On my way to Carlisle , my passenger states that the road noise in my zo6 is irritating , even with the radio turned up. What can be done to quiet down the road noise...partition , padding , insulation ..? All of the above ?I noticed as the road surface changed , the noise went up or down....Idea's ? Also , I don't have the lid to the back storage area , does it help ?

 

I made a partition for my Z06 and it really cut down on the noise. You can also add sound deadening material. If your tires are old or are runflats new tires may cut down a lot of the road noise.

 

There are two types of noise that are prevalent in the Z. One is road noise from the tires, and the other is exhaust noise. Since there is essentially no sound deadening material in the car (to save weight) it does tend to be pretty loud on the highway. This car has a lightweight, plastic floorboard behind the seats and it doesn't do much of anything to stop the tire and exhaust noise from entering the cabin.

There are a couple of things you can do to quiet it down.

The first is to add a partition. This helps block the exhaust noise and also, because tire noise enters all around the tire, noise that enters in the back part of the of trunk area doesn't get to the people in the front. It is probably the biggest single thing you can do to cut the noise in the cabin.

The second is to add some Dynamat in some key places. It won't add any noticeable weight (maybe 5 pounds) but it will help the tire noise considerably. The place where you need to put it is ahead of your partition, on the wheel wells and the floorboard. The wheel wells are the most important since this is where a lot of tire noise comes in, and it is right behind your ears and, as you realized, makes a lot of noise on rough pavement. You will need to take off the inner panels just behind the door to do this right and that is a PITA, but it is worth it, believe me.

Lastly the back side of the partition should have acoustic foam on it and you should add some acoustic foam on the inside of the trunk lid. This weighs nothing, but it cuts the reverberation in the trunk and makes the partition more effective. Without soft surfaces, noise bounces around in the closed box of the trunk and if you have all soft surfaces it will help reduce the overall noise.

Did all of this an it is a much more pleasant ride, not Cadillac quiet, but it is livable on the highway.

 

Great post

 

Good post by Solofast. I also find the windows to have a lot of wind noise compared to the C6. I think it has info with how the windows roll up on that cheap rubber. Just doesn't seem like a strong seal to me.

 

I also want to emphasize this one:

 

Thank You very much for your replys , i will take it all into consideration. Where can i find dynomat ?
Plus , how hard is it t pull the seats and carpet ?

 

You can get Dynamat on line or at you local car stereo installers. It is a "peel and stick" material but you will have to do some cutting and shaping to get it on the rear wheel wells. It's a lot cheaper on line.

The carpet is easy, it's the side panels that are a pain to get off. I didn't take out the seats but it probably would have been easier had done so.

The rear carpet pulls right up, it's easy once you get the rear panels out of the way. I didn't take the trip strip off, I just folded the carpet forward and worked from the back.

 

Also, the partition should be heavy. Just putting a piece of Masonite or foam in there isn't going to do you as much good. I bought a kit that someone had years ago for the partition made from 1/2 inch plywood, and covered it front and back with carpet.

 

There any walk throughs on doing the dynomat?

 

Nope, cut to fit with a razor knife or scissors, peel and stick... Do it like you are upholstering the area, and try not to leave any gaps.

 

I recommend RAAMmat instead of Dynamat. It's cheaper and just as effective:
http://www.raamaudio.com/categories/...Foam-Products/


Here's a helpful guide I put together when I did my sound system:
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/audi...ics-guide.html

 

Adding a rear partition made a big difference in mine. Made mine out of 2" rigid foamboard insulation (lowes/HD) and interior carpeting & adhesive spray. Got the interior carpeting material from pep boys, the backside part of it is a dead match for the trunk interior material. Looks very factory. I would like to add some dynamat to the inside of the doors. I hate the clunking sound I get when closing them. Yes, I know thats being picky but it just annoys me.

 

if you dynamat this is the time of year to do it. you really want to install when it's over 80deg outside. much more flexible and will have better adhesion

like any tar based product it's hard when cold and soft when hot

 

I agree, Start with a partition.. makes a large difference. then if its still a little on the noisy side, unhook the battery and start removing the interior and lay down dynomat/sound mat. But definatly try the partition first it is a good cheap option that takes 2 min to install.

S

 

One other cause for noise, "Rear Wheel bearings". They did feel bad when checking them ether. I was amazed at the difference when I change them out. I thought it was my old down to the wear bars tires, but after installing new tires the noise was still there.

93k on the car at the time of change out the rear hubs.

We are all getting older (cars) and making noises other then the common ones.

Mark.

 

Very valuable add... Love your avatar

 

I see i'm not alone with cabin road noise , a lot of good info.
Thank you all very much.

 

Oh just get a really loud exhaust , partition and dynomat the rear trunk area, tires also play a big roll as well.

 

Thanks, that photo was taken at Bonneville just after I made my 150 club pass (or should I say it took 6 passes to make it).

Mark.