Anyone's Neighbors Ever Complain About Noise?

[ViperDEN_Nick]

Like the title says...

Swapped the spark plugs and wires on the Viper this morning. Started it up to make sure everything was copacetic (which it is). Neighbor comes over, whom has a reputation for noise complaints according to a different neighboir, and starts telling me the exhaust is too loud. Told him it's a 10 Cylinder Super Car, it's not going to be silent and if he wants it any quieter, he can give me about $3,000 to get a new cat back system because I'm not going to cut out the mufflers on the Mopar system installed to make it quieter. He proceeded to threaten me that the HOA will levy fines and even a lien on the house if I don't comply. I assured him that it won't be driven during late night hours, nor will I simply run/rev it in the garage day in/out. It's not cheap to drive and may only move once, maybe twice a week since I'm a pilot and am out of town 3-4 days/week. He also didn't take too kindly when I declined to park it somewhere else since this is the address it will be registered so it will be parked here and he can pay my Sheriff/DMV fines when they find it's not registered where it's stored.

Has anyone else dealt with neighbors like this before? How'd you handle them?

-Nick

 

[Free2go]

i'd peruse those bylaws.

 

[3whitevipers]

I have a straight pipe Cobra in a high end neighborhood with no issues. I do cool it in the hood as much as possible--Dave

 

[Free2go]

Find out if your HOA rules supersede the municipality rules.

 

[ViperJeff]

I have a simple rule when it comes to HOA's. When you find there is one..... run.


The rules are written to benefit those that enforce them without consideration for the people who live there

 

[Bonkers]

Its one of those "you chose to live in a neighborhood with an
HOA" senerios. Like Free said, get out your copy and see what
the actual text of the noise regulations are. You signed the
contract, so if it says noise must be kept within 87dbz you
might as well kiss your sports car goodbye.

Ive fought many... many years with HOAs that created rules
after I moved in to deal with my car "issues." End of the day
the courts will side with them.

My only advice is to take the loss, whatever it is, and run like
hell... Im sorry...

 

[Free2go]

I've moved from an HOA community almost a year ago now. Love it.

 

[ViperDEN_Nick]

Ended up going door to door to all my neighbors on the street. They've all said the reputable complainer has a history, otherwise they haven't been able to tell the difference between my Viper and the guy across the street's Harley. One neighbor said he complained about curtains she had hung inside her house. She told him to piss off and that was it. The Harley dude rides his bike more often than I've driven the Viper.

I did find some Sheriff Noise Ordinance PDFs online with decibel limits. From what I read, if it exceeds 80dB at 25 feet on a street not designated as a private road or highway, that's too much. Downloaded a dB meter on my iPhone, measured 25 feet from the house and the output was around 85-90 so they got me there. But seriously, if he can't **** it up for a cumulative 5-10 minutes maybe twice/week.....oh well, he's never going to force me to not drive my car.

 

[broomrider]

I agree with Jeff, run. The only neighbors i like are the kind that are across the forty acres which mine are. Back to the subject matter at hand, sounds to me like
This guy is a lonely, uptight, self righteous azzhole who takes pride in being all of the above mentioned. I won't tell you what to do but I can tell you what I would do.
Next time that guy came to my house,while I was working on my car i would make sure every word that came from his mouth was unheard do to an engine rev. I woud most definitely
take an early sunrise drive. Of course you can b*tch about his lawn, curtains etc. Hell I bet this guy even drives prius.
Sorry to hear of your troubles.

 

[TalonTSi90]

Downloaded a dB meter on my iPhone, measured 25 feet from the house and the output was around 85-90 so they got me there.

I laughed so hard i almost choked... really? And youre believing the results?

Regardless, the time you spend driving to/from your house is barely negligible and yes, he should **** it up. I ride this 3 blocks into/out of my street and no one has ever said anything. My last bike had the same open 'mufflers' but was only a 750cc, this one is a 1312cc and its loud... those back halves are 2.5" and wide open.

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[Camfab]

I live in an HOA. It has it's pluses and minuses, it minimizes people from doing stupid things like painting their house purple and parking on the lawn. Your going to find unhappy A-holes everywhere anyway. Doesn't really matter if your in an HOA. Cities, like mine love them, because they use them as leverage for approval of the development. My HOA collects $300 a month for roadway landscaping and flood control, that's where the money goes and we are burdened with what would normally be covered by the city. On the other hand, the neighborhood looks really nice and everyone's landscaping is kept up. In the end, it's about respect for your neighbors. You sound (pun intended) like a respectful guy, and your minimal runs during the day are no big deal. I do the same, my head/cam Gen II is nasty. I try to never run it at night or really early in the morning. Good Luck

 

[steve e]

Get out of any place with HOA's but before you leave kick his ass when nobody is around.

 

[ViperDEN_Nick]

I laughed so hard i almost choked... really? And youre believing the results?

Regardless, the time you spend driving to/from your house is barely negligible and yes, he should **** it up. I ride this 3 blocks into/out of my street and no one has ever said anything. My last bike had the same open 'mufflers' but was only a 750cc, this one is a 1312cc and its loud... those back halves are 2.5" and wide open.

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I about did too when my roommate asked me to do it. He owns the house and went into a momentary panic when I told him this guy was threatening a lien on the house if it became too much of a problem. And no, not entirely believing the results.

 

[MoparMap]

My car is probably somewhere in the middle for noise (headers and a Borla exhaust now, no cats since I put the headers on) and I drive it every morning to work leaving the house at 6:00 and haven't had anyone beating my door down. You can be really careful and pretty quiet while driving them if you have to. Have a 750 bike with mostly open exhaust as well that is pretty loud, but keeping the rpm way low and going up a gear or two makes a pretty big difference and I Just try to be respectful. If no one else in the neighborhood complains I wouldn't worry about it.

 

[98RedGTS]

First - what all is done with your exhaust? Is it just the borla catback or do you have headers and the cats removed? If it is just the Mopar system then he can't really do much as it is 50 state legal. If you have headers and cats removed then your exhaust may not be considered a legal exhaust for a street car (depending on state/county) which could pose some issues. In the end, just be courteous of your neighborhood (sounds like you are) when driving through the neighborhood and when working on things just don't make noise at night (again, doesn't sound like you were).

Second - I would do as above suggested and read your by-laws. They should be specific but not all are.

Third - The right to a quite and peaceful enjoyment of your home (normally how those by-laws are written) go both ways. I find that niceness goes much farther with people than getting into penis measuring matches. Have an adult conversation with the person letting him know your concerns and letting him voice his (sounds like you have done that already). After that, I would politely remind him that he is violating the same bylaw that he is complaining to me about by harassing you on your property. I would then politely advise him that he is not welcome on YOUR property and to leave as your conversation is over. I would then file a complaint against him with the HOA. Sometimes these people need a taste of their own medicine and you know the saying. Don't throw stones if you live in a glass house as I'm 100% confident with the way HOA's are written you could find several things they aren't 100% compliant in.

Best of luck but also remember, you have to live with these people so pick your battles when you must and be civil with things. Stay calm in your conversations and be polite. Basically, don't give them more ammunition to go after you.

 

[Free2go]

Get out of any place with HOA's but before you leave kick his ass when nobody is around.

 

[ViperDEN_Nick]

First - what all is done with your exhaust? Is it just the borla catback or do you have headers and the cats removed? If it is just the Mopar system then he can't really do much as it is 50 state legal. If you have headers and cats removed then your exhaust may not be considered a legal exhaust for a street car (depending on state/county) which could pose some issues. In the end, just be courteous of your neighborhood (sounds like you are) when driving through the neighborhood and when working on things just don't make noise at night (again, doesn't sound like you were).

Second - I would do as above suggested and read your by-laws. They should be specific but not all are.

Third - The right to a quite and peaceful enjoyment of your home (normally how those by-laws are written) go both ways. I find that niceness goes much farther with people than getting into penis measuring matches. Have an adult conversation with the person letting him know your concerns and letting him voice his (sounds like you have done that already). After that, I would politely remind him that he is violating the same bylaw that he is complaining to me about by harassing you on your property. I would then politely advise him that he is not welcome on YOUR property and to leave as your conversation is over. I would then file a complaint against him with the HOA. Sometimes these people need a taste of their own medicine and you know the saying. Don't throw stones if you live in a glass house as I'm 100% confident with the way HOA's are written you could find several things they aren't 100% compliant in.

Best of luck but also remember, you have to live with these people so pick your battles when you must and be civil with things. Stay calm in your conversations and be polite. Basically, don't give them more ammunition to go after you.

The exhaust is just the Mopar/Borla Cat Back. The stock headers are still installed as are the cats (will find out today if they've been gutted) since I'm getting new ones installed as the car is failing emissions miserably. It can from FL/GA which don't have emissions so they very well could be gutted, or they're just shot to hell on a 20 year old car.

But yeah, I tried to be as calm as I could with the guy and let him know, it'll be a tad loud when I leave and come home. I'm not going to be driving it everyday or into the wee hours of the night. And I'm not storing it anywhere else other than the address I reside at as well as where it's registered.

 

[Intrazel]

I can relate to your dilemma as I recently moved into an extremely uptight HOA community in San Diego. The first week I had two neighbors approach me regarding my noisy cars/bikes, the first neighbor was polite and was complimentary towards my Saleen XP8 and
asked where I got it and so forth, than he started in with well you know this is a quite community and this car is awfully noisy, I told him I've had it tested with a decimeter at 96dbs and its within the limits of the California Vehicle Code, he said well is their anything you can do to
keep the noise down?

I told him nothing can be done, however you may want to keep the windows shut and an air filter on inside your home to mitigate the noise emanating from outside as I do this myself to keep the gardeners from waking me up early in the morning with their extremely noisy ****
wackers/lawn mowers/leaf blowers , speaking of which has anyone ever stopped and thought about how noisy and disruptive that equipment is? Talk about disruption, there is nothing more intrusive than the sound of these machines running day after day at well over 100dbs and
only a few feet from your home, he got real quite and said well I never thought of it like that, and I told him it's my forte to think outside of the box, than I sent him on his way, he never returned as I beat him at his own game and left him with nothing left to say, try something
along these lines and see if your neighbor doesn't go away.. That's my advice anyway. Good Luck !

 

[Free2go]

I told him nothing can be done, however you may want to keep the windows shut and an air filter on inside your home to mitigate the noise emanating from outside

I couldn't believe how brutal the women were on my old community FB page. They kept posting pictures of my license plate and saying crap like "he blew past me in the school zone and hurt my ear drums" and "when he starts his car my China rattles in the cabinets" and "every time I see that blue car with the white stripes I have to hold my kids hands and make sure we walk on the grass and not the side walk cuz we never know if he's gonna lose control". Blah blah blah

 

[MoparMap]

One neighbor told my mom that his windows rattled whenever she started her 94, though he liked it, so that worked out.

 

[Solid Red 98]

Perhaps you can have some custom removable exhaust tip baffles made up for cruising the hood--cheaper than other options. Remove them at the gas station. Jack-a$$ neighbors like that are one of the bummers associated with HOA developments. HOA=no sale for me; If I'm paying all the money to live in an area, freedom (within reason) needs to come with the deal. Good luck with the nimby.

 

[Free2go]

A straight piped 96 is loud hahahaaaa. But it's a good loud. Now you need to locate a Roe Supercharger Nick.

 

[TalonTSi90]

A straight piped 96 is loud hahahaaaa. But it's a good loud. Now you need to locate a Roe Supercharger Nick.

This. This. This....is what i want mine to sound like...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYIC3Gc8guU

 

[ViperDEN_Nick]

Thanks for all the input guys! I'm actually going to use the gardener example too if he comes by again.

I'm pretty bummed I had to put cats on it to pass emissions which is a whole 'nother story. I think the next mod will be headers which will yield 3" straight pipes to the back, haha. The cats have made it significantly quieter, even with the Resonator delete.

Anyone know the inlet diameter of the Mopar Catback? From what I remember looking at it, it's a 2.5" system which will **** trying to connect a 3" straight pipe to

 

[TalonTSi90]

Why not make your own? http://www.roadraceengineering.com/exhaustparts.htm $110 for a 3" high flow cat.

 

[ViperDEN_Nick]

Why not make your own? http://www.roadraceengineering.com/exhaustparts.htm $110 for a 3" high flow cat.

Thanks Talon!

 

[TalonTSi90]

Thanks Talon!

No prob

 

[Free2go]

This. This. This....is what i want mine to sound like...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYIC3Gc8guU

If I had my eyes closed, I would guess it's my car.....

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[TalonTSi90]

Is it? Thought yours was red?

 

[ViperJeff]

Stop looking at his avatar