# How is "quiet steel" legal? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 5, 2004, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-quiet-steel-legal/222824 "2004-01-05T15:57:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2004, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-quiet-steel-legal/222824/21 "2004-01-07T12:07:07Z")
Remember you’re talking about a _pickup truck_. “Quiet” vehicles are nothing new on the road. Take a drive in just about any mid-luxury to luxury car and you’ll notice a _huge_ difference in the amount of road and environmental noise. Climb back into a Pontiac Sunfire and you’ll feel deafened by just the tire noise. The whole body isn’t made of quiet steel. That would be outrageously expensive. Additionally, you can’t just advertise “hey, the F150’s quiet!” You need to advertise something else so that the point really sticks home. Kind of like the difference between saying “good engine” and “northstar system” – which one sticks to the memory more? ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2004, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-quiet-steel-legal/222824/22 "2004-01-07T15:32:40Z")
> [@](#): > > but I don’t agree with the presumption (mind you, I’m not saying it’s your presumption) that driving while listening to headphones (at any volume) poses a greater risk (in terms of driving ability) than driving with the stereo (potentially) at full volume I don’t necessarily disagree with you. I really wonder about those drivers whose stereos _I_ can hear in the next car over. I don’t know whether there are actual studies on the matter. > [@](#): > > What can I say, even if there is no difference in safety between headphones and being deaf, the people with headphones can easily do something about it. I think that it is a reasonable step to allow deaf people to drive. Good point. Deaf people are stuck with the situation, but hearing people can be required not to increase their risk. ---
**Author:** ![bauble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f6c823/32.png) [@bauble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bauble)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2004, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-quiet-steel-legal/222824/23 "2004-01-07T16:46:36Z")
> [@](#): > > What can I say, even if there is no difference in safety between headphones and being deaf, the people with headphones can easily do something about it. I think that it is a reasonable step to allow deaf people to drive. Just to be clear: I’m not advocating the revocation of anyone’s driving privledges. That said, it seems to me that either hearing is an intergral part of safe driving and people who can’t (due to deafness, stereos or headphones) shouldn’t be driving, or that the ability to hear isn’t that big a deal (WRT driving). But what we have in place is a standard that says deafness and stereos are ok, but having headphones on poses a risk. I just don’t follow the logic of it. ---
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2004, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-quiet-steel-legal/222824/24 "2004-01-07T18:13:55Z")
Whenever I have to look for something while driving, I decrease the volume of my stereo in the car. Does this mean that not being able to hear outside the car is a distraction, or that loud noise is a distraction. It’s a completely automatic response for me; I barely know that I do it. I suspect, though, that it’s some instinct to be able to hear outside at someone honking at me for blocking the road or driving slowly or whatever. Is this tendancy related, or am I going off on a tangent? ---
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2004, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-quiet-steel-legal/222824/25 "2004-01-08T02:03:17Z")
About those people with the extra loud stereos going in the car: I’m fairly sure that technically they could be ticketed for that too. I don’t know how to go about finding a cite, and anyway, it would be specific to a state. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-quiet-steel-legal/222824.md?page=1)