Porsche Electric Sport Sound, a $500 option, enhances the Taycan’s own sound and makes it sound even more emotional - both outside and inside the vehicle and is activated/deactivated via Porsche Communication Management (PCM), as quoted from the configuration page when selecting performance options.
Basically a fake, artificial sound that's become common throughout the automotive industry. Not something always well received and the fact its listed under the "Performance" category doesn't help.
The NHTSA wants automakers to give us the freedom to choose sounds to our liking, as recently reported in the article below.
Once fully implemented in cars like the Taycan, I'm sure there will be less "emotional" options along with some HIGHLY "emotional"... like GT2 RS emotional
NHTSA is proposing to remove the limit to the number of compliant sounds that a manufacturer may choose to install in a vehicle. Drivers would be able to select the sound they prefer from the set of sounds installed in the vehicle. NHTSA is also seeking comment on whether interested parties believe that the agency should establish a limit to the number of compliant sounds from which a driver may select that a manufacturer may choose to install in a vehicle.
Basically, this rule is the result of the fact that EVs are just really damn quiet. While most people, especially blind and visually impaired pedestrians, rely on engine noises as a way to gauge a vehicle’s distance and speed. EVs don’t have engine noises, though. Rather than implement a single noise for everyone, NHTSA is requiring automakers to include a variety of noises so that drivers can select their own.
It’s been a pretty fraught proposal, though. Here’s some more background from Reuters:
The long-delayed rules, which were first demanded by Congress in 2010, require automakers like Tesla Inc, Nissan Motor Co and General Motors Co to add sounds to vehicles when they are moving at speeds of up to 18.6 miles per hour (30 kph) to help prevent injuries among pedestrians, cyclists and the blind.
At higher speeds, tire noise, wind resistance, and other factors eliminate the need for a separate alert sound, regulators say.
As of today, there’s no cap on how many optional sounds an automaker can provide, which means these sounds could get pretty creative. These rules have to be implemented a year from now, by September 2020.
