Car door sounds...the perception of quality

My car has a slightly odd quality in that although they appear quite flimsy and the doors themselves feel light, but they close with a nice solid 'thud'. Must be a sort of 'soft-close' design Honda have gone for. My mother's 306 is the complete opposite, the doors look solid, but close with a rather disconcerting rattle and tinny noise. Especially the front doors, but those are rather broken. After a couple of fairly decent accidents and repairs the driver's door is also stuck out of perfect alignment and can take a few attempts to close properly. Used to be far better then it was new and not 14 years old.

My father's XC70 definitely falls into the 'bank vault' category of door weight and thickness (except for the locks, they actually don't sound like they could even keep the doors secure, but they obviously do). The doors are so heavy that when I park in some of the deeper gutters around town, and have to push the door open 'uphill' to get out of the car, being so little I can't physically open the door with one arm. I have to brace myself against the door to stop the weight plus gravity equalling me awkwardly tumbling backwards back into the seat. I have also had the driver's door slam shut on my ankle in that same situation, as I was getting in. I let go of the door too soon, and that hurt quite a lot.
 
...What it doesn't show is the rattle when closing the Opel's door :p ...

Like I said, the Combo in your video is a "civil" version, Seats, Windows in the rear and I guess more sound proofing than the Post-version make a huge difference. I've been in both cars multiple times, so trust me ;)

The worst thing in the Post-Combo is sitting inside and closing the door, I think a normal car falling over isn't much louder from the inside ;)
 
I always found that old 911's (993s and before) always make me think they are made like crap with how the door sounds when it closes. Its solid sounding, but because its so light, it just feels like something broke.
 
My 92 Vw passat has a nice sounding door...very easy to shut as well. Barely have to push it.
 
If I have the hard top on my Jeep actually makes quite a nice thud. With the soft top on it rattles a bit, but it's still pretty good. I'm actually quite happy with the quality of the car overall.
 
Even the trunk on my parents Malibu has a very nice "thunk" when shut...I'm pleased overall by the quality.
 
My 92 Vw passat has a nice sounding door...very easy to shut as well. Barely have to push it.

All the VW's I've encountered have a very nice sound.
 
All the VW's I've encountered have a very nice sound.

Early - Mid 2000 VWs are awful. They have those weird notches in the door opening sequence and they are really stiff. Every time I get in/out of one I feel like the door is going to kill me.
 
Early - Mid 2000 VWs are awful. They have those weird notches in the door opening sequence and they are really stiff. Every time I get in/out of one I feel like the door is going to kill me.

it's likely better than very weak detents. The Failturn was a prime offender in this regard, blew shut in even the slightest breeze or incline.
 
RL vs Corolla



On my laptop the sound is obviously off (phone vid too) but from flagship to economy car you can still hear some difference.
 
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RL vs Corolla



On my laptop the sound is obviously off (phone vid too) but from flagship to economy car you can still hear some difference.

Yeah but the difference is very slight, both sound good btw!

Here's my contributions. Usual "shot on a smartphone" disclamer applies.

First, the Malibu:


I've always wondered why there is a second set of door strikers on some models, including the Malibu... /off topic

Then my Taurus:


I'm embarrassed by the state of my backseat but that's not the focus of the video, mmmkay?
 
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Hmm, I currently drive a '11 Renault M?gane (temporary car bestowed upon me whilst waiting on my new company car). It .. is .. horrible!
The doors don't make any sound at all when you close them. This is very annoying since it always makes me want to doublecheck whether they are actually closed. This lack of a solid thud is a good example of the sheer flimsyness of this car.

PS: I detest it wholeheartedly and can't wait for the new car to finally arrive.
 
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