Toyota is to begin retailing a new electronic humming device this month, for its Prius cars to help make the models noisier and easier for pedestrians to hear it approaching.
The carmaker will begin selling the new speaker system in its home country of Japan from August 30. Costing 12,600 yen (£96), the speaker system fits under the bonnet of the car and emits a synthesized noise of an electric motor. The noise is designed to be around as loud as the noise of a regular car, to prevent it from becoming annoying to drivers, the firm says.
It will be available for retrofitting to existing Prius models while the carmaker also intends to make the new device available to other hybrid, electric as well as fuel cell vehicles planned for launch.
The development of the new device follows on from complaints from pedestrian groups-particular those with sight problems-that hybrid vehicles are difficult to hear approaching and as such pose a threat to them. Recent research from the University of Cailfornia, Riverside reported that hybrid vehicles came 40 per cent closer to pedestrians than their combustion engine counterparts before pedestrians could detect their direction.
The problem occurs when hybrids such as the Prius run at low speeds. At such speeds the petrol engine is not engaged and the vehicle runs on super-quiet electric mode only. As such, Toyota has designed the new device to operating at electric speeds up to approximately 25 km/h. The sound emitted rises and falls in pitch relative to the vehicle’s speed, thus helping indicate the vehicle’s proximity and movement.
The device is designed to meet new Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism guidelines.
