How noisy (or quiet) your car is

sifu

Well-Known Member
Joined
Feb 16, 2007
Messages
3,385
Location
Finland
Car(s)
-11 BMW F11 528i Sport
When i was driving my car I wondered if my cars tires are (or my car is) rubbish, because sometimes the noise is close to unbearable.

I then installed a DB meter for my cell phone and tested it. 80 db on a pretty beaten up asphalt when driving a bit over 80km/h. Then i thought is this high,very high or just rubbish?

DB values do measure also build quality indeed but there are also cars that arent meant to be quiet.
What about your car? Please post results, i measured it on my center console, ofc my radio was off and i tried to be as silent as possible. Please tell some more detail (surface, speed, tires etc which can affect to the result)

Feel free to post tips and instructions for getting cars quiters (or noisier). Tips for tire brands that are quiet etc..
If i can i would also like to see some comparable results (focus svt, st170) with my car with tire specs.

Ford Focus ST170, Champiro GT 215/45R17, pretty rough asphalt, 80km/h 78-80db and 81-83db on 100km/h
 
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Convertible, so....

Plus I have tons of valve train noise, which is apparently normal. I can hear the pushrods clattering away.

But to answer your question, tires make a huge difference. My newer ones (Pilot Super Sports) are a lot better ride and I think quieter than my old Pilot Sport 2s.
 
my car is ridiculously loud as soon as you go anything above maybe 70km/h... maybe even earlier. but at that point, wind-noise takes over and dominates everything else. because it's a convertible, 10 years old and has the aerodynamics of a barn, at 100km/h talking to a passenger is already something you'd normally avoid.
at lower speeds engine noise is dominant, because all that separates the cabin from the engine is a rather flimsy piece of sheet metal and a little carpet.
since i never really notice tire-noise, i don't think in my particular case tires matter much in terms of noise. although i have to admit i've never changed them, so i don't have anything to compare them to...
 
Very quiet.


I have my doubts about using cellphone noise meters though. Using the same phone you may get reasonable results, but lacking any calibration whatsoever there's little point in comparing each other's results.
 
Small old hatchback, I've taken out all the noise killer and all the carpets. It's got an aftermarket exhaust and intake. It's damn loud. :D
At the last track day I was at, they measured 98db right behind the car bouncing on launch at 4000rpm.
 
Very quiet.


I have my doubts about using cellphone noise meters though. Using the same phone you may get reasonable results, but lacking any calibration whatsoever there's little point in comparing each other's results.

That is true, but it should give some info still.. Not german like precision ofc. but when SVT focus is 75 and my 80 it should give info that my car is loud...
 
In my experience the tires makes quite a lot of difference. In my Fiesta I would objectively judge it as reasonable, but of course far from as good as an E-class or similar... I will have to try out the phone measurement.
 
Very noisy. Poor sound insulation, a worn down engine "leg" which means at 3000 rpm my engine and chassis start singing to me in vibrating unison...
 
Quite noisy. Not much drivetrain whine and engine is pretty smooth, 255 section tyres, an exhaust system that is straight apart from one silencer, some removed insulation and heavy-duty suspension bring the noise level up though. Can still talk without shouting at 70mph.

It was very quiet when I bought it, standard smaller road tyres were much better on the ears but weren't good enough. Maybe it just seemed quiet after the SIII.
 
For something that calls itself "Aero", mine has surprising amounts of wind noise on the freeway.
 
The tires on my car make a lot of road noise but thats nothing compared to the fuel system. The Injectors on this car are loud as hell. Drives me nuts because I'm used to older cars where that kind of noise indicates a serious problem with the engine.
 
"When I start my car in the morning, I want people to think the world has come to an end"

Homer J Simpson.
 
Boxer engine mated to stock unequal length headers and aftermarket catless up-pipe (Grimmspeed), aftermarket catted downpipe (Cobb), and Ansa exhaust.

For those who don't speak Subaru, the above translates roughly as "really freaking loud."
 
Yaris - No rattles but the burst exhaust, busy engine and economy car sound insulation means it isn't the quietest car in the world, tyre noise is reasonably loud but not intrusive.

Triumph - 1960s bodyshell means wind noise is excessive, the engine sits at around 3,500rpm at 60mph and there is no sound deadening to speak of, various bits rattle but you can't hear over the rest of the noise anyway. There is no chance of hearing tyre noise at all. :lol: This is the Dolly going from standstill to about 55-60mph. You can use my voice to compare normal speaking volume to the noise of the car.
 
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Won the noisiest in class award so... yeah noisy :D
 
Quite quiet, but the tyres have this weird loud spot between 70-80 km/h. Don't have a dB meter and I don't trust smartphone apps.
 
Remember though, that desibel meters only tell one side of the story. The way the human ear interprets noise as disturbing isn't always in relation to the number on a meter.

To answer your question though, I had crap tyres before in the back, and they had this horrible droning noise. Swapped them for quality rubber and now the road noise is pretty much bearable.

Can't say for sure though, I'm usually listening to music too loud and or revving the nuts off the wankel. :p
 
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