Last year, BMW Motorrad presented their concept electric scooter, the CE 04. Then during this month’s annual general meeting, BMW Group announced its goal to make 50% of all vehicles in their showrooms electric by the year 2030.
What this tells us is that more BMW cars and motorcycles will be battery-powered in the years to come. It also tells us that we might also see more silent cars roaming the streets. EVs do not emit much noise like the conventional combustion engine of a car or motorcycle does. While it can be a good thing, noise pollution, it does little for the driver's excitement and enthusiasm for these kinds of vehicles. In addition, quiet electric motorcycles can also pose as a danger, since pedestrians, as well as other road users are used listening for nearby vehicles.
To remedy this, BMW is designing an "exhaust note," primarily to make it M line of electric vehicles more exciting to drive.
They tapped in the services of Hans Zimmer, an Academy award-winning composer, whose musical score can be heard in movies like the Lion King (1995), Gladiator (2000), Pirates of the Caribean: Dead Man's Chest (2006), The Dark Knight (2009), Inception (2010) and many more movies with iconic soundtracks.
While the project is dedicated for BMW’s performance four-wheel EVs, the sounds developed by Zimmer and his team could possibly land in future BMW motorcycles and give them a distinct sound. Imagine, riding a BMW scooter or electric GS with a digital "exhaust note" coming out of speakers that you can select from a Zimmer playlist.
Take a listen. We think you'll like what he created.
