Does an EV lack "soul"?

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Hatch

Hatch

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Aside from persons who outright reject EV's based on political reasons, i've found that many other ICE owners will reject them because the EV has no soul. Most EV owners (including myself) will disagree. I've been considering this question for awhile. What is soul in a car?

Doug DeMuro recently said in an interview with Ben Sullins that any car that someone loves, has soul. Simple answer, but it rings true to me.
 
I have a SWAG - "soul" arises from a car that has a narrow band of operating parameters that can be unlocked by an attentive driver, at a spirited pace.

This eliminates most daily drives. That sense of sound cons from a car that shakes, rattles and rolls - but resonates in a favorite corner, on a road so secret that no one ever talks about it.
 
Hatch said:
i've found that many other ICE owners will reject them because the EV has no soul.
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People reach for abstracts when they are at the limit of their articulation, and they don't want to sound like a toddler to what ultimately becomes "I don't like it because...because!".

At the end of the day, from a purely performance perspective, EVs have ICE beat in most categories, with the biggest downside being weight and the impact on handling (though the lower center of gravity is a boon in many cases).

There are many different types of downsides with EVs, but performance is not one of them. Our car culture is typically all about performance, so when one is bias against EVs (likely political or simple ignorance), the easy reach is "soul".
 
Hatch said:
Aside from persons who outright reject EV's based on political reasons, i've found that many other ICE owners will reject them because the EV has no soul. Most EV owners (including myself) will disagree. I've been considering this question for awhile. What is soul in a car?

Doug DeMuro recently said in an interview with Ben Sullins that any car that someone loves, has soul. Simple answer, but it rings true to me.
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I think there’s a Kia model that has soul ….
 
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Puppethead said:
Corollary: do fake engine noises give a car "soul"?
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This issue is super important to me as a self described car guy.

Fake engine noise is an abomination. Fake is defined as not connected to the drive train. The motor is spinning at a constant RPM, but you control some device to simulate revving. This is more ridiculous than having a fart mode.

Artificial noise is completely different. The faster the motor turns, the noise becomes louder / faster / more frantic. When you shift (as in Dodge Charger EV which will reportedly have multiple gears), the sound naturally changes. If you want to "rev", you have some type of clutch that you can engage that will allow the car to freewheel but really scream, as you spin up the motor. Better yet, if you can operate in rear-wheel only mode, you can burn rubber and create quite a commotion.

I would argue that FAKE engine noise is not only soulless, but soul destroying. It's a blasphemy against all that is holy in the gear head religion.

ARTIFICIAL isn't for everyone, but would be perfect for some people that want the drama and theater in their driving experience. I'm 100% in favor of artificial noise for those that want it. This could possibly be defined as soul.
 
Hatch said:
This issue is super important to me as a self described car guy.

Fake engine noise is an abomination. Fake is defined as not connected to the drive train.

Artificial noise is completely different.

I would argue that FAKE engine noise is not only soulless, but soul destroying. It's a blasphemy against all that is holy in the gear head religion.

ARTIFICIAL isn't for everyone, but would be perfect for some people that want the drama and theater in their driving experience. I'm 100% in favor of artificial noise for those that want it. This could possibly be defined as soul.
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Anything added through the car's stereo is artificial sweetener.

What's next, artificial backfire?

No thanks
 
Jim Matthews said:
Anything added through the car's stereo is artificial sweetener.
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Totally agree. Audio from the sound system simulating engine noise is super lame. Some ICE cars do it, and many EV's. I'll turn that crap off ASAP.

Dodge wants to be "authentic" by generating the noise with some mechanism that pushes air out the tail pipes. So that's where the sound comes from. It's a start, but they need to make it real by coupling it with motor RPM. Software can do that, but if they REALLY wanted to be authentic, they could actually make the drive motor(s) generate the noise somehow. Take software and computers out of the loop. That would be a real argument that they are bucking convention, living up to the gear head tradition, building a "real" muscle car EV.

In fact, this is a challenge to CEO of Dodge Tim Kuniskis. Build a drive motor that rumbles and thunders and screams. Not some programmed artificial noise maker.

It's important because of this - if you sell a muscle car to a gear head, they will most definitely be taking it apart at some point. Make sure you imagine yourself in that persons place when they are inspecting this part of the car. If that's not enough incentive, remember that it's guaranteed to be all over YouTube.
 
Having an EV as my only car for 2 years and slowly forgetting what DIY ICE maintenance was like, I bought a used, small-size, manual transmission 3-door 4WD to work on and for local towing, or transporting home DIY stuff that won't fit in the EV. It's a hoot to drive ... slow, bouncy and with shifting that requires focus, and a whine in 3rd to sing along to. It's been a great way to realize just how much better the EV is as transportation. But it costs 5 times the EV in fuel and CO2 emissions are a concern for me so I don't drive it a lot.
I'd agree to some extent that the EV does lack soul but that's hardly something that I can't get over to more forward. Perhaps once the EV loses enough range to give me a scare that will provide some "soul".
As for ICE exhaust noise, that's just the sound of heat engine losses. The fact that some have an element of musical tones just shows how easily humans are fooled.

Hatch said:
.... The motor is spinning at a constant RPM, but you control some device to simulate revving. This is more ridiculous than having a fart mode.
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No EV motor spins at a constant RPM.
 
bwilson4web said:
Well my Tesla has fart mode.

Bob Wilson
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I love the sound my Mustang makes, but the artificial exhaust sounds Dodge plans for their cars is just plain idiotic especially given having a luxury car quiet ride is a fantastic feature of electric vehicles. It reminds me of the fools who put stick on air vents, spinner hubcaps, and large spoilers on their Dodge Neons.


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