2020 i3 - whirring sound at low speeds - is this normal?

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MarkNo

Active member
Joined
Aug 7, 2017
Messages
28
Location
Toronto, Ontario, CANADA
Compared to my previous 2018 i3, the 2020 i3 makes a pronounced whirring sound at low speeds which disappears between 35-40 km/hr when accelerating and reappears when you slow down.

Is this a new safety feature so that pedestrians and cyclists can hear you coming up behind them before you are going fast enough to make road noise with your tires?
 
So I assume that you have received a 2020 BMW i3. I am waiting for mine and ordered it late November. Still waiting and expect it at the end of February for delivery in Vancouver B.C.
 
"BMW has fitted a so-called "Audible Pedestrian Protection" sound as an extra to its i3 runabout which works up to a speed of 30 km/h. When the vehicle starts up Audible Pedestrian Protection is always active, but it can be disabled by pressing a button when silence is desired.

"We have created a whole range of sounds," says BMW spokesman Wieland Bruch. The standard i3 "sounds a little like the USS Enterprise from Star Trek - it’s a turbine-like noise.""

https://www.carsifu.my/news/electric-cars-are-about-to-get-louder
 
I have that noise in my 2020 i3 as well. The deactivation option has been hidden on eu models but can be unlocked with bimmercode and other coders

VSG_HMI_MENUE = aktiv (0x01)

Does anyone know how to set the VSG noise to default off?
 
Can you guys be awesome and upload a quick clip of how it sounds? Been "hearing" about this 2020 feature, I'm super curious what kind of sound BMW chose. THX!
 
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