Exhaust Too Loud wtf?

[FLIP K1DD]

so apparently its a misdemeanor if you have a loud exhaust in Arionza. WHO KNEW? seriously I'd rather have my tax dollars go to help the homeless then to have someone tell me its too loud.

ok anyways, in all respect, after review of the code book or whatever the cops carry, I guess it really is against the law to have an exhaust that causes excessive noise.

Court date is scheduled for April 30th, but the problem is, I asked the cop if a silencer would do. He says yes it should be fine and that its up to the court if this stop will be a "fix-it ticket" or count as a misdemeanor. I have a good record, only been stopped once for speeding but got that taken care of through traffic school. whats your take on this? should i keep my silencer on it and call it a day, or completely redo the exhaust?

Im running stock headers, cat, and piped to a 4" can. Added the silencer just now, and to me it seems quiet as stock, you hear the engine more then the exhaust.

Another note: the sheriff never db tested my exhaust or anyting. and he said "its up the the cop that day to decide whether or not an exhaust is too loud." to me that sounds like hes abusing his powers based on his thought.

Idk whatever the outcome may be, im hoping just fix-it ticket. I wouldnt mind switch the exhaust to a magnaflow or anything thats shaped like the stock one, i just want a little mumble and something isnt rusted ugly like the stock. My friend has a spare "thrush" block exhaust with dual tips..any review on these.

28-955. Mufflers; noise and air pollution prevention; emissions control devices; civil penalty; exception

A. A motor vehicle shall be equipped at all times with a muffler that is in good working order and that is in constant operation to prevent excessive or unusual noise.

B. A person shall not use a muffler cutout, bypass or similar device on a motor vehicle on a highway.

C. The engine and power mechanism of a motor vehicle shall be equipped and adjusted to prevent the escape of excessive fumes or smoke.

D. Beginning with motor vehicles and motor vehicle engines of the 1968 model year, motor vehicles and motor vehicle engines shall be equipped with emissions control devices that meet the standards established by the director of environmental quality.

E. A person who violates this section is subject to a civil penalty of at least one hundred dollars.

F. This section does not apply to an electrically powered motor vehicle.

[bigbird]

if all you have is a muffler on there thats not stock then i cant see the exhaust being that loud. you may want to find out if there is a way you can get a state DB test just to confirm but if its gonna be a problem, then maby your 4" muffler will have to go. its not like its giving you any performance gains if everything else is stock. you may have just been unlucky.

[FLIP K1DD]

yup yup i figured no problemo on switch to an oval block exhaust. but im not too familiar on this kind of sitution.

so i was hoping someone might chime in who has. When i appear on the court date, is this where ill be admitting im guilty or not guilty and present why? or is it i show the receipt on my fixed exhaust and they let it go?

either way, i just dont want to show up with nothing and have the court people think im just another person who doesnt care. and slap a $200 fine that i obviously could spend somewhere else lol

at this point im blank on what your supposed to do/bring for a civil traffic violation.

any input is welcomed and thanks bigbird for reply

[#2!]

Immediately take it to a professional shop and have them fix it according to there recommendations. Ask the manager of the shop to write up a short letter explaining the situation and stating that all has been properly repaired.

Take the letter and repair receipts to court with you and explain to the Judge that you were ignorant and repairs were done in a timely manner after you were aware of the law.


Personally I think every vehicle should under go a DB meter test every time emission tests are done and taxed according to the amount of noise produced.

[DxElite]

Research for any precedence on the violation for your state so that you can cite it in court.

IDK about AZ, but here in TX the court date on the citation is just to go stand in line to see a clerk where you tell them whether you want to:
fight it and they give you court hearing date
admit guilt and pay the fine
sign some paper work to take defensive driving to get it removed and pay some fees

I would think your chances would depend a lot on where you were ticketed.
If it were in a neighborhood then it would probably be harder to get it dismissed since it can be considered as disturbing the peace, compared to if it was on regular streets where street noise is common.

You could probably argue that the "muffler is in good working order" since it does not look old/broken and the design of it is to be louder.
If they were really serious about muffler noise levels,they should ban muffler sales in the state that don't meet requirements, like CA with catalytic converters.
If anything they should have a maximum decibel listed so there's no arguing between people's opinions on what too loud is.

[FLIP K1DD]

that quote i put in the starting thread was the actual wordings from their "code book" thing. so far as i know, there is no db level i guess and supposedly its up to the cop to determine whether or not its too loud.

this wasnt in a neighborhood area at all. the ticket just says "Amplified Exhaust" civil box is checked and thats it. Very dull ticket, so im guess if i gather some good facts etc. that this would prove its a waste of time to be in court to begin with. Who's to say its too loud if theres no limit to being with..

Another note: tucson/vail arizona, is known for the Davis Monthan Air Force Base, which has fighter jets that produce noise levels to set off alarms for miles. I know my cars not a jet, but if if theyre going to fuss about noise pollution, start from the main source you know. lol


So for now, ive added the silencer, plan to put on one of those oval/brick type magnaflows just so i could prove ive attempted to redo the exhaust entirely. plus if anything oval/brick types look like OEM just cleaner of course

thanks for replies, sorry for long paragraphs lol, but $200 fine + misdemeanor is a little overboard for a car exhaust

[RichieRichJP]

You're insanely large muffler is probably amplifying the noise. Down size that and get an inline silencer.

['_']

I got 2 tickets for my exhaust. The first one I just ended up paying. The second time, I had it tested, fought the ticket and gave the documents proving it's under the db limit. I beat the second ticket and got my money back.

As far as exhausts go, cops can pull you over and cite you at their discretion. Doesn't matter if they have a db meter or not.

[FLIP K1DD]

i plan on getting it tested tomorrow just to show that the muffler is in working order, and i guess ill find out also what the db level is. I think there is none in Arizona (cant find anything on it at all) but so far some retired cops ive talked to says that i should be able to win this by providing these facts.

top if off they also believe this whole court process thing is a little too much for something small like an exhaust. they think it should of been a warning or a fix-it

[JCamry94]

It totally depends on the cop and the area! I've been pulled over a bazillion times for my exhaust and got a ticket for it none of those times!

With the silencer you will have no problem at all!

[FLIP K1DD]

I got 2 tickets for my exhaust. The first one I just ended up paying. The second time, I had it tested, fought the ticket and gave the documents proving it's under the db limit. I beat the second ticket and got my money back.

'_' for the 2nd time, what did you bring or provide as factual statements to better your side of the argument?

Same with you JCamry94

As of right now, i know for a fact my whole exhaust system is legal & passes emissions

['_']

I don't know about AZ, but for me, I wrote a letter explaining what happened and provided the documents I received from the state referee station (emission and sound tests). That was pretty much it and I haven't been pulled over since then.

[zoni]

why have a ridiculously large muffler on a car that doesnt need it? you're actually robbing the car of performance if its too big.

if you dont have any performance mods on the car... you dont need a more open exhaust... stock is always better for a stock motor.

[JCamry94]

Originally Posted by zoni

why have a ridiculously large muffler on a car that doesnt need it? you're actually robbing the car of performance if its too big.

if you dont have any performance mods on the car... you dont need a more open exhaust... stock is always better for a stock motor.

In all fairness I HIGHLY doubt it is robbing much performance since it is just a muffler. I believe him as well as I and many others do it for asthetic reasons

[FLIP K1DD]

honestly it doesn't matter to me if there is performance gains or not, otherwise i would have said something about it. As stated i also dont care if replacing it would be the best answer, i am willing to do so. All im asking for is legit answers on how this case could be resolved in my favor. Need to prove that even if i went back to OEM, i still dont deserve a fine + misdemeanor.

Aside from that, the system is profiling and somewhat abusing their powers on me (i feel that way). No way is this a $204 fine, when there is plenty of other cases (louder & very illegal ie: catless or no exhaust at all) in my City/Area and they get a fix-it ticket. I know every case is different, but its not like i killed, bothered, or broke any moving violations which would result in worse damages.

some evidence/facts that i wound up today: Exhaust shop inspected my vehicle and wrote a very brief/signed statement saying that "We installed customers muffler on 11-28-08" "Meets manufacturer's specs minus muffler"
Got the actual muffler brand company to email me their documents stating that the muffler is "street legal" (3A Racing, very nice customer service)
Got my emissions papers as well (i dont think there is a sound station here, will look into)

Thanks for the relevant replies, to those that did provide