I've recently been pulled over and have been cited a ticket for loud exhaust, but the State Patrol Officer did not use a decibel meter to confirm or deny how loud my exhaust is. https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/?id=169.69&year=2006 There's a link to what he told me as the law which basically says it's up to his discretion, but I don't feel like my exhaust is too loud. If it it proved to be too loud then I'd gladly pay. Has anyone else ever ran in to this? Also if you did have you tried to fight it? https://www.revisor.mn.gov/rules/?id=7030.1060&version=2014-01-18T08:21:37-06:00&format=pdf This link above shows that a motor vehicle can be 80 decibels from X distance in feet from the center of the lane of travel. I already figure it's better I simply pay the find and be done with it, but this happened on my daily route from work to home. So I expect that the officer will gladly be waiting to tag me again next time for what is most likely another $130. If any has any ideas please let me know. Also this is not a fix it ticket or warning it was an actual citation.
Get a friend and a smart phone. There are decibel meter apps (free). You already know the threshold per the law. You might be surprised what you find out, especially when you get on the throttle or back off with the clutch engaged and in gear. We recently had a vendor come out to my work facility to measure the noise level. Besides his professional dB meter, he used....his iPhone. So I guess it must have an acceptable level of accuracy.
If you were in a '69 Chevelle, or on a Harley, I bet he wouldn't even care. Fight it. Then, when its dismissed for lack of evidence, i.e. no DB reading, you keep the "dismissed" paperwork in the glove compartment. I've heard plenty of loud stock V8's and even V10's for that matter, so how can they prove that your car didn't roll off the assembly line with that exhaust? Saying something is "too loud" without anything to back it up?Good luck. Let us know the outcome.
I've received a citation for loud exhaust before. I was pulled over, all in one stop, for "taking a turn to wide" (around a median), then was breathalyzed (blew zeroes), and finally given my loud exhaust ticket (no decibel meter). Do what I didn't do and fight it. Every Harley or lifted truck in existence is louder than your average modded Subaru. If justice exists in this world, you will get it dropped. Don't just pay it without a fight.
basically, go to your local cop shop with the ticket and ask to get tested. they won't have the meter and will suspend your 'violation' worked for me EVERYtime I got a 'fix-it ticket" for exhaust. if they happen to have the meter on hand, well not much you can do there.
I thought once a citation has been issued they can't just say "Oh sorry, we didn't mean to write that" and it magically goes away.
I would say that if the officer didn't administer the proper testing procedure that is clearly shown here https://www.revisor.mn.gov/rules/?id=7030.1060&version=2014-01-18T08:21:37-06:00&format=pdf This would be dismissed with a simple phone call to the court. It's like getting a speeding ticket without a radar gun reading. Without proof there has been no violation.
I've always wondered about citations of this sort where it is up to the cop's discretion to judge. With radar guns, I get there is an objective speed reading, but is there some way one can ask an officer to prove they went a certain speed without pissing them off and screwing a chance they would just give you a warning and let you go? Do the radar guns have photo/video to record the speed and that it was your car being tagged? Without proper testing of a vehicle with a decibel meter, it seems completely idiotic that a cop could get away with writing a citation for such a specific offense. Guilty till proven innocent, I guess.
I got pulled over and ticketed 4 times for my window tint(all by state troopers). The window tint is still on the car fwiw. It may have cost me an additional $640, but it still looks good! Hahaha I vote you fight it.
Discopope is about as close to correct as it gets here. You can go get tested and hope they don't have the tester on them, and they dismiss it. If you take this to court, you will not fare as well, because the statute itself lends opinion into the equation. The very first line of that statute is what ****s you... 169.69 MUFFLER. Every motor vehicle shall at all times be equipped with a muffler in good working order which blends the exhaust noise into the overall vehicle noise and is in constant operation to prevent excessive or unusual noise, and no person shall use a muffler cutout, bypass, or similar device upon a motor vehicle on a street or highway. The exhaust system shall not emit or produce a sharp popping or crackling sound. Every motor vehicle shall at all times be equipped with such parts and equipment so arranged and kept in such state of repair as to prevent carbon monoxide gas from entering the interior of the vehicle. That was pretty much what I found out when I got ticketed for it. I did the same thing as most of the posters are doing "bah, that's bullshiat, I'm going to fight it, how does HE know that my exhaust is too loud anyway? he couldn't test it." They will pretty much quote you that first line, "It doesn't blend with the overall vehicle noise, I can hear it well over the sound of the engine spinning, and sucking air, and tire noise, and other mechanical sounds the car makes." Here's a question, what is your model year and what exhaust do you have on it? I can flat out gurantee you that if you're driving any Subaru before 2015 model year, and you have a cat back or turbo back exhaust, you are above 80DB at 3000 rpms at a distance of 3 feet. You just are. No testing required. I looked when I got my ticket, and every manufacturer that was around back in 2005 or 2006 (I can't remember the year exactly when it was published) had a listed db rating for their exhaust, and every single one of them was above 80db on throttle. My suggestion on all of this: Suck it up, buttercup. Go try to get tested if you want to try to get out of it this time, but you will always run the risk of getting caught again. You want to play the modded car game? Be prepared to pay for that privilege. If a <$200 ticket is going to break the bank, maybe modding cars to be fast isn't a responsible hobby for you. I just put an exhaust on my 370Z. It is teeth shatteringly loud when on throttle, I know that one day, some police officer is going to be in a mood to give out a ticket for it, and I'm going to have to cut a check for the fine. I have the original muffler hanging on the wall in the garage to swap it back get tested and get it over with. And if that doesn't work, I'll pay the fine.
It's mentioned in 7030.1040 and 7030.1050. Vehicles that are registered to carry 10,000lbs have a much higher decibel level threshold, like in the 100's.
Specifically, 1040 references cargo carrying vehicles, and I believe 1050 references motorcycles. I'm lazy, so I don't want to go dig them up, but if you take the OP's second link, and clear everything off after 7030.1060 and change the 1060 to the above mentioned 1040 and 1050, it will explain it. 1060 is the document that refers to all vehicles that aren't motorcycles or cargo carriers.
Also, right out of Typhoon's signature: You're boned. A 2004 STi, with an Invidia exhaust... At idle it's over 80db. And is easily over 100 at any load-bearing throttle position. Again, your best bet to "get out of this ticket" is to go get it tested and hope to **** they don't have a tester nearby. Because if you get tested, you're boned. Don't be a bitch, just pay your fine.
By “fight it”, i was meaning that he should go with Disco’s idea. As you can see by the same post, i have paid nearly $700 in window ticket fines. Like you, I typically just “cut a check”. Alexis got a ticket in her hatch on the interstate for loud exhaust. At 70-75mph the ol’ P&L Motorsports exhaust would really sing! Lmao
I have been pulled over twice for window tint. 50% on the front windows and 5% on the back. I have yet to be ticketed but have been warned twice. Last fall I got pulled over by a State Trooper and he told me that I didn't fit the description of a person he thought would be driving such a car. Just proves he was profiling me based on the car I was driving. I'd fight the ticket if I were you. Doesn't cost you anything to show up other than maybe a few hours off of work. Good luck!
Most police officers won't show up for citations this minor; if they are a no show, charges are typically dropped without discussion. It's worth showing up for and showing the judge you care enough to make the time!
Pulled over once in EP when I still had my STI. Cop asked me if I had upgraded my "mufflers". Told him it was the exhaust that came with the car and pointed out the STI etching on the tips matched the badge on the trunk. He said "Have a nice day". Lucky for me I guess I was rolling with the STI exhaust. I saw no meter in his hand, so not sure what he would have done if I said yes they were upgraded "mufflers".
And if you're going to go to the trouble, make yourself presentable to the judge. And show a little respect to the court system. "Proper" attitude and appearance go a long way to helping your case.
We specify acceptable noise levels at work, and 80 DB is usually the ambient noise value standard, it is not very loud. I can imagine it is quite easy to go over this, but without the officer testing your car, he has no proof, and you have to have proof to win any court battle. Maybe he was guessing, which is a pretty safe guess on any modded Subaru that you will be over that, but he should be stating that up front.
I love GED in Law bench litigation and anecdotes. The law for noise does not require a decibel meter. Read above about what the actual ****ing law says. The "80db blah blah blah" in the 7030.10xx addendums is literally there for knuckledragging attorneys at LOL that show up to court demanding to throw out the ticket because the cop didn't check your exhaust acoustic pressure readings in an egg crate room with a Dolby calibrated device. It's literally the Court's "Fine dickhead, wanna get technical? Let me go get the sound meter." part of the statute.
My advice is to do what disco suggests above, but have enough banked to pay the fine if it comes to it. Why fight something like this? ... I think I'm getting too old for this ****.
LOL at getting an attorney for an exhaust ticket, which will FAR trump the ticket price in the first place. Modding your exhaust is just like tinting your windows to an illegal level... you pay to play. Further on exhaust notes, there is a reason why most headers/up/downpipes have the "for offroad use only" disclaimer on them. They will most likely not pass city ordinances.
Also can someone please fix the title of this thread? A statue is a carved or cast figure, usually made out of clay or some hardened material. A statute is a written law.
I need to reread this chit since I have recently installed a muffler delete kit. Thanks for the bump kid.
Personally, I would never pay a fine without fighting it. Never. It has nothing to do with “maning up” either. The WRX and STi’s are targeted cars. I have seen this many times. The same exhaust on an Accord or Camry would never get you a ticket. They are banking on you just paying the fine......it’s a layup for the cops and the local government but expensive for you. I would turn the tables on them and fight it.......that is, make it expensive for them to prove it. You can always show up with it “fixed”......stuff socks in there if you don’t want to put the original exhaust back on......and they will drop the fine if you push it. They know it’s a bull**** ticket too and that you are a tax payer. Local governments do not like unhappy tax payers showing up to fight the man.
