Skip to Content
Streetsblog New York City home
Streetsblog New York City home
Log In
Ad Nauseam

NYC on Alert for Motor Vehicle-Based “Noise Terrorism”

Speaking of automobile advertiser shamelessness, check out the marketing campaign that, reportedly, rolled through the Lower East Side last night at around 3:00 a.m. courtesy of Microsoft and Toyota:

According to reports from residents in Lower Manhattan, a California-tagged, Zune-branded SUV rolled through Ludlow Street during the "wee hours of February 25th," but rather than handing out flyers to the night-owls still roaming, the vehicle decided to test out its "competition grade stereo system" in a densely populated neighborhood. Described as an "egregious display of noise terrorism," the 3:00 am blasting from a Toyota FJ Cruiser didn't garner the positive attention that the firm was apparently hoping for.

And if that's not an obnoxious enough deployment of motor vehicle-based digital audio technology for you, there's the HornTones FX550, "the first mobile audio device that allows you to customize the sound of your vehicle's horn."

The chorus of this song would make for a great "HornTone."



Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog New York City

The Streetsblog Angle: The 70th Street Bike Lane Is In the Epstein Files!

Somewhere, maybe, Woody Allen finally regrets opposing that bike lane.

January 30, 2026

The Mamdani Effect: Three Delivery Apps Must Pay $5M In Minimum Pay Settlement

A new era: Mayor Mamdani's worker protection department announces new enforcement against UberEats, HungryPanda, and Fantuan for not complying with the minimum pay law.

January 30, 2026

Friday Video: Should We Stop Calling Them ‘Low-Traffic Neighborhoods’?

Is it time for London's game-changing urban design concept to get a rebrand?

January 30, 2026

Ten Years of Placard Abuse: The Criminal Practice that Mamdani Must End

Placard corruption has drowned New York City in illegally parked cars for more than a decade. Mayor Mamdani must end it for good.

January 30, 2026

Data Analysis: Super Speeders and Red Light Violators Are Less Likely to Get NYPD Tickets

Drivers caught most often by speed and red light cameras are at the receiving end of comparatively little NYPD enforcement.

January 30, 2026
See all posts