One of the most concerning issues with regards to hybrid or electric vehicles is that they operate in nearly complete silence. If you’ve been walking through a parking garage and became startled by a vehicle pulling out you’ll know what it’s like. The hybrid operates entirely on electric power making these vehicles dangerous to pedestrians.
Fortunately, the Chevy Volt has taken this matter seriously while companies such as Tesla, known for their $100,000 electric sports car, has treated the issue as less than a priority. Perhaps the fact that not many Tesla’s at $100k a pop will be silencing the nations roadways any time soon, but the fact is it needs to have some sort of sound that would symbolize it’s presence.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is also behind this silent operation problem and expect to see some requirements soon that will mandate the use of an audible alert system for any vehicle that isn’t making people aware of it’s presence.
The Chevy Volt engineering team decided to host an event at the GM Milford Proving Grounds to demonstrate the alert system they’ve been working on. When a pedestrian approaches the vehicle within close proximity a pulsation sound from the horn system is emitted to alert of it’s presence.
GM has more work ahead of them since the horn sound doesn’t seem like it would be pleasing for the driver to hear ad nauseam. For some reason, the baseball card in the spokes of a bmx seems to come to mind here and it wouldn’t be surprising if something clever by the owner could be done to make this sound problem a fun one to solve.
The Sounds Of The Chevrolet Volt
Julia Corker, 22-year-old daughter of Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., stopped the family’s Chevy Tahoe Wednesday evening just nine blocks from the U.S. Capitol building to help someone she thought needed directions, reports CNN.
