Electric cars can't stay silent forever, noise is coming soon

-


We can already picture all the NVH engineers huddled in some back corner crying together. After all, they just find out that the duties they held of eliminating noises from cars for decades are about to be crushed by a new safety guideline that will put noise back into electric and hybrid vehicles.


Automakers, along with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and advocates for the blind, have come to the conclusion that electric and hybrid cars need to make some noise as they motor whiz on down the road. Though an initial agreement has been reached, it could take up to three years to be finalized and become law, but that's politics for ya, eh? However, some of the proposed changes could wind up in the Motor Safety Act of 2010 if standards are agreed upon soon.

Here's an overview of the suggestions in the proposal. The NHTSA would create a standard for minimum/maximum levels of sound when a vehicle is operating in low-speed situations. The sounds cannot be customizable or randomly chosen from anything out there, which means that no hardcore rap or other potentially offensive sounds will emanate from EVs. The sounds will be pre-approved by the NHTSA on a vehicle-to-vehicle basis and owners will be able to select from a playlist of sounds associated with each EV.

Somehow, the noise coming from an EV is supposed to directly relate the vehicle's speed to nearby pedestrians. The new guidelines will make EVs noisy, which may in turn be a drawback for many buyers interested in serene, silent motoring. While EVs may still be zero-emissions, there's now a new issue of noise pollution to deal with... We're certain that some people won't be too thrilled about this, but it's always safety first, right?

[Source: CNNMoney]

Electric cars can't stay silent forever, noise is coming soon originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Sun, 23 May 2010 16:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Via Autoblog Green

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Dacia Spring (2024 model, launched in summer)

-
Image
Is this the best value NEW electric car? Dacia has overtaken Renault, Audi and BMW on the European market Using a platform from Renault Nissan in China, the Spring is a small 4 seat family EV that promises electric range of up to 140 miles. Dacia will launch, in the second part of this year, a new version of the Spring model. Dacia Spring 2024 will have a more robust design, new interior elements, but the model remains the most affordable electric car on the market, which is good considering that the state cut the Rabla Plus bonuses in half. Orders for the Dacia Spring 2024 will open in the spring. For the first time, the right-hand drive model will be produced for UK customers. "The new Spring adopts the new design elements inaugurated by the third generation of the Duster model. The model thus benefits from a more robust appearance with more personality, while the interior has been completely redone. The pavilion is the only component of the body preserved from the previous gene
Read more

Fastest Police Cars in the World

-
Image
If the thought of evading the police when the sirens come on has ever entered your mind you had better think again because the car in your review mirror could just be a Caparo T1 supercar, capable of traveling at 200mph. Don’t sweat just yet. This Caparo T1 decked in police livery is just a concept vehicle developed by the UK’s Met Police and Caparo for the MPH ’07 show set for this weekend in London.
Read more