Modern cars are getting so quiet that people are starting to complain that they can’t hear them coming. That’s dangerous. We are used to the noise of cars. Folk might start getting run over because they didn’t hear any cars coming and forgot to look. So law makers are starting to think about requiring manufacturers to make their cars noisier. The question is, what noise should they make?
According to Michael Giberson (who got it from the LA Times), Nissan thinks they should make nice, futuristic noises as if they were the flying vehicles in Blade Runner. But of course any decent car manufacturer will allow you to download your very own custom car tune. Mike has some ideas.
Being a sad aging biker, I would probably have my car sounding like a Harley in heat. It might not be very original, but it is a lovely noise.
You forgot the StarRover!
😉
I live in a city were silent vehicles were once obliged by law to make noise — horse sleighs are so quiet Montreal had a bylaw that obliged people to hang sleigh bells to them so people could hear them coming.
I do hope people will come up with pleasant sounds that aren’t _too_ loud — noise pollution is not just an annoyance, it can actually affect you physically, so a significant reduction of it should be welcomed.
I do hope the level of sound will be reduced no matter what (in fact a gradual reduction in loudness over a decade or so would allow people to get used to quiet vehicles and improve everyone’s quality of life.
The Jetsons!
Ice cream van. Just to piss kids off.
The Marquis and La Marquise and I were leaning on the wall of Nottingham Castle on Sunday, when a Harley departed from The Trip below. The sound of it … kinda filled the city.
The sound of James Martin being run down by the Tour de France peleton might be cool.