Manchester, NH Noise Ordinances: Vehicle Noise (2026)

City ordinance sets an 80 dBA ceiling for motor vehicles under 10,000 pounds GVW at any time of day, measured 25 feet from the source vehicle under any condition of acceleration, deceleration, idle, grade or load. Operating a vehicle that exceeds this limit is prohibited, as is modifying an exhaust muffler, air intake muffler or other sound-reducing device so the vehicle's noise exceeds the Table B limit, except where state law permits it. Horns may only be sounded as a genuine warning, not as a nuisance, and vehicles that are out of repair or overloaded so they rattle, grind or grate loudly are separately banned. The Police Department enforces the chapter, and the city's Noise Variance Board (the Committee on Administration of the Board of Mayor and Aldermen) can grant limited relief, but not for continued violations that are physically injurious to others.