Loud pipes save lives, say Harley-Davidson owners who replace their stock muffled exhaust systems with straight pipes. We're not going to argue the efficacy of that sentiment, but we will point out that excessively loud noises of any kind can permanently damage your hearing. And, according to the video up above, putting the wrong kind of aftermarket exhaust system on a 2017 Chevy Camaro ZL1 can result in an engine note that's so loud it can blow a pair of side curtain airbags.
According to YouTube user and ZL1 owner GuitarmageddonZL1, a pair of exhaust diverters from a company called Noweeds routes the tubes too close to the Camaro's airbag sensor. The resulting sound and pressure is apparently enough to trick the sensor into thinking the car was involved in an accident. Whoops. According to the comments section of the video on YouTube, Noweeds has been "very nice and helpful with everything." But we don't know if that means the diverters have been redesigned.
If you watch the whole video, you'll see that the exhaust diverters actually worked exactly as intended. While the ZL1 is up on a lift, you can clearly see the servo motors opening and closing flaps in the exhaust to either keep the Camaro sounding stock, or, as is described about 9 minutes and 40 seconds into the video, "like a race car." The airbags go off around the 10:20 mark, if you want to skip straight to the punchline. But beware, there's some potentially not-safe-for-work language shortly thereafter.
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According to YouTube user and ZL1 owner GuitarmageddonZL1, a pair of exhaust diverters from a company called Noweeds routes the tubes too close to the Camaro's airbag sensor. The resulting sound and pressure is apparently enough to trick the sensor into thinking the car was involved in an accident. Whoops. According to the comments section of the video on YouTube, Noweeds has been "very nice and helpful with everything." But we don't know if that means the diverters have been redesigned.
If you watch the whole video, you'll see that the exhaust diverters actually worked exactly as intended. While the ZL1 is up on a lift, you can clearly see the servo motors opening and closing flaps in the exhaust to either keep the Camaro sounding stock, or, as is described about 9 minutes and 40 seconds into the video, "like a race car." The airbags go off around the 10:20 mark, if you want to skip straight to the punchline. But beware, there's some potentially not-safe-for-work language shortly thereafter.
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