Lack of wind noise.

J

JyChevyVolt

Active Member
Caught my wife doing 80+ MPH. She was unaware because of lack of noise. I noticed the Clarity is much more quieter than the Volt in EV mode.

How loud is the PHEV version?

PS. Anything special about the wipers. Wife loved the wiper. Told me to try it out.
 
The PHEV version (I assume you're still talking about the Clarity) is also extremely quiet at highway speeds.
 
The Tesla overall is still quieter, but much depends on road surfaces. The Clarity does a better job of quieting certain road surfaces. I'm quite sure this is due to the tires. The tires that came with my car (GoodYear) are not known for their quietness. The Clarity's OEM tires (Michelin) are quieter riding tires.

However the Tesla's drivetrain is quieter in general than the already quiet Clarity.
 
Ken7 said:
The Tesla overall is still quieter, but much depends on road surfaces. The Clarity does a better job of quieting certain road surfaces. I'm quite sure this is due to the tires. The tires that came with my car (GoodYear) are not known for their quietness. The Clarity's OEM tires (Michelin) are quieter riding tires.

However the Tesla's drivetrain is quieter in general than the already quiet Clarity.
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Yeah, Goodyear on the Volt was loud.
I assume you got the plug in Hybrid (PHEV), not BEV.
 
The PHEV is relatively quiet unless pushed hard. The engine gets loud and buzzy at higher RPM, but is quiet for normal cruising. Loud and buzzy isn't very technical, but the motor becomes like a typical high strung 4 cyl if pushed hard. Much like the Volt if you floor the go pedal in charge sustaining mode.

It isn't silky smooth revving like a BMW inline 6 that can rev up to redline with minimal vibration. Inline 6 engines are naturally balanced and don't have the vibrations that a 4 cyl has. That being said at lower RPM you can't even tell the Clarity PHEV is running, which is where it runs most of the time. I have to put up the energy gauge to know the engine is running most of the time, or look for the EV text on the cluster to disappear.

Accelerating I hear drivetrain or motor whine at times, but I think only because everything else is so quiet. Overall, it is definitely a step up from the Volt Gen 1 in terms of sound refinement.
 
The Clarity is so quiet I walked into the gas station yesterday came back out it was still in.
It's so quiet you won't even know it's running
Ha
 
I can’t say how many times I’ve walked away from the car and left it on. Kind of embarrassing for a former LEAF driver who knows better. Seems like it should beep at me if I open the door while on.

Eventually it turns itself off and locks up. Pretty smart.
 
Mine beeps if I exit the car with it running and the keys are in my pocket (as long as I close the door).
 
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