James City County, VA Noise Ordinances: Vehicle Noise (2026)

Sec. 13-14 of the James City County Code addresses vehicle noise from two directions. Subsection (b) prohibits mounting a radio, phonograph, musical instrument, bell, whistle, loudspeaker, amplifier, or similar device on a motor vehicle operating on a county highway if it casts sound onto the highway to promote the sale of goods, or to advertise auction sales, sporting events, or other businesses, unless the board of supervisors has granted a permit for that specific loudspeaker use; the ban does not apply to a vehicle in a duly authorized parade.

Subsection (c) makes it unlawful to operate a motor vehicle or motorcycle so as to create any unreasonably loud, disturbing or unnecessary noise. Subsection (d) gives a non-exclusive list of what counts: a vehicle so out of repair that it grates, grinds or rattles unnecessarily; unnecessarily racing the motor while standing or moving; retarding the spark on a motorcycle to cause loud, explosive exhaust noise; accelerating from a stop so hard the tires screech; and stopping so abruptly that brakes grind or tires screech. Neither loud car stereos nor engine-brake compression noise gets its own numbered clause; both fall under the general subsection (c) 'unreasonably loud, disturbing or unnecessary noise' standard that James City County Police apply case by case at a stop.

Because Sec. 13-14 prints no dollar fine of its own, Sec. 00. 2-1047, as underlying state authority, but the county's own list of prohibited acts reaches driving behavior, such as intentional engine-racing or tire-screeching, that a muffler charge alone would not.