British company Intelligent Energy has produced a prototype fuel cell-based motorcycle, the ENV (Emissions Neutral Vehicle), which it revealed on Tuesday in London:
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Reuters reports:
Powered by a high pressure hydrogen fuel cell, the Emissions Neutral Vehicle produces the equivalent noise of a personal computer fan belt.I think the complaints about a lack of noise being dangerous are largely hogwash. Riders who favor "loud pipes" claim car drivers won't notice them unless they blast their ear-splitting exhaust systems at full volume. Maybe that helps, but you shouldn't be depending on noise to keep you safe.
Not only is that distinctly wimpy in the eyes of many bikers, it could also be dangerous.
Intelligent Energy...is looking at ways to produce an artificial engine noise that will alert people to its presence, making sure the machine is not silent and deadly.
The truth is that the deep rumble of an internal-combustion engine is just part of the motorcycle experience, plain and simple. As British Motorcycle Federation spokesman Jeff Stone explains later in the Reuters article:
The motorcycle is a primitive thing and it appeals to the inner person. The excitement and exhilaration of a bike is why people ride them.Reuters notes that the designers are thinking about adding a fake engine sound to make the ENV noisier, but that would be about as effective as replacing a dog with a stuffed animal and a tape of barking. The charm of a motorcycle is that its noise comes from the physical interaction of dozens of metal parts and pieces, right under your seat. In our increasingly virtual world, a bike’s noise, smell, and vibration are proof of something tangible and real.
15 comments:
Very interesting. Is the noise thing considered dangerous because pedestians won't be able to hear it when crossing the street or something?
Posted by gindy
I think your points are valid, but aethetics can change over time.
Perhaps in the future bike riders will think that the old primative noises that bikes used to make and their clunk vibrations took away from the essencial expirience of being out on the road with the wind whipping by you.
The under-powered thing is a major issue though.
Posted by Dave Justus
Gindy, that could be another danger, but the one they are referring to, I think, is that drivers of cars won't hear the motorcycle and hence may crash into it if, for example, they change lanes without looking carefully.
Dave, I'm not sure about your point. If you want the wind in your hair, you can always ride a bicycle. There's something about hearing and feeling your engine roar to life that's just cool. (Although beyond a certain point, noise and vibrations become a nuisance.)
Traditional bikes will probably never go completely out of style.
Posted by GaijinBiker
Yeah, I'm with Dave. The thing that I think is cool about motorcycles is the moving around at engine-powered-vehicle speeds without being walled off from the outside world. Not having a noisy engine wouldn't change that at all. In fact it'd probably be a plus for me! But then, I'm not very hardcore.
Posted by Matt
I think this is one of those things that won't have an answer. With all the people with the booming stereos, you can't guarantee you'll be heard even with open pipes. But then again, a lot of times you will. But the people who are listening for you probably wasn't going to quickly change into your lane anyways.
You know, that is *almost* a nice looking ride though. A few small cosmetic changes, and it looks like a nice light ride. Then again, I've been looking at possibly getting a nice Honda scooter to ride around on, since scooters are an option where I am at... Something like the Ruckus or the Big Ruckus
Posted by Chad
The Big Ruckuses seem to be selling pretty well in Japan, where they go by the clever name PS250 .
Posted by GaijinBiker
Funny this should come up right now. I was watching the excellent Gattica last night and had some thoughts about the sound made by the electric cars they all drove. I remember thinking that, once one lets go of traditional thinking about what a car "should" sound like, and gets used to an electric whirring, a gasoline-powered vehicle starts to sound barbaric. (Which was the point of Dave's comment, above, as well.) Anyway, the idea of equating noise with safety is a red herring. Some people will cling to it, but really, if it's a question of letting people know the motorcycle is there, there are ways without an ear splitting roar. The 'right' to make that sound is just ego on the rider's part. Some people want to blow smoke in everyone's face, and always will.
Posted by Mr. Snitch!
GB,
You ride in Tokyo and you don't think loud pipes make a difference in safety?
I can't count the number of times some idiot has started to change lanes into me and then noticed me because of my engine noise. Simple logic: If they know you're there, they're less likely to kill you by mistake. It's no replacement for defensive driving but it makes a noticeable difference. When you're exposed to the elements and to all the idiots out there piloting lethal steel cages, you need every bit of help you can get. My pipes are as quiet as I could make them without stifling the power of a 1340cc engine, but I am often thankful for the noise they have.
There are bikers out there who make their bikes pointlessly loud for macho reasons and then use "loud pipes save lives" as an excuse, but that doesn't mean the statement itself is wrong.
Matt,
Different bikers ride for different reasons. For some, the rumble of the engine is an important part of the experience. For me, it's more about feeling the pulse of the piston strokes pulling me along, so as much as I'd miss the noise, it's the smoothness of an electic motor that would be most disappointing for me. (That's one reason that most sportbikes bore me.)
I understand that the forces of nannydom will likely someday force me to ride a less interesting bike, but a lot of the romance of the road will be lost.
Posted by Big Ben
Hey, I'm not trying to harsh your buzz or anything, Big Ben. I'm just saying that there are also people who would actually prefer a quiet, smooth bike to a noisy and vibrating one. So there is a market for this sort of thing, even if it doesn't include much of the traditional motorcycle-buying and -riding demographic. Diff'rent strokes (ha!) and all that...
I think we can all agree, though, on the egregious pointlessness of artificially added engine noise.
Posted by Matt
Matt,
Agreed.I'm also psyched that fuel-cell technology has advanced this far, because a silent car would be pretty cool.
Wow, I didn't realize I was talking to No-sword Matt!
I love your blog. Ganbare on the Botchan thing!
Posted by Big Ben
BB, I agree that noise can help... but there are also bikers who are just trying to be "macho" by pissing other people off with their loud pipes. (Not that I think you're one of them.)
My hunch is that ENV riders will miss the sound of the engine itself more than any safety benefits. Also, since the engine noise is a function of its structure and movement, I think the noise and the feel of a conventional bike are really two parts of the same overall experience that we all like so much. (That's why sticking a noisemaker on the ENV won't help.)
And one more thing: I use my nice, loud horn a lot to wake up daydreaming drivers drifiting into my lane, etc. Since it's a sharp, sudden noise, I think it can be even more effective than a continuously rumbling engine.
Posted by GaijinBiker
GB, looks like our cross-posting confused blogger.
Please delete one of my double-posts (and maybe one of yours, too.)
Posted by Big Ben
Yes, Blogger has been acting up lately.
Don't worry, I am on the case.
Posted by GaijinBiker
Thanks.
I just realized that my partner The Stinger posted about the same thing this afternoon in Japanese on the Gaijin Bikers BBS. Great minds think alike, or something.
Posted by Big Ben
My point about aethetics is that a lot of what we think is attractive, desirable, etc. is culteral.
Which is more attractive a toned athletic woman or a more rubenesque one? A lot of that depends on when and where you were born.
I suspect that motorcycle noise is similar.
Posted by Dave Justus
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