…will be the Darwinian extraction from the race of the dozy feckers who just wander into the road because they don’t hear a car coming.

Two pedestrians this morning and, to much pi$$ boiling on my part, a group of four cyclists (actual ‘cyclists’, not just people on bikes)last Saturday who just came straight out of a (small, country lane) junction, right across my path so I had to brake very hard not to hit them.

One of them actually said

“You should make a noise like a car so we can hear you coming”

👿

That’s not an advantage.
Means the global population will be smug.

Southpark need to remake the Prius pisstake episode, entitled “Smug” I believe, and remake it for EV.

I’m guilty of this, when riding very quiet country lanes, I tend to use my ears a lot to determine if there’s anything coming at a t-junction (I do always look before pulling out), I think I will need to change this practice as electric cars get more popular.

At some point this is going to need some kind of blue-tooth vehicle location warning

Above 20mph most of the noise comes from the tyres rather than the engine, so pedestrians are only more likely to be hit by relatively slower moving vehicles.

You should try manouvering / pulling in & out of car-parks, particularly when frequented with parents texting whilst dropping off / picking up.

Above 20mph most of the noise comes from the tyres rather than the engine, so pedestrians are only more likely to be hit by relatively slower moving vehicles.

In that case, hover cars can’t come soon enough…

Joking aside, have already clocked this potential hazard simply from riding down country lanes with high hedgerows. A quiet engine behind you on a blind corner – sets my hackles high nowadays.

Quiet motorised transport should have a compulsory ‘always on’ audible alert. But what would it be? A combustion engine WAV? A new sound developed for purpose?

But what would it be?

Knight Rider theme tune. No way anyone could get bored of that.

“Caution, smug vehicle approaching. Caution, smug vehicle approaching…”

If someone knows for sure you can correct me, but in Japan electric vehicles have to create a minimum level of decibles to be legal. Seems logical.
Neighbour had a Nissan Leaf for a while, so quiet it was almost creepy.

There is a fix for this already fitted to all cars. A horn. The problem is use of the horn has come to mean the driver saying “How very rude of you sir!” despite the Highway Code saying the use of the horn is to make people aware of your presence. It could be the case, for example, an EV driver approaching some roadies just gives a blip on their horn to let them know they’re approaching, but in reality the driver would just receive a healthy dose of MAMIL rage.

I was taught by my driving instructor to give a blip of the horn when approaching a blind bend or humpback bridge. But I guess if people these day’s are too lazy to use indicators, then there is no chance of them using the horn.

But at the end of the day there is no substitute for all road users to simply use their eye’s and check multiple times before making a move.

To be fair, you can probably hear the screaming child / mum / dad in ours from some distance

Zoé has a cute sci-fi noise when doing less than 30kmh – junior is a techo music buff and gave it a name I’ve forgotten. So far so good. I don’t turn it off.

If someone knows for sure you can correct me, but in Japan electric vehicles have to create a minimum level of decibles to be legal. Seems logical.
Neighbour had a Nissan Leaf for a while, so quiet it was almost creepy.

Oddly our regs are almost the opposite.

In the US they have systems that play sounds to make other road users aware – some of them sound like normal cars, some have comedy ones like a burbling V8 some kind of sound you here on Sci-Fi shows etc.

But there’s a reg here that forbids allowing vehicles to make fake noises – I suspect it was put in place to stop badboy racers from trying to make their Corsas sound like Ferrari V12s etc, but it wouldn’t be a bad idea to change it – we’re a nation of people who instinctively ‘look’ with our ears for vehicles.

I was taught by my driving instructor to give a blip of the horn when approaching a blind bend or humpback bridge.

Pointless if I am flying along in my luxurious (well insulated) BMW with the stereo pumping out.

In reality as above tyre noise is what you hear at any decent speeds.

Its only the daft that step out in to the road/cross junctions without looking.

Having an electric car you just need to be aware that there are more idiots than you realised before.

Surely we’re all well aware of the need to look as well as listen. Or should bikes be fitted with engine noise speakers too?

Surely we should be encouraging silent vehicles to reduce noise pollution?
The odd dimwit not looking would soon be removed from the gene pool and to my mind a few deaths are not as important as the greater good. We all moan at runners/cyclist with headphones on not being aware of cyclists. To suggest that EV’s make a noise is the same as saying that cyclist should.
Now what I would like to see is a 2 tone horn. One that blasts like hell when you want to stop some bimbo reversing into you and one nice friendly one that says “hi, I’m just behind you but don’t worry” .

Now what I would like to see is a 2 tone horn. One that blasts like hell when you want to stop some bimbo reversing into you and one nice friendly one that says “hi, I’m just behind you but don’t worry” .

The Ampera / Chevy Volt had this. A normal horn in the middle of the steering wheel, and a button on the end of the stalk that gave a gentle little “toot-toot” to warn people in the way.

The Ampera / Chevy Volt had this. A normal horn in the middle of the steering wheel, and a button on the end of the stalk that gave a gentle little “toot-toot” to warn people in the way.

…so why not Dixie Horn for normal blast (Da da dah dah di di di di dah dah dah!) and the melancholy strains of icecream van greensleaves for general background warning?

The odd dimwit not looking would soon be removed from the gene pool

Except evolution eugenics doesn’t quite work that way unless you also wish to remove vulnerable road-users (cyclists for instance) by using the old blind-bend-rear-shunt ‘dunno where that cyclist came from guvna’ method. So the blind idiot would get a slap on the wrist and then gleefully romp home to make babies.

. We all moan at runners/cyclist with headphones on not being aware of cyclists. To suggest that EV’s make a noise is the same as saying that cyclist should.

Obviously. Because a ton of steel at >30mph with an occupant/driver ensconced, belted and airbagged within is equivalent to 80-90kg of flesh and bone travelling at > 30mph.

Note: And yes, a headwind tends to remove tyre-noise from behind. Even without my headphones ;). Of course the ‘I sounded my second horn guvna, but they couldn’t have heard me’ excuse will still play well in court as long as the sole remaining witness is ‘out of the gene-pool’. Though his wife may have some frozen sperm in the freezer so your method isn’t 100% airtight as long as the families of vulnerable road users maintain some forward planning…

IHN – Member

“Caution, smug vehicle approaching. Caution, smug vehicle approaching…”

I’d like them to repeat their grotesque kerb weights in the voice of Marvin the paranoid android.

There is a Leaf that lives near me – at normal driving speeds its just as noisy as any other normal car. When it creeping around at walking pace though its almost silent.

The Ampera / Chevy Volt had this. A normal horn in the middle of the steering wheel, and a button on the end of the stalk that gave a gentle little “toot-toot” to warn people in the way.

Manchester trams have this.

Toot. Toot toot. Toooooot toot toot…. NEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRR!!! Argh bloody hell!

I have had this in the Prius in car parks or driveways etc. When right up behind someone oblivious if you beep the horn it scares the shit out of them. I’ve resorted to winding the window down and saying ‘Excuse me!’ before.

As for weight, Zoé weighs 1468kgs fully charged. How much does your car weigh fully fueled up and ready to go sbob?

But what would it be?

“Get of the road, you don’t pay tax”.

Pointless if I am flying along in my luxurious (well insulated) BMW with the stereo pumping out.

Not pointless if you’re a cyclist or pedestrian the other side of the blind bend or humpback bridge. You’ll get plenty of notice of an oncoming vehicle.

If I was clever enough flying along in my luxurious and well insulated BMW, I might even slow down, roll the windows down and mute the stereo, thereby enabling my capacity for audible warning of impending carness, in a tight, narrow road.

Caution, smug vehicle approaching

Ah, yes, the Pious, easily distinguishable by the overpowering cloud of smug that accompanies it everywhere it goes.
😈

I’m guilty of this, when riding very quiet country lanes, I tend to use my ears a lot to determine if there’s anything coming at a t-junction (I do always look before pulling out), I think I will need to change this practice as electric cars get more popular.

Guilty as sin. Fit mirrors to bike and helmet, but be prepared to graciously step out of the gene pool on blind-bends and hump-backs. Remember, there are no ‘vulnerable’ road-users, only stupid ones. If you get hurt then you’re stupid . If you get killed then the driver can add another ‘Darwin Loves Me’ sticker to their grille and you won’t have to worry about it. The Daily Mail et al shall then campaign on your posthumous behalf in order to remove cyclists from the roads for their own safety. Petrolheads everywhere will not know whether to hoist The Jolly Clarkson and slap an EV on the back, or to explode one in a quarry somewhere to be filmed in po-mo/slow-mo from many angles.

Drivers entering bends or approaching bridges are generally off the throttle so the noise is the sama as an EV; tyre and wind noise. Cyclists on the open road show signs of being aware I’m there, the lack of noise is only noticeable in environments that are already very noisy – when there are lots of other cars around, in which case cyclists ride in a manner appropriate to lots of cars around.

I saw a Zero motorbike on holiday. That thing made a racket.
No chance of being run down by that.

Edukator – Reformed Troll

As for weight, Zoé weighs 1468kgs fully charged. How much does your car weigh fully fueled up and ready to go sbob?

I’ve given up car ownership.
Last car I owned was about 850kg, still going strong at over 20yrs old.

At low speeds EVs could make the noise that the Jetson’s hover car made. Easily recognisable. Not horrible. And a welcome relief from the chugging noise of diesels.

[video]https://youtu.be/QdWswvLPdE0[/video]

Last car I owned was about 850kg, still going strong at over 20yrs old.

Rust diet?

What weight did it start at? 😉

…. EVs could make the noise that the Jetson’s hover car made

GrahamS – Member

Rust diet?

What weight did it start at?

MkII Micra.
No added lightness, just flower stickers. 🙂

Neighbour had a Nissan Leaf for a while, so quiet it was almost creepy.

My neighbour is the same.

But the noise thing, I always look when crossing the road, I don’t just listen then step out.

I’ve given up car ownership.

*impressed*

I’m in 2 minds.

It’d be nice to have fewer people stepping out in front of me (or pulling out on bikes) due to listening but not looking, but it wouldn’t be nice for lots of people to get killed. Not that they’re likely to as long as the tyres don’t get quiet.