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Comments on Electric Cars To Make Noise By Law?
A quarter-century ago, an SF writer thought that it might be cool to give silent cars real engine sounds. Now, you might be forced to - and no way to turn it off. (Read
the complete story)
| "This is still crazy. Noisy bicycles are next!" ('attention blind people!' 'attention blind people! 5/13/2009 5:19:56 PM) |
| "Of all the silly internet sites that have comment sections, the one site that SHOULD DEFINITELY have a comment section on every damn page ... is thomas.loc.gov." (an' another thing! 5/13/2009 5:22:24 PM) |
| "I volunteered at a blind center for awhile, and I can tell you that requiring that electric cars make *some* kind of noise is not a crazy idea at all. But the noise doesn't have to be obnoxious - chirping birds, harp music, cat meows - would all work, just as long as it was recognizable as a potiential hazard. A monotone hum would be useful because then blind peeps can use the doppler effect to help figure out a car's distance and speed.
" (Moondragon 5/14/2009 5:19:58 PM) |
| "Just one more tidbit that may (or may not) interest you: When I drive a stick shift, I don't use a tachometer to know when to shift gears, I listen for the engine sound to reach a certain pitch. I learned it by observing my mom drive when I was a kid.
" (Moondragon 5/14/2009 5:33:46 PM) |
| "Will you require the same noise on bicycles, or not?" (still crazy 5/15/2009 12:50:46 AM) |
| "Just to add another element to the discussion, consider that only a portion of the noise from a car comes from the engine. There is a pretty good article on Wikipedia about 'Roadway Noise.' Here's a small bit:
'Roadway surface types contribute differential noise effects of up to 4 dB, with chip seal type and grooved roads being the loudest and concrete surfaces without spacers being the quietest. Asphaltic surfaces are about average. Tire types had considerable design changes in the 1970s, and at this juncture are probably optimized for noise control, given the of safety needs for a significant grip by the tread. Roadway geometrics and surrounding terrain are interrelated, since the propagation of sound is sensitive to the overall geometry...' It's interesting to note that tires were redesigned for less noise, and no advocates for the disabled argued about that (or did they?). Anyway, read more about Roadway Noise." (Bill Christensen 5/15/2009 5:10:49 PM) |
| "Moondragon - thanks for taking the side you did, even though the majority (as far as I can tell for this article and a previous one), think that adding noise to cars is crazy. I'd like to know if there are any usable statistics on quiet hybrids and accidents; there are a million Prius now on the roads." (Bill Christensen 5/15/2009 5:16:37 PM) |
| "If my electric car has to make noise, I want it to sound like George Jetson's flying car." (Indiana Joe 5/16/2009 12:20:42 PM) |
| "Amen. See more suggestions on what an electric car should sound like from me (and have access to the Jetson's car sound), and more suggestions on electric car noise from readers." (Bill Christensen 5/16/2009 1:02:43 PM) |
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