Make your own lock sound

Any short sound can become a lock sound: a voice memo, a synth patch, a clap. The car just needs a WAV file under 1 MB. Here is how to make one with free tools, and how to share it with other drivers.

The rules the file has to follow

• Format: WAV. 16-bit PCM at 44.1 kHz is the safest choice.
• Size: under 1 MB. At 16-bit 44.1 kHz that’s about 11 seconds of mono or 5.6 seconds of stereo.
• Name: exactly LockChime.wav.
• Length: keep it short, ideally one to three seconds. Long sounds get annoying fast.

With Audacity (free, Windows/Mac/Linux)

1. Open your recording with File → Open, or record straight into Audacity.
2. Select the part you want and use Edit → Remove Special → Trim Audio to cut away the rest.
3. Remove the silence at the start so the sound plays the instant the car locks.
4. Use Effect → Fade Out on the last few hundred milliseconds so it doesn’t end with a click.
5. Use Effect → Normalize to −1 dB so it’s loud but not distorted.
6. For a small file, choose Tracks → Mix → Mix Stereo Down to Mono.
7. File → Export Audio, choose WAV and Signed 16-bit PCM, and name it LockChime.wav.

Things to avoid

• Clips from films, games, TV or songs. They’re copyrighted, and sharing them can get you into trouble.
• Very low bass. The car’s external speaker is small; deep tones mostly disappear.
• Sirens or alarm-like sounds. They can alarm people nearby and may break local rules.

Share it

Proud of it? Submit your sound. If it’s approved, it goes into the library with your name on it. We trim, level and convert every submission so it plays well in the car.