Remember when cars sounded like cars?
Posted by freedomforall 1 year, 8 months ago to Government
Excerpt:
"One thing it hasn’t cost – in the case of the new Tundra – is the sound. The 3.5 V6 sounds convincingly like a V8 when you give it gas.
And that is very good, indeed.
But – as it turns out – it’s not really the sound. Well, it is – and it isn’t. The sound is real – because you can hear it when you floor it. But it’s not the sound of the 3.5 V6 that replaced the 5.7 V8. It is a recording of the sound of the previous 5.7 V8, pumped through the sound system, when you floor it – to remind you of how V8s used to sound when you floored it – before the government forced Toyota (and the rest) to replace them with engines that don’t make that sound.
Girl you know it’s true . . .
Except, of course, it isn’t.
Toyota isn’t the only company doing this, either. BMW is another – because a four cylinder engine does’t sound like the inline sixes that used to come standard in most BMWs, which have been replaced by turbocharged fours for the same reason that a turbocharged V6 has replaced the V8 in the Tundra. But people who spend $50k-plus on a BMW were unenthused about the sound of a four cylinder engine when they floored their $50k-plus Beemers, so BMW gave them they sound of what they used to get for their $50k, pumped through the speakers.
It is called sound augmentation technology. A way for us to remember how things used to sound when things were real – and better. But at least we can pretend there’s something more than a four – or a six – under the hood.
Milli Vanilli style."
"One thing it hasn’t cost – in the case of the new Tundra – is the sound. The 3.5 V6 sounds convincingly like a V8 when you give it gas.
And that is very good, indeed.
But – as it turns out – it’s not really the sound. Well, it is – and it isn’t. The sound is real – because you can hear it when you floor it. But it’s not the sound of the 3.5 V6 that replaced the 5.7 V8. It is a recording of the sound of the previous 5.7 V8, pumped through the sound system, when you floor it – to remind you of how V8s used to sound when you floored it – before the government forced Toyota (and the rest) to replace them with engines that don’t make that sound.
Girl you know it’s true . . .
Except, of course, it isn’t.
Toyota isn’t the only company doing this, either. BMW is another – because a four cylinder engine does’t sound like the inline sixes that used to come standard in most BMWs, which have been replaced by turbocharged fours for the same reason that a turbocharged V6 has replaced the V8 in the Tundra. But people who spend $50k-plus on a BMW were unenthused about the sound of a four cylinder engine when they floored their $50k-plus Beemers, so BMW gave them they sound of what they used to get for their $50k, pumped through the speakers.
It is called sound augmentation technology. A way for us to remember how things used to sound when things were real – and better. But at least we can pretend there’s something more than a four – or a six – under the hood.
Milli Vanilli style."
I drive a 20yo 4 cyl turbo from a Japanese manufacturer with a reputation for reliable vehicles. It has no fake sound, it is quite noisy enough, especially after my mods, the noise is distinctive- unequal length headers.
Power, torque and fuel efficiency may be similar to a motor of 50% or more greater displacement with no forced induction, but such a motor would not fit in the car. It is a small car, suits city streets and back lanes, and high rise parking structures, as well as serious off-tarmac competition.
My old school mechanic used to say, 'There is no replacement for displacement'. That was a generation ago, nowadays just look at the performance vehicles outside his shop, was 90% V8, now about 10% V8s. Some now even with automatic transmissions, they say they are good, I am still reserved about that.
I think one of Eric's underlying points is that this process of downsizing has an ulterior motive: to remove the 'fun' aspect of driving by removing the feedback that drivers enjoy and convert them into mere passengers. Then, when that is done, the freedom of being a driver, with free will to go when and where he wishes, can be more easily withheld.
For me nowadays I am driving a lot less than 10 or 20 years ago so I am not so concerned with fuel prices. If I am buying, a V8 auto may be just the ticket, but few are available as new. These gov regs and controls are not just adding to the tax on fuel but determine what types of vehicle gets to the market.
The funny noise generators come from the manufacturer, but the reason is gov regulations of type of engine you can buy.
I may get forced into one at the next vehicle replacement (my wife's car) as all the interesting alternatives seem to be going away. But I made myself a promise several years ago: NO MORE BORING CARS!
But worse than that is the sound of the younger generation's modification of the 4cyl sound...which is worse than a overly loud FART!..never mind the intermittent off beat explosions between shifts.