No sound, no soul?

[anticitizen13.7]

The only Tesla I have driven is a P90D. It was not noisy, but the electric motors did make a whir as they were spinning up. The Model S does have a personality, and I thought the steering and chassis were pretty good for a large sedan.

 

[EnergyMax]

To put it politely, exhaust pipes are nothing more than the bowels of a car. The sound they emit, to me, are the sounds I hear in public restrooms.

Rather than having one source of excreting, some ICE cars have four!

 

[S'toon]

Not only will I not miss the engine noise, I'm looking forward to it. I loathe the engine noise.

People with loud cars aren't driving cars with "soul." I treat it a social warning. "Warning. The person driving this vehicle is a complete and utter ahole. Adjust your interactions accordingly."

 

[NoPetrolDream]

I drive a hybrid now, where the ICE kicks in and out as needed for charging and parallel propulsion to EV mode. While the ICE is very quiet, I love it more when only the electric motor is moving the car.

I drove a V8 Ford pickup for 18 years. Had a glasspack muffler on it. Loved that V8 sound, especially either at idle or when punching it. But I'm done. Just my hybrid experience has weaned me from it. Going full EV in a few years will be awesome...that silent rush of adrenaline when sheer torque hits the pavement during a launch (I've test driven a Model S) is an experience no ICE machine can match.

 

[Wolfsburg]

Well, I'm not going to presume to guess what people "need" but for me it depends entirely on the thing making the noise. A throaty V8 sounds beautiful to me but a little Fast n Furious wannabe rice racer that sounds like an overgrown weedeater is just the opposite.

 

[Seir]

I like the fact that my super-quiet Leaf can take most of the cars/trucks up here that just have to pull up beside me at the light up here (yes, small town place, one light on the highway). No big revving noise or stinky smoke but I love full torque at 0MPH.

 

[Pando]

Some sound is good for safety reasons, but imagine the cacophony on the streets when most cars are EVs.

 

[deonb]

There is actually a sound coming from the inverter when you draw full power from the Model S. It differs from car to car.

In my car it's a pleasing sound - like a Jet engine when it refs up. On some of the loaners I've driven it's more like a squealing pig.

 

[CyberKnife]

I hate the sound of loud cars it is absolutely unnecessary and I associated them to pollution.

I drive a leaf now and when I drive up steep hills I am not bombarded with engine sounds like it is going to die on me or it yelling at me how hard it is trying to go up a hill. EVs just goes up the hill no complaints of loud engine sounds.

It also trips other ICE drivers as the instant torque in EVs accelerates faster from dead stop and I get a surprised look from ICE drivers because they don't expect the silent acceleration. I giggle every time this happens.

 

[igotzzoom]

I've had cars with loud mufflers. I've had my sophomoric fun. I'm kind of over it. If I ever got an old classic restomod or hot rod, or weekend toy, I might enjoy some loud pipes on it, but for a daily driver, I'm perfectly content with the silent power of an EV.

 

[kablammyman]

My first post here, in 2009 shortly before my car arrived, wondered if I would miss the sounds too. In fact I also mentioned the possibility of artificial sounds as an option.

After more than 6 years, I can definitely say that I in no way miss the sounds. I find loud cars really annoying now. That's hard for an enthusiast to believe, because the sounds are so awesome. But if you think about it...noise is not a good thing by itself. The reason we like it is simply because we have associated the sound with power. If you drive an EV for a while, the associations will change. As xmetal noted, there are still noises, and you will come to love them. (Oh, how I love the subtle pod-racer sound my Roadster makes!)

I would guess the transition usually takes around 4-6 weeks - if you go full BEV. If you alternate driving an ICE, the noise association may never fully go away, though it won't be as strong.

i thought i would miss the sound of my turbo spooling and blow off valve noises (its prob one of the biggest reason i put up with the headache of modifying my cars), but you have reassured me and at the same time, made me look forward to silent, ninja like power. 8)

 

[Uncle Paul]

Loud sounding cars are initially exciting, as adrenalin is released with the screeching tires, unrestricted mufflers, banging gearboxes, etc.

Problem is that shortly this becomes very fatiguing and your driving performance drops off.

Professional racing drivers wear earplugs to avoid this fatigue.

Once you drive an electric car, you become more aware of the sounds of things around you. You can converse without raising your voice, music is much more engaging, and you arrive much more refreshed than if you had made the same trip in a loud car.

 

[bxr140]

dunno why a gearhead needs "loud" cars?

It's all about having a visceral experience.

It's funny when sport bike people complaint about the noise harleys make, or v8 people complain about 4 cylinders...because they're all in it for the same exact thing: it's 100% about exciting the senses. Many people want their vehicles to be exhilarating (they call it 'soul', hence this thread), and from a cost perspective, sound is about the easiest sense to excite. So...you end up with a bunch of people driving around with loud vehicles.

The beauty of a tesla is that it stimulates the most visceral of all senses.

 

[S'toon]

It's all about having a visceral experience.

It's funny when sport bike people complaint about the noise harleys make, or v8 people complain about 4 cylinders...because they're all in it for the same exact thing: it's 100% about exciting the senses. Many people want their vehicles to be exhilarating (they call it 'soul', hence this thread), and from a cost perspective, sound is about the easiest sense to excite. So...you end up with a bunch of people driving around with loud vehicles.

The beauty of a tesla is that it stimulates the most visceral of all senses.

One person's "exciting of the senses" is another person's "Look! An ahole!"

 

[plug]

I LOVE the exhaust sound of the Model S as is..

 

[Gizmotoy]

I have an Evo and a Model S. The Evo is not quiet and I always thought the low roar combined with the highly technical turbo and wastegate sounds were great. Still do, really.

That said, the Model S sounds better. Not just quieter, better. The electric whine that turns into a howl of air and tires as RPMs increase is every bit as cool as a high-output ICE. Hell even the little sigh it makes when you accelerate past, and decelerate below about 5mph in parking lots is very cool.

There's no "Look at me!" aspect, though. So if that's the part of the sound you're actually after, I do think there's disappointment to be had moving to an EV.

 

[AUSinator]

In a ICE you associate noise with power and acceleration. In a EV you associate surprise, effortlessness/ease and instant torque with acceleration which i find more addictive.

 

[wallet.dat]

There's no rule that says you can't still own other cars once you get your Mod3.

 

[LilWanFu]

Like many of you I have reserved a TM3.I know this will probably not relate to many of you, but for the true gear heads like me, won't you miss the sound of an engine and exhaust? I know 99% of the time, you really don't want to be hearing those sorts of sounds but that 1% of the time when you want to open it up and hear the engine hitting the limiter, the turbo waste gate fluttering. I wish that an EV had that drama just once in a while. I think without those sounds the car has no soul or character. Maybe eventually you will get a in car app which will play those sounds through the speakers, not the same I know

I can definitely appreciate the throaty sound of a good resonator. The first thing I changed on my Aspen was the exhaust. It's been several years since I changed it then but I would be ok with not having that sound. The MDS shifting has become somewhat annoying though. Even while cruise control is engaged, the MDS engages and disengages frequently. That slight jerk back and forth from the other cylinders kicking on and off--I won't miss.

 

[AudubonB]

To the OP:
I hope you are able to obtain a test drive in either a Model S or X to determine first-hand whether you find their significantly diminished but, as others have pointed out, definitely not silent behavior is appealing to you or not.

If you can't do that...well then, I guess you'll just have to settle for a spin in a Rolls Royce....

I keep a fleet of about 9 vehicles - some of them with a lot more power than our P85 Model S. If I could so order my life, the Model S is the only vehicle I ever would drive. Well, except for the Models X & 3 that we have on order.

Now, I'm just finishing a full resto of my latest acquisition, a 1988 FJ62. My own feeling is of ambivalence: I love what this now properly running and equipped Land Cruiser can do but I consider everything It has that a Tesla hasn't: crankshaft, timing chain, valve clearances, ASV & VSV maintenance, fuel lines, transmission wear and tear....

....and there really, truly is no comparison.

Let us know how you decide.