- Beverly Hills police are cracking down on loud exhausts with new training and testing gear.
- Exotic cars, including a Porsche Carrera GT, Audi R8, and Corvette C8 got cited.
- Officers say residents loved it, with reactions ranging from “Finally” to “About time.”
California already regulates plenty of aspects around vehicle use and ownership, but now Beverly Hills cops are bringing sound into the equation. The department recently teamed up with PipeDown Solutions for specialized loud exhaust enforcement training, marking the program’s first appearance in Southern California.
After classroom instruction and hands-on sessions, officers took to the streets and immediately put the lessons to work. Some expensive machinery ended up on the wrong side of the operation.
The Carrera GT That Got Caught
Photos shared by the department show officers stopping and testing a range of vehicles, including a yellow Porsche Carrera GT, Chevrolet Corvette C8, and Audi R8. In one image, a sound meter placed behind the Carrera GT records a reading of 106.4 decibels. The Audi emitted 108 decibels, and the Corvette registered 116. For reference, that’s roughly the same volume as a chainsaw, though admittedly far more beautiful-sounding to most car enthusiast ears.
Read: Angry Neighbor Uses Expanding Foam To Silence Mustang’s Noisy Exhaust
Importantly, California’s vehicle code doesn’t simply rely on an officer deciding a car “sounds loud.” The state uses a standardized test procedure known as SAE J1492. In simple terms, officers measure exhaust noise with a decibel meter positioned at a specific angle and distance from the tailpipes while the engine is held at a prescribed RPM. The exact RPM target changes depending on the vehicle.
How The Test Actually Works
That’s where the gear in the photo comes in. The handheld device appears to be a calibrated sound meter designed specifically for enforcement work. Rather than relying on subjective judgment, officers can capture an actual decibel reading that can later support a citation in court.
The thresholds themselves vary. California generally limits passenger vehicles and many newer models to 95 decibels under the testing standard, though factory-certified systems and vehicle age can complicate things. A reading above that doesn’t automatically tell the whole story because testing conditions matter, but a Carrera GT registering 106.4 dB certainly lands deep into attention-grabbing territory.
More: Florida Bill Would Kill Decibel Limits For Loud Cars, What Comes Next May Be Worse
Unsurprisingly, officers said multiple community members approached while the operation was underway, asking what was happening. Once they learned police were targeting loud exhausts, the responses were reportedly nearly identical: “Finally” and “About time.” Let it be known that if you’re in Beverly Hills, a loud exhaust could get you into trouble.
