Pedestrian Alert Module
Generates the artificial sound an electric or hybrid vehicle makes at low speed, driving a speaker usually mounted behind the front bumper or inside a wheel arch.
It is the only component in the catalogue whose entire purpose is the safety of somebody outside the vehicle, and that is worth stating because it changes how a fault should be treated. Nothing inside the car depends on it, the driver will never notice it has stopped, and the people it protects have no way to tell that it has.
An electric car at walking pace is close to silent, and that mattered more than anyone anticipated. Pedestrians judge approaching traffic by ear without thinking about it, and blind and partially sighted people rely on it completely. Research following the first wave of hybrids found quiet vehicles measurably more likely to be involved in low-speed pedestrian collisions, which is why the sound is now required rather than optional — UN Regulation 138 in Europe and FMVSS 141 in the United States both mandate it below roughly 20 km/h, above which tyre and wind noise take over.
Its location is the most hostile on the vehicle: road spray, salt, kerb strikes and pressure washers all reach it. Corrosion and water ingress account for most failures, so the repair is often inexpensive — and in jurisdictions that test for it, an inoperative system is an inspection failure.
Also known as: pedestrian alert, acoustic vehicle alerting system, avas, vehicle sound generator, pedestrian warning system, approach warning speaker, low speed sound generator
Referenced by 3 codes
Codes involving this component (3)
Other components in Body, Interior and Safety
- Body Control Module 299
- Restraints Control Module 177
- Air Conditioning Control Module 80
- Door Control Module 58
- Seat Belt Pretensioner 55
- Occupant Classification Module 33
- Audio Amplifier 28
- Seat Control Module 28
- Fuel Filler Door 26
- Impact Sensor 26
- Steering Column Clockspring 24
- Steering Column Control Module 21
- Stop-Start Switch 20
- Door Switch 17
- Door Window Motor 10
- Air Conditioning Refrigerant Expansion Valve 7
- Instrument Cluster 6
- Moveable Roof Control Module 5
- Mirror Control Module 5
- Front Radar Sensor 3
- Park Assist Module 3
- Remote Function Actuation Module 3
- Automated Driving System Control Module 2
- Seat Control Switch Module 2
- Speech Recognition Module 2
- Folding Top Control Module 1
- Heated Steering Wheel Module 1
- Haptic Control Module 1
Information, not instruction
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