Volkswagen's ID.3 gets its own driving sound

The sound design for the Volkswagen ID.3 was presented at the DRIVE. Forum in Berlin as part of the Future Sounds event. The almost silent, electric drive offers great potential for brand-specific sound design that not only draws attention to the car, but also to the brand.

As electric vehicles are almost silent at low speeds, the accident risk for pedestrians and cyclists particularly increases in inner-city traffic. For this reason, future ID. family models will use an Acoustic Vehicle Alerting System (AVAS) to generate an artificial driving sound when moving off and at speeds up to 30km/h, as well as when reversing.

The AVAS in the ID.3 is audible on the inside and outside of the vehicle. Inside the vehicle, different stages of the driving sound are always audible based on speed and accelerator pedal position. Beyond this speed, the vehicle's rolling resistance and driving noise become more prominent. The Volkswagen brand's new driving sound was developed as part of a collaboration with the composer and music producer Leslie Mandoki. The multi-layered audio tracks express the speed and dynamism of e-mobility.