Hey mate you're the ones that eat vegamite sandwiches and swim with great whites!!:icon18:

Sorry to re-open this thread.....
 

Taking the chance of reopening up this super long thread and pissing off all the "sports car" people, I do have a question for those have done the sound proofing.

Unlike some of you, I don't mind the tire noise, engine noise, wind noise or road noise. I don't mind any of the mechanical noises. That's where I have to agree with the "sports car" folks. Compared with my wife's Pontiac Solstice this car is quiet in those areas.

BUT, what I do find overly loud, and unlike any other car I've driven, is the sand, dirt & pebble noise in the rear wheel wells. It's like every single grain of sand that you drive over gets spit up by the rear tires right behind your head in the wheel well. Here in South West Ohio we use street cleaners quite a bit, so it's not like the roads are filthy dirty. But when ever you go over those areas less traveled, where the "beads" build up a little, it sounds like you are driving through a freshly paved loose black top deposit.

So I've got my rear end all torn out right now (making way for wires for the back up camera and 4th brake light wiring), and thought this would be a good time to investigate soundproofing back there. And what I've found the last few days is tons of information that contradicts itself.

I'm basically down to 2 thoughts on this. I'm thinking while I have the rear all exposed, it wouldn't hurt to add dynamat or the like to the wheel wells and the trunk. It's just money and more so the time I don't have right now. So for those who have done this, has this application made a difference for the pebble noise?

After that, I'm thinking a good coat (or two or 3) of rubberized undercoating applied to the underside of the wheel wells might make the biggest difference. This way the dirt and pebbles are hitting a softer more forgiving surface rather than the "ping" of the lightly coated metal it is now. I saw a few options on this (like from Fatmat) where a gallon costs about $80. Has anyone tried this? If so, can you offer up your findings here?

Thanks for your help!

Cheers ---- Bonzo :tup:

......and sorry to those of your who I've not answered yet via PM. I've been so busy in my personal life that I've little to no time to do anything else. I'll get to it, I promise. :tiphat:

for pebble hitting noise i think i'd try the noise eliminator sprays you mentioned, bonzo.

they're usually sold at most autoparts stores. :)

Thanks kenchan. I'm thinking it's got to help at least some. Like if there was a separate plastic liner up there like on many cars, this wouldn't be a problem. A good thick rubber coating should act like a "bouncer" I would think. You can also buy it by the gallon and brush it on, which would go on thicker and faster. I'll have to pull the wheel anyway so I'm not sure which would be best.

Now I just need to think of whether I want to spend my weekend doing dynamat or not. I REALLY want to finish these Z projects up this weekend.

Thanks again.

I've had my car for almost 3 weeks now and the only noise complaint I have is tire noise. They are much louder over concrete vs pavement, loud on any surface in the rain, and despite the cold weather, they shoot up every loose rock, pebble, sand etc. However, its not terrible. For my own personal tastes, swapping to a different tire (when the time comes), will be the most I do to help noise.

I'm going the Duramat Extreme route. Just ordered 36 sq.ft. and will do the hatch and the doors. I hope the keeps the debris noise down. I like the engine and exhaust tones, but the road and debris noise is no joy to my ears at all.

I'm in the same boat. First time I drove my car I thought 'What the hell is happening?' Then I figured out it was pebbles. Might as well just shake a tin can full of rocks by your ear.

And I'm in Injunana so we've got tons of gravel and sand on the highways right now. Just drove to the next town over and they had been putting sealcoat down and then tossing gravel over it. I'm about deaf now...

I am going to do the Dynamat Extreme and if someone figures out if the spray or brush on deadener works, I might do that, too.

FYI I was just reading an review of the 2012 by Edmunds and it mentioned the loud cabin noise due to tires..

Strange how things are..that pebble noise doesnt bother me ..its just what happens when you go over sand..and that is not very often..but that constant droning of the wheels on the road, especially with the sports package, is intolerable ...to me anyway..and its louder if the road is wet... depends a lot on the surface of the roads,..,on some there is no noise at all..others its .horrible.. At first i was sick thinking i had made a terrible mistake..

.. i had my car dynamatted..hatch and doors ..( there is no sound dampening material at all in either area) If you can do it yourself you save a lot of money...i spent $1200 when people tell me the materials are about $200..

but its ok now and i really love this car! but i want more..so in two months I am getting new tires...as the ones i have came with the car and I am told that they only go to about 20-25K and i hit 20 last week..

I think i will go with the Continental Extreme contact DWS...from what i read its a good performer and also good on water and snow and are much quieter..

Yeah, people are certainly different with their takes on this. Wow. Tire noise has never bothered me. Actually, to me it's something sports cars "should" have. I had one friend who loved it so much he never ever turned on his radio.

Anyway, not that you probably paid attention (since the incessant pebble banging doesn't bother you), but did the dynamat help at all with the sand/pebble/dirt noise?

Last night I decided to do a small little simple test. Using my hand I just started reaching under the car and knocking on it. What I found is the noise I am talking about is mostly coming from the rear wheel wells. When I rapped on those from the wheel side, the inside arches let out this loud tin like "plink." When pebbles hit it it sounds like a fully automatic BB-gun machine gun firing into the trunk. Not good.

So now I'm still thinking I should dynamat the wheel arches on the inside of the car now (while I have it all open), and then also paint the wheel wells on the outside of the car with rubberized coating to give it a more spongy/springy texture. I'm just still wondering if the dynamat might be a waste of time and money for the pebble noise.

Too bad Nissan couldn't charge us an extra $100 per car and have had plastic designed and produced for the wells. That would have eliminated most of the pebble noise I think, and also helped to isolate the road noise issue other have.

Thanks for anyone who can contribute to the dynamat helping or not with the pebble issue.

I don't mind that the tires pick up every loose item on the road or the fact of the noise it makes in my wheel well. I'm more worried about the pebble that gets kicked up while turning which then scratches my paint. This will be more of an issue when I install my wheel spacers.

Get the touch up pen from Nissan. Enjoy your car.

Well just to be clear..for me...there is no incessant pebble noise...its very rare..but i can certainly understand that if i had to listen to it constantly, that would be another story...because the few times I have encountered it ..it is loud..,.
.
You might just as well do what ever you can now that the car is open..=you might just as well try..and hopefully it will cut down on the racket..let us know..

..maybe you could install a large brush on the front of your car and sweep the pebbles to the side as you drive...:driving::tup:

My Mercedes had carpeted wheel wells. My wife's mini countryman does as well. Never a peep no matter how much gravel you throw up. In my Ridgeline, I only hear the really big stuff-the tires I'm running right now are real bad about picking up the standard size rocks used on gravel roads and tossing them into the wheel wells when you hit about 60 mph.

well I am glad I am not the only one hearing the pebble noises. I just noticed them the other day, then again I just got my Z :) I hadnt noticed them before because the radio is always on. As for the interior noise, coming from a 2008 STI, the Z is a caddy by comparison... well maybe thats a bit of an exaggeration but it certainly is not as loud as my STI was on the inside.

:rofl2:

It's called Zee-Broom.

I'll probably do the dynamat thing (or another cheaper brand) while it's open. I just hope it doesn't take all day to do it like some have said.

Dynamat will add a ton of weight to your car.
Get this: http://www.the370z.com/exterior-inte...cs-inside.html
Then get some foam pieces to fit into the space under the harness bar

My Dynamat arrived tonight and I will get started on the install this weekend. I love listening to rock, but not each and every rock kicked up from my tires. It has to go!

Please post back when you get done about the "pebble noise" difference. I'm very interested to know your findings.

Thanks ----- Bonzo

:tup:

I will run some db numbers with my iphone db meter app and report back with some figures.

i think our only solution is to buy a porsche lol

Yeah, but it won't look as good as the Z!!!!! ;)

:driving:

FINALLY, some real scientific numbers!!!! ;):tup:

No, seriously, just your own observations about the pebble noise specifically (not road noise or tire noise etc) would be great.

Thanks ---- Bonzo

Can someone take pics? When I had all the trim pulled out of the trunk last night to install LED back up lights, there were a lot of places around the wheel wells where dynamat would fit - as long as the trim isn't right up against the metal. I know Dynamat isn't real thick, but I don't want to get into a situation of having to pull it off becasue the trim won't fit back in.

FWIW-it's scary to pull that trim off. You have to pull like hell on some of it. I'm sure it will be easier the second time but that first time you're sure you're going to break something.

I planned on taking pics when I install my Dynamat tonight or tomorrow. Having a set of plastic/nylon interior trim removal tools is helpful releasing the trim clips.

The rock noise is the whole experience.

Everyone says Dynamat is heavy. Anyone know just how much weight it would add for the hath only and for the hatch and doors?

I would guess around 70-80lbs if you do the proper layers. I've seen a guy add over 120lbs to his car with Dynamat. As I said in my previous post there's other alternatives if weight is an issue. That's the only reason I'm not getting Dynamat.

Dynamat Extreme weighs .45lbs./sq.ft. I plan on using 36 sq.ft. or 16.2 lbs. of Dynamat Extreme to cover my hatch and doors.

just get a set of noise cancelling head phones and connect to MP3

Tires
 

Im getting Continental Extreme contacts this week..supposedly they are quieter..will keep you posted..

i didnt think the stuff was as heavy as some think..i got mine done and i cant sense any change in performance..but its a lot more pleasant to drive..Actually i would not mind a bit more exhaust noise,,just a bit more to provide an added growl..

Check out my prior posts (from the beginning) on the topic, they should answer most of your questions. PM me if I can be of further assistance.

I just weighed the 36 sq ft box of dynamat extreme, 21lbs. Out of the 9 pieces in the box you might use about 6 for the entire hatch area. The rest would probably do the doors.

I started my Dynamat install today. It took me over 4 hours just to do the part in front of the shock towers. I used a little more than 10 sq.ft. to cover that area. There is a bit more trim to remove doing this. I even removed the electronic boxes on the floor and Dynamated under them. I will post a few pictures of the job done so far in my journal.

Noise reduction will be about 2-3 dba. It doesn't sound like much but 3 dba is about a 50% noise reduction so a 2-3 dba reduction will be quite noticeable.

The sand and pebble sounds will be greatly reduced, conversation will be much easier and you enjoy your audio system much more.

I read all the way through and would also share my experiences regarding tyre noise and wheel wells issue.

I have driven the 370Z with Stillen Exhaust and air intakes with the same 20" alloys with 3 different set of tyres:
Falken FK452...oh my god, that is not only a cheap tyre but also so noisy that the sound level at 65mph on a highway is more than annoying even with an Stillen exhaust (on demonstrator car only)
Bridgestone Potenza RE050A...I think that's the same like on the stock alloys. Well, still little bit too noisy to be considered as good (5 days on my car. because I want a wider back tyre I let my Nissan dealer change the tyre brand)
Last but not least: Pirelli P Zero...this tyre is not only more expensive than the Bridgestone and much more expensive than the Falken, it is also much more comfortable to drive and the street noise is now at an very acceptable level for me. Sure I don't like a quiet 370Zzzzzzzzz car therefore we have added Stillen exhaust and intake and even the engine makes a nice deep sound, but the uncomfortable roaring of just some dam cheap tyres is just gone. Sure it will never be sooooo quiet but sorry, that is a sports car and not a limousine.

But in my opinion that is already a big improvement compared to the noisy stock or even Falken tyres....so change your tyres and ask your tyre dealer for a comfortable and quiet one....if not, just bring back the noisy ones.
:iagree:

Second and still annoying noise from the outside of our car is indeed the pebble noise when just picking up each stone one by one or even as machine-gun fire passing some new tared roads...

Nissan's 370Z GT has some suspension modification but they also have done some "extra underbody sound insulation"
Someone has some information about this? Because if they add some extra sound insulation stuff each Nissan dealer should be aware of and could give us some extra parts/info????

I like this topic even sound is like colours a matter of taste so everybody has different feeling and intention with that! But I drive a 99 Yamaha R1 as well so I never ever hear anything else than exhaust, airbox or the engine...and that's good :happydance:

Not to related to cabin noise, but does anyone know how to stop that annoying headliner rattle right by the drivers side window?

Pebble noise: I've said it before but it bears repeating, Dynamat is the your friend.

No tire out there is going to lessen the road debris noise. If the Dynamat isn't enough, I'll spray some rubberized undercoating in the wheel well outside which should be more than enough to stop the tings and pings from everything the tires kick up into the wheel wells.
Tire and road surface noise may still be another issue to tackle. If it is, then I think I will try out a set of Continental Extreme DWS. I have heard good reviews. Since I have less than 400 miles on mine, it is not what I want to do. After a long road trip I have planned for later this month, I may change my mind on it though and change then out.

I am getting those Contis tomorrow..will keep you posted..