Lotus crea el Safe & Sound

that DOG looks DUMBFOUNDED!!!lol

This is a ridiculous idea. A lack of engine noise is GOOD. It makes cities less noisy and people less stressed. And besides, a good driver does not need to rely on engine noise to avoid pedestrians. If you run into a pedestrian who didn't hear you, it's your own damn fault for not paying attention to the road. And if you really need to alert a pedestrian with noise you always have your horn.

No! It's a horrible solution and there's no problem! Should we require bicycles have noisemakers on them too? They're pretty silent and at speed can cause serious injury or death if they run into pedestrians.

It doesn't matter how much or how little noise your engine makes. If you run into a pedestrian YOU ARE AT FAULT FOR NOT PAYING PROPER ATTENTION TO THE ROAD. A good driver shouldn't have to rely on engine noise to avoid pedestrians.

What about a blind chicken j walker that is so confident of the mastery of the road that the it darts out get to the other side.

A competent driver should be looking for that.

If you need to alert him you already have a horn.

naw, it's the job of the drivers AND pedestrians or bicyclists to be aware of each other. this addresses that potential problem.

I stand corrected. You are correct, it's the job of both parties to be aware. But this isn't a potential problem! A lack of engine noise is a very good thing, not a problem! Even if cars can't be heard they can still be SEEN. For people who can't see, hybrid drivers can still honk to alert them. Bicycles can't be heard either but do they frequently cause problems with people who are blind?

well, here's how i see it. since we have developed society's that have become accustomed to being aware of autos by sound as well as sight, it makes good sense to equip new tech cars with sound so those learned skills are still used in the same manner and accidents due to a change are avoided.
when hybrids and electric cars are much more common, a public policy push for learning new habits could be employed.

I think we should have people learn new habits immediately. Perhaps we can agree to disagree on this? :)

absolutely. :) maybe we can push for the accelerated industry development of more hybrids and electric which will envoke the need to start the new habits education immediately.