Exhaust system manufacturer Borla has come to the SEMA show with a market-ready solution for imitating engine sound in otherwise silent electric cars. According to CEO David Borla, Shelby American in particular was interested in buying these ‘fake exhausts’ – which is why the company decided to preview one on a Ford Mustang Mach-E.
Borla said that representatives of Shelby American contacted him with an offer to try and find a suitable ‘voice profile’ for the electric SUV. It had to be a sufficiently aggressive sound. Going forward, Shelby American plans to produce a performance version of the Mach-E SUV with this ‘exhaust’ installed from the factory.
Fake exhausts are anything but new, and the solution proposed by Borla is little different from most. It consists of a multiple speakers, an amplifier, a controller and some wiring to plug it into the on-board electronics. Once installed, drivers can adjust sound settings using a dedicated smartphone app. The soundtrack will also change dynamically based on parameters such as acceleration.