All Model 3s built since 9/1/2019 have a pedestrian warning speaker installed

[oripaamoni]

Bumper came off and on very quickly so I only got one crappy photo of it. Looks like a fully contained unit (logic, amp, speaker) with power and data going to it. Next steps would be to disassemble the assembly and measure the impedence at the speaker but I obviously wasn't going to do that in front of the mobile tech. That being said I will probably just leave it. It's almost unnoticeable in drive and rather useful in reverse.

 

[n2mb_racing]

Bumper came off and on very quickly so I only got one crappy photo of it. Looks like a fully contained unit (logic, amp, speaker) with power and data going to it. Next steps would be to disassemble the assembly and measure the impedence at the speaker but I obviously wasn't going to do that in front of the mobile tech. That being said I will probably just leave it. It's almost unnoticeable in drive and rather useful in reverse.

Why not just unplug it and see if the car cares about it being gone? It might not.

 

[oripaamoni]

Why not just unplug it and see if the car cares about it being gone? It might not.

It for sure will. There is an icon that appears as the system boot to let you know that the sounds aren't immediately available.

 

[Brnn]

So has anyone tried unplugging it to see what happens? If not, I don’t mind giving it a shot. Anyone know how it can be accessed? Don’t really want to remove the bumper.

 

[ckoval7]

So has anyone tried unplugging it to see what happens? If not, I don’t mind giving it a shot. Anyone know how it can be accessed? Don’t really want to remove the bumper.

Maybe you could try getting to it by removing the frunk liner.

 

[abasile]

I would have thought that in litigious America, defeating a safety device would likely end in a big bill if someone came to harm because they claim they did not hear you. In UK, I think an insurance company would be within their rights to not payout for any damages directly resulting to interfering with a safety device.

Indeed. I would not want the likely-not-covered personal liability associated with unplugging the speaker.

In normal day-to-day driving, I can't really see a good reason to turn off the noisemaker. While I'd prefer to have it off on some occasions such as driving isolated dirt roads at low speed with the windows open, and I hate that the law applies to EVs but not to quiet ICEs, I'll admit that the noisemaker will likely save some lives and prevent some injuries. The key is to keep it from being so annoying that it hinders EV adoption, and Tesla seems to have done well enough at that.

 

[PACEMD]

I'll admit that the noisemaker will likely save some lives and prevent some injuries.

Do we have any evidence of that? Any at all? More likely just one of those issues that seems like it might make some sense, maybe, but just as likely is not actually a thing. I'm still trying to imagine how I could sneak up on someone and hit them with neither of us being aware simply because the car is less noisy. I got nothing. Backing out of a crowded parking lot, perhaps. But that's not really different from an ICE machine. Someone jumping in front of you, perhaps? Always assume people will do stupid things, regardless of what you're driving.

 

[abasile]

I'm still trying to imagine how I could sneak up on someone and hit them with neither of us being aware simply because the car is less noisy. I got nothing.

Imagine someone walking through a parking lot while glued to their phone, not noticing your car. You get distracted as well, and fail to notice the pedestrian who stepped from behind a large truck and directly into the path of your vehicle. Blammo. Would a noisemaker on your car have been enough to get the pedestrian's attention? That's likely, though only if they weren't playing loud music on their AirPods.

Or, suppose you're accelerating at an intersection and a pedestrian suddenly steps right in front of your car because they assumed that no cars were present and didn't even bother to look. A noisemaker likely would have helped, but again, only if the pedestrian wasn't listening to loud music through headphones.

In support of your argument, though, if the car's active safety features are good enough, then the car should engage its AEB (automatic emergency braking) rather than hitting the pedestrian. If the car is good enough at avoiding pedestrians, then a noisemaker shouldn't be required.

Today, the best way to avoid incidents is for everyone on the roads, whether driving, biking, or walking, to always pay attention to their surroundings. If someone doesn't pay attention and steps in front of a moving vehicle, that's their fault. However, as the driver of that vehicle, I'd much prefer to do whatever I reasonably can to reduce the risk of hitting clueless pedestrians. We're all human.

 

[dgpcolorado]

Do we have any evidence of that? Any at all? More likely just one of those issues that seems like it might make some sense, maybe, but just as likely is not actually a thing. I'm still trying to imagine how I could sneak up on someone and hit them with neither of us being aware simply because the car is less noisy. I got nothing. Backing out of a crowded parking lot, perhaps. But that's not really different from an ICE machine. Someone jumping in front of you, perhaps? Always assume people will do stupid things, regardless of what you're driving.

There is this NHTSA study of hybrid-electric cars:
Incidence Rates of Pedestrian And Bicyclist Crashes by Hybrid Electric Passenger Vehicles: An Update
If you find it compelling.

A recent article on the noisemaker law:

Beep. Ding. Vroom. Electric Cars Need to Make Noise for Safety, but What Kind?

I drove a LEAF with a noisemaker for years and the forward sound was inaudible to the driver except when driving next to a reflective hard surface with the windows open, much as Model 3 owners have reported upthread. The reverse beep was much more audible and I really liked it for backing out of parking spaces in crowded grocery store lots. However, some LEAF owners were livid about the reverse beeper because it meant waking up the neighbors when they left for work in the quiet early hours of the morning, which is not something I cared about, having no neighbors other than chipmunks, scrub jays, deer, and mountain lions. For those people, I would suggest backing into the garage, since the forward sound is so mild and unobtrusive it isn't going to wake anybody up.

 

[abasile]

However, some LEAF owners were livid about the reverse beeper because it meant waking up the neighbors when they left for work in the quiet early hours of the morning, which is not something I cared about, having no neighbors other than chipmunks, scrub jays, deer, and mountain lions. For those people, I would suggest backing into the garage, since the forward sound is so mild and unobtrusive it isn't going to wake anybody up.

The reverse beeper on the LEAF is, in my opinion, pretty obnoxious compared to what Tesla has implemented on the Model 3. Our 2011 LEAF came from the factory with a button to disable the noisemaker; later LEAFs lack that button. We always use the reverse beeper in parking lots, but it's annoying at home. Backing into one's garage or parking spot is a good workaround, but only if the charging station is situated appropriately; our cable won't reach if we back the LEAF in. My guess is that the reverse sound won't end up being much of an issue for Tesla owners.

 

[Dan203]

After getting my car, it's not that bad. I can't even hear it unless the radio is off and the windows are down. Maybe the forward sound a little, but it just kind of sounds like a woosh or maybe wind noise from the inside. Although I do still wish it was silent and I think this whole thing is unnecessary.

 

[PACEMD]

Imagine someone walking through a parking lot while glued to their phone, not noticing your car. You get distracted as well, and fail to notice the pedestrian who stepped from behind a large truck and directly into the path of your vehicle. Blammo. Would a noisemaker on your car have been enough to get the pedestrian's attention? That's likely, though only if they weren't playing loud music on their AirPods.

Or, suppose you're accelerating at an intersection and a pedestrian suddenly steps right in front of your car because they assumed that no cars were present and didn't even bother to look. A noisemaker likely would have helped, but again, only if the pedestrian wasn't listening to loud music through headphones.

In support of your argument, though, if the car's active safety features are good enough, then the car should engage its AEB (automatic emergency braking) rather than hitting the pedestrian. If the car is good enough at avoiding pedestrians, then a noisemaker shouldn't be required.

Today, the best way to avoid incidents is for everyone on the roads, whether driving, biking, or walking, to always pay attention to their surroundings. If someone doesn't pay attention and steps in front of a moving vehicle, that's their fault. However, as the driver of that vehicle, I'd much prefer to do whatever I reasonably can to reduce the risk of hitting clueless pedestrians. We're all human.

I'm not convinced that noise is a significant factor in those scenarios. Electric cars are not noise-free, they just produce less noise. They are also not invisible, well except perhaps stealth models. If you are paying attention it's not hard to see a moving vehicle, assuming you have adequate eyesight. But you also need adequate hearing for the sounds. Could a produced noise increase pedestrian awareness for those otherwise asleep at the job? Probably. Is that the critical factor? Different question, probably not. It's my job as a driver to assume everyone else will do something unexpected. That said, I personally have no dog in this fight one way or the other. Meaning I made no argument, just asked the question.

 

[PACEMD]

There is this NHTSA study of hybrid-electric cars:
Incidence Rates of Pedestrian And Bicyclist Crashes by Hybrid Electric Passenger Vehicles: An Update
If you find it compelling.

Right, thanks for that link. I'm happy to keep that study in mind but there are obvious problems using that data to draw a conclusion that either there is a problem or that a noisemaker below 19 mph is the solution.

 

[dgpcolorado]

I'm not convinced that noise is a significant factor in those scenarios. Electric cars are not noise-free, they just produce less noise. They are also not invisible, well except perhaps stealth models. If you are paying attention it's not hard to see a moving vehicle, assuming you have adequate eyesight. But you also need adequate hearing for the sounds. Could a produced noise increase pedestrian awareness for those otherwise asleep at the job? Probably. Is that the critical factor? Different question, probably not. It's my job as a driver to assume everyone else will do something unexpected. That said, I personally have no dog in this fight one way or the other. Meaning I made no argument, just asked the question.

I believe that the noisemaker is intended to help the blind, who have to rely on hearing to locate cars. If someone unaware suddenly steps out in front of one's car, even an alert driver might not be able to avoid a collision.

As for EVs making enough noise at slow speeds without the noisemaker, some of us have had the experience of following a pedestrian in a parking lot who was completely unaware of our presence. Much as I prefer my quiet car, at least when the AC isn't roaring(!), I can see the point of the low-speed noisemaker.

 

[DopeGhoti]

As for EVs making enough noise at slow speeds without the noisemaker, some of us have had the experience of following a pedestrian in a parking lot who was completely unaware of our presence. Much as I prefer my quiet car, at least when the AC isn't roaring(!), I can see the point of the low-speed noisemaker.

This is not unique to EVs; I've had the same thing happen when driving an ICE car. The reasonable complaint IMO is not that EVs are required to have sound projection systems per se, but rather that the requirement is targeted at EVs specifically rather than all vehicles which to not rate a certain decibel level at parking-lot speeds.

 

[PACEMD]

I believe that the noisemaker is intended to help the blind, who have to rely on hearing to locate cars. If someone unaware suddenly steps out in front of one's car, even an alert driver might not be able to avoid a collision.

The blind leading the blind. If I can't control my vehicle well enough at speeds of 0-19 mph to avoid running over the blind just take away my license............Driving is a dance we do with strangers. Some drivers might be better off with a loudspeaker and disco lights to warn the rest of us of their presence but that's a different problem and solution...........

 

[StellarRat]

The blind leading the blind. If I can't control my vehicle well enough at speeds of 0-19 mph to avoid running over the blind just take away my license............Driving is a dance we do with strangers. Some drivers might be better off with a loudspeaker and disco lights to warn the rest of us of their presence but that's a different problem and solution...........

And if some kid comes running out from between two cars in a parking lot you will be able to stop instantly? I doubt it. You'd probably blame the parents for that, right?

 

[dgpcolorado]

The blind leading the blind. If I can't control my vehicle well enough at speeds of 0-19 mph to avoid running over the blind just take away my license............Driving is a dance we do with strangers. Some drivers might be better off with a loudspeaker and disco lights to warn the rest of us of their presence but that's a different problem and solution...........

The idea is to let the blind know where cars are so that they can know when it is safe to proceed. It isn't a reflection on your driving skill. One of my college classmates is blind so I have some sympathy for the problem.

 

[PACEMD]

I very much doubt the law was passed with consideration of the blind but you can research that if you like.

 

[PACEMD]

And if some kid comes running out from between two cars in a parking lot you will be able to stop instantly? I doubt it. You'd probably blame the parents for that, right?

Of course, I can stop. That's my point. Always? No, not always. But that has nothing to do with the question. The question is will noisemakers prevent that. We have nothing but........oh seems like that might make some sense to support that idea. Things which seem like they might make sense have a way of often not panning out.......