Hybrids aren't noisy enough

Car manufacturers have always been pursuing more and more quiet vehicles – inside and out. But now we’re being told the hybrid Toyota Prius is too quiet. It’s dangerous to the blind, pedestrians and cyclists, says the Sydney Morning Herald (21/11/09).

So Britain’s Lotus Engineering have come up with what is called (for unknown reasons) a Halosonic sound system, which reproduces vehicle noise for hybrids. Unlike normal cars, this system projects the sound in front only, so there is a net improvement perhaps.

And if you’re going to be forced to produce noise that you don’t really need to, well then it might as well be a bit of fun right? The Lotus system allows you to pick from various different vehicle sounds, like an Aston Martin V8 or a Ferrari V12. And then there’re a couple of spaceship sounds! (Bubbly Jetsons car sound anyone?)

Alas, the fun police are likely to require that any such systems fitted for Australian hybrids are limited to sounds that mimic internal combustion engines: “no-one wants to retrain the world’s guide dogs to listen out for spaceships.”