NHTSA details new sound requirements for hybrids and EVs travelling under 18 mph

It's a requirement that many such vehicles will already meet, but the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has now detailed just what sort of sounds all hybrids and EVs will have to make when they're travelling at speeds under 18 miles per hour. Namely, they'll have to make a sound that's loud enough to be heard over ambient city noise, that changes to match the vehicle's speed, and that also remains audible as the vehicle is idling.

The agency isn't requiring any one specific sound, however, and says that automakers will have a "significant range of choices" available to them -- they will be required to use the same set of sounds for each vehicle of the same make and model, though. The new rules also won't be enforced anytime soon; today only marks the beginning of a 60-day comment period, with a three-year phase in period set to start in September of 2015 if all goes as planned. You can check out a few sample sounds that the NHTSA has provided at the source link, and find the official announcement after the break.

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Via: Autoblog Green

Source: NHTSA