frontrangeleaf wrote: ↑Fri Jan 21, 2022 10:31 am
As a person married to someone with partial blindness, I'll weigh in here and just observe that there really is a safety concern. There's no question that ICE cars make more noise than a Leaf when moving slowly. None. A sighted person doesn't walk in the same shoes as someone with a disability. No you're not qualified to judge what it's like to not be able to see.
And if you hit my wife having disabled something that was intended to help her know that you're approaching, plan on hiring a very good attorney to defend your actions in court. We'll see what a jury of your peers has to say about your actions.
I think the whole discussion is ridiculously selfish. Seriously? A little whooing noise bothers you that much? Get over it already.
'Nuff said.
My favorite part was "There's no question that ICE cars make more noise than a Leaf when moving slowly. None."
As if by saying that some undeniable truth had just dawned upon us all.
And yet...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_ ... nds#Nissan
as an example
"The vehicle must make a continuous noise level of at least 56 dBA (within 2 meters) if the car is going 20 km/h (12 mph) or slower, and a maximum of 75 dBA."
for reference
https://ehs.yale.edu/sites/default/file ... -chart.pdf
with a relatively recent prius being
2018 Prius Hybrid dB
idle 35.9
55 mph 45.5
65 mph 53.8
70 mph 66.8
75 mph 69.2
85 mph 71.8
It's obviously going to depend on what vehicle is being driven under what conditions by who. Are they coasting downhill? Is it one of the more recent SUV models that shut off the engine entirely at stop lights to save gas, then suddenly flatten the unsuspecting pedestrians in the crosswalk before they can call Saul?
Maybe examples from people I know personally who have been hit by
ICE vehicles such as a late model Camry they didn't hear (which you would have noticed if you read the entire thread mind you) would help. Obviously these systems exist for a reason, yes there is risk to disabled people, but let's remember the pedestrian-car interaction isn't just helpless blind ladies being preyed upon by hit and run drivers. In my area (as an example) we have many people that are essentially wandering around looking at their phones with headphones in their ears. Factor in that a decent percentage of those are also high on recently legalized marijuana and a large dose of antagonism from people practically challenging cars to hit them (we have the highest insurance rates in the country for a reason) and hopefully it becomes apparent that the ProPilot system braking when these idiots wander into the street is more likely to save their life than the Tron sound.
Deciding who is "selfish" is in the eye of the beholder, but I hope melodramatic references to lawyering up can be left behind for the purposes of a productive conversation. I'm much more interested in evidence and experiences that have actually happened than that mess.
Let me be clear, I did not buy my Leaf with the intention of silently stalking unsuspecting old ladies just to run them over, nor am I planning on modifying the car to make that easier.