The Sound of ICE!!

[bdeweese]

Weather’s been typical cool and rainy here in the northwest, so my Mercedes SL500 convertible (R230) has been patiently sitting in the garage all winter. Been driving the ‘24 Mach-E Premium exclusively for the past 45 days or so since we got it.

Today we had a beautiful summer-like day - sunshine and 75 degrees - so I put the top down and took the Mercedes for a spin. And, I gotta say - as much as I love the Mach-E (and I really do love it), there’s still nothing like the sound of opening up that V8. Such a great and powerful sound! Makes me really appreciate BOTH technologies.

Any others feel the same?

p.s. I know it’s kind of a love/hate relationship, but I really like the propulsion sound in the Mach-E. It’s very subtle. If anything, I’d like to see them give us more options to increase the volume a bit or perhaps even simulate going through the gears (I think some of the Ionics do this). But I’m guessing there are only a few of us who feel this way. ?

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[MonkeyNutz]

Today we had a beautiful summer-like day - sunshine and 75 degrees - so I put the top down and took the Mercedes for a spin. And, I gotta say - as much as I love the Mach-E (and I really do love it), there’s still nothing like the sound of opening up that V8. Such a great and powerful sound! Makes me really appreciate BOTH technologies.

Any others feel the same?

Don't miss it. While I do appreciate the sound of a well-tuned v8, it still loses its luster when you consider that all that noise is wasted energy. Not only that, but automakers have spent decades tuning exhaust and muffler designs to tailor the sound to be as appealing as possible. That pleasant sound of perceived power is fake.

But you're not alone... Ford and others have conducted a lot of market research to determine that many people feel they need the engine noise. First, it was Ford, GM and others placing phony engine noise into the cabins of increasingly quiet ICE cars. I absolutely HATED this on my 2018 Expedition. The EcoBoost V6 was rather quiet and didn't sound "powerful" so they gave it the fake V8 gurgling, rumbling noise in the cabin, but it was kinda quiet. But there. Ugh. The first Mach-E's off the line had the fake V8 noise and after enough customers complained, Ford gave the option to disable, and eventually turned it off by default.

Having been an EV owner for almost 10 years now, I've really come to enjoy the near silence. This is why one of the most common requests Rivian gets is to allow for turning off the low-speed driving noise when in off-road mode. I'll be having as many of the sounds turned off as I possibly can when we get our Mach-E. No propulsion sound in my Lightning, I think it's there if I choose to enable it. Ford did enable it by default in the Platinum.

 

[HuntingPudel]

All I can say is that for me my Blazer’s teeny little V8 with a moderately big cam doesn’t do it for me at idle and pretty much only sounds good at WOT above 3500rpm. There is nothing like the sound of a big Pontiac with a Ram Air IV cam in it. That sucker just does it for me at any speed or throttle opening. ??

Then again, the little 5 liter Pontiac engine in the Grey Ghost also does it for me. Maybe I’m just a sucker for Pontiacs with big cams and I have a Chebby prejudice. ??

 

[GreaseMonkey]

I turned my torch red c5 in June 2005 and have not had a v8 since. After not owning any car for nearly 8 years, I defaulted to shitty Japanese econoboxes with cvt till I got my Mach-E in July of 2022. Do I miss the sound? Yes I do. But I’m never buying ice again.

 

[AtomicInternet]

They intentionally tuned my Focus RS for "pops an burbles" which means it backfires every so lightly after hard throttle. I forgot all about it until I drove it again after a long break. I used to love that noise and now it was just confusing. The EV has changed me.

 

[AliRafiee]

Better get home before the hail storm shows up.

P.S. I miss the sound of my ICE Mustang GT. But I’m done with ICE.

 

[bdeweese]

Thx! Lots of great comments! Regardless of what sounds they do or do not come up with - I agree that they should all have the option to be turned off.

 

[DugthePug Dad]

I like the fake engine sound…

 

[Fat Mach]

I'm taking the Shelby out tomorrow morning. The supercharged Coyote with the Borla Ataks is music to my ears.

 

[bdeweese]

Sweet! Nice looking ride!

 

[JohnFoxeSheets]

The sound of dinosaurs screaming as their final remains are incinerated? Nah, don’t miss it.

?

 

[67 Stang Convertible]

While I can still appreciate a V8 rumble, I don't miss it and I'm literally faster than most of them anyway.

 

[dalola]

Weather’s been typical cool and rainy here in the northwest, so my Mercedes SL500 convertible (R230) has been patiently sitting in the garage all winter. Been driving the ‘24 Mach-E Premium exclusively for the past 45 days or so since we got it.

Today we had a beautiful summer-like day - sunshine and 75 degrees - so I put the top down and took the Mercedes for a spin. And, I gotta say - as much as I love the Mach-E (and I really do love it), there’s still nothing like the sound of opening up that V8. Such a great and powerful sound! Makes me really appreciate BOTH technologies.

Any others feel the same?

Absolutely! Totally agree, the MME is a nice smooth ride, but it doesn't exactly stir up a lot of passion... perfect for a DD. I like an all-out assault on ALL my senses when I'm driving for fun... NOTHING will ever get my attention like a high compression solid cam V8....absolute music! I have several V8 hotrods to pick from, but this is my fav...it tries to kill you every minute behind the wheel, and after about an hour you feel like you've gone 3 rounds with Tyson....I love it! ? I also have a '65 Mustang with a 12.5:1 roller cammed 289 that is a close 2nd....?

 

[curtisfinney]

Weather’s been typical cool and rainy here in the northwest, so my Mercedes SL500 convertible (R230) has been patiently sitting in the garage all winter. Been driving the ‘24 Mach-E Premium exclusively for the past 45 days or so since we got it.

Today we had a beautiful summer-like day - sunshine and 75 degrees - so I put the top down and took the Mercedes for a spin. And, I gotta say - as much as I love the Mach-E (and I really do love it), there’s still nothing like the sound of opening up that V8. Such a great and powerful sound! Makes me really appreciate BOTH technologies.

Any others feel the same?

p.s. I know it’s kind of a love/hate relationship, but I really like the propulsion sound in the Mach-E. It’s very subtle. If anything, I’d like to see them give us more options to increase the volume a bit or perhaps even simulate going through the gears (I think some of the Ionics do this). But I’m guessing there are only a few of us who feel this way. ?

Nah, I like the quiet ride of an EV. As a city dweller, I really don’t like the noise pollution created by some cars and many motorcycles

 

[ChasingCoral]

Weather’s been typical cool and rainy here in the northwest, so my Mercedes SL500 convertible (R230) has been patiently sitting in the garage all winter. Been driving the ‘24 Mach-E Premium exclusively for the past 45 days or so since we got it.

Today we had a beautiful summer-like day - sunshine and 75 degrees - so I put the top down and took the Mercedes for a spin. And, I gotta say - as much as I love the Mach-E (and I really do love it), there’s still nothing like the sound of opening up that V8. Such a great and powerful sound! Makes me really appreciate BOTH technologies.

Any others feel the same?

Nope

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