Related: Cities Aren't Loud, Cars are Loud
The tires are like nails on a chalkboard to me after living that way for a 5 years. It cut through my apartment walls and morning rush hour served as a mandatory alarm clock.
The only time engines were an issue were people with modded exhaust or people street racing (motorcycles or cars).
This is why it is useful for cars to make sounds. It also is the reason why that sound is so annoying. It is a constant trigger for our brains to react.
Cars are the biggest source of pollution in US cities, noise, particulate and visual. The early days of the pandemic in almost any city showed this so clearly.
Video is specifically the claim that cities CAN be quiet, and it gives examples of quiet, dense cities. The title is "Cities aren't loud, cars are loud."
Watch it. You will learn something.