California exhaust, and how to fight it!

CALIFORNIA EXHAUST LAW

California oh dear California. To all of my fellow California patrons, I empathize with you, I know some of you have seen previous law, that excludes motorcycles, however, this is the new vehicle code as of jan 1 2019, Motorcycles are included

Vehicle Code 27151. Modification of exhaust systems

“(a) No person shall modify the exhaust system of a motor vehicle in a manner which will amplify or increase the noise emitted by the motor of the vehicle so that the vehicle is not in compliance with the provisions of Section 27150 or exceeds the noise limits established for the type of vehicle in Article 2.5 (commencing with Section 27200). No person shall operate a motor vehicle with an exhaust system so modified.
b) For the purposes of exhaust systems installed on motor vehicles with a manufacturer’s gross vehicle weight rating of less than 6,000 pounds, other than motorcycles, a sound level of 95 dbA or less, when tested in accordance with Society of Automotive Engineers Standard J1169 May 1998, complies with this section. Motor vehicle exhaust systems or parts thereof include, but are not limited to, nonoriginal exhaust equipment.”

Assembly Bill No. 1824

Existing law requires every motor vehicle subject to registration to be equipped with an adequate muffler in constant operation and properly maintained to prevent any excessive or unusual noise and prohibits a muffler or exhaust system from being equipped with a cutout, bypass, or similar device. Existing law further prohibits the modification of an exhaust system of a motor vehicle in a manner that will amplify or increase the noise emitted by the motor of the vehicle so that the vehicle exceeds existing noise limits.

This bill would include, among those conditions that are disqualifying, a violation of the above-described requirements related to mufflers and exhaust systems.

California Brethren, This law is not favorable and they have made the law extremely vague, it is not likely you are able to to fight this one with any case law, so lets take it to the streets and use a different angle.

Here is what we know, the law is subjective, that means that every singe ticket written is up to the officer and if he feels like being a dick that day, then you will be the unlucky bastard that gets the wrath of the law. With that being said,

Step one: play dumb, when the officer pulls you over, you must swear up and down that you bought this bike as is and you made zero modifications to it and the muffler was compliant at the time of the purchase. If you don't admit to anything then you will give them very little to go off of.

Step two: be kind and don't be a dick. Cops suck, we know this but don’t play their game, they want you to admit that you had knowledge that your exhaust was louder than stock. Play dumb, tell them that you thought it came from the factory like that. It is true, ignorance is no defense to the law, however its a hell of a lot better than self incrimination.

Step three: remember that you are on a vehicle, read our section on what to do if you are pulled over, the same rules apply. DO NOT consent to a search and if you are being sketch, keep a locked mini safe inside of your locked saddle bag, do not keep it on your person, do not keep it in plain view, do not keep it near a weapon and do not keep it in the same spot as your registration.

Step 4: do not say a word, be kind but also be silent.

This law is very new, we have minimal case law to support any defenses to the law. All we can do is fight this from the street angle and give you a better chance in court, or in the best case, hope the cop buys your bull shit. If you do get a ticket here is some advise to piss them off,

1. reschedule your court date 4 days before you have to appear in court,
2. Repeat step one 2 more times, in many jurisdictions this is called a motion to continue or a continuance, If they require a reason simply state “need more time to put together a viable defense” it is your right to have a defense.
3. Once you cannot continue this any longer, you will hope the cop gets tired of missing work for court and you pray he doesn't show up, if he doesn't show up, automatic win.
4. If he does, then you can tell the judge that your bike was stock, you had no clue it was modified and you purchased it as is…blah blah..
5. You can also ask the court to reduce the fine because you can not afford it and you can also ask for a payment plan they have these options they just don't want you to know.
6. THIS APPLIES TO OTHER TICKETS AS WELL

Thank you for reading, and we hope we helped a little, if you have any other questions please don't hesitate too email us at streetsyndicatemfg@gmail.com or sallenlawpllc@gmail.com (for privileged sensitive emails.) always keep shit gangster and FUCK THE POLICE