In a very strange situation, the driver of an electric car got an exhaust ticket in Minnesota, which is odd, wrong, and confusing on many levels.

A Minnesota driver named Mike got pulled over and ticketed for having a “loud muffler exhaust” in his Dodge Charger Daytona EV – except electric cars don’t have exhausts or mufflers. The officer hit him with citations for exhaust noise and public nuisance, apparently unaware that the car’s “engine sounds” are completely artificial. Mike says his car was in battery-saving mode with fake sounds turned down and claims another gas car nearby was making the actual noise. This awkward traffic stop highlights how even law enforcement is still catching up to electric vehicle technology.

The car just looks like it would be loud

The Dodge Charger Daytona EV makes fake exhaust sounds and does not have an exhaust or muffler to make the noises the officer claimed were being made by the car. Noise pollution is a problem, but it shouldn’t be for an electric vehicle that adheres to all noise regulations from the factory, with a synthetic exhaust audio sound that makes the car sound like it has an engine to provide some sounds for pedestrian safety, which is a noise requirement of EVs.

Are These Dodge EVs loud?

In an effort to give drivers of the new electric Dodge Charger some old-school muscle car feeling, the EV has fake engine sounds. That doesn’t mean the electric car should have been given an exhaust ticket in Minnesota, especially since it doesn’t even have an exhaust to make any noise. Additionally, automakers purposely build cars with sounds that adhere to noise restrictions. The artificial engine sound systems in EVs aren’t loud enough to warrant a ticket, but in this case, the driver got three of them.

• Loud muffler exhaust
• Front and rear license plates required
• Public nuisance/annoy/injure/endanger safety

This EV traffic stop causes a lot of confusion. The electric car sound design is built into all EVs, although the Dodge Charger EV is made to provide some louder engine sounds to give the muscle car feeling. The purpose of those sounds is to ensure pedestrians can hear the cars coming. Otherwise, an EV can pretty much sneak up on people and startle them.

Claims of low battery life

The driver of the electric car received the exhaust ticket in Minnesota, but he said the battery was running low. If that was the case, the car wouldn’t be making much noise at all, because the Auto Mode would work to conserve battery life, and that means making as little noise as possible to ensure what energy is left can be conserved for driving. Is it possible the officer got it wrong, and the Charger wasn’t making much noise at all? It certainly couldn’t make any exhaust or muffler noise since it doesn’t actually have those items.

The Charger is too quiet

In a strange turn of events, the Charger Daytona has already been issued a recall for the noise it makes. That noise isn’t the loud, thunderous engine sounds that the Minnesota law enforcement officer claims to have been coming out of the car in question, but rather for not making enough noise. The NHTSA flagged the Charger EV for potentially failing to meet minimum pedestrian noise requirements, which means people nearby cannot hear the car coming, and that means they could be hit, which would be tragic.

Some Charger Daytona cars don’t have their fake exhaust sounds programmed properly, but the fix is pretty simple and makes it easy to have the sounds turned to the right level.

More ticket confusion

In most cases, when you receive a traffic ticket, there is a court date, a court location, a fine amount, and methods of payment for the fines. The driver who received an exhaust ticket for his electric car in Minnesota cannot find a court ID number to call to address the ticket. He called the courthouse about his case, but the court couldn’t give him a solid court date for his appearance.

Should the driver go to court and present his case, which includes the fact that the car doesn’t have an exhaust or muffler? Will he still face a fine for a noise violation, which seems more subjective than a strict regulation? What would you do if you received a ticket for your electric car being too noisy?