Exhaust Is a mild exhaust going to get me tickets?
Hello y’all,
I’m badly tempted to buy a mild aftermarket exhaust for my BRZ, since it doesn’t sound like much stock. Maybe the HKS Legamax. The car has no cosmetic mods and looks totally stock. WR Blue, so not the loudest color, but not totally invisible either. What I’m wondering is, will something with a little rumble get me speeding tickets? I don’t drive like an asshole, but I do drive it like a sports car (lower gears within reason, and a little fast-ish on nice winding roads). The insurance on this thing is murder already and I don’t need any tickets. Thoughts? I had thought there’d be answers elsewhere, but it’s mostly kids asking whether they’ll get ticketed for noise if they do a full-on muffler delete.
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u/That-Resort2078 9d ago
Should be Ok. Just don’t go doing revs for fun. It’s not a moving violation so won’t show up on your insurance.
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u/lilBalzac 9d ago
Exactly: unless you ASK to get tickets by being obnoxious you probably gonna be fine.
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9d ago
I got one in california around 1999, it was a moving violation. Traffic school to remove point.
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u/SubaruTome 9d ago
Leave the cats in and make sure you have a muffler, and it'll be fine. My Impreza only had an OBX cat back and I never got a ticket for it
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u/DigitalJedi850 9d ago
I ran a straight piped, full exhaust Cobalt that you could hear from well over a mile out… this was back in Cali, and they pulled me over… often. Here in Tennessee? They probably look twice, but go back about their business. Location, and more so - cop-dependent.
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u/HanzG 9d ago
Consider a gated exhaust then. Best of both sides.
I'm older & have a few cars. The old Vette with a 350 in it sounds great with Magnaflows. I put them on the 5.7 Tundra? Meh. Sounds good only if I'm into the throttle and the VVT engages. Put a kit on the NA Miata too and it's a little more fun to hear it but it's not like it's a powerful car so why are you making all that noise?
All that to say it's fun for a while but to do it again I'd look at gated options like some of the OEMs are shipping with.
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u/Old_Confidence3290 9d ago
It will definitely attract more attention to you and since you are already driving it like a sports car, louder exhaust might get you tickets that you might not get otherwise.
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u/azebod 9d ago
500 Abarth owner (they come without mufflers), I would say I notice more negative attention from cops. Got a very bullshit ticket recently I am still salty about I don't think I would've gotten in my mom's outback.
That being said, your car is also pretty small, I am frequently glad that trying to escape truck's blind spots is audible enough to be attention grabbing. I like where they hit with the stock volume because outside of the highway when I'm already in a high gear, I can just shift up and the volume drops to normal car levels as long as I don't accelerate from a stop too hard.
I think if you aim for a range you can do that it will be ok... but definitely have a dashcam just in case you have the cursed luck of trying to pass someone you suspect is druck through a speed trap, because god save you if you do hit the gas hard in a cop's presence.
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u/woozle618 9d ago
Maybe just leave it alone and you won’t have to worry about tickets…or making unnecessary noise.
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u/2fast2nick 9d ago
You can have a stupid loud exhaust and not get a ticket, just don't be a moron. People usually get tickets from either revving in parking lots, doing pulls in populated areas (malls, schools, houses, etc) and other dumbass activities. I've had loud cars my entire life, only one exhaust ticket ever from a pissed off cop.
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u/PMMeMeiRule34 03 Mustang GT 9d ago
I’ve had officer friendlies pull up next to me in my Mustang with that chop rocking it back and forth, like you said as long as you don’t drive like a jackass you should be fine.
Some have gotten behind me probably to run my plates. I live in the south so they tend to go for the kids in daddy’s hellcat doing pulls up and down Main Street.
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u/2fast2nick 9d ago
Ha yeah, I think the cops like the american muscle. My supercharged Mustang was so loud, LAPD would pull up to me and just give me a nod. I'm like whew.
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u/Smooth_Proof_6897 9d ago
They never sound good, it's a 4cyl
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u/Max_Downforce 9d ago
It's a flat 4. It sounds pretty good, especially with unequal length headers. Not sure if that's the stock setup.
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u/p_rex 9d ago
No, they’re equal length and they’ll stay that way as long as it’s under warranty, sadly. Maybe forever; I keep hearing how UEL headers might be associated with engine failures in some of these Subarus.
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u/Smooth_Proof_6897 9d ago
Nah that's baloney, it's just a flawed engine design with poor gaskets, oiling and dumb owners.
Half the people that have subies with uels are young folk who just get in and floor it with cold oil.
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u/p_rex 9d ago
There was speculation that factory unequal length headers might have contributed to the early demise of some older Subaru motors. Not sure whether it was warranted or not. The FA motor has some issues. I just check the oil level at every fillup, baby it when it’s cold, and hope for the best.
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u/xJTE93 9d ago
It's really dependent on your location. Some areas don't care, some areas it's a secondary offense so you can't be pulled over for it (but still ticketed if pulled over for something else), and some are strict and you can/will get a ticket. Usually as long as you aren't being excessive with the acceleration or revving for no reason, you'll be fine