An unlucky Chevrolet Camaro owner in California has copped a fine for having a loud exhaust… despite it being completely stock.
Camaro6 forum user ‘Abdullisraddd’ said he was driving around Northridge, part of the Los Angeles metro area, in his 2019 Chevrolet Camaro SS when he was pulled over by police.
He claims he was driving at about 35-40mph (56-64km/h).
“So he asks me what modification I have on my exhaust I told him it’s bone stock. He felt stupid and says ‘oh okay let me figure out what we’re going to do here’,” he said.
“Comes back and asks if I was driving it in sports mode. I said yeah I was. He tells me that sports mode is for track use only and when Chevy tests the car to pass the decibel test, Chevy leaves the car on stealth mode.”
The Camaro owner claims he was being nice to the officer and expected to receive just a warning, but instead received a ticket for $100.
In the violation field of the ticket, it reads “Driving in Sport Mode”. It also appears to say the owner was in violation of California Vehicle Code 27151 (a).
“A person shall not 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),” the law reads.
“A person shall not operate a motor vehicle with an exhaust system so modified.”
Section 27151 lists a maximum sound level of 95 dbA for motor vehicles with a gross vehicle weight under 6000lbs (2721kg).
The Camaro owner is planning to contest the ticket in court.
This isn’t the first time somebody in California has been penalised for a stock exhaust.
A Reddit user posted in 2022 that he was pulled over while driving his Hyundai Elantra N (i30 Sedan N) in N mode. He had his vehicle registration suspended and received a notice to take his car to a state vehicle inspection station for a decibel test.
While we don’t yet know the results of the Camaro owner’s decibel test, the unlucky Hyundai owner’s exhaust reached 102 dbA.
He went back and forth with the California Air Resources Board and Hyundai, the latter of which tested the vehicle themselves. He ended up being without his car for several months during this process, though Hyundai gave him a loaner vehicle.
In the end, Hyundai issued a goodwill buy back even though the company found the vehicle to be “100 per cent stock and working as expected”, according to the owner.
