Why do cars sound different when running

[john205480]

I am a model railway modeller in the main but have recently starting to enjoy slot racing as well and have a fair sized layout running various cars .

I have accumulated 25 cars of various types and have noticed they all seem to have their own sound when running as well as  handling characteristics so I was wondering if this is intentional or accidental .My collection is all scalextric cars .Some run as side winder and others inline .The sound can vary from almost silent whooshing around from my newer GT3 cars to quite loud older Audi TT ones .Merc SLR with inline motors have their own steady whirring sound .

I am guessing it is the variation of chassis ,motor ,gearing and body that changes the sound .Any thoughts from users ?

Also as a DCC railway fan I wonder if scalextric have considerd adding TTS sound to the in-car chips as this would be fun to hear real engine sounds when running . 

[Andy P.]

Much is down to the material being used (metal on metal is louder than plastic on plastic), how hard the motor is working, how many RPM the motor produces, and mostly how well oiled everything is.

The shape and style of the car can play a role too. Some cars have everything encased ond others have parts exposed.

The ARC APP for ARC powerbases makes sounds when the car passes the start/finish line and the new Spark Plug due out later this year is supposed to make sounds...

[john205480]

Thanks for the reply Andy .I use ARC AIR and get the Zooom sound as they go past the start/finish line .Maybe in the future we will get onboard sound like the locomotives .

[Andy P.]

The same developer is working on Spark Plug and ARC so if it works out we can possible combine.

There have been attempts at adding sound in the past but technology is just now getting to the point of making it feasible.

In theory a slot car likely never reaches its top speed on a home track and brakes possible multiple times within a few seconds.

Watch any racing footage at 2X speed or higher and that is the risk you run of everything sounding like (even if you pitch everything down).

Trains are a much more somber (for lack of a better word) experience.

Personally I think ARC does a good job with the ratchet sounds in the pit and the sound of crossing the line.

I would like to be able to swap out my own sounds so that when I am running stock car/NASCAR there is rumble as opposed to the F1 styled "squeal".