I find electric cars louder than the current engines most of the time. The space travel noises they put out while driving are louder than say a non hybrid Camry, not to mention ICE cars don’t make any backing up noises. Parallel parking of electric cars is so annoying. Hybrids too, I can hear the whining of a Prius coming down the street from half a block away.

This is not to say I’m against electric and hybrid cars, I’m all for them. But the fake noises they added are not a benefit.

Since there's anecdotal debate against your comment, here are some sources:

https://www.fastcompany.com/90774779/heres-what-science-says... (2022)

> On average, cars moving at around 30 mph on local roads will produce sound levels ranging from 33 to 69 decibels.

> To ensure that pedestrians will hear electric and hybrid vehicles coming, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration requires these vehicles to emit sounds ranging from 43 to 64 decibels when they are moving at less than 18.6 mph.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S24685... (2025)

> Electric vehicles (EVs) are effective in reducing noise levels, primarily at low speeds and frequencies.

> at speeds over 50 km/h, EVs do not contribute significantly to noise reduction

https://carconfections.com/all-car-confections-sound-level-r... (2026, comparing 527 models at 55mph)

https://backend.orbit.dtu.dk/ws/portalfiles/portal/399523477... (2025)

> Acoustic Vehicle Alerting Systems (AVAS)

> Results align with previous findings that EVs and ICEs exhibit similar noise levels at low speeds, particularly post-AVAS implementation. Earlier studies reported larger differences (3–4 dB lower for EVs than ICEs at 10–20 km/h), likely due to the absence of AVAS

> Additionally, a deeper investigation of how AVAS contributes to annoyance could inform improved design standards for EV noise emission, encouraging a balance between functional safety and acoustic quality in urban environments.

I seriously hope we get to a point where loud vehicles are outright banned. Tire noise is one thing, making your exhaust loud is intentional.

Most traffic noise these days comes from tire noise on roads not the engine, save for muscle cars and the occasional truck I guess. Evs are just as noisy if not moreso because their added weight.