Why I can't watch Formula E
And the same thing applies, to a lesser degree, to electric road cars
Electric cars are quiet(er) than internal combustion engined (ICE) cars. That is true but the myth that electric cars are quiet persists.
Experience from cycling shows no doubt about it at low speed but over about 30-40km/h on NZ roads tyre noise dominates. In fact, I can often pick an electric car by sound, wider tyres and greater mass means they have a different audio signature but that's not what this is about.
Formula Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
The reason I can't watch Formula E is the noise their electric engines make. It's not the same as the sound of ICE drivetrains. For me it has a 'nails on a blackboard' cringe factor quality that is unbearable.
I've heard ICE engines that can almost make your ears bleed—Formula 1 in the days of 3.5 litre V10s revving to 19,000RPM—but that was sound, part of the experience, not noise.
In the electric road cars I've experienced (Nissan, Tesla, Toyota hybrid) I find the same. Although far quieter than any ICE engine the sound electric drivetrains do make has a quality I can't bear. I was interested to read the Ferrari Luce will 'feature' the amplified sound its electric drivetrain makes, like ICE Ferrari's always have their own magnificent drivetrains.
I shudder, literally, to think what that might be like...
