Too much noise: Soldotna cracks down on modified mufflers

Jacquelyn Canoose is sick of the "bullies." That's how she refers to drivers who have purposefully modified their mufflers to make more noise.

Recently, a vehicle passed Canoose's Soldotna home emitting a loud enough buzz to cause her ears to ring for nearly a week, she said.

"These inconsiderate drivers bully around 24-seven, intentionally making the unnecessary noise," Canoose told the Soldotna City Council Wednesday. "There are vehicles with mufflers called glass packs or cherry bombs developed for race cars to stimulate the audience at race tracks."

Canoose is so fed up with the problem that she has started recording in a pocket-sized notebook the license plate numbers of vehicles that she has heard emitting too much noise. She flipped through several pages of information outside Wednesday night's meeting.

Sometimes, Canoose even patrols local parking lots to get more information on cars that she has seen whizzing by at high decibels.

Canoose is encouraging local authorities to seriously crack down on the noisy issue.

"I think Soldotna has accepted and come to tolerate it," she said in regard to the noise pollution.

Soldotna police say they have ramped up their efforts to quiet down the muffler problem, according to Sgt. Robb Quelland.

"We've stepped up enforcement," Quelland said. "We're stopping cars, just giving them warnings. We're trying to get it out in the public to get everyone aware of what they are."

Modifying mufflers to amplify the sound violates Alaska state law. If the exhaust systems are modified in a way that is louder than the vehicle's original system, the muffler is illegal. The law does not specify an acceptable decibel level, however.

The first time someone is caught with an excessively loud muffler they are issued a warning. Then comes a citation, which could carry a $160 fine. Repeat offenders could have their vehicles impounded.

It is not illegal for automotive shops to sell noisy exhaust pipes.

Brant Ellis, co-owner of Ellis Automotive, said his shop frequently talks to young drivers wanting the mechanics to weld on cherry bombs or other noise-making devices.

"We don't touch them," he said.

But drivers can purchase cherry bombs cheaply -- usually for less than $50 -- and install them without a mechanic's help.

Other shops, like Alyeska Tire and Auto Service and C&M Muffler and Transmission, say they will install cherry bombs, but always offer the driver a warning about the noise limitations law.

"They just like the sound of them," said C&M owner Ken Calderwood.

Common requests shops receive are for dual pipe or straight pipe exhaust systems, which are often noisier than the vehicle's original system, Ellis said.

While Ellis Automotive won't install the noisemakers, they will install both types of pipe systems. Ellis said straight pipe noise emissions could lead to some complaints, but he doubts most people would have a problem with the sound coming from a dual-pipe system.

Dual pipe exhausts can give a driver as much as two more miles to a gallon of gas, Ellis said.

"An engine is just like a person," he said. "It needs to breathe. And when you add a second pipe you open up more space."

When customers come in looking to upgrade their exhaust systems, Ellis said his shop always recommends a dual pipe, rather than a straight pipe system.

He said there is no advantage to devices like cherry bombs other than the throatier sound.

Canoose is not alone in her plight against noisy mufflers.

Her 92-year-old neighbor Ruby, who did not want her last name or address identified for fear that someone could come after her, has trouble sleeping many nights because of the loud mufflers.

"The noise wakes me up. I'm 92 and it's hard for me to sleep -- I don't get sleep until 6 a.m," Ruby said.

Quelland said the public has not been shy about submitting complaints.

"We have received quite a few," Quelland said. Police have handed out a few citations, but mostly they have just been administering warnings, according to Quelland.

In addition to noise, people like Ruby and Canoose say they are worried about speeding, but Quelland says police haven't found any correlation between noisy mufflers and speed.

"Everyone thinks they are going fast because they are loud," he said. "The perception is they are going faster than they are."

Regardless, Canoose wants it to stop.

"They are breaking my right to peace and quiet," she said.

Andrew Waite can be reached at andrew.waite@peninsulaclarion.com.