Question
I was talking with some friends in a muscle car club. They said I should do a “muffler delete” on my classic Camaro. Do they mean getting rid of the muffler? Is a muffler delete illegal?
The Answer
Hey, first off, nice ride! And yes, your friends are suggesting that you remove the muffler completely. It would make your car louder, and some say it can improve performance. But make no mistake: A muffler delete can get you into trouble in all 50 states.
Before making adjustments to your exhaust system, you should know how your local law treats muffler mods. According to the SEMA Action Network, an organization promoting laws that benefit car enthusiasts, state laws fall into one of three categories:
- States with legal thresholds for exhaust noise: California, Connecticut, Maine, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Washington
- States that don’t allow the use of a muffler that emits “excessive or unusual noise” and prohibit modified mufflers that produce more noise than the factory muffler: Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Nebraska, New York, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin
- States that don’t allow mufflers that emit “excessive or unusual noise”: All other states, except Alaska, where this is regulated at the local level
For an example of what some of these laws look like, let’s consider Washington, which regulates the amount of exhaust noise vehicles can emit:
§ 173-62-030. Standards.
(1) No person shall operate any motor vehicle or any combination of such vehicles upon any public highway under any conditions of grade, load, acceleration or deceleration in such a manner as to exceed the maximum permissible sound levels for the category of vehicle in Table I, as measured at a distance of 50 feet (15.2 meters) from the center of the lane of travel within the speed limits specified, under procedures established by the state commission on equipment in chapter 204-56 WAC, ‘procedures for measuring motor vehicle sound levels.’
IN-USE MOTOR VEHICLE NOISE PERFORMANCE STANDARDS
Measured @ 50 feet (15.2 meters)
Vehicle Category (type):
Automobiles, light trucks and all other motor vehicles 10,000 pounds GVWR or less: 45 mph or less – 72 dBA. Over 45 mph – 78 dBA.
Further, Washington specifically requires each car driving on public roads to have a muffler in “good working order.”
There’s no getting around it. Police can and will pull you over and ticket you if your car is too loud—which it likely will be if you don’t have a muffler.
If you want to improve your engine noise without breaking the law, you could look into an aftermarket muffler designed for performance. But read your state’s laws carefully to make sure your new muffler won’t cause you to get pulled over.
Xuyun Zeng is a content strategist with a wide-ranging content background including tech, journalism, cars and health care. After graduating with highest honors in journalism, Xuyun led a newspaper to win eight awards, helped start an award-winning film industry podcast and has written over a hundred articles about cars repair, state laws and insurance. Prior to joining Jerry, Xuyun worked as a freelance SEO consultant with a mission to create the best content that will help readers and grow organic traffic.
Alice Holbrook is an editor with more than a decade of experience covering personal finance, including car insurance. She\’s passionate about creating easy-to-understand content that demystifies intimidating topics for readers. Previously, she worked for NerdWallet, and her work has been featured by Newsweek, The Washington Post and the Associated Press, among others.
