Santa Fe, NM Noise Ordinances: Vehicle Noise (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- City Code § 12-10-1.10
- Banned hardware
- Cutouts, bypasses, baffle-less straight pipes
- Emissions cutoff
- 1968-model-year vehicles and newer
- First-offense cure
- Repair and pass test within 90 days
- Decibel standard
- Set in noise ordinance § 10-2.9
- Installer liability
- Sellers/installers of illegal mufflers also liable
Summary
Santa Fe requires every motor vehicle to run a working muffler that prevents excessive noise and bans cutouts, bypasses, and baffle-less straight pipes under City Code Section 12-10-1.10. Even a factory-installed exhaust option violates the rule if it exceeds the decibel level set in the city's noise chapter, Section 10-2.9.
A.Every motor vehicle shall at all times be equipped with a muffler in good working order and in constant operation to prevent excessive or unusual noise, and no person shall use a muffler cutout, muffler bypass, straight-through mufflers that do not contain baffles (including but not limited to glass packs, steel packs, and straight pipes), or similar device upon a motor vehicle on a street in this municipality. ... D.The use of a factory-installed exhaust option is prohibited and violates this ordinance if the noise-emitted exceeds the decibel level reading described in Section 10.2-9.
Full Breakdown
10 requires every motor vehicle operating in Santa Fe to be equipped at all times with a muffler in good working order and constant operation, and it separately bans muffler cutouts, muffler bypasses, and straight-through mufflers lacking baffles, naming glass packs, steel packs, and straight pipes as examples of the prohibited hardware. Subsection B extends the same standard to emission control equipment, requiring the muffler, engine, and power mechanism to be adjusted to prevent excessive fumes or smoke, and Subsection C requires 1968-model-year and newer gasoline vehicles to keep their factory emissions equipment intact and bars modifications that would amplify noise above what the original factory muffler produced, tying the standard back to NMSA 1978 Section 66-3-844.
9. Subsection E extends liability to anyone who sells, installs, or modifies a muffler or intake system in a way that increases noise, fumes, or smoke, not just the vehicle's owner or driver. 9 decibel thresholds, which a cited driver can also use as an affirmative defense.
Violations & Fines
Driving with a defective or removed muffler, a cutout, bypass, or baffle-less straight-through exhaust, or a factory exhaust option that exceeds the decibel level in Section 10-2.9 violates Section 12-10-1.10. A first offense is dismissed if the vehicle is repaired and passes a compliance test within 90 days of citation; sellers and installers of illegal muffler modifications are separately liable under Subsection E.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are straight pipes legal on cars in Santa Fe?
Can I avoid a ticket if I fix my loud muffler after being cited?
Who is liable for installing an illegal muffler in Santa Fe, the shop or the driver?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Santa Fe
Compare Santa Fe to another location·View the New Mexico noise ordinances overview
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