Gather 'round kids, grampa is going to rant again about the "good old days."
Well not exactly but what is it with all the noise from cars. Window rattling music, tire noise, and those really loud, really annoying exhausts.
When I was coming of age in rural Connecticut we always wanted a bit of rumble from our cars. But the police would write us up for "excessive noise" from a motor vehicle if it was "too" loud. Mostly it was mufflers that were too loud but it was kind of a catchall law. Squawk the tires? Excessive noise. Blast the radio? Excessive noise. If you were lucky you got a warning, if not it probably cost you $25 ( a lot of money back then).
I was always on a budget, a tight budget. I once put dual exhaust on a '56 Ford using flexible exhaust pipe and "Pecker" glasspacks.
I got a warning; I tried to argue with the cop ("Why are they for sale if they are not legal?") but I lost.
Now it isn't just "hot rods" that have loud exhausts. Trucks and SUVs get loud mufflers. Then there are the factory performance cars. Yes you can drive in quiet mode but I'd say the vast majority of 5.0 Mustangs, Dodge Chargers and Challengers, Corvettes and Camaros sound like they have open headers! Enough is enough.
Then there are the sound systems. I love a good sound system, sometimes I crank up the sound (mostly so when I sing along no one else can hear me), but I don't roll down the windows and play my music at ear-bleeding decibels! I like my music but I know not everyone shares my taste. Just like I don't share your taste in music.
Another cause of excessive noise are the tires that seem to be de rigueur on so many 4WDs, pickups, and SUVs. Those big, open tread tires that look set for some mud-fest make so much noise at speed.
The 1980s was known as the "ME" decade. Now we have the "I'll do whatever I want and eff-you crowd." The police are outnumbered. The rest of us suffer. There is no common courtesy.
Comments