Joined
·
29 Posts
Poll: How Do You Feel About Loud Pipes?
1 - 15 of 15 Posts
i've never actually noticed a 'loud pipe' until they are right beside or in front of me (since the sound shoots backwards), so by the time those 'loud pipes' get noticed, you are already road pizza if the car driver isn't paying any attention.
how about instead of relying on a loud pipe, rely on more defensive driving skills.. just a thought
how about instead of relying on a loud pipe, rely on more defensive driving skills.. just a thought
Joined
·
58 Posts
37 years of London riding has just about got my survival skill-set up, but I'm still a believer in a properly audible exhaust as an additional aid to those drivers disengaged enough to not bother checking mirrors or indicating their snap manoeuvres as I filter (lane split) past.
Open pipes are usually just a pain for everyone, especially those on sportsbikes where the rider does not understand what a gearbox does.
Open pipes are usually just a pain for everyone, especially those on sportsbikes where the rider does not understand what a gearbox does.
Joined
·
2,201 Posts
I'll have to disagree with you there. I agree with defensive skills, I mean the loud pipes part. I don't like straight pipes.There's loud, but then there's obnoxious. I'm talking about a good sounding loud pipe, like TwoBrothers, Yoshi, exc. I spent 20 years commuting 120 miles a day (60 miles each way) splitting traffic. It was mostly freeway, but it was congested freeway. In my car, that commute would take anywhere from 1.5 hours to 3 hours, each way. On the bike, it never took more than an hour, so I rode the bike most of the time.I can say without a doubt that loud exhausts are heard before you get to a car. Where I worked, the place employed 5,000 people, and a lot of them did same commute I did. I was told on many occasions by co-workers that they heard me before they ever saw me. From personal experience, I can tell you every time I got a new bike that was still stock, the number of close calls I had skyrockted until I put an exhaust on. Stock whisper quiet bikes, cars changed lanes in front of me ALL THE TIME. They didn't see or hear me. With an exhaust, my close calls would drop way down, sometimes once or twice a week instead 5 or 6 times a day. Loud pipes most definitely help people hear you before they see you. After hundreds of thousands of miles under my belt, I am absolutely conviced and no one or no study will convince me otherwise.
completely circumstantial though. sure when you are sitting on the sidewalk listening you can hear them for miles.. but when they are behind you going at a similar speed, its simple physics that you aren't going to be heard, plus human nature.
i've put well over a 200,000 miles on a motorcycle in my life (not a lot by some standards) and never felt the need to put a loud pipe on a bike to 'protect myself'.. its false security. Many of whom i know who ride say the same thing.. the faster you are going the less your pipe makes a difference.
yes, california has the "luxury" of lane splitting, that makes life increasingly more risky, but for the rest of us, driving predictably will save your life more times than driving unpredictably hoping your pipe catches attention
i can't count on 2 hands how many times i've been 'startled' while driving, by some guy on a loud bike who passed me on the freeway, and i didn't even know he was there until he literally was at my mirror.. you simply don't hear them until its too late, and i'm a completely attentive driver (to a fault) while in my truck
i've put well over a 200,000 miles on a motorcycle in my life (not a lot by some standards) and never felt the need to put a loud pipe on a bike to 'protect myself'.. its false security. Many of whom i know who ride say the same thing.. the faster you are going the less your pipe makes a difference.
yes, california has the "luxury" of lane splitting, that makes life increasingly more risky, but for the rest of us, driving predictably will save your life more times than driving unpredictably hoping your pipe catches attention
i can't count on 2 hands how many times i've been 'startled' while driving, by some guy on a loud bike who passed me on the freeway, and i didn't even know he was there until he literally was at my mirror.. you simply don't hear them until its too late, and i'm a completely attentive driver (to a fault) while in my truck
Joined
·
2,201 Posts
Well, we'll have to disagree, I'm sure mostly to different experiences. I never, ever, go with the flow of traffic if there's more than one lane. Falls into same category for me. I've had more close calls staying in spot than I have splitting traffic. Even if traffic is going the speed limit, I'm always going faster than the flow of traffic. Always.
Doesn't include the Grom.
Doesn't include the Grom.
It seems abundantly clear in all my years, that neither side of this topic will see the other side, but that's the beauty of opinions 
.. I refuse to ride unpredictably, i ride with the flow, i stay in my lane and i always make sure that i'm not in a blind spot (if i can't see the drivers face in the side mirror i move up or back) and in all my years (i'm 43 now got my MC license at 16 and have driven bikes the whole time) haven't had an 'incident' that risked my life or safety in any meaningful way.
we disagree on disparate points it seems
.. I refuse to ride unpredictably, i ride with the flow, i stay in my lane and i always make sure that i'm not in a blind spot (if i can't see the drivers face in the side mirror i move up or back) and in all my years (i'm 43 now got my MC license at 16 and have driven bikes the whole time) haven't had an 'incident' that risked my life or safety in any meaningful way.we disagree on disparate points it seems
Joined
·
2,201 Posts
But your opinion is wrong
You're right though, based on my experience (45 years old and started riding about 17/18 yrs old), there's no way anyone can possibly get me to see and believe the other side (your side). At least we agree on that haha.
You're right though, based on my experience (45 years old and started riding about 17/18 yrs old), there's no way anyone can possibly get me to see and believe the other side (your side). At least we agree on that haha.
Joined
·
2,201 Posts
I don't have any marks on my driving record either
37 years of London riding has just about got my survival skill-set up, but I'm still a believer in a properly audible exhaust as an additional aid to those drivers disengaged enough to not bother checking mirrors or indicating their snap manoeuvres as I filter (lane split) past. speed test
Really loud pipes are obnoxious and unnecessary, IMO. I think that stock, whisper-quiet pipes are helpful in some situations and dangerous in others. The usefulness of a louder-than-stock pipe is very situational, but I do think they can help. I have been riding for over 30 years, and there have been many times that an aftermarket pipe caught the attention of someone who was not paying attention. A quick blip of the throttle can really help sometimes. There have been other times where nothing in the world could help prevent a dangerous situation. Sometimes my wife would say that she never heard me coming on the motorcycle when she was in our new trail-rated Jeep Grand Cherokee (door seals made to hold out water, which also makes the vehicle interior quiet), and that was with a 120 dB $2500 Termignoni exhaust on a 1262 Ducati Xdiavel.
Personally, I like a good sounding aftermarket pipe, and I do think they help sometimes, but not always. Obnoxious pipes are just....obnoxious.
Personally, I like a good sounding aftermarket pipe, and I do think they help sometimes, but not always. Obnoxious pipes are just....obnoxious.
Joined
·
8 Posts
how about instead of usa today protonmail relying on a loud pipe, rely on more defensive driving skills.. just a thought
Anyone who believes that loud pipes save lives is kidding themselves. Just like SMIDSY people they will only hear you if they're actually listening. I drive a BMW car and it is rather quiet in there. The only pipes I hear are the obnoxious ones and I still can't tell what direction it is coming from. If the music is on I rely on the mirrors - and I quite often have to get out of the way of our local firetruck, which I also see long before I can hear it.
My grom has a Yoshi and it probably annoys the neighbours. If I ever finish my 300 swap it will probably get something quieter. My Kawasaki 1400 has aftermarket pipes because I like the sound. I don't know or care if any cage drivers can hear it because I always, always assume that I'm invisible and ride accordingly.
My grom has a Yoshi and it probably annoys the neighbours. If I ever finish my 300 swap it will probably get something quieter. My Kawasaki 1400 has aftermarket pipes because I like the sound. I don't know or care if any cage drivers can hear it because I always, always assume that I'm invisible and ride accordingly.
1 - 15 of 15 Posts
