Should a 2020 Model 3 make a warning sound?

[PianoAl]

The sounds on the Leaf were much more annoying.

I didn't even notice my M3's sounds from inside the cabin.

I agree that there could be liability issues if you disconnect the speaker. In our Leaf, even with the artificial noises, pedestrians often didn't know we were behind them. They'd jump when I honked the horn.

 

[Kevy Baby]

If the sounds are noticeable in your car, your sound system isn't loud enough

 

[Darmie]

not a good idea in case you ever hit a pedestrian in a parking lot. After all, that is one of the big reasons it is a requirement. You might pay dearly for having done that. And to say, your bicycle doesn't weigh thousands of pounds. Just saying you are taking an unnecessary legal risk just because you don't like the sound which is less than the sound of the ICE car engine you probably drove for years.

...and there is statistical data that warrants this type of fix?

 

[DopeGhoti]

...and there is statistical data that warrants this type of fix?

No, but (and here's where you put on your tin foil hats, boys and girls) that doesn't stop the ICE industry from figuring out a way to lobby their way into getting a regulation that eliminates a perceived advantage of EVs.

 

[jonquiljo]

not a good idea in case you ever hit a pedestrian in a parking lot. After all, that is one of the big reasons it is a requirement. You might pay dearly for having done that. And to say, your bicycle doesn't weigh thousands of pounds. Just saying you are taking an unnecessary legal risk just because you don't like the sound which is less than the sound of the ICE car engine you probably drove for years.

Silicon Desert is spot on. If there is a regulation that requires this sound and you defeat it, you stand to get seriously hammered if you ever hit a pedestrian. I hit a pedestrian when I was a teenager. Though the accident was unavoidable, I still was sued. Lawsuits are not fun. If you deliberately remove this kind of safety feature, you possibly could get slammed with a larger judgment.

I’m not talking about a $30 “fix-it” ticket, but rather a possible 7 figure lawsuit. So personally I want that noisemaker working as Tesla intended it.

the problem is that I can’t hear it from inside the car. I don’t know if its a Tesla new car defect, or that it just isn’t audible.

 

[DopeGhoti]

the problem is that I can’t hear it from inside the car.

Wait, now not being able to hear it from inside the car is a problem?

 

[Silicon Desert]

Silicon Desert is spot on. If there is a regulation that requires this sound and you defeat it, you stand to get seriously hammered if you ever hit a pedestrian. I hit a pedestrian when I was a teenager. Though the accident was unavoidable, I still was sued. Lawsuits are not fun. If you deliberately remove this kind of safety feature, you possibly could get slammed with a larger judgment.

I’m not talking about a $30 “fix-it” ticket, but rather a possible 7 figure lawsuit.

Great post and info. Oh gosh, I am sorry to hear about your past issue. I think there are a lot of us that may have come close to hitting someone at some time or another.
I hope en_passant doesn't think I (we) are being critical. My comments are aimed to help understand the consequences of making a decision to disconnect something like that.

My wife has worked for decades in the legal profession to try and help drivers and people with related injuries where their insurance companies were trying to take advantage of them. She says that one common misconception is an insurance company is going to pay for all the damages to someone or some property that gets hit by a car. Unfortunately not true. They will pay to the limits of the insurance that people decided to buy. If a person is sued for anything over that , then responsibility for that extra amount falls upon the insured person. Some folks think "I don't own anything, so if I am sued, they won't get anything". Well, a portion of their future income can be taken for years to come. You likely know this. Many people don't, especially many young folks new to driving.

And of course the more a person owns, the more they are at risk. This is why we keep much higher liability amounts on our polices than required by law, and then an umbrella policy on top of that. I hope this info helps some folks that may think otherwise.

 

[jonquiljo]

Wait, now not being able to hear it from inside the car is a problem?

No, I just want to know if its working.

And of course the more a person owns, the more they are at risk. This is why we keep much higher liability amounts on our polices than required by law, and then an umbrella policy on top of that. I hope this info helps some folks that may think otherwise.

Yes, the rule is - if you have something to take, an attorney will go after it. And umbrella policies are far from bulletproof.

 

[Silicon Desert]

Yes, the rule is - if you have something to take, an attorney will go after it. And umbrella policies are far from bulletproof.

Yup, most will agree about that first statement. As for the 2nd statement, I have no experience in that area, but the wife does, and wonders why you say Umbrellas are far from bulletproof. She disagrees and mentions that when working with clients on thousands of claims over 30 years that at least a couple hundred involved needing companies to pay out of the umbrella and remembers only about 5 of those cases not fully paying..... and most of those were where fraud or mis-claims were part of the problem. ALL of those claims were within 30 miles of where you live. Maybe she is just good at getting companies to pay up. If you ever have trouble with that, then best to get someone knowledgeable to help you. The result will be better than an individual trying to get them to pay.

Bottom line, much better to have an umbrella than to not have one

 

[jonquiljo]

Bottom line, much better to have an umbrella than to not have one

There’s a limit as to the size of an umbrella that an insured feels is reasonable to carry. About $5M is about $850-$900/year. After $5M, many insurers want their underwriters to go over every cent that you want to insure- that is if you are an individual and not a corporation. At some point, you have to assume that a tort case will not likely payout more than $5M. You’d really have to do something “extraordinary “ to be hit with a judgment that high.

I have had a number of friends over the years who have had to turn to their liability umbrellas to pay out on a settlement. Some have had to seek counsel just to force their insurer to pay. I guess I don’t like or trust insurance companies - and have seen lots of sleazy behavior.

Does your wife represent people awarded the claims, or those ordered to pay them? Two different ends of the stick.

Personally, I would never go through litigation for any substantial amount of money unless I had a good attorney defending me. I certainly would not rely on insurance company counsel.

There are a lot of people out there that will go all out to take what they can get from you. You can never be too careful. It only has to happen once to decimate your financial position. You definitely want to avoid that.

It always is best to avoid any situation where you could be accused of negligence - like removing a little sound-maker from a Tesla. It’s just not worth the 1 in a million chance that it will come to bite you.

Then again, I once lived in a home that did get struck by lightning twice (in the same storm). Just an example that the improbable can happen. Sold that place soon after that!

 

[morningstar]

No, I just want to know if its working.

Get a friend, spouse, or neighbor... basically someone else to walk along outside while you drive past them. Ask them if they heard your car.

I'm glad to hear they're putting a little noise on the car. I often find I'm stuck following behind a slow walking person in a parking lot and they are startled when they realize I'm there. I also wish they could hear me so they'd get out of the way, but mostly I don't like inadvertently scaring people.

 

[Silicon Desert]

There’s a limit as to the size of an umbrella that an insured feels is reasonable to carry. About $5M is about $850-$900/year. After $5M, many insurers want their underwriters to go over every cent that you want to insure- that is if you are an individual and not a corporation. At some point, you have to assume that a tort case will not likely payout more than $5M. You’d really have to do something “extraordinary “ to be hit with a judgment that high.

I have had a number of friends over the years who have had to turn to their liability umbrellas to pay out on a settlement. Some have had to seek counsel just to force their insurer to pay. I guess I don’t like or trust insurance companies - and have seen lots of sleazy behavior.

Does your wife represent people awarded the claims, or those ordered to pay them? Two different ends of the stick.

Personally, I would never go through litigation for any substantial amount of money unless I had a good attorney defending me. I certainly would not rely on insurance company counsel.

There are a lot of people out there that will go all out to take what they can get from you. You can never be too careful. It only has to happen once to decimate your financial position. You definitely want to avoid that.

It always is best to avoid any situation where you could be accused of negligence - like removing a little sound-maker from a Tesla. It’s just not worth the 1 in a million chance that it will come to bite you.

Then again, I once lived in a home that did get struck by lightning twice (in the same storm). Just an example that the improbable can happen. Sold that place soon after that!

Nice info, but not new to us. We are real familiar with insurance stuff and agree. Right, we don't trust insurance companies for anything in general.
Gee, you went through a couple lightning incidents. Yeah, I would have sold that place too. Glad you didn't suffer a worse fate.

Oh and to answer your question, the wife has represented both types of clients against insurance companies. People being awarded (about 60 % of the time), and people being ordered to pay (the other 40%). Over 90% of the time, she gets more money, or has to pay less. As it seems you understand, it all comes down to knowing the system and how insurance companies try to take advantage. We got lots of examples of that.

 

[jonquiljo]

Get a friend, spouse, or neighbor... basically someone else to walk along outside while you drive past them. Ask them if they heard your car.

I'm glad to hear they're putting a little noise on the car. I often find I'm stuck following behind a slow walking person in a parking lot and they are startled when they realize I'm there. I also wish they could hear me so they'd get out of the way, but mostly I don't like inadvertently scaring people.

I went into a parking garage today and opened the window. If I basically stuck my head out the window I could hear this low pitched stactic-y noise. Unless I am deaf, it is totally quiet - too quiet, if anything.

Then again I live in California and people here think that pedestrians having the right of way all the time is going to prevent an accident. It will not. No defensive behavior when walking across the street - anywhere.

 

[CrayZ1]

In the good old days, when somebody was crossing in front your muscle car, you'd stab the gas and make them soil themselves.
Then most of us matured. Most of the time.

 

[jonquiljo]

Nice info, but not new to us. We are real familiar with insurance stuff and agree. Right, we don't trust insurance companies for anything in general.
Gee, you went through a couple lightning incidents. Yeah, I would have sold that place too. Glad you didn't suffer a worse fate.

Oh and to answer your question, the wife has represented both types of clients against insurance companies. People being awarded (about 60 % of the time), and people being ordered to pay (the other 40%). Over 90% of the time, she gets more money, or has to pay less. As it seems you understand, it all comes down to knowing the system and how insurance companies try to take advantage. We got lots of examples of that.

We had a particularly lightning strike-able house at the time. It happened about 3 1/2 years after we had lived in it. One blast took a 150' Douglas fir and turned it into toothpicks. Lightning jumped from there to a gated metal fence around the house, burned out the gate motor, but nothing major. It jumped to the house a bit but did minor damage and fried a few small electrical devices. The second one hit a small pump house (we had a well) and ran several hundred feet and then down another 500, frying everything. Now that cost us!

Our insurance company tried everything to get out of paying. Luckily lightning is pretty obvious and they had to admit that it occurred. (I should have had them get all the toothpicks cleaned up!). Then the insurance company tried to short-pay all the repair claims, demanding cheaper components. That's when I had to simply threaten them with legal action for them to stop their BS. The pump guy had a record of recent overhaul of the well system and showed them the high end pump equipment that was fried.

It was not about the money - but rather that we (I) were totally infuriated that the insurance company would try to get out of paying. Well, they didn't!

 

[Silicon Desert]

We had a particularly lightning strike-able house at the time. It happened about 3 1/2 years after we had lived in it. One blast took a 150' Douglas fir and turned it into toothpicks. Lightning jumped from there to a gated metal fence around the house, burned out the gate motor, but nothing major. It jumped to the house a bit but did minor damage and fried a few small electrical devices. The second one hit a small pump house (we had a well) and ran several hundred feet and then down another 500, frying everything. Now that cost us!

Our insurance company tried everything to get out of paying. Luckily lightning is pretty obvious and they had to admit that it occurred. (I should have had them get all the toothpicks cleaned up!). Then the insurance company tried to short-pay all the repair claims, demanding cheaper components. That's when I had to simply threaten them with legal action for them to stop their BS. The pump guy had a record of recent overhaul of the well system and showed them the high end pump equipment that was fried.

It was not about the money - but rather that we (I) were totally infuriated that the insurance company would try to get out of paying. Well, they didn't!

bummer. yes that sounds like some insurance companies. Glad to hear you eventually made it through all of that. Oooops, looks like I am getting off topic. Ok, back to those model 3 warning sounds

 

[jonquiljo]

bummer. yes that sounds like some insurance companies. Glad to hear you eventually made it through all of that. Oooops, looks like I am getting off topic. Ok, back to those model 3 warning sounds

Those warning sounds don't really register if someone is on their cell phone blabbing away and not looking what they are doing!

 

[BigEd54]

Got my M3 last month. Noise in reverse is a high pitched whine, clearly audible. I can't hear anything in forward with windows down.

 

[Silicon Desert]

Those warning sounds don't really register if someone is on their cell phone blabbing away and not looking what they are doing!

yea, I guess so. If my car would have come with a forward warning sound, I would have wanted the theme music from the Jaws movie