[karthi.stark]

Electric cars are becoming more popular day by day among the masses with growing petroleum prices and increasing concerns over issues like Climate Change and Global Warming. It all started with Tesla, which made electric cars appealing to the society. Electric cars till then were viewed as boring and puny. There has been immense development in the battery technology of Electric cars, with their ranges increasing every year with a new model and charging time decreasing as well.

However, I've always noticed that electric cars are criticized because of the fact that they don't give the sound of a revving engine which is music to the ears of any petrolhead. Even in some of the reviews of electric cars here on Team-BHP(Including GTO's thread on electric cars), the absence of Aural Pleasure in electric cars has always been included in the 'dislikes' section. Many of the BHPians here have also expressed their criticism over the absence of "Aural Pleasure" in Electric cars. In fact, some of my peers said that they wouldn't buy an electric car today because of that.

My question to you guys is:

Are you willing to sacrifice your desire for "music" from the exhausts just for the sake of our planet's future? If yes, then why are you complaining about the lack of "Aural Pleasure" in electric cars? Shouldn't you be proud that you are preserving the future of your planet with electric cars?

Don't you think that the lack of sound in Electric cars would also results in them contributing zero percent to Noise Pollution levels in Metropolitan cities? How often have people in these places complained about Noise Pollution?

Here's a video where Jeremy Clarkson talks about this "issue" as well:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5gFGX43vubM

Note: This thread is not meant to be a personal attack on any BHPian here. I'm making this thread because I felt the need to address this issue.

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by karthi.stark

Are you willing to sacrifice your desire for "music" from the exhausts just for the sake of our planet's future?

Don't you think that the lack of sound in Electric cars would also result in them contributing zero per cent to Noise Pollution levels in Metropolitan cities? How often have people in these places complained about Noise Pollution?

Rather than 'aural pleasure' I am interested in how will other road users be made aware of their presence compared to the ICE ones (To counter this, people would start honking around to let the other road users know about their presence)? In an ICE car, the clatter from the engine is enough to make one aware that something is around us and one's attention is drawn but in case of an EV, it is silent. I know manufacturers have thought about it and have some feature/software to artificially generate sounds.

Here in Hyderabad, I've seen many bikers panic the moment a 'BYD' Electric bus passes them as there is hardly any sound from them compared to the regular Tata/Ashok Leyland buses.

Overall I feel it is bad from the 'safety' point of view but acceptable as NVH related issues are less and damping doors/floor is not that important to counteract the clatter of the engine etc.

[Capricorn]

I am now driving to office instead of riding even though it doubles my commute time. Reason? To avoid noise. Safety is now less important than emotional well being. Continuous high dB irritates me.

95% of the spent during driving I expect it to be noise free. Only sound I like is music at lower to mid level and the chatting of passengers.

For the 5% of the time I revv, there are alternatives. It is not difficult to fit in artificial sound that provides aural pleasure from music system like Revolt did with RV400 via an app.

So it is No. I won't miss aural pleasure in eletric cars. Rather it was one of my primary requirement in car purchase (I didn't have sorted electric cars at that time).

[landcruiser123]

Originally Posted by karthi.stark

Shouldn't you be proud that you are preserving the future of your planet with electric cars?

I think there can be a middle ground. For pleasure, EVs can emit fake noise at speed inside the cabin. The tune can be adjusted according to structures like tunnels are detected with GPS, AI and/or other processing algorithms.
Refer the part below the quote for additional info.

Originally Posted by a4anurag

Rather than 'aural pleasure' I am interested in how will other road users be made aware of their presence compared to the ICE ones

EU and the US have laws that require EVs to emit artificial noise while traveling at slow speeds (I think under 20 mph). This is to help the blind, pedestrians, and cyclists who rely on aural cues while navigating their surroundings.

At higher speeds, road noise should make people aware of the presence of an automobile.

[GTO]

I'm big on engine sound and it's an important part of the driving experience for me. Heck, my last two petrol cars had superbly tuned free-flow exhausts & my current diesel sounds insane at the redline . But in EVs, that "missing soundtrack" greatly takes away from the experience for me. Equally, I might add, the lack of sound will be appreciated by the mass market.

Maybe it won't bother me while calmly cruising. But when I'm pushing the car, I just want that entertaining exhaust note.

Two examples. Complete lack of drama in the Taycan. Sounds like one of those electric trains we use within airports

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8m31EgQkswg

My kind of sound

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=21ViKU145tM

[Doge]

There was no engine or exhaust note that was attractive in the mass market, especially in India. Further, as combustion engines progress and get more tech, the noise either is muffled or is worse than before.
I don't see a problem, in fact I welcome it. The silence would make driving so much more peaceful too.
Hopefully RE is electrified so I don't have to hear some dude with masculinity troubles from 5 miles away.

[reihem]

I have to admit I love the sounds I experience when I encounter the odd super car here in India or while traveling abroad. The sounds I experience when I encounter a Swift with a botched silencer job, on the other hand, makes me want to buy ear plugs for myself and a water gun for the car’s owner.

My garage features A) a polestar tuned diesel Volvo v40 that pumps out 177 bhp and 400 nm of torque between 2000 and 3000 rpm give or take. B) a Hyundai Konda that pumps out 136 bhp and 395 nm of torque available ALL THE TIME.

I have found it impossible today to say which car is more enjoyable. The Volvo is loud and brash and let’s her presence be known when I floor her. The kona is fast like a bullet with surreal acceleration all while maintaining pin drop silence.

I hate the VESS (vehicle engine sound simulation) that Hyundai turns on by default every time I turn on the car. (I equally hate the engine stop start on the Volvo being set to default. So each one has it own quirks). Sound simulation in EVs needs to be revisited by whoever sets these standards. The whining noise that has been made compulsory today does nothing for safety and is truly irritating. I just turn it off and enjoy the zen like silence. When I need to let someone know I’m around I tap the horn quickly.

[DarthVeda]

sooner the sound of those water pumps (RE) are gone, it is better. On a serious note, we are used to hearing these sounds and grown accustomed to them, a change is always resisted by us, who is to say that in future, people expect the transport to be minimal noise and love it. I bet a century ago, people missed the sound of horse hoof beats and complained the same about engines.

[1.2TSI7DSG]

There was a movie in 2011 on this. The dilemma. You should watch it to resonate with "aural" pleasures.

[Turbanator]

It might change in future

https://www.cnet.com/roadshow/news/f...d-sherpa-mode/

[svsantosh]

I just came here from the 'Violent' road rage attack thread elsewhere in this forum... In hindsight I see electric cars as a way to reduce road rage.

Victim - Cuts off Hero inadvertently
RoadSide-Hero - 'Teri ***' presses pedal (in Neutral) with anger, up/down/up/down - 'nothing happens'

Drives away, at least that's how I envision it to end...

[ach1lles]

The most romantic aspect of engines and one that will be a true differentiator between today and tomorrow's mobility.
Even as a kid with Hot Wheels in my hands, I used to make that sound while tracking them, with up-shift breaks in symphony. This whole thing of reaching the limit but not really, till you upshift, and there's a whole new limit available and another one after that, and another one after that..., is truly culture defining, and nothing exemplifies this more that Clarkson's Zonda R video (start at 1:06):

https://youtu.be/jL2B_wN4XW0?t=66

...and all you have to do when the fury runs out: pull the lever, and it starts all over again...

Bruh. It leaves you breathless.

The sound then, I'd argue, has been the defining aspect of every enthusiast's appreciation for BHPs. Watch a movie like Ford v Ferrari with a good sound system, and every scene with that howling V8 sends tingles down your spine.
There have been songs, movies, entire TV shows, and other works of art that honour this, with my favourite amongst them: Danger Zone.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=saW3q2Bflug

Revvin' up your engine
Listen to her howlin' roar
Metal under tension
Beggin' you to touch and go
Highway to the danger zone
Ride into the danger zone

Oh, man.
It's been epic.
But. It's been an indulgence.
It's time to let it go. Once you've used an electric vehicle, be it a car or a bike, you realise just how last century ICE is. It'll live on for some more time fulfilling gaps that newer tech can't yet cover, but it's the beginning of the end of a true era.
Maybe we'll find something else to catch our fancy on "team-kw.com"

Originally Posted by Turbanator

It might change in future

https://www.cnet.com/roadshow/news/f...d-sherpa-mode/

Inauthentic. It's like making a keto-café while trying to substitute mashed potatoes with mashed cabbage. It has never worked. It won't. Living beings are too dependent on their own senses for anything like this to fly.

[SJQIL87]

Even though I don't like electric cars because of the said aural pleasure, drain issue, etc, I must admit that this will be the future.
May be for aural pleasure some aftermarket equipment may arrive

[Trucker]

My view on this is that the EVs need not make any ICE like sounds for pedestrian safety. How about tap into the other senses of humans to create an alert for when an EV is close by - how about light? There could be some combinations from the spectrum that are visible even in day light and if folks can see this light from an EV, things could be better. What about sub/ultra and any other form of waves that can be made to emit from an EV in motion to alert folks around?

[racer_7]

And we thought with F1 moving to turbo engines killed the experience, makes me shudder to think how it would be when they turn to electric. I once saw a broadcast of Formula e when Mahindra was tom tomming about their participation in it...was quite sad after watching it