What does a muffler do on a motorcycle? As its name implies, a motorcycle muffler is primarily designed for muffling the engine noise. Motorcycle engines are very powerful, therefore many of them are much louder than car engines. Therefore, to keep them street legal manufacturers equip each motorcycle with mufflers.
If you want to learn more about motorcycle mufflers and baffles, you are in the right place.
We at PowerSportsGuide have compiled the basics of this key part under one roof!
What Does a Muffler Do on a Motorcycle?
It’s safe to say that each new street-legal motorcycle features an exhaust system with a muffler, and with good reason. Are you wondering what are these?
Without further ado, the key factors of why stock motorcycles feature a muffler are as follows:
- Dampen engine noise
- Comply with official regulations
- Optimize engine performance and lifetime
- Safety issues
Let’s get down to the nitty-gritty and take a look at each of these factors!
Dampen Engine Noise
Let’s face it, without a muffler motorcycles would be extremely loud. Many of them are powered by a high-performance engine that generates a ton of power. But as a side effect, they put out a lot of noise.
V-twin cruisers and inline-four sportbikes are especially known for having loud engines.
Without properly designed exhaust systems and mufflers, the sound of these machines would be too loud. So, the noise would be annoying to the rider and other people as well.
If you’ve ever heard of a cruiser with a “straight pipe” exhaust or just visited a dragstrip, you probably know how loud these engines are without any noise dampening.
Unfortunately, you can find many unmuffled bikes out there, and a lot of them are not even legal!
Legal Issues – Do Motorcycles Need Mufflers?
Yes, motorcycles need to be equipped with mufflers in most states. This is because mufflers are not only essential to reducing the engine noise to a tolerable level, but the law also requires them. This means that the sound level of motorcycles must meet federal as well as many local noise requirements. Although these limits may vary by state and location, a muffler is usually required to stay legal.
What’s more, besides federal and state laws, cities and towns may also have their own local restrictions.
Engine Performance and Durability
Believe it or not, the muffler and the whole exhaust system play an important role in the performance of the bike. Mufflers are no longer fairly simple units like they were in the past. Instead, they are the result of precise and careful engineering. It’s a lesser-known fact that motorcycle manufacturers put the most resources into designing and developing exhaust systems, after the engines of course.
Therefore, mufflers are a key part of the whole system and essential for optimal engine operation.
Besides, they can also prevent backfiring and keep the engine from being damaged by “cold air reversion.” What is this issue?
If you remove the muffler from a motorcycle (and the pipe is too short) cold air may flow back to the engine after a sudden throttle release.
If this happens, this cold air meets the hot exhaust valves, which may end in bent, cracked, or even broken valves. As you can guess, this typically means a hefty repair bill.
Regarding engine issues, removing the muffler causes a huge change in backpressure as well. This can foul the bike’s ignition, fuel-delivery, and many other systems, which can result in decreased reliability or even performance.
Even if these malfunctions occur very rarely, the risk is always there.
Safety
Finally, don’t overlook safety issues. Motorcycle mufflers and the whole exhaust system also help to keep the gases away from the rider and the body of the bike.
This is why removing the muffler or installing a short “straight pipe” exhaust can be dangerous!
Without a muffler there would be a risk that riders would inhale the combustion gases or get their clothes or boots burned by the hot pipes.
Mufflers tend to be hot of course, but their temperature is still far below the temperature of the pipes. Also, stock mufflers are typically installed in safe places like under the bike or behind the rider.
On top of that, the excessive noise may harm the rider’s hearing!
Is it Bad to Run a Motorcycle Without a Muffler?
Yes, contrary to popular belief, running a motorcycle without a muffler is a very bad idea. This is not only illegal in most cases, but also very disturbing to other people and animals. What’s more, the lack of a muffler can cause backfiring or even engine damage. Because of this, to stay safe and legal always have a muffler on your motorcycle. It has to be in fairly good condition, and its noise level must stay below legal noise level limits.
Many riders believe that removing the muffler will make the bike more powerful. Well, this is not true in most cases. Riders may feel that their bikes are faster and more powerful due to the louder sound, but in many cases they can expect the same or even less HP.
Yes, in many cases unmuffled engines put out the same or even less performance! Do you doubt this?
Then check out this informative video:
Can You Put a Motorcycle Muffler on a Car?
Since they are different in many ways, cars and motorcycles require completely different exhaust systems. Therefore, even if it’s physically possible, it’s not recommended that you put a motorcycle muffler on a car.
Why?
First, motorcycle and car mufflers have to comply with completely different standards. This means motorcycle mufflers feature a vastly different design as they are designed for smaller displacement engines and different frequencies.
Because it this, they are typically much smaller and produce a different backpressure than car mufflers. It’s also good to know that for better efficiency, many modern cars feature more mufflers or resonators.
Thus, having a small and less efficient motorcycle muffler on your car can cause severe engine malfunctions. And as a final word, don’t forget that in many cases it’s not even legal.
Conclusion
Simply put, motorcycles come with mufflers for several reasons:
- Reduce engine noise to an acceptable level
- Keep the motorcycle legal
- Optimize engine performance
- Route gases away from the rider and the body of the bike
Therefore, riding a motorcycle without a muffler on public roads is definitely not recommended. It’s bad for the engine and against the law in most cases.
Best practice is to use a stock muffler, since it’s manufactured specifically for your bike. But if you want to install an aftermarket muffler, make sure it meets federal and local noise restrictions to stay legal!
References:
https://www.revzilla.com/common-tread/motorcycle-exhaust-101
https://sundevilauto.com/what-is-a-muffler-and-what-does-it-do/
