I was in town today in our RAV4 EV and rolled down a window while stopped for a light. The din of the traffic was overwhelming, almost all of it ICE sounds. We've gotten so used to it that we don't really hear it, I suspect. But I fast forwarded a few years in my mind and thought about what the city would sound like without the ICEs. It will be an amazingly quieter place, and if more people could visualize what a difference EVs will make it should be another incentive to buy now.
Meh, blind people aren't allowed to drive, so as long as they walk on the sidewalk and wait at crosswalks for the beeping noise, they'll be fine. Last time I checked, me not hitting people while I drive is much more a function of me avoiding them then them running out of my way.
Sadly, it wouldn't. One of the nicer aspects of ICE audio pollution is that it acts as a white noise to combat the "music" of other drivers.
I wasn't talking about country music. That's actually music. And fumes is a different thing. I was talking about just the audio.
If only that were that case. I know it's not the case every time I reach a stoplight on a "windows down" day.
Country music isn't the problem. It the ones booming heavy base throbbing at 100+dB with their windows open.
Unless you actually have to listen to it. +1 Or even with the windows closed (yours or theirs) because window position doesn't make much difference. Sometimes you get lucky and their base matches what you're listening to but usually it's just annoying.
OMG the thread wandered back on topic! Yes, I think the FUD about making EVs have noisemakers would go away if the driving environment was quiet in the first place. There's plenty of sound from the wheels; you don't need an ICE.
The FUD about EVs having noisemakers is mostly about keeping EVs looking like toys. Real grown ups don't drive toys, so adoption is slowed giving the ICE car manufacturers a little longer life. Of course, that's not how it's spun to the legislators and no legislator wants to appear unsympathetic so it's an easy sell, even if the facts don't support it.