If you’ve ever experienced the strange silence of an electric vehicle passing by, you know that EVs don’t make much noise—or at least, they don’t have to. They don’t have gas-powered engines or transmissions that result in a classic car sound. Still, there’s an entire industry devoted to ensuring EVs do sound like something, primarily for safety reasons. After all, pedestrians rely on their ability to hear a car coming—it’s why studies suggest that EVs and hybrids are twice as likely to hit pedestrians as gas cars. It’s also why the U.S. and other nations are mandating that all EVs have an acoustic vehicle alerting system (AVAS).
As you can imagine, some carmakers have viewed such mandates as an opportunity to get creative with the sounds their electric vehicles make. The Porsche Taycan has an attention-grabbing AVAS sound that's meant to evoke a premium and future-forward sensibility, while the Fisker Karma seems to emit an epic heavy-metal power chord. Other brands like the Nissan Leaf and Chevrolet Bolt, have opted for high-pitched, UFO-like sound options. And I understand why: Driving a car that sounds futuristic or unique can feel cool. Plus, it allows carmakers to make their EV sound as branded as their cars—memorable like an ad jingle. But this thinking needs to evolve.
