Should hybrids pump up the volume?
Motor Trend
recently published a doozy of a conclusion regarding hybrid vehicles. According to the article, hybrids, especially full
versions like the Toyota Prius, are so quiet that many a pedestrian walks right in front/behind them because he or she
can’t hear any telltale engine noise."I had to jump out of the way of a hybrid, which suddenly, and completely silently, moved toward me," said Tom Battle, director of engineering at Symantec, a software company. "The car was a brand new Prius, which I remember because it was still very shiny."
Safety officials such as the police currently do not track accidents whose cause is vehicle silence. In 2003, the National Federation of the Blind, had raised hybrid engine silence as a concern for those visually-impaired.
There is currently no study on this issue by the federal government.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
SunByrne 2:25PM (2/06/2006)
We own a Highlander Hybrid and we definitely see this in parking lots. Pedestrians walking to their car move to one side or the other when they hear a car behind them, but don't move for us, because running on electric the Highlander doesn't make enough noise.
We obviously just wait for the pedestrians to get to their car or whatever, but some people walk REALLY slowly...
Otherwise, though, the quiet is very nice.
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Drivers Ed Direct 1:12PM (2/22/2006)
Our driving school in Los Angeles has been using the Prius for driving lessons since last year. Although, we have never had any incidents where the quiet nature of the Prius became an issue; we have informed all our instructors of the potential hazards related to driving around pedestrians and near driveways. Thanks for the article... very beneficial information to have.
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Jason 10:12AM (2/05/2006)
Suddenly moved towards him? Like, on a street? I look before I walk on the street. Was it invisable too?
He makes it sound like it was stalking him in an office hallway or something.
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max 10:29AM (2/05/2006)
My sister's Prius has a kickin' stereo! Tease Prius drivers all you want-their is nothing like blasting Rush Limbaugh in a Prius as you zip past anti-war protesters.
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Carzzi 10:41AM (2/05/2006)
This, then, is calling for the opposite of what sports cars like the aston V8 and the F430 have in terms of muffler control... instead the exotics' pleasing notes at high revs due to unmuffling their pipes above an rpm threshold, hybrids will have to emit an artificial off-key note below certain speeds!
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Kumar 10:49AM (2/05/2006)
I think an underlying problem here is that cars generally don't yield to pedestrians that are on crosswalks. Why go after quiet hybrids when the safety issue lies in the failure to teach people that they are supposed to yield to people on crosswalks.
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Chris 11:12AM (2/05/2006)
Jeremy Clarkson had this same concern when he drove the Prius on Top Gear a few seasons back. His example was a child running out into the street chasing after a ball. Obviously there is a great deal of responsibility for parents to teach their children not to run after the ball, but it's still going to happen. If a Prius is gliding down a residental street with lots of cars parked on the shoulder, you'd never hear it, and might not see it easily. For the little kid dashing out into the street, it's even more dangerous.
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kpogoda 11:23AM (2/05/2006)
Speaking of Hybrids, GM and Ford are really in big trouble these days if State governments can't even justify buying their products:
An article from a local New Jersey paper writes:
Camden Co. gets grief for hybrid car choice
Sunday, February 5, 2006
By JASON LAUGHLIN
Courier-Post Staff
CAMDEN
It's not easy being green and politically correct, too.
Camden County freeholders agreed in January to lease six hybrid cars, Ford Escapes, for the Camden County Prosecutor's Office as part of an effort to make the county more environmentally friendly.
But economics and patriotism mean the county won't make as much of a difference as it could, environmentalists said.
Ford hybrids are among the least efficient hybrid cars on the market, said Dena Mottola, executive director of the New Jersey Public Interest Research Group. Toyota and Honda make cars with greater fuel efficiency, she said.
"First of all," said Freeholder Deputy Director Ed McDonnell, "it is always our preference to buy products from American companies, particularly in light of the hard times the auto industry is struggling through in recent months."
Environmentalists think that's backward reasoning.
"I don't think our state or county governments should continue to prop up American carmakers if they're not going to deliver cars to us that can better protect public health and better protect the environment," said Mottola.
"It seems to me that the biggest reason why it matters if states and counties and towns are buying clean cars is it sets an example for the public," Mottola said.
The 36-month lease for the six hybrids from Mount Holly's Miller Auto Leasing will cost the county $577 a month per car.
If the county had bought the hybrids, it could have received a $4,000 rebate from the state designed to encourage the use of environmentally friendly vehicles.
Currently the county has only one hybrid car in its fleet of 634 vehicles, a 2004 Ford Escape. Burlington and Gloucester counties have none. Burlington County plans to purchase some, officials said.
The state has 106 hybrids among its 12,000 vehicles, state spokesman Tom Vincz said. The state uses Ford and Toyota hybrids, he said.
The demand for hybrid vehicles is increasing, said Len Polistina, vice president of the fleet department for Winner Ford, a major supplier of government cars.
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John 11:57AM (2/05/2006)
Number 2: keep drugged up psycho right wing politics out of it. Besides, if your sister listens to that crazy SOB, why isnt she driving a hummer? Gotta help ExxonMobile!
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Roy 1:56PM (2/05/2006)
Sounds like all of the special interest who would rather keep this country dependant on forgen oil are ratteling their beeds to imply that hybrids are not a good choise for the rest of us. The hybrid will serve us very well until something better comes along. It sounds like something the American Auto Industry would be behiend. 30 years or so ago, Ford and GM bought up rights to produce and develop fuel efficeiant carborators that could have greatly improved fuel economy in domestic autobobiles. Thoes ideas are ether arcived or the evedance distroied. Now there is an alternitave and there are all of these crazy concerns. Now it's the blind. A blind person can walk into the path of any type vehical if he or she has any hearing imparment or is distracted by other things arond them.
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Roy 1:56PM (2/05/2006)
Sounds like all of the special interest who would rather keep this country dependant on forgen oil are ratteling their beeds to imply that hybrids are not a good choise for the rest of us. The hybrid will serve us very well until something better comes along. It sounds like something the American Auto Industry would be behiend. 30 years or so ago, Ford and GM bought up rights to produce and develop fuel efficeiant carborators that could have greatly improved fuel economy in domestic autobobiles. Thoes ideas are ether arcived or the evedance distroied. Now there is an alternitave and there are all of these crazy concerns. Now it's the blind. A blind person can walk into the path of any type vehical if he or she has any hearing imparment or is distracted by other things arond them.
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Aaron 2:37PM (2/05/2006)
some of you people are stupid. They're not saying the Prius is bad #2. They're saying that some blind people wll think there is no car coming and just walk right out. How as #4 i agree that the drivers should be responible and stop but what if a blind person doesnt hear anything and just suddenly walks out in front of a car.. cars can't stop on a dime so i think this should be addressed in some matter but i'm not sure what they could do..
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Artie43 3:48PM (2/05/2006)
Yesterday my wife was driving the Prius and pulled into the driveway. I had my back to her and didn't even hear her pull up. When I turned around, it really made me jump. I guess the engine was off and operating on electric only. I am hard of hearing and that could have contriubuted to it. Nevertheless it was a real shocker. I can now see that hybrids could catch pedestrians off guard if they are not paying attention.
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Greg 3:57PM (2/05/2006)
what they need is a vroombox! (www.vroombox.com)
nice idea but I think this product will never make it beyond design phase :)
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DKB_SATX 4:53PM (2/05/2006)
I certainly don't think we need to have cars making more noise than they have to. Drivers are responsible for watching the road in front of them. Pedestrians (even blind ones) are responsible for taking due care when they cross the street, e.g. using crosswalks and signals. Small children chasing balls (an example cited above) are probably nearly as likely to run out in front of a rumbly V8 Mustang as they are a silent Prius, the problem is that they're focused on chasing the ball and not other sensory inputs.
I'm not saying the fact that a hybrid can move very quietly as low speeds will never contribute to a car-pedestrian accident, I'm just saying that you can't regulate away every risk and I don't think you should force vehicles which create less air pollution to create more noise pollution.
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Krishna Das 7:13PM (2/05/2006)
Make a diesel hybrid and u have ur problem solved.
But then people would like it quieter.. phew, problems problems..
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Mel Roseman 10:29PM (2/05/2006)
As owners of a 2004 Prius, we are especially conscious of the need to assist pedestrians who can't always hear us.
Silent or not, drivers of cars in motion are responsible for the safety of pedestrians - and for children who might suddenly run into the street whether or not they can hear an oncoming car.
The Prius is no more dangerous than any other car.
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PJ 12:32AM (2/06/2006)
So, let's get this straight: When MT tests Lexuses and BMWs, whisper-quietness is a good thing. But in a Prius, it's a safety hazard. Hm.
Anyway, my girlfriend owns a Prius, and at anything above 10 mph or so, the rush of the tires makes it nearly as audible as any other car. When you hear cars on the street pass, you usually hear the tires and wind displacement more than the engine. Hence, that "whoosh" sound.
That said, I can vouch for tje Prius' near-silent low speed operation creating the occasional awkward moment. We once followed an elderly blind man for a good two minutes as he walked directly down the middle of a supermarket parking-lot aisle. At the time, we both wished for an artificial exhaust note... hey, Toyota, is there room under the hood for a subwoofer or two? An LS1 V8 soundtrack would come be nice at those times...
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RP 6:27AM (2/06/2006)
Maybe instead of an artificial exhaust note that sounds like a regular combustion engine it should sound more like some kind of spaceship? That would be kind fun, maybe...
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Whiplash 10:43AM (2/06/2006)
Here's an idea... what if we all adapted our behavior to deal with quiet cars? Is that approach too radical?
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