Dubai Police impounded 218 cars and issued 518 fines for noise in October
Dubai Police say they impounded 218 vehicles and issued 518 fines in October for loud engines, revving and illegal exhaust changes, and will add more noise monitors across the city.
Dubai Police impounded 218 vehicles and issued 518 traffic fines in October in a campaign against cars that make excessive noise on the city's roads, Brigadier Juma Salem bin Suwaidan, director of the General Department of Traffic, said on Friday.
The campaign targeted drivers who rev their engines or accelerate hard to make noise, cars with illegal changes to the engine or exhaust, and drivers who show off on public roads and in residential areas. Sports cars revving in neighbourhoods were named among the main complaints. Police used smart monitoring devices that pick up loud vehicles as well as patrols on the ground, and the force says it will place the devices in more locations and add more detection equipment.
The penalties are steep. Driving a vehicle that makes excessive noise carries a Dh2,000 fine and 12 black points on the licence. Changing a vehicle's engine or chassis without a licence costs Dh1,000 and 12 black points, and the car is impounded for 30 days. Under Dubai's Decree No. 30 of 2023, an owner then has to pay Dh10,000 to get an impounded vehicle released. Twenty-four black points in a year lead to a licence suspension, so a driver caught twice for these offences would lose the right to drive.
Bin Suwaidan said that giving residents a comfortable and peaceful place to live remains a priority for Dubai Police, and that the campaign was carried out across the emirate. Noise from modified cars has been a regular complaint in residential communities, particularly at night and at weekends when car meets gather.
For drivers, the message is that a loud aftermarket exhaust or an engine change that has not been approved can now cost far more than the part itself: the fine, the points and Dh10,000 to get the car back. Anyone planning to modify a car should check with an RTA-approved centre first. Residents who are disturbed by noisy cars can report them through the Police Eye service in the Dubai Police app, or by calling 901, the force's non-emergency number.