For decades, the automobile had one main power source: the internal combustion engine. Despite attempts to introduce alternative power sources, from alternative fuels to hydrogen, the internal combustion engine continued to dominate. One alternative that has become viable recently is electric vehicles, specifically hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) and battery electric vehicles (BEVs). However, people are still getting used to EVs, and it’s not just about switching from a pump to a plug.
One thing people worry about with EVs is motion sickness, and there’s a reason. According to Xpeng Australia, motion sickness can come down to multiple factors, regardless of brand.
1. Torque too fast for the human senses to handle
Although some performance enthusiasts praise EVs for torque right off the line, there’s a flip side. That instant torque robs EV passengers of what ICE cars naturally have: predictability. In a vehicle with an internal combustion engine, you get several signs of gradual escalation of speed: first, there’s the gradual rise of the revs, and second, there’s the brief drop in revs with each gear shift (especially the fact that you can do that at your own pace with a manual transmission) that delivers the power just gradually enough to let your body, most importantly your inner ear, have time to anticipate that change.
Unlike a vehicle powered solely by a gas engine, EVs have regenerative braking, meaning that when you let off the accelerator pedal in an EV, the motors add resistance to the axles to claw back lost energy while slowing the car down, unlike an internal combustion vehicle that slowly coasts to a stop when lifting the gas pedal. In day-to-day scenarios like stop-and-go traffic, this can feel harsh for passengers, especially when regenerative braking feels sudden and forceful, giving your inner ear too little time to prepare for the change in force compared to traditional braking, where you can gradually control the force.
3. Your eyes tell you something, but your ears tell you nothing
Those five warnings drop to two in an EV: getting thrown back in your seat and possible tire screeching, both of which happen too briefly or too late for the inner ear to process.
If you’ve ever gotten into the backseat of an EV and felt the ride was a little rougher than at the front, that’s why: when you’re sitting closer to the rear wheels, where most of the vehicle movement happens, you’re on one end of the pendulum, where most of the motion happens, similar to when you swing a hammer; the head is where almost all of the motion goes.
5. Passenger compatibility
The final factor in why people might feel carsick in an EV might not even be the car itself; sometimes it’s the people sitting inside. Not everyone feels comfortable riding in a car, even if it’s gas-powered. Children might struggle to acclimate themselves to the vehicle because their inner ears are still developing, and older passengers might feel just as uncomfortable due to age wearing down certain parts of the body; those who are tired or sick might be just as sensitive, and others might just not be used to riding in a car, even if it’s a gas car.
Autocar’s Take
Ultimately, when you look at the causes of nausea in EVs, almost everything points to one thing: the inner ear. For decades, human beings have been used to the sound of an engine screaming as the revs climb and the gradual, predictable rise of the tachometer and speedometer. Get in an EV, and those warnings vanish; you have nothing to help you understand what’s going on with the machine and anticipate what’s next. These characteristics are no fault of EVs, nor are they any fault of us as human beings; it’s just the result of how the human body acclimated to one specific method of propulsion over decades. Now, it’s just a matter of adapting to the new technology, especially when it reaches the Philippines, where local roads present their own challenges.
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