Hamburg believes electric cars are too noisy and wants to ban the artificial engine sound

Electric cars have long been sold as silent vehicles that reduce traffic noise in cities. But this poses a problem: they are not easily detectable by pedestrians and can cause accidents. For this reason, several electric vehicle manufacturers have added artificial sounds to their models so that they can be heard and avoid run-overs.

However, it always happens that things go a little further than expected, and several brands have created “artificial” sounds, emitted through external speakers, that make electric cars very audible. The point is that pedestrians should be able to hear an electric car approaching, but also that the driver can experience the sensation of driving a car with its full power “in the ear“.

This is beginning to be a problem in cities, since one of the advantages of this type of vehicle was how quiet it was, in order to reduce the acoustic impact of urban traffic. These added sound systems create problems, and some cities are beginning to legislate against them.

Hamburg has been the first city to regulate their use. The idea was that the use of electric vehicles would reduce traffic noise, but it has not decreased despite the increase in these battery-powered cars, due to this imitation of the sound of a combustion engine. For this reason, the aim is to suppress the use of these sound systems in Hamburg’s urban environment.

Be aware that this ban is not complete. Mandatory sounds on electric cars are excluded from the ban. That is, the sound that electric cars emit at low speeds, known as the Acoustic Vehicle Alerting System or AVAS. Electric vehicles will continue to have this warning sound.

The “autoposing“

The use of modified vehicles to emit loud and striking sounds to make them more attractive and visible is called “autoposing” and is not well regarded in Germany. In Hamburg there is a police unit in charge of this type of action, but now it is going a step further, with a total ban on these added sounds.

And, furthermore, it wants to serve as a testing ground for other cities to join the initiative and make Germany a quieter country, at least when it comes to sounds added to electric vehicles.