Cabin noise

Dwight Frye

The Nissan 370Z fits the definition of a true GT (Gran Turismo), a high performance vehicle designed for high speed, long distance travel in comfort and style. I love my Z but find that the road noise really takes away from the comfort of mid to long cruises. You cannot even hold a conversation with a passenger at 70 MPH with the stereo off and windows up with raising your voice considerably and the excessive noise takes a lot away from the enjoyment of music regardless of how loud it is. Yes, I know it's a sports car, I've owned many. I like a good exhaust note and engine growl when pushing it, but when at speed and in 6th gear there is no excuse for the car to be as loud as it is. Nissan dropped the ball on the design. I'm also convinced that the majority of the noise is tire related, as soon as I hit a smooth patch of non-grooved asphalt on the freeway the sound drops at least 10 db.
Tire noise levels will be a major factor when it comes time to replace the OEM's.

sonic370

the 370 is a 2 seater it's gonna have some cabin noise...
but i don't like to use the word noise or even loud...

20% is not much of an improvement using materials...

i think on the sports package which i have it the bridgestones....

even the 50 grand vettes have some road noise....

the over weight stangs and camaros are quite.... but i'll pass on those..

trainsales

Whatta scolding, GuardDad! Nevertheless, you are correct. I put some dynamat in the hatch this afternoon, and it seems to make a substantial difference. Only drove it once so far though, during rush hour and with my daughter playing the stereo.

I attach a photo taken with my cell phone, facing toward the rear of the car. One box of dynamat from Bestbuy for 70 bucks covered the whole hatch area (12 sq. ft.). Weighs less than 10 pounds. I didn't have to remove all the interior molding, clips and body panels - just took out the spare tire and slid out the big styrofoam blocks. Was a 4 hour job though, and I am exhausted.

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c41006

I am still trying to figure out why road noise bothers people so much

Bodytechz

I agree with Jessobear, the OEM tires have gotten terrible reviews regarding the noise levels. If possible, swap them out for Michelin Pilot Sports, great tire, great ride and much more quiet. You would think that Nissan would change their tires out after all the complaints regarding the Bridgestones.

Guard Dad

Because it's NOISE! and it is totally unnecessary, it's distracting, it's tiring, I can't hear my music and I'm ashamed to have friends in the car. I've driven commercial flat bed drywall trucks that were quieter than the Z, in 46 years on the road, no car or truck I have EVER driven much less owned has this much road noise and if one more person tries to tell me that I'm not entitled to my opinion on this matter I just might lose it!

The sweet song of the Z's V6 speaking through the the right exhaust system is not noise, it's music, but if I subjected an employee to the ambient road noise of the Z I would literally need to provide him or her with ear protection or I would be on the line for causing hearing loss. High ambient noise levels induce stress, interfere with decision making and are bad for your health-end of story-why are we even discussing this? Some folks would like the car quieter, what's the harm in that? Let's stop telling them that they are wrong and help them make it quieter. Am I irritated, you bet! This is a matter of opinion, lots of people here think the car is too loud for their taste otherwise this thread (and many others like it) would not exist. To those of you who don 't share that opinion, well that's fine too, but please stop wasting everyone's time telling us that we're wrong and you just don't get it.

Nismoracer

Was being sarcastic...... I know hard to tell just reading. There are comments on how to effectively reduce the road noise and there are comments to make light of the situation. You say everyone is entitled to their opinion, well there you go. Some have a " deal with it you knew what you were getting in too when you bought it "and some it doesn't bother them. You're telling people who don't have anything productive to say to not say anything...... People can say whatever they want, it's a public forum. We're not saving lives here. Sometimes I get a big laugh at some of the comments people say that aren't really problem solving. Regardless of what some of the comments are the answer always pops up.

trainsales

So, I drove about 40 miles today with the new sound deadening material installed (second time on the road with it). Mostly freeway driving on asphalt and that grooved cement road. Big reduction in the annoying ambient noise. Stereo sounds much better. Thanks to this forum for prior advice.

RiCharlie

You're not entitled to your opinion!! ha! ha! ha!!

Seriously you are right. Its no fun driving a car that is so loud you cant carry on a pleasant conversation or listen to music like soft jazz or classical which needs a somewhat quiet environment.

I think roads differ greatly and if you live in an area with smooth roads then the problem is not as bad.. but here there are many roads with a rough grade to provide traction during the snow and ice and while I would never drive on snow or ice, the road itself causes lots of vibrations and noise.

I read one review in which the car was likened to a cement mixer, another said his ears bled and a third refused to take it on a long trip. Now of course these are exaggerations but lots of reviewers make the point and its interesting that sometimes you can see videos of reviewers talking as they drive the car and the background noise is awful.

The good news is that unlike a problem with the basic design of the car or the engine or transmission, this problem is easily fixed. I think the key areas are hatch, doors ( which have NO sound dampening) and rear tire wells. Dynamat those areas and you get a whole new car which is truly a joy to drive!

RiCharlie

I think i may have used the term 20% at some point but that is just a very subjective guess.. I think it would be better to say that it was enough of a sound dampening to change the entire way I view the car. Sometimes even a slight improvement is a big deal..Sometimes the TV is too loud but just turning it down a bit makes a very big deal. As I said, 20% was just a guess..it could be 40%..only a measuring device could determine how much sound was dampened but it's well worth it IMO

LunaZ

I find my cabin to be very quiet!

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IDZRVIT

But wouldn't the sound of the melting snow in spring bother you?

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Guard Dad

My gripe is that this issue is the Rodney Dangerfield of threads, "it don't get no respect". The "I just don't get/it's a sports car/deal with it/ turn up the radio/get a cat back exhaust types just don't seem to know when to quit. Every cabin nose thread is littered with put downs and dismissive commentary about the issue. Yet I cannot recall anyone posting comments like "just slow down" or "it's a street car, what do you expect" when someone posts that their oil temps are too high or that their brakes are fading at the track. But talk about too much noise in the cabin and people can't seem to control themselves.

Read this thread, those addressing the issue have taken the time to post thoughtful, helpful, well reasoned and very well written comments that are on topic and of real value to many of us. And then there are those other posts that are sarcastic and dismiss the whole subject out of hand. Everyone here knows that the Z is a sports car, and that with its emphasis on performance it will ride rougher and be louder than most cars. So why restate the obvious and in an unpleasant manner to boot? It serves no purpose and after awhile becomes rather irritating.

sonic370

IMHO lighten up guys the car is not as loud stock as some make it out to be.
It is what it is. I'm guessing most of us took test drives.....

last comment no it's not as quiet as a buick it was never meant to be...

but iv'e got 15,000 on mine and not one rattle.. couldn't say that about my 350....

LunaZ

You can most certainly add hundreds of dollars worth of sound deadening material to the car. Gut the interior, pad it, Dynamat it and whatever else works, then put it all back together... or pay someone to do it.
My wife's Mercedes has a carpet-life material in the fenderwells that does an amazing job at reducing the noise of gravel and stones that get kicked up. If you can source some of that stuff and add it to the 370Z, that would probably help a lot.
You can shop for the quietest tires on the market and replace the stock Potenzas.
At the end of it all, it probably still won't be quiet enough (as illustrated by the disappointing results experienced by some posters) and you will have spent a lot of money and time on trying to make the 370Z something it's not. It's not a BMW, Audi or Lexus. Take out the "performance" part of the equation, and you're left with a simple matter of economics. I'm sure it costs less to skip all the sound deadening measures that are incorporated into the aforementioned luxury brands.
If a quiet cabin was high on your priority list when shopping for cars, you made the wrong choice, plain and simple.

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