2012 Fisker Karma Pedestrian Warning Sound

One should have the option to change the alert sound like you can with "ringtones". Imagine the frivolity of EV stuffed streets filled with baying donkeys, barking dogs, screams, operatic arias, hip-hop, bull frogs.....

Inside the car, the sound is pretty well muted, you don't really here it over the other operating sounds.

Right now the sound is programed into a control module, and as everyone's first question is whether it can be changed, i expect that to be one of the first things the aftermarket companies go after.

I think they should just leave it silent. As electric cars become more and more common people will have to start looking before they walk out into traffic.

Think of all the lives we would save in the long run if they were left noiseless.

Very strange...if I heard a car making that noise next to me I'd be worried that it was about to explode. To have it do this at every red light seems embarrassing.

Needs a wahwah pedal. You know, for self expression.

You ought to able to make it sound like the Rapide or Quattroporte exhaust notes.

I was actually at the Fisker dealership in Santa Monica this past weekend to inspect this car. I really want to like it but it really is all about design versus functionality. The car looks huge and has presence yet the rear seat is Rapide sized, the 22s ruin rear seat ingress due to wheel well intrusion, and the ergonomics are questionable to say the least. I didn't know luxury manufactures still put window switches only on the center console.

I sat in the eco chic model and most of the interior materials were made out of reusable materials, although, personally, I wouldn't want a $110000 car with a cloth interior.

Love it. They should make custom sound tones and put it into an app that can used to program the car; like ring tones for cell phones ;-)

nimisys: "Inside the car, the sound is pretty well muted, you don't really here it over the other operating sounds. "

Unless you open a window?

Imagine the deafening tone emitting from a hundred of these things during gridlock.

I don't understand why the pitch has to be so high. ICE cars are quiet under light throttle and low pitched. Why do EVs have to be different?

Those are some big wheels.
As for the sound - seems much louder than a normal car in a garage. Not sure I like that. Imagine 100's of these in a stadium parking garage all trying to leave after a game.

I agree with the above statement saying these should stay silent. One of the biggest contributors to our hearing imparement is from the noise of traffic.

Produce smarter, more alert people, not something that allows people to continue towards the path of "Idiocracy."

That being said, I do like this car. It's quite a bit more stimulating than anything else in it's "class."

Why not just put in an actual cooling fan to cool off batteries?

chrisnick04 and firstwagon ; You two make a very good point. Do we really need to make electric cars so they can be heard by passersby?

The whole issue of noiseless EVs or hybrids arose just a few years ago as a concern for people who are blind. Okay, I can see that side of the issue. But it involves a small portion of the population.

A little less noise on our city streets would certainly be welcome. I think politicians have'nt looked at the big picture.

Funny - "Stealth" mode with irritating loud noise emission. Agree I hope their iDrive can turn off.

Stupid, most cars are quiet at low speed, do we need dumb noises?

To those (firstwagon, chrisnick04) who are questioning the need for an electric car to make a noise, it's in the TITLE OF THE ARTICLE!!! This is called a "Pedestrian Warning Sound" for a reason, and that reason is because not all pedestrians can SEE, morons! The U.S. Government has mandated that all purely electric vehicles make some sort of sound so that non-sighted (that's "blind", to those who only understand words of one syllable or less) people can hear them coming. This rule isn't in effect yet, but it's coming within a couple of years, I think. Good grief, is this concept really that much of a mystery?

Anyway, I think it sounds cool. Actually, you could say it sounds a bit sinister, because it strongly reminds me of the noise the original Terminator makes in the first movie. I'm talking about the noise inside his head, when it switches to the Terminator's point of view and he's seeing everything in red, with the data overlays and targeting reticles and such. There's this constant humming sound in the background. It think this sounds quite reminiscent of that. I'm not sure whether that's a good thing, but I still like the futuristic sound. :)

05stangdrive

Next time you're in a parking lot and a Prius rolls by in electric mode, stop and listen for a change. You can hear it just fine. The tires make noise as they roll and you even sighted people can hear them with ease.

(and it was a blind person that pointed it out to me)

The bill addresses a non issue, people need to pay more attention (something the blind do very well) if you want to reduce accidents.

Me again. Sorry I went off a little bit yesterday. I want to make it clear that I don't particularly think that the law requiring electric vehicles make a 'Pedestrian Warning Sound' is necessary, or even desirable. I realize that all vehicles make some kind of tire noise, wind 'whoosh', electric motor sounds, etc., and I think that it probably wouldn't be necessary to ADD sound to the car to make it detectable to blind people. The reason I went off on a rant is because, from the tone of some of the posts, people seemed to not understand the CONCEPT of why Fisker would be adding the noise at all. That's all.

I still think it's a cool sound, but if I had my 'druthers', I 'druther that car makers and, in fact, ALL industrial design engineers worked to try to reduce noise pollution instead of adding to it.

Peace. :)