People upset because Nissan Leaf's 'pedestrian warning sound' can be deactivated
 

I think this one goes under the "give 'em an inch and they'll take a mile" column.

Blind Advocates ‘Disappointed’ in Nissan E.V. Sounds for Pedestrians - Wheels Blog - NYTimes.com

Is it REALLY too much to ask that the driver be able to turn off the sound??!?

That said, the sounds aren't as annoying as I feared they might be -- audio clips can be found at the link posted.

ok, kinda turbiney, that's better than chirp.
http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/...es/driveby.mp3

That would kinda make electric cars seem a bit cooler I think. Unless you had a parking lot full of them :p

When all else fails;
http://www.khambati.com/Images/Plier_in_front.gif

It's nice that the manufacturer is listening, and that legislation might be avoided. But it would get smacked down in legislation unless they change the verbiage to include all cars when silent, or out of tolerance on a db or frequency.

Wouldn't it be interesting if they standardized the sounds? i.e. if they all had a middle c component of a certain amplitude. If you put the effort into having perfect pitch, you could tell how fast the vehicle was approaching from the dopplar shift, and you could judge the distance by the intensity.

hmm, an arduino "chime" that activates with the kill switch might be a fun project :) here is the easy cheezy chime code: http://www.arduino.cc/cgi-bin/yabb2/...num=1228475606

The idea of accommodating the blind is nothing new. Note the date on this article.



Now, after we accommodate the blind, must we not also accommodate the deaf? Should we not make flashing warning lights mandatory on all vehicles? At least to be activated when the horn button is pressed? (Which would add a few hundred $$$ to the production cost of a vehicle...)

Where does this end? Welcome to the slippery slope of lobbying for the disabled. :rolleyes:

It's ok to think about it. You gonna whine about brail around elevators and ATMs now?

Crossposting:
ARTICLE: Automakers Reach Agreement on Sound for Electric Cars

ARTICLE: Anti-Noise activists oppose sounds for electric cars

I got a good look at my sister-in-law's 2012 Leaf, and the noise maker is very subtle. I knew to listen for it, but if you didn't know that it was there, you would probably assume that it was just the motor and/or gears whirring. It is almost subliminal, and quite tasteful, really.

The car also beeps when backing up, and this is louder than the "low speed" noise, it is hardly going to startle anyone; let alone be heard from say 3 parking spaces away.

Can't they make it some weird high pitch frequency that only blind people and dogs can hear?

Can't they make ICE cars be as quiet as electric vehicles?

...majority RULES...I can hear, tough stuff (wink,wink).

I had a Subaru that was virtually silent while idling. If I was coasting with the clutch disengaged as I often do, the only sound you would hear is tires on the road and wind from the car. This noise is quite prominent though, so why do we need to add more noise pollution?

Is this even really a problem (meaning there is significant statistics showing blind people who have been injured by EVs, as compared to others)?

you never wondered about the braille at a drive up ATM? :eek: Who gave the blind person a license? :confused: Guess it's so the seeing eye dog driving wont learn the PIN :cool:

There are plenty of ICE cars and bikes I've had to put my hand on to tell they were running. How many people try to start a car that is already running?

isn't there something better to argue about? There are so many dumb car laws where red flags must be carried in front to warn other people, must notify police before you drive into town, notify people so they can hide their horses from the car. Here in TN "When you pull up to a stop sign you must fire a gun out the window to warn horse carriages that you are coming." :rolleyes:


:p:p

I think this is a solution in search of a problem; but having said that -- it is a very subtle noise. Barely noticeable for most of us, but it would probably help locate the car for a blind person. So, either way it is nothing to worry about.

The Leaf is incredibly quiet to drive -- a friend has tinnitus and I'm pretty sure it would not require him to wear ear plugs.

Or maybe because it's a lot more efficient for the ATM makers to use one standard keypad for the drive-up and walk-up machines :-)