The LAPD is installing a new siren system that drivers won't just hear. They'll feel it vibrate through their car.

The department has equipped 20 patrol vehicles with the Federal Signal Rumbler, a low-frequency siren that penetrates sound-insulated vehicles in eight-second bursts, according to the Los Angeles Times. Another 100 units are next in the pipeline, with a goal of outfitting 2,000 of the department's 5,000 vehicles within the next couple of years.

That expansion includes the West Los Angeles Division, which patrols Bel Air and Holmby Hills. No specific timeline for when West LA Division vehicles will receive the upgrade has been announced. Assistant Chief Emada E. Tingirides, director of the LAPD Office of Operations, will decide which divisions follow the initial downtown Civic Center deployment.

"We had to find a way to get these drivers' attention," Commander Blake Chow, a 36-year LAPD veteran and head of the Support Services Group, told the Times.

Chow said officers routinely report that three or four cars pass before everyone stops during pursuits and emergency responses. The department's own data backs the urgency: LAPD officers have been involved in 4,203 pursuits since 2018, a quarter of which ended in injury or death. Nearly half of the collision injuries were to bystanders.

The problem is partly mechanical. Modern luxury vehicles like the 2025 BMW X7 and Lexus TX 350 register under 50 decibels of interior road noise, roughly equivalent to hearing a dishwasher from another room. Standard sirens, which generate 110 to 120 decibels outside, struggle to penetrate that insulation.

The Rumbler's kit includes two subwoofers, an amplifier and a timing module, costing $600 to $1,000 per unit. It also broadcasts a prerecorded "Move to the right" message in English and Spanish, eliminating the need for officers to announce it manually. The LAPD said in a July 23 announcement that the upgrades were integrated through vendor agreements at no additional cost to taxpayers.

Noise concerns follow the Rumbler

The system's omnidirectional low-frequency tones can be felt even by people moving in the opposite direction. That characteristic has drawn criticism from noise-pollution advocates who worry about impacts on residential neighborhoods.

Richard Tur, founder of NoiseOff, an organization that tracks noise pollution, pointed to New York's experience. The NYPD first installed the Rumbler in 2009 and expanded to 500 vehicles by the following summer. Tur told the Times that officers there use the system not just during emergencies but also when entering and exiting stations.

Hamid Khan of the Stop LAPD Spying Coalition questioned whether the community impact is being adequately considered, telling the Times: "What is the impact of this thing on us, the people who live in these communities where the Rumbler will be used?"

Local context

The West LA Division's patrol area includes narrow canyon roads where sound carries. A high-speed pursuit on Wednesday, July 29, sent a reportedly stolen Mercedes-Benz SUV at speeds exceeding 100 mph on the I-405 through the Sepulveda Pass and Bel Air, according to Westside Today. That type of pursuit illustrates why the LAPD wants the Rumbler in West LA Division vehicles.

No public hearing or community meeting on the rollout has been announced. Residents with concerns can contact the LAPD West Los Angeles Division.