Volkswagen is the only German manufacturer that makes cars for the people; it’s in their name after all—Volkswagen, as most people already know, translates to ‘People’s Car,’ literally. But what is it that Volkswagen does that transforms them from means of transportation to objects of desire and affection? Well, we figured it out on World Music Day. Volkswagen cars make sounds that are music to the owners. Let us explain.
What is the first sound one experiences, the sound that starts the interaction with the car? It’s the sound of the lock disengaging as the door is opened. This sound is completely different in a Volkswagen than in other cars in its segment. There is a certain solidity to it, where it doesn’t take a lot of mental effort to imagine the finely engineered mechanism that’s hiding under the sculpted door panels of the Virtus, the Taigun or the Tayron.
The next sound is, of course, that of closing the door. This is a world-renowned Volkswagen trait: its cars have doors that close with a ‘thud,’ instead of a list of other phonetics, such as click or clang. This is music to the ears, as it speaks volumes about the build quality of Volkswagen cars, which a prospective buyer may have heard before, but truly experiences it with the door thudding closed.
That theme continues on the inside as well, where every tactile interaction is accompanied by the kind of auditory feedback that’s simply not available in its segment from rivals that hail from other countries. The clicks and clacks of various switches, buttons, levers, dials, paddle shifters/gear selectors, and any other actuators all convey both the durability and the precision engineering behind it. Honestly, there is a reason why ASMR videos are so popular, with Volkswagen cars taking centre stage.
But it will be a great big miss if we don’t talk about the best musical instrument that comes factory-fitted to every single Volkswagen—the engine! Volkswagen engines, once again, are easily identifiable thanks to their distinctive exhaust notes—which is what matters then to us enthusiasts. But still, even when you are just cruising down the highway, the notes coming out of the exhaust of Volkswagen cars are some of the most pleasing sounds one can find on cars that do not come from a supercar manufacturer.
It was an aspect of cars we don’t usually consider, but ownership means prolonged interaction, and apart from taste, the other four are crucial to that experience. And Volkswagen cars look good, smell good on the inside, and the materials that one touches are always premium quality. In all of that, the sounds made by it get overlooked, but to the owners, all of those little noises are bits of music.
