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Motor bike noise and pollution


Patmobile
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I have to admit to occasional irritation at loud cans, but just one of those things I can live with.

I have been very interested in overall traffic noise pollution recently. We are temporarily living in rural Lancashire, but on moving here, was appalled to realise that day and evenings, you can hear a constant low level noise which can only come from the M6, 10 miles away. Now that has made me notice traffic noise pollution even more. Recently I was in a small Cheshire town and again, could hear quite distinctly a constant roar from the M56. Yesterday I was in greater manchester in a quiet suburb and yet again, could hear this same low level noise from the M60. I quite simply had never noticed this phenomenon till I moved out to the sticks and I certainly don't get it in France. And of course every last one of us with a vehicle is contributing to the problem. How do you think I got to each of these locations?

 I think that is much more scary and pervasive than loud cans.

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[quote user="Frederick"]

I believe those grey bikes the Village bobbies rode years ago were water cooled ..were they not ? and purred along almost silent ....Velocette  ? ...I only ever saw the police ride them ....not noisey enough eh ?

[/quote]

Wasn't that the LE? Something like a 250 twin, and as you say, extremely quiet. Maybe so they could glide silently up behind villains?

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I'm not particularly a bike enthusiast and memory may be playing tricks but that's not how I remember it exactly. Although as it was dark blue or black rather than the colour in the pic, that may be throwing me off the scent a bit. All I remember for certain was that it was a Velocette, had a radiator at the front and an upright gear lever. And that it was almost tinnily quiet when ticking over.

It was nothing like the bikes we had at home at the time - my elder brothers' Tiger Cub and Aerial Leader (ex-police) and my Vespa Sportique! Not exactly among the big boys of motor-bikes. (I used to have to hide the Vespa some distance away when I went to the Flamingo Bar in Malvern to mix with the real "greasers" - the shame of it.)

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[quote user="Winegum"]I never realised car drivers heard or saw motorbikes (unless they are also bikers themselves). They've usually got the stereo up full volume or they're on their mobile phone![:D]
[/quote]

I prefer to listen to the motor - however, it's so quiet you can only hear it inside the car with the stereo off.

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[quote user="Alan Zoff"]memory may be playing tricks but that's not how I remember it exactly[/quote]I think different areas perhaps had different livery. In my corner of Essex they were mostly grey or sometimes white.

This is the MKII LE with the handle you mention, which I think was the starter, later replaced with a kick start !

www.velocetteowners.com/photogallery/catalogues/55le.jpg

Lots of nostalgic info and pictures on  the Velocette Owners club site.

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[quote user="Alan Zoff"]

It was nothing like the bikes we had at home at the time - my elder brothers' Tiger Cub and Aerial Leader (ex-police) and my Vespa Sportique! Not exactly among the big boys of motor-bikes. (I used to have to hide the Vespa some distance away when I went to the Flamingo Bar in Malvern to mix with the real "greasers" - the shame of it.)

[/quote]

Tiger Cubs were great bikes, later, in a modified state, they were used as trials bikes.

I had a Lambretta, boored and sleeved to 175 (if I remember rightly). I stripped off all the paneling down to the bare frame and just had two small bits of wood to put my feet on. It really went like a bomb. Talk about keep death off the roads.

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The Tiger Cub was OK but had a nasty habit of spraying the rider's legs with oil. I suspect it was only when Japanese bikes came to the fore that we realised that this wasn't just a normal part of motor-bike riding.

I used to envy mates with tarted up Lambrettas. They seemed to have a lot more options in terms of accessories than did Vespa owners in those days. The Sportique had a great little 150cc engine but, like all the early Vespas, it had small wheels and, worse, the engine and gearbox were to one side, with just a storage compartment in the other "wing". So it was totally out of balance and you had to be careful when leaning into bends. I inherited it from a brother who refused to ride it after coming off.  I tipped it over twice - once when the seat decided to part company with the rest of it. I still remember the embarrassment as it was at the village crossroads in front of people I knew who were waiting for the bus. This is turning into a nostalgia trip.

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My Honda 800 has the factory silencer and is, in my opinion, very quiet.

Personally, I dislike that whingeing noise coming from the Berck & Le Touquet direction. [:-))]

I can't help but wonder about the OP's intentions in posting on here; it's not going to change anything is it?

Sid 

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[quote user="Patmobile"]

There were two motor bike events near us on two consecutive  weekends last month.  These brought lots of bikers to the area - and lots of noise pollution.

Why are motor bikes so noisy?

 I was surprised to find out that bikes are permitted by law to be more noisy than cars.  The motors are small and could easily be made to be quiet.  Very brief research also revealed that motor bikes are among most dangerous and least environmentally sound vehicles you can legally use on the road.  I've heard about people campaigning against 4X4 vehicles, but why are they not concentrating more effort on pointing out how noisy, polluting, dangerous and fuel inefficient most bikes are?

If anyone knows of a genuinely valid reason why bikes should not conform to noise and pollution standards that every car in Europe has to, please enlighten me.     

  

 

[/quote]

I have a BMW K1200s and it registers over 45 to teh gallon....very fuel inefficient,,,,,not

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[quote user="Bob T"]All BMW bikes have catalysts from new. I removed them from both our bikes to make them more economical.
If people are so anti bikes then why do they bother reading this part of the forum.
I have seen loads of bikes two up and loads of cars with a single occupant and no luggage.
There are NIMBYs everywhere!
[/quote]

Spot on...bleedin nimbys............pity some people don't have a life

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[quote user="Patmobile"]

.....  Cars pass by with the faintest swishing noise, tractors with an almost imperceptible low growl.  Occasionally the sound of a large lorry can break through the birdsong and the rustle of the wind in the pines.  These noises are of short duration because the vehicles pass out of earshot within seconds. 

......Bikers may be the nicest people, but they are selfish and self-deluding in their inability to recognise the damage their noise pollution does to the quality of life of the rest of the world. 

[/quote]

Get a life Pat....your pathetic matey..........read the noise levels quoted on page 1, just admit it, you have had your life and now you want to stop everyone else having theirs.  Thank god your in France and not still over here.  Please DON'T come back......Your really not needed

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You're all reading this wrong guys.

Pat is just a bit of a sad wanabe......................and perhaps a bit of a girly.

(no offence meant to real girlies..[:)])

Carbon cans for ever......................................................[Www]

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Can't Stand checky Kid's.

Yes funnily enough I did have a mate who rode the GPO Bantams, and I also built a full blown Racing Bantam complete with close ratio  4speed G / Box, Compression Plates on the fly wheel which raises the cranckcases compression,  polished and expanded ex & in ports, George Todd Squish band Cy / Head with 13:1 comp ratio, a 1&1/4inch TT carb, and a full racing expanssion chamber and no muffler, Tiger Cub front and rear Hubs, ( bigger Brakes ) on alloy rims with road tyres, Alloy fuel  tank and fibre-Glass racing seat. For a 150cc it was B****y Quick.

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Some Bantam .Mr Wiggy ...I bet you were proud of that .....I am afraid my motor cycle days are long over...Started on  Arial's with girder forks and Matchless 350's .....Lots to chose from in those days and they were all kahaki colour ...and went onto Triumph Thunderbirds and the Speed Twin ..and then ended when on one  I slid on a mud covered bend and came off entering the tunnel to the Central Terminal Area at Heathrow. and that was a long time ago ....  

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