SoCalSC4

Maybe I'm getting old, but I've AGAIN been awakened this morning by the sound of what seemed like 30 Harleys driving by (or were they in my living room?). Holy crap- how do they get away with making all that noise? I think the cops cut them slack becuase they all ride Harleys when they are off duty...

I especially like when I am talking to somebody in my car- at a traffic light- and one of these bad-@ss Orthodondists on a chopper pulls up next to me and repeatedly revs his engine. Thanks dude! You are SO cool! I know your ancient-tech, oil-leaking POS won't idle unless you rev the crap out of it, but how about investing in a muffler? Really... if you've heard one Harley, you've heard them all. Big deal.

Don't get me wrong- I generally have respect for bikers, and I watch vigilantly for them on the road- but these guys (especially the $100K+ tax bracket hell raisers) hae made it difficult for me to ever WANT to own or ride a bike again. Maybe a Ducati... but NO WAY a harley or a chopper- that's a stigma I can do without.

On the positive side, I guess I can appreciate the fact that they are riding something that gets 25+ mpg, and something that I can see around- not some giant, gas-guzzling Excursion or H2.

Off my soap box now... and interested to see the responses on this one!

O. L. T.

iTrader: (17)

it is interesting to see certain types of people on these bikes these days Burly men with tats and ZZ top beards drinking a Latte' and scratching themselves

"preps" with bikes bigger and better than hardcore hells angels.

RA40

iTrader: (6)

Bob-

I appreciate the craftsmanship that goes into these machines yet like you, the noise factor grates on me. I don't see a reason why a highway operated vehicle needs to have an operational volume this loud. There are plenty of noise restrictions yet to exempt these.

Our only hope is that they enact some sort of sound level statues for motorcycles. A few cities I have driven through have noise restrictions posted on the highways. No truck engine braking or motorcycles may be operated between certain hours due to the proximity of residential homes.

All else fails, a little spot in Kauai will ease the tensions. A pineapple mixed drink, grass umbrella and a pleasant waitress to attend to you.

NeverSatisfied

How's about Maui?? We may be turning into another Honolulu, but we still got some nice, quiet spots too!

LexFather

Man all I can say is go back in time 10 years and invest in Harley.....

Stage3

iTrader: (3)

nice quiet BMW's are the wave of the Future... at least in my house anyways. My dad has a 1100R... quiet as a whisper, but hauls serious ***!!!

biker

Like mods on cars all of those overly loud Harleys have been somewhat illigaly moded - all bikes have sound level limits - from the factory. Unlike cars however, once it leaves the dealer you can do just about anything to it - there's no further checks needed the rest of its life.
All of those wannabe James Dean types will realize it's a fad and eventually move onto something else.
I'll stick to my Honda Pan European that gets 45MPG and 12s 1/4mi. while hardly making a sound.

Richie

Bob, you should get some sleep!!!!
Sounds like you are a bit tense.

jet864

It's sad to see these poseur guys who always follow trends. My dad's got a harley and has been riding bikes since before I was born, so I bet he gets classified into the trend all the time. Oh well, nothing you can do for people that ruin things for others.

James

Jmai22

try having a dam neighbor with one of these bikes. its soo dam annoying. every morning when he wakes up and goes to work between 7-9 am he starts his bike up by the back of the house in his garage and drives it to the front of the house and turns it off and goes and closes the gate. then starts the engine again revs and drives off.

then when he comes home he does the exact same thing. parks infront of the gate opens the gate and drives the bike into the garage. its maybe a 5 car length from the garage to the front of the house. why can't he just push the dam bike. espeically when he comes home at 1-2 in the morning and does that crap.

SoCalSC4

Yeah, we've got a couple of those rev-happy Harley knuckleheads here, too- apparently, you need to warm a Harley up for 15 minutes before leaving the house? Usually these bikes are parked in a garage next to a Range Rover , BMW, or C5 Corvette. Not exactly the profile of a 'real' biker in my book...

Reminds me of a good joke:

What's the difference between a Hoover and a Harley?

- Placement of the dirt bag -

GStateOM

I'm actually more sick of the ricer mania. They think they rule the road, make as much noise as Harleys and are always reving at me even when I got kids in my car (GS).

And every Saturday night, they treat my street like it's a car show alley

mmarshall

Harleys ARE built at the factory with mufflers, but 99% of all new owners...the first thing they do when they take delivery is either ride it right out of the prep bay around to the service door and ask the shop guys to take the muffler off....or ride home and do it themselves. In most places, this is perfectly legal...there are no bike emission laws or inspections that would necessitate the use of a catalytic converter on the tailpipe, and no specific laws regarding mufflers. Many bike owners say they HAVE to do this..... the noise that the bikes make without mufflers keeps them from getting run over by people who are driving without paying attention.
I won't comment on this specifically....maybe they DO have to...maybe they don't. I don't really know.

If the noise becomes REALLY extreme, local ordinance laws sometimes come into play, but to be truthful, a lot of police departments are reluctant to shut down Harley dealerships.....the police depend on the Harley service shops to keep their Police bikes running. They won't bite the hand that feeds them.

nthach

i'm kinda of sick of it. But Harley does have good craftsmanship. BTW, our Lexuses and Harleys share one thing in common: Denso starters and electrical parts.

mmarshall

While they still don't have the quality of a Japanese bike, Harleys have come a long way in quality in the last several years........just like Korean cars. You can fill a Harley crankcase now and be reasonably certain that it will still be full tomorrow morning.