Southaven, MS Noise Ordinances: Vehicle Noise (2026)
Key Facts
- Motor noise
- Unlawful if not reasonably required, including backfiring and motor racing
- Horns
- Unlawful except as a danger warning
- Exhaust
- Must pass through a muffler or similar device
- Off-road vehicles
- Motorcycle and off-road vehicle noise covered by § 10-96
- Maximum penalty
- $1,000 and/or 90 days in jail
- Enforcing office
- Chief of police or designee
Summary
In the City of Southaven, Mississippi, noise from a vehicle motor not reasonably required for its operation, including backfiring and motor racing, is unlawful, as is sounding a horn except as a danger warning and discharging exhaust without a muffler. A conviction is a misdemeanor with a fine up to $1,000.
(1)Motor noises: Any noise made by the motor of any automobile, truck, tractor, motorcycle, not reasonably required in the operation thereof under the circumstances and shall include, but not be limited to backfiring and motor racing. (2)Horns and signaling devices: The sounding of any horn or signaling device on any automobile, motorcycle, trolley coach or other vehicle on any street or public place of the city, except as a danger warning; the creation by means of any such signaling device of any unreasonably loud or harsh sound; and the sounding of any such device for an unnecessary and unreasonable period of time. ... (7)Exhausts: The discharge into open air of the exhaust of any steam engine, stationary internal combustion engine, motorboat or motor vehicle except through a muffler or other device which will effectively prevent loud or explosive noises therefrom.
Full Breakdown
Vehicle noise in the City of Southaven is written into the Noise Control chapter (Title X, Chapter 2), in § 10-122 subsections (1), (2) and (7). Subsection (1) makes unlawful any noise made by the motor of an automobile, truck, tractor or motorcycle that is not reasonably required in its operation under the circumstances, and it names backfiring and motor racing. Subsection (2) covers horns and signaling devices on any vehicle on a street or public place of the city. Sounding one is unlawful except as a danger warning. The subsection also reaches any unreasonably loud or harsh sound from a signaling device and its use for an unnecessary and unreasonable period of time. It bars any signaling device not operated by hand or electricity, any horn, whistle or device operated by engine exhaust, and the use of a signaling device when traffic is for any reason held up.
Subsection (7) makes it unlawful to discharge into the open air the exhaust of a steam engine, stationary internal combustion engine, motorboat or motor vehicle except through a muffler or other device that effectively prevents loud or explosive noises. Normal industrial operations on property in M-1 light industrial and M-2 heavy industrial districts are excluded from subsection (7).
Two related sections sit in the same chapter. Section 10-96 makes it unlawful to operate any motorcycle or recreational off-road vehicle on or off a public road in such a manner that the noise violates the standards of the chapter. Section 10-97(a) applies the same standards to vehicle-mounted waste or garbage loading and compaction equipment, while § 10-97(b) says the section does not abridge or conflict with the powers of the state over motor vehicle control. The chapter prints no decibel number for a passing vehicle, so the tests are the words of § 10-122 and the factors in § 10-121(b), which include the time of day or night and proximity to residential sleeping facilities. The chief of police or a designee enforces the chapter (§ 10-141).
Violations & Fines
Under § 10-67, a violation of the Noise Control chapter is a misdemeanor. A person convicted is punished by a fine of not more than $1,000 and/or ninety days in jail, and a continuation of a violation is a separate offense each day. Enforcement belongs to the chief of police or a designee under § 10-141.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it illegal to honk a horn in Southaven?
Does Southaven ban backfiring and revving?
Do I need a muffler in Southaven?
Does the noise chapter cover dirt bikes and off-road vehicles?
What is the penalty for excessive vehicle noise?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Southaven
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