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Disable the grindy speakery thingy?

Discussion in 'Prime Accessories and Modifications' started by Sandollars, Apr 4, 2017.

  1. Sandollars

    Sandollars Prius Maven

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    Has anyone figured out how to do it on the Prime? I simply can not stand that sound.... I wish someone would create custom sounds for the under 10 MPH speaker. I would be ALL OVER the George Jetson car sound!

    Seriously, Anyone figured it out yet? Surely I am not alone in my distaste for this abhorrent sound...
     
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  2. Ferrarilover

    Ferrarilover Active Member

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    What's the speaker for? I didn't hear anything when I test drive the Prime here in the UK.


    iPhone ?
     
  3. Sandollars

    Sandollars Prius Maven

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    It's so you don't bump into people who are incapable of noticing the hazard of a 1+ ton moving object in close proximity to themselves when the vehicle is moving under 10 MPH. They may not have them in the UK because your Lawyer-to-Citizen ratio is much lower there than here (the preceding is expressed with tongue in cheek).
     
  4. Ferrarilover

    Ferrarilover Active Member

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    In my 2010 Prius car parks were a nightmare. Surprisingly a lot of people walk out and don't look first.

    I don't think we have one but would good to have one that could be switched on off at the drivers discretion


    iPhone ?
     
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  5. VTBIGDOG

    VTBIGDOG Active Member

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    There is one. Its called a horn!
     
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  6. I'mJp

    I'mJp Senior Member

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    In the search box that's on this page, type: disable noise maker
     
  7. Ferrarilover

    Ferrarilover Active Member

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    I find that a bit loud and overkill. A quieter noise would be great. Any how I guess people will learn as EVs become more common.


    iPhone ?
     
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  8. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    i'm pretty sure someone did it on gen 4, because i remember they had to add a diode or resistor, otherwise you get a warning message on the screen. prime should be the same.
     
  9. drash

    drash Senior Member

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    And here I thought the VPNS (Vehicle Proximity Notification System) on my PiP sounds like the original, not the Tom Cruise movie, "War of the Worlds" alien machine movement sound only with the playback speed slowed way down. Does the Prime have a different sound? It sounds like it's grinding?
     
  10. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    it's probably the same. sounds like tight calipers on rusty rotors.:p
     
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  11. Lee Jay

    Lee Jay Senior Member

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    They're called the "visually impaired".

    Electric cars are now required to make noise at low speeds so they don’t sneak up and kill us - The Verge

    "Electric and hybrid-fuel cars will be required to produce noise when traveling at low speeds under a new rule issued by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. This is to prevent these vehicles from injuring pedestrians, especially people who are blind or are visually impaired."
     
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  12. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    Have you never yourself got caught out? Nobody has eyes in the back of their head, is 100% attentive.
     
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  13. ETC(SS)

    ETC(SS) The OTHER One Percenter.....

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    There are diagrams showing which wire to yank.
    Just make sure that disabling an automotive safety feature doesn't ENABLE some slobbering, bed-wetting, slip-and-fall lawyer if you bump into some distracted cell phone groper.
    I advise that you remove the annumciator and zorch it with 120VAC, and then carefully re-install it.....or? pull one wire loose from the connector, clip the conductor, stretch the insulator a little and then push it back into the connector.
    That way it looks like it was defective rather than a case of an owner disconnecting (what dot.gov calls) an important safety feature.

    Your call.
     
  14. Lee Jay

    Lee Jay Senior Member

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    "...a 2009 NHTSA-sponsored study suggested that HVs are significantly more likely to be involved in accidents involving pedestrians than ICE vehicles in certain situations (e.g., low speed situations when the vehicle is turning, stopping, slowing, or backing up) (Hanna, 2009). NHTSA’s research determined that when operating under all conditions, such vehicles are 1.18 times more likely to be involved in a collision with a pedestrian than an ICE vehicle and 1.51 times more likely to be involved in a collision with a pedalcyclist."

    https://www.nhtsa.gov/sites/nhtsa.dot.gov/files/documents/812347-minimumsoundrequirements.pdf

    "This study found that pedestrian and bicyclist crashes involving both HEVs and ICE vehicles commonly occurred on roadways, in zones with low speed limits, during daytime, and in clear weather, with higher incidence rates for HEVs when compared to ICE vehicles."

    https://crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api/Public/ViewPublication/811204
     
  15. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    i read that the study was not done properly, and the statistics manipulated to appease the federation for the blind.
    that being said, they should be on all cars with an idle level below a certain parameter.
     
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  16. Lee Jay

    Lee Jay Senior Member

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    Did what you read about the study come from the current administration?
     
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  17. bresna

    bresna Active Member

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    Is this a CA thing? I have driven slowly with my windows open and I can't hear a thing.
     
  18. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    It was introduced in 2012.
     
  19. Sandollars

    Sandollars Prius Maven

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    It's precisely this type of study that chaps my hide... not because of the conclusions rendered from the study, but because good money was spent on conducting it. Government money that could have been spent much more effectively elsewhere.

    Might I suggest a book I read in business school:

    Lies, Damn lies and Statistics, The manipulation of Public opinion in America by Michael A. Wheeler.


    It's an oldie but a goody and the premise only becomes more valid with the advent of the Internet and the streamlined ability to disseminate information to the mainstream masses more quickly. Give me an argument and a some money and I will supply you ironclad statistics validating either side of said argument. Show me an unemployed Governmental Lawyer with initiative and I will show you a plethora of new "Studies"

    My Tesla made no noise and I never hit anyone with it, "visually impaired" or not. One of my responsibilities as a licensed driver is to not hit things. If I hit things, be it a fire hydrant, building or a "visually impaired" person, it is not the responsibility of the car manufacturer, it's mine and I will take responsibility for my actions. My Tesla did, however have Pedestrian detection system on it and the ability to slam on my brakes any time it decided I was not paying attention. WAIT! ....... Oh yeah............

    My Prime has that too! :)

    Driving (and walking) is an inherently dangerous activity and while I have no doubt someone has made the effort to "study" the dangers of electric vehicles and their proximity to persons walking or bicycling, etc., a speaker thingy on the front of my car emitting a noise that some say can't even be heard is not the prophylactic that will save lives.

    When did we stop taking responsibility for our lives and actions?
     
    #19 Sandollars, Apr 5, 2017
    Last edited: Apr 5, 2017
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  20. Ferrarilover

    Ferrarilover Active Member

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    As someone who lives in the uk I think it is a great idea that the us has this noise device. One more think that makes the uk Prius has over the US one to make up for the lack of the beautiful giant screen


    iPhone ?
     
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