How to Make Motorcycle Exhaust Quieter
Sometimes, when you are walking down the street, or playing with your kid on the playground, it might happen to hear some unpleasant noise that causes ear pain (for being so loud) coming from the motorcycle.
Now, put yourself in those parents’ view. If your motorcycle exhaust is quite loud, that may provoke some strange looks into your direction.
As you may already know, the main factors that produce the motorcycle’s sound are those related to its exhaust system.
Some motorcycles are naturally loud, made to show-off the power and strength of the motor.
On the other hand, if you don’t have a motorcycle that costs more than $3000, then most probably your exhaust is just leaking.
You might know how to install or remove a Harley exhaust – but you might now know how to install Harley exhaust flange that could help reduce the sound.
However, both of these situations are quite annoying, but the second one even more than the first one.
Also, there is a difference between slip-on muffler (part of the exhaust system in charge of the noise) and the regular ones.
Slip-on mufflers are quite easier to install, they act like a sound deadener as they are well-known in noise reducing, and finally, the cooldown really fast.
If you’re on a tight budget and you are looking for the quickest solution – cheap mufflers (cover-on mufflers) might be a good choice.
However, we highly recommend investing a bit more time in installing the regular muffler which is often times a better & more reliable version.
So, if you are deciding to buy a motorcycle, it’s good to know this fact and look for a slip-on muffler.
Or, you can simply buy one for your motorcycle.
Anyway, let’s leave the muffler as your alternative solution to the problem.
There are few easier solutions to the problem that you have. They are kind of cheap, and in most of the cases easy to do by yourself.
How to Make Motorcycle Exhaust Quieter
What You'll Be Needing:
1. Find the leak and seal it
The first thing that you should check is potential holes in your exhaust system.
Even the tiniest holes can make your motorcycle a lot louder.
If you are able to find the leak, then you can proceed to the next step, and that is sealing.
Of course, make sure that your motorcycle and its exhaust system are cooled down, to avoid some burns.
Trying out a quietest slip on exhaust and still experiencing problems means only one thing – your exhaust has leaks and you should fix it.
Next, depending on the leak size, there are 2 possible methods:
- Sealing small leaks
The most common reason for small leak is rust.
If you find out that you have small leaks- then your work to soundproof the exhaust of a motorcycle will be a lot easier.
You will need no advanced methods of soundproofing.
This one is quite easy and requires a few minutes of your time. Use exhaust tape to successfully seal the holes and make your exhaust quieter.
- Sealing larger leaks
Now, if you are hearing the unbearable noise, then your problem might be a bit bigger leak.
For repairing this, you might need some additional equipment and a bit of your time.
You will need a patch and epoxy to pull this one successfully.
The first on your list is to measure the size of the leak so that you can cut the patch to fit it perfectly.
Make sure that you leave few millimeters so that it fixes to the exhaust even stronger.
The great alternative to patch is an aluminum can. It will do the job just fine. First of all, you will need to clean both, exhaust pipe and patch.
Afterward, cut the patch and leave a few centimeters as we already mentioned.
When all of this is done, apply the Epoxy to attach the patch to the exhaust pipe.
I would suggest you to use some additional material to increase the steadiness.
Use hose clamps to stiff the patch and make sure that it doesn’t fall off during the ride.
This will probably make your exhaust system quieter, and what’s more important- fixed and reliable.
Therefore, the sound of your motorcycle might sound a bit less powerful & less aggressive – but you’ll keep plenty of ears safer when you ride by!
If you’d still want to combine the good sound yet keep it muffled – replacing your stock exhaust with an Akrapovic exhaust is a great way, however, it requires additional investment.
2. Reinstall pipes and mufflers
Most of the used motorcycles come with some additional gear and as a modified version.
They are commonly “upgraded” by previous owners.
It’s not a secret that some of the owners prefer louder machines and exhaust systems, because they, simply put, produce more distinctive and powerful feeling.
If this is the case with your motorcycle, you should definitely reinstall pipes and mufflers.
You can find them almost everywhere. They are in an affordable price point category, so you don’t need to invest much for it.
However, this requires a bit more effort or a hand of a professional.
3. Get a better bullet muffler
Motorcycles in most of the cases have standard bullet mufflers. Yes, they look really nice, but they are quite loud.
And just like there are different quality levels when it comes to exhaust – the same thing applies to mufflers.
Well, there is a way to keep the good look of it and reduce the loudness. How is that?
Well, there are several different bullet mufflers known for its quietness that can help you keep the looks and reduce those decibels.
Therefore, get chambered, perforated, or louvred bullet mufflers.
Perforated are the ones with holes that will deaden the sound just like that.
The louvred ones are even more effective in reducing the noise, due to their louvres and fiberglass packing.
Finally, the chambered ones will produce the lower tone, as their chambers will effectively absorb the sound.
One more alternative is to find glasspack muffler, as they are made of some great soundproofing materials.
4. Set Full case muffler
In order to decrease those sound levels, you can also go with full case mufflers.
You can opt between two variants.
The first one is a single chamber, which, as it names speaks for itself, has single chamber wrapping that most commonly come with some baffles.
These baffles are the tube-like products, mostly made from metal with holes packed stainless steel or fiberglass.
Dual chambered will divide the muffler into two separate parts in order to cancel the noise.
Whatever choice you make, this will definitely decrease the noise coming from the exhaust.
Full case muffler might not be required by every motorcycle out there, and other solutions would be a good enough solution - but if you ride a straight pipe motorcycle, we highly recommend installing full case muffler.
5. Resonator muffler- custom made deadener for the exhaust system
Have you heard of a resonator muffler? Simply put, this one will cut the noise in half (or even more) as soon as you install it.
With fiberglass inner construction, this one will absorb the unwanted loudness of your exhaust system.
It’s made of stainless steel and should serve you for a long time (no rust or any unpleasantness).
6. Try with new pipes
If you really want to kill the noise, and you (for some reason) don’t find previous methods suitable, you can try with new pipes and exhaust tips.
In your dual exhaust system, you can install cross pipes.
They can drastically decrease the sound by mixing the exhaust and the sound from the two systems.
You can go with h-pipe, y-pipe design or any other.
Once you put a cap with circumference much smaller than your pipe’s circumference, you will be able to dampen the sound enormously.
Also, on Amazon, you can find exhaust tips (resonating), as they decrease the overall noise with fiberglass and extra insulation.
7. Put Exhaust Wrap
Here is one more unexpressive and simple solution to your loud exhaust system.
There is a special, custom-made wrap to soundproof your exhaust system.
It is made of the finest soundproofing materials and can withstand high temperatures.
This is called exhaust wrap.
Make sure to check it out, as it will definitely help you reduce the unwanted noise of your exhaust system.
It’s made of titanium, which ensures great durability and resistance to cruel conditions.
You can put it inside or outside of your muffler or even around the pipes.
Exhaust wrap’s specialties are vibrations and low frequencies. It will reduce them to an ignoring level.
You can combine wrap with several other materials.
Actually, when combined with fiberglass, the decrease of the sound goes up to 80%.
As you can see, this is one cheap method for your problems.
8. Use Catalytic Converter as an alternative
The primary function of the catalytic converter is not to dampen the sound but to decrease the toxic emissions.
From this method, you can benefit in several different ways.
Firstly, it will limit the toxic emission and help the world become a better place.
Secondly, it will dampen the sound.
This is something that you will find in some developed countries as their government policy.
It is made from stainless steel, and will last for ages!
However, this is a bit pricier solution, and you will need to fit the particular catalytic converter to your motorcycle model.
So, if your country has this policy, you may solve your problems (both, noise and exhaust toxic emissions) with one simple method.
On Reducing Motorcycle Exhaust Noise
Hopefully, you will find some of the solutions to your problem in this short article.
Some are quite easy to apply, others demand a bit of time and effort.
For some of the methods, even though they are quite simple, we recommend a hand of a professional.
The methods will take not much time, but if you don’t know what you are doing- better leave it to a professional.
Most of the methods will cut the noise (at least) in half.
It depends on your exhaust system properties which one will suit your problem the best.
However, after using the right method for your problem, you will surely cut the noise on some significant levels.
You might like: How To Quiet A Car Exhaust Without Losing Performance
How to Make Motorcycle Exhaust Quieter
Motorcycle exhaust sounds may sound cool but it also disturbs others. Here's our guide on how to make motorcycle exhaust quieter and reduce noise.
Instructions
- Find The Leak And Seal It
- Reinstall Pipes And Mufflers
- Get A Better Bullet Muffler
- Set Full Case Muffler
- Use A Resonator Muffler - Custom Made Deadeners For The Exhaust System
- Try With New Pipes
- Put Exhaust Wrap
- Use Catalytic Converter As An Alternative