Road Noise

[Milin1609]

It has been about 9 months with my Model X and Road noise, is the only thing bothers me everyday. I have reported to Tesla and SC said, all is within specified range. Nothing can be done. I have Lexus RX450h and it has less than half the road noise compare to Model X. There has to be a way to quite the cabin down. Thinking about adding weather stripping myself, as there is no help from Tesla. It really sucks!!!!

 

[rainforest]

Hmmm I took my week old X for a test drive yesterday and find it very quiet. Maybe I just got lucky?

 

[Spidy]

I've owned a few luxury vehicles and my wife still drives one . I have come to the conclusion that this is a bit of an illusion - at least In my car.

Because there is little to no engine noise or transmission noise you " hear " the wind more than you would in an ICE car.

I think my car has less noise than my best friends brand new BMW - once you take into account it doesn't have a combustion engine to cover up the wind .

I can say that any car can benefit from dynamat installation to decrease road noise - no matter how good or bad it is. I plan on getting the doors at least done in it.

@41:40 you can for example hear the car going from hybrid into only electric mode and there isn't much of a noise difference. It's really just when accelerating and at higher RPMs that the engine really comes trough. Can't even hear the ICE cars passing when you close your eyes.

Or 56:08 at the 107km/h you really can't hear the engine while cruising and you really just hear it when accelerating.

 

[FlatSix911]

Another issue... it's difficult to have a hands free cell phone conversation on the road in the Model S.
Many other vehicles have better sound insulation and also use noise cancelation technology to help.

 

[travwill]

I have to agree somewhat here. I've had a loaner S, older one even at times like 85/P85/P90 since X has been in service a LOT. They all seem a bit more solid, but also much quieter than the X. Couldn't hear the motors in those nearly as much (even a comparable D one), but also just driving on the road it seemed so much quieter. The bumps were more of a low thump sound versus higher pitch in X, the wind noise much less, etc.

Overall the X is still quiet. It isn't Lexus, Mercedes, Audi quiet though by any means though. Oh and its quiet enough where I can hear the hatch plastic or something always rattling in the back, grrrr....

 

[mohanman]

If anyone has an X and installed dynamat please chime in! Also I can never find a comfortable position driving the X. Has anyone added extra padding to the chair somehow?

 

[xkwizit]

Another issue... it's difficult to have a hands free cell phone conversation on the road in the Model S.
Many other vehicles have better sound insulation and also use noise cancelation technology to help.

I am on conf calls a lot while driving. When I am driving the S, most of the time people don't even realize that I am in a car.

I used an iPhone app called Decibel 10th to measure noise levels. I know it's not the best or most scientific way of measuring audio levels but it gives me something to do apples to apples comparison. I held the phone next to the IC on both S and X, on highway while cruising at 70mph and on rural roads at about same speed.

I was surprised to find that my X is a tad bit quieter than my S. I got 82-86db reading in the X versus 84-88db in the S. And my tires on X don't say ContiSilent so I believe I don't have the foam padding in the tires.

And though I don't have readings on previous Lexus/MB cars I owned, I am pretty confident that both of my Teslas are quieter. I could never have a phone conversation using the car's phone connection on those cars. There was just too much noise that other party heard.

 

[mevanscpa]

One thing that Tesla owners should think about is tire size. I have very low road noise on My Model X and this was confirmed with the Tesla Rep who indicated you do not want large tires on this car - it adds to the road noise, makes the car ride stiffer and you also get a little less range. Go with the standard tire size which has more rubber to absorb the noise. One other issue you might check: Are the windows sealing correctly. Several Model X owners have had this problem. This contributed to my road noise and the Service Center corrected this issue. My car is extremely quiet.

 

[Hitman007]

I wonder has anyone had experience with different tires than what comes with the car ? Are the ones included maybe rated poor on road noise ? I haven't looked into that at all .

Tire rack has around 63 reviews on the stock tires and they are rated a 7.2 for noise which is good.

 

[Allante]

Agree with those who are complaining about ambient noise -- drives me nuts, and spoils what otherwise has been a fantastic car. If I am sitting still at a traffic light, I can hear cars coming from 200 feet away. Even my Hyundai has far better acoustic sealing.

Clearly, one culprit must be the door seals. Home Depot weatherstripping sounds intriguing, but unless it is applied to the proper areas, it will be a futile exercise.

Anyone have thoughts on the best locations on the door and body to apply weatherstripping?

 

[xkwizit]

Agree with those who are complaining about ambient noise -- drives me nuts, and spoils what otherwise has been a fantastic car. If I am sitting still at a traffic light, I can hear cars coming from 200 feet away. Even my Hyundai has far better acoustic sealing.

Clearly, one culprit must be the door seals. Home Depot weatherstripping sounds intriguing, but unless it is applied to the proper areas, it will be a futile exercise.

Anyone have thoughts on the best locations on the door and body to apply weatherstripping?

@Allante - did your SC measure the noise levels and say that they were within tolerance? Your experience is definitely way worse than mine. I don't hear anything even if someone walks up to the window and speaks to me.

 

[Pandamoanium]

I am on conf calls a lot while driving. When I am driving the S, most of the time people don't even realize that I am in a car.

I used an iPhone app called Decibel 10th to measure noise levels. I know it's not the best or most scientific way of measuring audio levels but it gives me something to do apples to apples comparison. I held the phone next to the IC on both S and X, on highway while cruising at 70mph and on rural roads at about same speed.

I was surprised to find that my X is a tad bit quieter than my S. I got 82-86db reading in the X versus 84-88db in the S. And my tires on X don't say ContiSilent so I believe I don't have the foam padding in the tires.

And though I don't have readings on previous Lexus/MB cars I owned, I am pretty confident that both of my Teslas are quieter. I could never have a phone conversation using the car's phone connection on those cars. There was just too much noise that other party heard.

I think you addressed it without noticing it. The Tesla could just be better at filtering out the road noise to the other side, but in cabin road noise is just there. For me, my other luxury vehicles were much quieter and made it easier for me to hear, but the other end of the conversation heard more ambient noise. Now if only the two could combine.....

 

[alloverx]

I sense an opportunity for someone to provide a "quieter interior" service.

 

[mohanman]

Oncoming cars is ok, its when the cars are passing on the right or left, that its loud as crap. Especially trucks. Some truck engines or other diesel vehicles when they pass pay seem to shake the whole cabin. I can feel the vibrations on the door. Definitely worse then my Tahoe, and even my wife's Cadillac SRX. Never had this problem with any car before.

 

[Macgaver]

@41:40 you can for example hear the car going from hybrid into only electric mode and there isn't much of a noise difference. It's really just when accelerating and at higher RPMs that the engine really comes trough. Can't even hear the ICE cars passing when you close your eyes.

Or 56:08 at the 107km/h you really can't hear the engine while cruising and you really just hear it when accelerating.

Every Porsche with hybrids have engine sound simulated by the audio system when shutting the real engine. They are very proud of that !

 

[hill]

I might take mine to a car stereo shop and have them put sound guard insulation in the doors and under the carpet. Basically wrap the cabin.

Makes one wonder why that's not done at the factory anyway, doesn't it?
.

 

[mohanman]

Makes one wonder why that's not done at the factory anyway, doesn't it?
.

If it helps please let us know what they did and how much it cost! I wish Tesla would pick up the tab, that would be nice. Just got back from driving from Lansing to Ann Arbor MI. At least this time I didn't get a headache or backache, because I finally got my seat position where its working for me.. but still loud! Trucks driving by, cars.. I don't know how anyone who has an X actually uses it to commute or travel long distance. I think it actually adds stress and fatigue.

Mo!

 

[xkwizit]

If it helps please let us know what they did and how much it cost! I wish Tesla would pick up the tab, that would be nice. Just got back from driving from Lansing to Ann Arbor MI. At least this time I didn't get a headache or backache, because I finally got my seat position where its working for me.. but still loud! Trucks driving by, cars.. I don't know how anyone who has an X actually uses it to commute or travel long distance. I think it actually adds stress and fatigue.

Mo!

@mohanman - seems like one of the seals for your doors is not fitting properly. You should have Tesla check it out.

Your experience is definitely not normal. We have done almost 18K miles on our X in about a year now. Road noise is not an issue for us at all.

 

[mohanman]

What I did was I took some auto weather stripping from home depot and placed a layer right next to the already installed weather stripping by Tesla. I put some on the door and some on the car itself. I also took some sound proofing foam from amazon and filled all the small gaps (moslty near that front triangle window) and I have noticed a 50% improvement. Finally! I can Finally enjoy my car! I just got back from a drive.. amazing. Some cars driving by are still loud, but its not like it was. Thus I am taking my car off the market (was selling it because of noise and roughness), and I am keeping it!

 

[Pwdr Extreme]

Can you take a couple pictures of where you added the weather stripping and where you put the sound proofing foam?