This is what the warning sound for electric cars sounds like on the Mercedes-Benz EQC

This is what the warning sound for electric cars sounds like on the Mercedes-Benz EQC. Since July 1, electric cars must be fitted with the Acoustic Vehicle Alerting System, AVAS. The Mercedes-Benz EQC has already charged up and its engineers are searching for the ideal sound.

Electric cars must emit a warning sound from July 1 of this year onwards. Manufacturers must install a warning sound generator in electric cars due to a new European Union directive. This stipulates that initially hybrid, electric and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, including trucks and buses, will have to install the Acoustic Vehicle Alerting System, known by its acronym AVAS.

This new regulation aims to protect other road users. In the European Union, the acoustic warning is mandatory up to a speed of 20 km/h. The new European directive sets out in great detail the parameters for how an AVAS warning may or may not sound. This applies, for example, to the maximum and minimum sound volume, and to certain sound components.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k82rjRxl6Gk

What does the Mercedes-Benz EQC sound like when it is driving?

The new Mercedes-Benz EQC is subject to these and many other regulations, which the sound experts at the acoustic test facilities of the Mercedes-Benz Technology Centre in Sindelfingen are developing to give the model a special voice.

Special microphones are being used at the outdoor sound test facilities to achieve an electronic sound individually configured for each electric model. Simulations, measurements, evaluations and detailed improvements continue until the result is perfect.

During the subsequent test drives, there is one particularly sensitive passenger on board: artificial intelligence. It registers the smallest noises and comes impressively close to the human ear.

The AVAS sound of the Mercedes-Benz differs only slightly in the European Union, Japan and China. There are other requirements for the United States, for example regarding sound volume. In addition, the electric vehicle must generate a sound when a gear is engaged, increasing its volume up to 30 km/h. Deactivation of the AVAS by the customer is prohibited in almost all countries. This aims to prevent possible accidents and pedestrian collisions in cities.