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Stomp on the gas in a new Ford Mustang or F-150 and you’ll hear a meaty, throaty rumble—the same style of roar that Americans have associated with auto power and performance for decades. Now Drew Harwell reports at the Washington Post that the auto industry’s dirty little secret is that the engine growl in some of America’s best-selling cars and trucks is actually a finely tuned bit of lip-syncing, boosted through special pipes or digitally faked altogether. "Fake engine noise has become one of the auto industry’s dirty little secrets, with automakers from BMW to Volkswagen turning to a sound-boosting bag of tricks," writes Harwell. "Without them, today’s more fuel-efficient engines would sound far quieter and, automakers worry, seemingly less powerful, potentially pushing buyers away." For example Ford sound engineers and developers worked on an “Active Noise Control” system on the 2015 Mustang EcoBoost that amplifies the engine’s purr through the car speakers. Afterwards, the automaker surveyed members of Mustang fan clubs on which processed “sound concepts” they most enjoyed.
Among purists, the trickery has inspired an identity crisis and cut to the heart of American auto legend. The “aural experience” of a car, they argue, is an intangible that’s just as priceless as what’s revving under the hood. “For a car guy, it’s literally music to hear that thing rumble,” says Mike Rhynard, “It’s a mind-trick. It’s something it’s not. And no one wants to be deceived.” Other drivers ask if it really matters if the sound is fake? A driver who didn’t know the difference might enjoy the thrum and thunder of it nonetheless. Is taking the best part of an eight-cylinder rev and cloaking a better engine with it really, for car makers, so wrong? "It may be a necessary evil in the eyes of Ford," says Andrew Hard, "but it’s sad to think that an iconic muscle car like the Mustang, a car famous for its bellowing, guttural soundtrack, has to fake its engine noise in 2015. Welcome to the future."
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Friday January 23 2015, @05:00PM
What it costs is fuel efficiency.
American vacuum cleaners and leaf blowers, where energy efficiency is not a concern of the manufacturer, are deliberately engineered to be louder because quiet models of equal power don't sell as well.
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Friday January 23 2015, @05:14PM
I don't know anyone who's listened to their leaf blower before picking it off the shelf, but I'll take your word for it.
Europe considers Noise as a pollution, and noise-level enforcement rules are getting stricter. Obviously, the US has some ways to go before getting to that point (outside of some OSHA rules).
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday January 23 2015, @05:53PM
I don't know anyone who uses a leaf blower before picking it off the shelf either.
What actually happens is that people talk to their neighbours, borrow their equipment and get a "feel" and part of that feel is the sound.
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Friday January 23 2015, @06:02PM
That requires the person to talk to their neighbors, be allowed to borrow the equipment, and actually finding the same one in their target price range.
The proportion of people who can pull that off is shrinking rapidly.
(Score: 2) by tibman on Friday January 23 2015, @06:19PM
Good thing i wasn't drinking coffee : ) I completely agree. You can choose the house but you can't choose the neighbors. I'd be happy with some that waved back instead of looking away or scowling.
SN won't survive on lurkers alone. Write comments.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday January 23 2015, @06:47PM
WTF is it with you literalist idiots?
Have you never bought anything yourself?
First off, you don't have to actually borrow it to get your friend's opinions, just talking to them gets you halfway there.
Second, people frequently settle for a different model from the same manufacturer when the identical model is not easily available, that is the entire reason companies invest so much in building a brand. Much of the time they don't even know an exact model to begin with.
I swear you sheldon cooper wannabes have no clue how actual people live their lives. Most people are not binary robots like, you apparently believe yourself to be.
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Friday January 23 2015, @06:53PM
> people frequently settle for a different model from the same manufacturer when the identical model is not easily available
> (...)
> Much of the time they don't even know an exact model to begin with.
The sub-topic is the affirmation that "the louder models sell better".
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday January 23 2015, @06:59PM
Holy hell sheldon cooper.
What kind of myopic idiocy does it take for you to think that brand is completely distinct from model?
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Friday January 23 2015, @07:07PM
> What actually happens is that people talk to their neighbours, borrow their equipment and get a "feel" and part of that feel is the sound.
> First off, you don't have to actually borrow it to get your friend's opinions, just talking to them gets you halfway there.
Now tell me again how many of your friends will tell you that theirs is better (subtracting confirmation bias), and how many have HEARD multiple models from different brands and, all other things being equal, decided on the louder one.
The original AC stated "deliberately engineered to be louder because quiet models of equal power don't sell as well". You are allowed not to believe my objections. Why do you prefer to believe the original AC, and if it's you, can you substantiate your claim?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday January 23 2015, @07:19PM
Now tell me again how many of your friends will tell you that theirs is better (subtracting confirmation bias), and how many have HEARD multiple models from different brands and, all other things being equal, decided on the louder one.
The only response to that is you couldn't have done a better job of confirming that accusation of being a literalist in the mold of sheldon cooper if you had tried.
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Friday January 23 2015, @07:21PM
I just read a cop-out on the original bullshit claim.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday January 23 2015, @08:49PM
Sure, that's exactly what sheldon cooper would read.
What actually happened is leonard just gave up arguing because it is too difficult to get a man to understand something when his sense of superiority depends on his not understanding it.
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Friday January 23 2015, @09:28PM
Let's reply this:
AC: The loudest ones sell better
Me (not AC): I don't see how, because [silly reasons]. Can you explain?
AC: You're just a Sheldon!
Does Leonard usually defend random unproven statements? I thought he was usually on the side of common sense...
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday January 26 2015, @04:58PM
(Score: 2) by frojack on Friday January 23 2015, @09:52PM
Europe considers Noise as a pollution
Bob-who-speaks-for-all-of-Europe fails to notice virtually everywhere in north america there are noise pollution laws [noisefree.org], and you can be pulled over for nothing more than driving a car that is too loud, or you can get a visit from police for your dog barking too much.
No, you are mistaken. I've always had this sig.
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Friday January 23 2015, @10:54PM
I've spent enough time in enough US states to know that enforcement of noise laws isn't exactly a priority of the cops, unless called or in need of an excuse.
Said cops are a major noise contributor inside cities, where vehicle-mounted sirens (cops, fire, ambulance) are set at absurd and actually painful levels, tens of dB higher than anything I've ever experienced in other countries.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday January 24 2015, @12:25AM
cops in America prefer to shoot first and ask questions later