What should an electric car sound like?

For over a century, the internal combustion engine powered vehicles with an intricate combination of moving parts and tiny explosions. That combustion process inevitably made noise, and that noise came to define the background soundscape of our roads, cities, and day-to-day life. But as hybrids and EVs became increasingly mainstream — and more of their near-silent electric motors filled the streets — it became clear that silent vehicles didn’t fit in the ecosystem we’d built around cars. Spearheaded by associations of the blind and visually impaired, legislation eventually began to require electric vehicles to emit an artificial engine noise out of hidden external speakers. These hidden speaker systems, called “Acoustic Vehicle Alerting Systems” — or AVAS — had to meet certain sonic criteria. But they were also a blank slate for sound designers to decide how the cars of the future should sound.

⏱️ Key Timestamps & Highlights

1. 🔇 The silence of electric vehicles: EVs are naturally quiet, but this lack of sound poses safety and cultural challenges.
2. 📣 Regulatory response to silence: Laws require electric cars to emit artificial sounds using AVAS (Acoustic Vehicle Alerting System).
3. 🔊 Volume and pitch rules: AVAS systems must adjust sound volume and pitch based on speed for safety.
4. 🎼 The real challenge: pleasant but effective sound: Designers must balance clarity, pleasantness, and uniqueness.
5. 🎶 Creative sound design techniques: Looping samples, layers, filters, and modulation make the AVAS dynamic and less robotic.
6. 🪕 From didgeridoos to orchestras: Designers experiment with diverse audio sources including ancient instruments and symphonies.
7. 🐴 Skeuomorphism in sound design: Emulating familiar engine sounds eases the transition to EVs by echoing old car noises.