectly legal also they tried this on a guy with a P1 which wasn’t changed after market so he took them to court, nothing happened to him because they didnt have a case.

So my point also is how can a saxo with an aftermarket exhaust be louder or noisier rather than a Subaru Impreza with PPP pack installed and a flat 4 engine? I think not basically they are out saying if you alter your car to make any more noise than when it came out the factory your a bad boy and are going to get a fine.

BUT if you have a big exhaust and driving like an idiot FAIE ENOUGH you deserve it. (not pointing the finger at anyone just saying in any case)

[jjc]

in this case the car has hasdd the catalytic convertor taken off

Then your 'm8' should be taken out back and shot... just my opinion, but as if fitting a noisy exhaust weren't anti-social enough, you now tell us that he has purposefully increased the environmental pollutants coming out of it. What a really considerate bloke your ‘m8’ is...

[erli]

The other thing that annoys me is drivers who leave their fog lights on when there is no fog and I hate to stereo type but driving the 250+ miles a week I do it is usually citreon Saxo`s and Renault Clio`s.

This is the second time this complaint has been on a thread in the last couple of weeks.
Some cars are fitted with a daytime running system which is standard on my car. They can't be switched off I'm afraid, sorry to be so annoying.

[landmarker]

Then your 'm8' should be taken out back and shot... just my opinion, but as if fitting a noisy exhaust weren't anti-social enough, you now tell us that he has purposefully increased the environmental pollutants coming out of it. What a really considerate bloke your ‘m8’ is...

Seems a bit extreme jjc.
Still, it's good to know you're nothing if not consistent.

I should think the good clean air of Caithness can stand a handful of souped up Saxo's.

You've confirmed an opinion I'd formed. Thanks.