- The relatively silent drive that EVs have brought over their ICE counterparts has raised both opportunities and challenges when it comes to noise.
- While manufacturers have been required by law for their EVs to generate noise, primarily for the safety of pedestrians, more and more manufacturers are becoming creative with this requirement.
- From futuristic, tron-like sounds, to fully emulating a combustion engine, here are the ways manufacturers are giving EVs unique characters through their noise systems.
How are EVs reinventing sound?
It’s not just simulated engine sounds that have resulted from the silent nature of electric motors. In earlier EVs, when many models were simply ICE platforms converted to batteries, the lack of engine rumble caused noises such as wind, tyre rumble, and rattles to become even more pronounced, causing manufacturers to up their noise, vibration, and harshness (NVH) research. This has forced new EVs to become ever more refined.
What’s more, that silence has made EVs the perfect option for audiophiles, and EV manufacturers are widely offering premium sound systems from brands such as Burmeister, Harman Kardon, and Sonos.
Hyundai IONIQ 5 N
Hyundai’s IONIQ 5 N is arguably the most pioneering on this list, and has become a firm performance car favourite, even amongst the most staunch petrolheads. The car has the option of several sounds, from one that makes the IONIQ sound like a fighter jet, a futuristic sound, right through to an option that simulates a petrol internal combustion engine. Whilst other electric vehicles also have that final option, Hyundai has taken it further with simulated gear shifts, and the option to hold the car at a simulated ‘redline’. Though of course, if you’d prefer to reap the benefits of a silent electric motor, there is the option to simply switch the system off entirely.
Abarth 500e
The hotted-up version of Fiat’s popular small electric car, the Abarth 500e, also has the option to simulate a petrol Abarth engine, with external speakers mounted.
Dodge Charger EV
The second Stellantis-produced electric car on this list, the upcoming Dodge Charger Daytona, will be the first time the long-running muscle model has gone electric, and Dodge has decided to move straight to simulated engine sounds that mimic the V8 engine of outgoing models, at a similarly anti-social level of decibels. Just like all the other EVs, the feature can be switched off.
Alpine A290
The upcoming A290 bucks the trend of all the EVs above, with the manufacturer completely opting out of ICE sound simulation in favour of an electric motor sound, that gives the driver feedback on what the electric motor is doing. Alpine says that they want all their future EVs to be authentic, rather than faking another sound, so don’t expect to hear engine sounds coming out the back of an Alpine EV anytime soon.
BMW and Hans Zimmer
Music producer Hans Zimmer, the man behind movie soundtracks such as Blade Runner 2049 and Pirates of the Caribbean, has also composed sound effects for electric BMWs, which the manufacturer is calling its ‘electromobility soundtrack’. Like the Alpine A290, BMW have used the silence to come up with something new, rather than simply emulating an ICE engine. Acceleration in EVs such as the BMW iX with the mode enabled sounds like something out of a futuristic movie score.
