The fast and slow of a New York visit - Wheels.ca

Even the Spider-Man impersonator in Times Square whipped out his cell phone to take photos of Ferraris, Lamborghinis and other exotics at a recent supercar rally in the heart of Manhattan. Their revving engines reverberating against the area’s building.

For exotic car enthusiasts in general, loud engines and big performance had always been connected. It is also a huge part of muscle car culture. Perhaps that is why Dodge has made the move to add “exhaust noise” to its battery-electric Dodge Charger Daytona SRT concept that debuted in August in Detroit. This will add a bit of aural drama to it – something missing from most battery-electric vehicles.

Yet, on that same New York trip where a came across the supercar rally, a friend and I also encountered the opposite end of the vehicle sound spectrum. Wanting to see more of the city in a limited amount of time, we decided to hunt down a couple e-bikes.

Like the one in Toronto, New York’s bike program features an app-based system where you can hop on and off bikes with just a click and a credit card. While a huge number of regular bikes were available, the pricier e-bikes were not. They seemed to disappear from the app before we could walk to the station where they were supposed to be. Yet, after we found a pair, we were soon moving much quicker through the congested streets than any cars.

No one’s going to argue an e-bike is faster than an exotic vehicle. But in that city, at that time, it was a much closer race than you’d imagine. And perhaps a reminder that auto enthusiasm evolves in people, just like the machines they adore.

Michael Bettencourt bought his first EV in late 2011 and has followed the Canadian EV scene ever since. Follow him on Twitter @MCBet10court

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The fast and slow of a New York visit - Wheels.ca
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