For those of you considering operating around electric vehicles, beware of the copious noise emitted by the BMW i3.
I was sitting in a parking lot, engine off, operating mobile on 10m during the recent band openings. Rather abruptly, the band's noise floor increased to mid-scale on the S-meter. I briefly wondered if propagation had suddenly changed, and then I noticed a BMW i3 pass behind me and leave the lot.
The noise left as well... I was back to a nice quiet band floor.
I didn't have time to switch over to 2m/70cm SSB and see how far up the racket extended.
I stumbled across an article relating much of the same, today.
https://www.greencarreports.com/news/1098893_bmw-i3-electric-car-quirk-no-am...
So, save the planet or save the spectrum. Perhaps not both at the same time? :-)
--- Zach N0ZGO
We have a Nissan Leaf. Now that you describe this, I think I've seen the same at home!
I have several friends with Teslas, and can get an i3 to characterize. If you're interested write me off list and we can get some data, if you like.
-Michelle W5NYV
On Mon, Jul 8, 2019 at 3:17 PM Zach Metzinger via AMSAT-BB < amsat-bb@amsat.org> wrote:
For those of you considering operating around electric vehicles, beware of the copious noise emitted by the BMW i3.
I was sitting in a parking lot, engine off, operating mobile on 10m during the recent band openings. Rather abruptly, the band's noise floor increased to mid-scale on the S-meter. I briefly wondered if propagation had suddenly changed, and then I noticed a BMW i3 pass behind me and leave the lot.
The noise left as well... I was back to a nice quiet band floor.
I didn't have time to switch over to 2m/70cm SSB and see how far up the racket extended.
I stumbled across an article relating much of the same, today.
https://www.greencarreports.com/news/1098893_bmw-i3-electric-car-quirk-no-am...
So, save the planet or save the spectrum. Perhaps not both at the same time? :-)
--- Zach N0ZGO _______________________________________________ Sent via AMSAT-BB@amsat.org. AMSAT-NA makes this open forum available to all interested persons worldwide without requiring membership. Opinions expressed are solely those of the author, and do not reflect the official views of AMSAT-NA. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: https://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb
Can confirm. While roving, many FO-29 attempts have been partially wiped out by me opening a door otherwise activating the MCU of my X.
On Mon, Jul 8, 2019 at 3:27 PM Michelle Thompson via AMSAT-BB < amsat-bb@amsat.org> wrote:
We have a Nissan Leaf. Now that you describe this, I think I've seen the same at home!
I have several friends with Teslas, and can get an i3 to characterize. If you're interested write me off list and we can get some data, if you like.
-Michelle W5NYV
On Mon, Jul 8, 2019 at 3:17 PM Zach Metzinger via AMSAT-BB < amsat-bb@amsat.org> wrote:
For those of you considering operating around electric vehicles, beware of the copious noise emitted by the BMW i3.
I was sitting in a parking lot, engine off, operating mobile on 10m during the recent band openings. Rather abruptly, the band's noise floor increased to mid-scale on the S-meter. I briefly wondered if propagation had suddenly changed, and then I noticed a BMW i3 pass behind me and leave the lot.
The noise left as well... I was back to a nice quiet band floor.
I didn't have time to switch over to 2m/70cm SSB and see how far up the racket extended.
I stumbled across an article relating much of the same, today.
https://www.greencarreports.com/news/1098893_bmw-i3-electric-car-quirk-no-am...
So, save the planet or save the spectrum. Perhaps not both at the same time? :-)
--- Zach N0ZGO _______________________________________________ Sent via AMSAT-BB@amsat.org. AMSAT-NA makes this open forum available to all interested persons worldwide without requiring membership.
Opinions
expressed are solely those of the author, and do not reflect the official views of AMSAT-NA. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite
program!
Subscription settings: https://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb
Sent via AMSAT-BB@amsat.org. AMSAT-NA makes this open forum available to all interested persons worldwide without requiring membership. Opinions expressed are solely those of the author, and do not reflect the official views of AMSAT-NA. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: https://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb
On 7/8/19 6:16 PM, Zach Metzinger via AMSAT-BB wrote:
For those of you considering operating around electric vehicles, beware of the copious noise emitted by the BMW i3.
I was sitting in a parking lot, engine off, operating mobile on 10m during the recent band openings. Rather abruptly, the band's noise floor increased to mid-scale on the S-meter. I briefly wondered if propagation had suddenly changed, and then I noticed a BMW i3 pass behind me and leave the lot.
The noise left as well... I was back to a nice quiet band floor.
I didn't have time to switch over to 2m/70cm SSB and see how far up the racket extended.
I stumbled across an article relating much of the same, today.
https://www.greencarreports.com/news/1098893_bmw-i3-electric-car-quirk-no-am...
So, save the planet or save the spectrum. Perhaps not both at the same time? :-)
--- Zach N0ZGO
Along these lines, I need a new car. My Sonata has 404K miles and I would like to replace it before it dies.
I'm really looking at the Prius Prime +. Does anyone know if this emits obnoxious things, and how radio-friendly it is, overall?
Thanks!
--STeve Andre' wb8wsf en72
Almost have to take a radio with you on the test drive. I found the LCD screen of my Jeep wipes out VHF if I have an HT in the car. If I have an antenna on the outside, it’s not a problem. But I didn’t discover it on the test drive, because I didn’t bother with the radio (and I usually have it off on a test drive so I can listen to the car anyway). I’m not sure I’d break it out while the salesman is standing there, but I’d certainly try to listen in at some point before signing on the dotted line.
Dan
-- Daniel Holmes, danielh@holmesonics.com "Laugh while you can, monkey boy!" -- Lord John Whorfin
On Jul 8, 2019, at 8:30 PM, STeve Andre' via AMSAT-BB amsat-bb@amsat.org wrote:
On 7/8/19 6:16 PM, Zach Metzinger via AMSAT-BB wrote:
For those of you considering operating around electric vehicles, beware of the copious noise emitted by the BMW i3. I was sitting in a parking lot, engine off, operating mobile on 10m during the recent band openings. Rather abruptly, the band's noise floor increased to mid-scale on the S-meter. I briefly wondered if propagation had suddenly changed, and then I noticed a BMW i3 pass behind me and leave the lot. The noise left as well... I was back to a nice quiet band floor. I didn't have time to switch over to 2m/70cm SSB and see how far up the racket extended. I stumbled across an article relating much of the same, today. https://www.greencarreports.com/news/1098893_bmw-i3-electric-car-quirk-no-am... So, save the planet or save the spectrum. Perhaps not both at the same time? :-) --- Zach N0ZGO
Along these lines, I need a new car. My Sonata has 404K miles and I would like to replace it before it dies.
I'm really looking at the Prius Prime +. Does anyone know if this emits obnoxious things, and how radio-friendly it is, overall?
Thanks!
--STeve Andre' wb8wsf en72
Sent via AMSAT-BB@amsat.org. AMSAT-NA makes this open forum available to all interested persons worldwide without requiring membership. Opinions expressed are solely those of the author, and do not reflect the official views of AMSAT-NA. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: https://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb
I did some measurements on a 2011 Nissan Leaf while charging. The LED lighting on the wall and disco ball motor directly above the car was significantly louder than the noise from active charging (on 2m). The LCD screen on the charger on the wall was somewhat noisy, but not as bad as the LED lightbulb.
Similar results while driving around as a passenger. It's pretty quiet. Haven't checked other bands yet while riding around.
Looking around for other cars and I found that my sewing machine is very bad on 2m. Not much of a surprise given the type of motor involved, but caught me off guard since I was focused on the garage and not the sewing room!
The rise in the noise floor is death by a thousand cuts.
"I'll explain later" - Buckaroo Banzai
-Michelle W5NYV
On Tue, Jul 9, 2019 at 9:23 AM Daniel Holmes via AMSAT-BB < amsat-bb@amsat.org> wrote:
Almost have to take a radio with you on the test drive. I found the LCD screen of my Jeep wipes out VHF if I have an HT in the car. If I have an antenna on the outside, it’s not a problem. But I didn’t discover it on the test drive, because I didn’t bother with the radio (and I usually have it off on a test drive so I can listen to the car anyway). I’m not sure I’d break it out while the salesman is standing there, but I’d certainly try to listen in at some point before signing on the dotted line.
Dan
-- Daniel Holmes, danielh@holmesonics.com "Laugh while you can, monkey boy!" -- Lord John Whorfin
On Jul 8, 2019, at 8:30 PM, STeve Andre' via AMSAT-BB <
amsat-bb@amsat.org> wrote:
On 7/8/19 6:16 PM, Zach Metzinger via AMSAT-BB wrote:
For those of you considering operating around electric vehicles, beware
of the copious noise emitted by the BMW i3.
I was sitting in a parking lot, engine off, operating mobile on 10m
during the recent band openings. Rather abruptly, the band's noise floor increased to mid-scale on the S-meter. I briefly wondered if propagation had suddenly changed, and then I noticed a BMW i3 pass behind me and leave the lot.
The noise left as well... I was back to a nice quiet band floor. I didn't have time to switch over to 2m/70cm SSB and see how far up the
racket extended.
I stumbled across an article relating much of the same, today.
https://www.greencarreports.com/news/1098893_bmw-i3-electric-car-quirk-no-am... So, save the planet or save the spectrum. Perhaps not both at the same time? :-)
--- Zach N0ZGO
Along these lines, I need a new car. My Sonata has 404K miles and I
would like to replace it before it dies.
I'm really looking at the Prius Prime +. Does anyone know if this emits obnoxious things, and how radio-friendly it is, overall?
Thanks!
--STeve Andre' wb8wsf en72
Sent via AMSAT-BB@amsat.org. AMSAT-NA makes this open forum available to all interested persons worldwide without requiring membership.
Opinions expressed
are solely those of the author, and do not reflect the official views of
AMSAT-NA.
Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite
program!
Subscription settings: https://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb
Sent via AMSAT-BB@amsat.org. AMSAT-NA makes this open forum available to all interested persons worldwide without requiring membership. Opinions expressed are solely those of the author, and do not reflect the official views of AMSAT-NA. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: https://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb
On 2019-07-12 11:00, Michelle Thompson via AMSAT-BB wrote:
The rise in the noise floor is death by a thousand cuts.
Indeed. Many semiconductor manufacturers who are concerned about meeting FCC spurious emissions for non-intentional radiators will include a "spread spectrum" option to dither the clock.
One has to ask: "If I took some fresh cow manure and spread it over your dinner plate thinly and evenly so that you could not see it, would that be better than just having it as a pile on the plate?"
--- Zach N0ZGO
My Mom's Prius V definitely puts out some intermittent QRM I can hear on 2m FM with my HT inside. I don't think it's enough to be a problem though.
I am looking to get a car and was looking at the Honda Insight which is also a hybrid. I was planning on taking a second test drive but making the salesperson drive it so I could tune around on the HT and check for interference. Was also thinking of taking an SDR and laptop which would be easier and more effective but I don't have one currently. That would probably be their most unusual test drive but I'm sure they would accommodate it since they want your money.
Now I'm thinking of getting a regular used car so I'm not as worried. But I've definitely been passed by regular cars with my mobile on in the past and gotten wiped out. It makes me wonder what the hell is wrong with their car or how I'd deal with it if it was mine!
73, John Brier KG4AKV
On Tue, Jul 9, 2019, 00:25 STeve Andre' via AMSAT-BB amsat-bb@amsat.org wrote:
On 7/8/19 6:16 PM, Zach Metzinger via AMSAT-BB wrote:
For those of you considering operating around electric vehicles, beware of the copious noise emitted by the BMW i3.
I was sitting in a parking lot, engine off, operating mobile on 10m during the recent band openings. Rather abruptly, the band's noise floor increased to mid-scale on the S-meter. I briefly wondered if propagation had suddenly changed, and then I noticed a BMW i3 pass behind me and leave the lot.
The noise left as well... I was back to a nice quiet band floor.
I didn't have time to switch over to 2m/70cm SSB and see how far up the racket extended.
I stumbled across an article relating much of the same, today.
https://www.greencarreports.com/news/1098893_bmw-i3-electric-car-quirk-no-am...
So, save the planet or save the spectrum. Perhaps not both at the same time? :-)
--- Zach N0ZGO
Along these lines, I need a new car. My Sonata has 404K miles and I would like to replace it before it dies.
I'm really looking at the Prius Prime +. Does anyone know if this emits obnoxious things, and how radio-friendly it is, overall?
Thanks!
--STeve Andre' wb8wsf en72
Sent via AMSAT-BB@amsat.org. AMSAT-NA makes this open forum available to all interested persons worldwide without requiring membership. Opinions expressed are solely those of the author, and do not reflect the official views of AMSAT-NA. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: https://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb
Typically worn out spark plug wires will cause a lot of QRM but as more cars use a coil on each cylinder this isn’t as much of a problem as it used to be.
Jeff WE4B
On Jul 9, 2019, at 6:24 PM, John Brier via AMSAT-BB amsat-bb@amsat.org wrote:
My Mom's Prius V definitely puts out some intermittent QRM I can hear on 2m FM with my HT inside. I don't think it's enough to be a problem though.
I am looking to get a car and was looking at the Honda Insight which is also a hybrid. I was planning on taking a second test drive but making the salesperson drive it so I could tune around on the HT and check for interference. Was also thinking of taking an SDR and laptop which would be easier and more effective but I don't have one currently. That would probably be their most unusual test drive but I'm sure they would accommodate it since they want your money.
Now I'm thinking of getting a regular used car so I'm not as worried. But I've definitely been passed by regular cars with my mobile on in the past and gotten wiped out. It makes me wonder what the hell is wrong with their car or how I'd deal with it if it was mine!
73, John Brier KG4AKV
On Tue, Jul 9, 2019, 00:25 STeve Andre' via AMSAT-BB amsat-bb@amsat.org wrote:
On 7/8/19 6:16 PM, Zach Metzinger via AMSAT-BB wrote:
For those of you considering operating around electric vehicles, beware of the copious noise emitted by the BMW i3.
I was sitting in a parking lot, engine off, operating mobile on 10m during the recent band openings. Rather abruptly, the band's noise floor increased to mid-scale on the S-meter. I briefly wondered if propagation had suddenly changed, and then I noticed a BMW i3 pass behind me and leave the lot.
The noise left as well... I was back to a nice quiet band floor.
I didn't have time to switch over to 2m/70cm SSB and see how far up the racket extended.
I stumbled across an article relating much of the same, today.
https://www.greencarreports.com/news/1098893_bmw-i3-electric-car-quirk-no-am...
So, save the planet or save the spectrum. Perhaps not both at the same time? :-)
--- Zach N0ZGO
Along these lines, I need a new car. My Sonata has 404K miles and I would like to replace it before it dies.
I'm really looking at the Prius Prime +. Does anyone know if this emits obnoxious things, and how radio-friendly it is, overall?
Thanks!
--STeve Andre' wb8wsf en72
Sent via AMSAT-BB@amsat.org. AMSAT-NA makes this open forum available to all interested persons worldwide without requiring membership. Opinions expressed are solely those of the author, and do not reflect the official views of AMSAT-NA. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: https://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb
Sent via AMSAT-BB@amsat.org. AMSAT-NA makes this open forum available to all interested persons worldwide without requiring membership. Opinions expressed are solely those of the author, and do not reflect the official views of AMSAT-NA. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: https://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb
participants (7)
-
Alex Free - N7AGF -
Daniel Holmes -
Jeff Johns -
John Brier -
Michelle Thompson -
STeve Andre' -
Zach Metzinger