India Has The World's Most Robust Horns: Ford CEO
A remark made by Jim Farley, the Chief Executive Officer of Ford Motor Company, is now going viral. In a recent podcast session, he said that India has the most robust horns in the world! Designing horns for our market, he says, is quite challenging.
Jim made this interesting remark in one of the recent episodes of his podcast ‘DRIVE with Jim Farley’. In it, the CEO talks to Mary Roach, the famous American author and science journalist. Their conversation covers various topics like books, organ donation, crash-test calibration using cadavers and more. In the final few minutes of the video, the two talk about the various voice customisations and the possibilities of sound design in modern cars.
Mid-way through the conversation, Jim states that the horn has become a ‘digital thing’ in modern cars and can be customized. He then asks Mary an interesting question: ‘Do you know what country in the world has the most challenging horn design?’ Mary seems puzzled. She thinks for some time and admits defeat. Finally, Jim gives out the answer- India! The CEO adds that Ford spends (rather, had to spend) an additional $15 on horns in our market.
He says that in India, the horns have to be designed a certain way. They have to be the most robust, have to last long, and have to beep more.
Jim then explains how honking works in India. We honk more frequently than people in many other countries. The Ford CEO points out the same and Mary agrees to it completely. She adds that trucks in India have ‘honk’ written on their back, encouraging other vehicles to honk as they pass.
Jim then says that trucks in India have different horns- one for regular honking and another for passing. Making the conversation more interesting, Mary draws a parallel with New York drivers. ‘It’s a little bit like New York taxi drivers’-she says.
Here’s some background. New York drivers in general, are famous for their honking habits. Although strict local laws exist, frequent honking continues to be common there. In fact, horn blaring is often considered the default background soundtrack of Manhattan.
In New York City, it is often observed that taxi drivers honk almost the exact millisecond a traffic light turns green, if the vehicle ahead isn’t already moving by then. That would be a familiar scenario for most Indian drivers. Local laws have made unnecessary honking illegal in New York City. Violations can attract heavy fines. The city even has sound-activated noise cameras installed, for stricter enforcement.
Circling back, Jim sees business in India's ‘two-horn’ scenario. It presents an automaker the opportunity to have two horns in a product- two standardised ones. He says that the company would probably have to go to the government for approvals and standardisation related to this. Mary finds this idea interesting and encourages Jim to go ahead with the plan.
We think that the idea of having two standardised horns in a car, may fascinate many. We have already seen how attracted people are to all those fancy passing horns installed on trucks and busses. Yes, they can be distracting. But, that’s where standardization stands relevant. Having two well-designed, well-engineered horns that adhere to set decibel levels can be interesting. Given the fact that Ford no longer sells cars here, the actual scope of this idea being put to practice remains unclear.
In the podcast, Jim also talks about how important sound design has become in modern cars, especially EVs. The exchange also takes a deep dive into the various sound-related customisation possibilities.