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"There was a time when one old eccentric guy with a notebook could do something important to science. Now even the resources of a major university are often not enough."
- Jerry Pournelle

Car Sound Tape  
  Otherwise silent vehicle uses a recorded engine sound.  

Pixel the kitten feels uncomfortable with the loud sounds made by a replica Model T. What to do?

Starting about 2150 or a little bit earlier... supreme swank for an Iowa farmer was to own and drive a working replica of a twentieth century "automobile" personal transport vehicle. Of course not a vehicle moved by means of internal explosions of a derivative of rock oil: Even the People's Republic of South Africa had laws against placing poisons in the air. But with its Shipstone concealed and a sound tape to supply the noise of a soi-disant "IC" engine, the difference between a working replica and a real "automobile" was not readily apparent.

This one was the swankiest of all replicas, a Tin Lizzy, a "Ford touring car, Model T, 1914."

"Need a lift, folks?" Uncle Jock asked. Up close the racket was horrible...

Uncle Jock reached down and switched off the sound effects. I said, "Thanks, Uncle. The noise was scaring our kitten..."

Technovelgy from The Cat Who Walks Through Walls, by Robert Heinlein.
Published by Putnam in 1985
Additional resources -

Thanks to Rod for being almost right in his comment on an earlier story - What Should A Hybrid Sound Like?.

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Additional resources:
  More Ideas and Technology from The Cat Who Walks Through Walls
  More Ideas and Technology by Robert Heinlein
  Tech news articles related to The Cat Who Walks Through Walls
  Tech news articles related to works by Robert Heinlein

Car Sound Tape-related news articles:
  - What Should A Hybrid Sound Like?
  - Electric Cars To Make Noise By Law?
  - Audi E-Sound Gives Electric Cars A Voice
  - EU Parliament Requires Electric Cars To Make Noise
  - Vroom! Your Car Or Truck's Engine Noise Might Be Fake
  - Quiet Electric Cars Law Finalized By US Transportation Department
  - Jaguar I-Pace Audible Vehicle Alert System For EVs
  - Tesla Model 3 Has Outside Speaker Grille
  - AVAS Noisemakers Required For EVs By EU
  - IconicSounds Electric - BMW EV Scored By Hans Zimmer

Articles related to Vehicle
Maybe It's Too Soon To Require Autonomous Mode
Caterpillar Electric Mining Loader Not Yet Ready For Moon
Engineer Creates Crazy Motorized Track Hospital Bed
Xiaomi Self-Driving Self-Balancing Scooter

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