Loud pipes on motorcycles

[saleen4971]

i am a big fan of loud pipes on bikes - however, i think there is a limit. at some point (say, 1827582 decibels) it leaves the realm of "you know im here" and enters the realm of "im here so **** you and your already damaged ears" - the only time i would be one to say something about loud exhaust is if a neighbor was leaving at 6am, and revving the crap out of it every time, and causing my physical pain. other than that, i may not like how loud some of them are, but it IS their bike.

 

[metaldog]

I have a neighbor who owns 2 Harley's, one loud, the other quiet. He starts it & will literally rap it out in the drive for 10-15 mins. Then rips down the street, rattling the windows. Aside from this, I really don't care. He is a decent guy & a good neighbor. So let him have his 10 minutes of fun!

It's no worse than a fart can on a Honda, with some teeny lighting the tires every chance he gets. Besides, most riders are pretty polite. Unlike a lot of the Tuner crowd.

At the end of the day, I would much rather hear a loud bike, or even a whinning fart can over some beat up old Hoopty, rolling slow, with the bass loud enough to hear it 4 block away.

 

[daddyusmaximus]

Yeah, sometimes they can be too loud (as In I wouldn't want to ride it long), but I also like the sound of engines, so never really bothered me... even when they rev it at the stop light I just figure they love the sound. Besides, if they are being an ass about it, at least you know what kind of people they are.

 

[the1kidd03]

Churchmouse I'm not real big on Harleys more of a crotch rocket kind of guy but that Springer is drop dead gorgeous.

I'm not a springer front end guy, but that is a good looking bike.

 

[printcraft]

On the other hand..... my current bike is so quiet that a woman almost stepped out in front of me between some SUV (couldn't see me) as I was creeping through a parking lot.

 

[churchmouse]

[video=youtube;rt-ytACeVM0]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rt-ytACeVM0[/video]

Now that is hilarious........

 

[daddyusmaximus]

Churchmouse I'm not real big on Harleys more of a crotch rocket kind of guy but that Springer is drop dead gorgeous.

+1 on that springer. Love the classic lines.

 

[churchmouse]

Churchmouse I'm not real big on Harleys more of a crotch rocket kind of guy but that Springer is drop dead gorgeous.

Thank you. Did all the work except the paint.
Some one was referring to small penis and making up for it with a $40,000 toy. I love that stuff. The red bike is my wifes.....What is she compensating?????

This is the power side of the bike.
Yes, it was "STUPID" loud when being rode properly.
Acceptable when being rode legally.

 

[shibumiseeker]

Thank you. Did all the work except the paint.
Some one was referring to small penis and making up for it with a $40,000 toy. I love that stuff. The red bike is my wifes.....What is she compensating?????

You did NOT just hand us this straight line, did you???

 

[churchmouse]

You did NOT just hand us this straight line, did you???

Oops......

 

[Mr Evilwrench]

I feel like the people with loud pipes are probably the same kind who deliberately type like inbred stroke victims to convince people how they are "genuine bikers".

Now who would do something like that? Takes all kinds, I guess.

I used to have a Thunderbird with nothing behind the cat. It had all rusted off. It wasn't bad unless I was starting it or got on it; it would set off a car alarm on startup and I figured out how to work the throttle to pull that backfire out of it if I wanted to be a jerk.

Potato potato potato HD actually considered copyrighting that sound. I've just left mine stock, and it sounds, well, like a Harley. I'm not planning to do anything to it that would change that, and I'm not some kind of motorcycle cultist, so I won't get on the neighbors' bits with it if I can help it. Hehe when I bought it and the guy was following us home to deliver it, I mentioned the noise and how I could probably quiet it down; you should have seen the look milady gave me. She likes that sound. Heck, she gets giddy over the Mustang GT. I should probably take the blue one. Frequently.

 

[rdg]

I personally have louder pipes but not to annoy. I take off as quietly as I can in residential areas because I understand not everyone wants to hear how loud they can be.

i have them for 2 reasons:
1) Safety. I cannot tell you how many times I have been riding on the highways and people hear me before they see me. Meaning they hear me coming up and consciously look before pulling over in front of me. When I had stock pipes I was constantly being cut off.

2) I am a member of the Patriot Guard and our loud pipes have drowned out the protestors many times.

I do my best not to be too loud in neighborhoods and do not rev the throttle at intersections.

 

[HoughMade]

Ever play "Count the Logo"? I had a dentist client, tears ago, who, at any time, would wear no less than 3 Harley logos on various apparel, and as many as 8....yes, while seeing patients.

...and yes, I have been know to wear as many as 2 Smith & Wesson logos at a time....but not more than 2...or 3.

 

[heavyhitter1k]

Quoted from this thread: "I ride too. My theory is loud pipes are actually LESS SAFE. Why? Because if you're riding you a bike with an open exhaust, many cagers (myself included) will extend you no courtesy whatsoever. Heck, half the time I have no problem blocking, cutting off, tailgating, etc. some helmet-less weekend warrior on a $25K bike with straight pipes and a massive sound system blaring away. If you don't take riding seriously then why should I give you a break? And if you have no courtesy for other drivers then why should we extend you any?"

The above statement bothers me. So you ride a bike yourself, and openly admit you would cut off / block / tailgate another rider? We are already at a big disadvantage vs cagers and you would INTENTIONALLY drive wrecklessly around another biker? Yea, that's some bs man. Just because you don't agree with their choices, you are a rider yourself and you should understand the danger already present...to intentionally increase that danger to someone is being an *******...

 

[shibumiseeker]

The above statement bothers me. So you ride a bike yourself, and openly admit you would cut off / block / tailgate another rider? We are already at a big disadvantage vs cagers and you would INTENTIONALLY drive wrecklessly around another biker? Yea, that's some bs man. Just because you don't agree with their choices, you are a rider yourself and you should understand the danger already present...to intentionally increase that danger to someone is being an *******...

That may be, but do you think there are no other cagers who think like that? For every story we can come up with of "man, they didn't notice me except my loud pipes" we can probably come up with some hothead "that jerk biker with the loud pipes pissed me off so I cut him off."

The simple fact of the matter is that no one has any evidence whatsoever beyond anecdotal that having loud pipes increases or decreases safety, so arguing it does or doesn't is stupid.
What is pretty easy to quantify (look up there, a poll!) is how people feel about them.

I've often wondered how the guy who used to start his bike up at 5:30am in my gf's neighborhood, let it idle (a block away inside a well insulated house we can hear it clearly when it idles, and it rattles the window when he takes off), would feel if every day at 3:30am there was someone outside his bedroom window that did the same thing. Maybe I could do a little 2am target shooting in the neighborhood, I mean, as long as I am being safe about it, who does it harm?

Jerks usually have no problem being jerks until someone does something they don't like, then they tend to gt all up in arms about it. I'd prefer to try to be considerate of the folks around me, and I appreciate the folks in this thread who have said "I have loud pipes but I try to not disturb the neighborhood coming and going." I shoot, and I enjoy shooting, but I voluntarily limit the hours when I do so to be considerate of my neighbors, in spite of the nearest one being a half mile away.


Just being loud is one thing. Kinda jerky, but what the hey. But being a total douche about it and deliberately trying to annoy as many people as you can as often as you can is the type of behavior that doesn't get one much consideration in return.

Oh, and a friendly warning about the site, the one and only infraction I got for language was doing what you did in your post. It's better just let the nanny filter catch it than type it out like that. Not that *I* care as I cuss like a sailor, just letting you know the lay of the land.

 

[churchmouse]

I have heard people make the statement about sport bikes. When they get white lined on the interstate or passed by a nut doing a wheely they make the next one they see pay for it.

 

[LEaSH]

If it's too loud...you're too old...

Guilty as charged

If it would make me younger by being obnoxious, I have to say, pretty tempting proposition there bealzebubba....

 

[hoosierdoc]

If it's too loud...you're too old...

Are you simply posting an aphorism or is this your belief?

I like my sleep. I don't like it interrupted, especially on vacation, by inconsiderate people. That makes me "too old"?

 

[churchmouse]

Are you simply posting an aphorism or is this your belief?

I like my sleep. I don't like it interrupted, especially on vacation, by inconsiderate people. That makes me "too old"?

No Doc, just tired and irritated.
I get it. As I grow (old...) I find that things I used to enjoy are not so fun anymore. The scooters I posted were obnoxious when we wanted them to be. Most times we tried to be respectful especially in community's.

 

[JettaKnight]

Quoted from this thread: "I ride too. My theory is loud pipes are actually LESS SAFE. Why? Because if you're riding you a bike with an open exhaust, many cagers (myself included) will extend you no courtesy whatsoever. Heck, half the time I have no problem blocking, cutting off, tailgating, etc. some helmet-less weekend warrior on a $25K bike with straight pipes and a massive sound system blaring away. If you don't take riding seriously then why should I give you a break? And if you have no courtesy for other drivers then why should we extend you any?"

The above statement bothers me. So you ride a bike yourself, and openly admit you would cut off / block / tailgate another rider? We are already at a big disadvantage vs cagers and you would INTENTIONALLY drive wrecklessly around another biker? Yea, that's some bs man. Just because you don't agree with their choices, you are a rider yourself and you should understand the danger already present...to intentionally increase that danger to someone is being an *******...

Hyperbole.

Being a rider I know what's going on. I give bikes a wide berth, never slashing lines, giving extra room since bike's brakes are better than my car, etc. If I see a new tag on a bike I especially keep an eye on them with plenty of room.

I do not would never drive intentionally in a reckless or dangerous fashion. However, if you come up roaring up behind me expecting me to get out of your way, forget it. If you want me to pull ahead slightly into the intersection so you can turn right on red, not going to happen. The same if you're on playing with your phone while driving. Normally I drive in a very courteous manner - I try to make sure I never block anyone from passing (not a center line driver here) or prevent you from turning right or left on red. I always stop behind the solid white line and don't creep up on red. But if you show disregard for the safety of others - playing with phones, reckless driving, loud pipes by choice (bike or car), expect no such courtesy. And don't even think of lane splitting with me.