SpankUU

Great write up and thanks for the pics and pointers. This is my fall project for this year. I'll be looking to see the final decibel readings when you are done.

Qnardacci

Can't wait to see the results in noise reduction.

Lead Foot 66

Excellent write up. I was not contemplating taking the headliner out, and hadn't thought about taking out the speakers to get to more of the wheel well housing, but that is a good point.

I look forward to your next installment and your assessment of the outcome.

Thanks for sharing.

MAG STAR

nice

sonz06

wow

805Z06

805Z06

Added acoustical

From what I can tell, there is not much at all. I have noticed there were some random patches of foam and insulation on the carpet. Some on the sides of the rear hatch carpet and some on the driver and passenger carpet.

Compared to before this car will be riding on Huggies Diapers.



There is a lot you can do. The most important thing is time and a lot of it. Once you start covering an area, you will find more areas to cover. I would definitely consider the headliner, I will have some good info about it on one of these write ups.

805Z06

Part 3



Front Console Removal Basics

For those of you that have never taken off the front console, I am going to give a brief description about it.

Below is a picture of the console taken off. This is the standard console, it just leather wrapped.




The first part is to remove that tiny plastic cover. You will have to open your center glove box to get a full access. You need to tug on it until it pops off. Try to avoid using a screwdriver to prevent any scratches.

Once you do that you will see this metal plate that houses 4 bolts. I think it’s 4 but it might be three. Forgive me I am going by memory.



Of course you don’t see them here, because I took them off. You will see them when you do this. Just remove those bolts with the tools you have in the garage collecting dust. BTW Costco got great deals on tools if you need to buy some.

You’re not done yet.

There is one bolt left. It is right beneath the brake boot. Don’t worry, you will find it. The bolt holds down a small plastic trim that goes along side of the right front console.





You don’t need to pull the trim piece off if you don’t want to. Just separate it from the front console. If you decide to take it off, for the sake of insulation, it is quite easy. There are two clips at the end of the trim. Just pull it off.





The front console is secured down with a total of 4-5 bolts. The rest is just clips.


The top portion of the front console is attached to the radio frame by clips. There are six clips and they start from above the ashtray to the air vent.



The clips are quite basic. Just pull it off to release.



I would pop out the console a few inches or enough to get your hand behind the console to remove all the connectors.

There is the hazard light connector. You will need to disconnect it once you have the console loose. I believe it’s a push in release connector. Just play with it gently and it will come out.



Then you have the cigarette lighter and the two heated seat connectors. The cigarette lighter connector is a PITA. Don’t yank, pull or curse because you’re just wasting your time. Well maybe curse. Spend the time to find the push in release gizmo. Once you figure out how it works, it can be easily done quickly.



The last two connectors are traction control and another cigarette lighter. The same process as above applies to removal of the cigarette connector. The traction control has a little black plastic handle, you just need to bend it out slightly and the connector will come out.



Shifter boot. You need to detach the shifter boot from the front console. It is quite easy to do. There are 5 plastic hooks that are connected to the shifter boot. These hooks lock into 5 small slits (openings) on the front console.





To release the hooks, grab the leather opps… I mean vinyl boot if you have OEM ? and gently try to release the hook. Work at different locations on the boot to release each hook. The hooks will come out, just take your time, and do not force it out. The first one will take a little time but the rest will open quickly.

…………Side note: I recommend putting the shifter boot on the front console before it is installed on the radio frame. It is a lot easier to put the boot on when the console is off. In addition, you will notice that the top right hook is the longest, put that one in first……..

That’s it, pull console out.





Insulating the shifter box area



This area is very critical for noise and heat. The shifter connects to the drive shaft, so heat will try to escape through this area. The tunnel holds a lot of heat and if you have headers you will notice additional amounts of heat.

From the factory, your car comes with precut insulation foam that is supposed to reduce noise and heat. It fits directly under the front console and it insulates the shifter and cup holder.



My foam has been pretty much warped from all the heat penetration. Even though it’s a small portion of insulation, it makes a big difference.
A few months back, I had removed this foam to install a different shifter. I drove the car around and noticed the additional amount of noise transferring through.

Time to insulate -my solution.

The first thing I did was cut up some Damplifier Pro. I stuck a few small pieces inside the tunnel. The area is very tight and there is only some much that you can cover. I tired to go around the drive shaft as much as possible. Damplifier Pro will help reduce vibrations and reduce heat transfer.

The second step.
I cut a piece of Heat Wave Pro a little larger than the actual opening. I then cut a large enough circle in the middle of the sheet so I could get it around the shifter. I slowly pushed it into the shifter opening.



I then attached some foil tape to the Heat Wave Pro and sealed the opening of the shifter. I made sure that the insulation would not interfere with the shifter and the gear shaft.



I then put the plastic cover back on to the shifter opening. The cover was slightly tight due to the insulation. Once I bolted it back on, it was fine. Be sure not to over tighten this plastic piece or it will cut open.





To be continued

2KZ28CAM

Thanks, Hani!!!!

EDIT: This SHOULD be added to the FAQ!!! (Mods???)

patch68

Nice write up

Lead Foot 66

This one should be a FAQ or Sticky. But, just in case, I'm bookmarking it.

805Z06

Thanks guys. I will try to keep certain parts of it detailed for future references, in case you need to remove a part, ect. I hope the pic size is good. I got bigger ones but I did not want it to slow down the page.

805Z06

PART 4

It has been about 3 weeks since I started this project (FEB 12). I have worked on it almost everyday with an average of 4 hours. I still have a lot more work to do, even though I got a lot done. I could of done the insulation work a lot quicker, but I really wanted to spend the extra time to do a detailed and high quality job.


Removal of gas tank cover


This morning I was inspecting the insulation on the passenger and driver’s side area. I would tap on certain areas to make sure I hear a nice thud sound and no rattles.

I did a test on the driver’s side wall (behind seat) and I heard a rattle. This was not good. I had to find where the rattle was coming from.

It sounded like the noise was coming from the suspension. I checked the passenger side to see if the same noise occurred, it did not.

I went back to the driver’s side and tried to analyze the sound. It sounded like a loose metal plate. I went underneath the car and started tapping parts near the driver’s wall. Sure enough, it was the thin metal cover plate for the gas tank.

Apparently the gas tank and the metal wall are extremely close to each other. The only thing that separates them is a few small pieces of square foam.








The plastic gas tank is not solid, I guess it was designed to move a little bit. So, when I tapped on the wall it put some pressure on the gas tank and that vibrated through the metal plate protector.



[Ignore jack in this picture, it's not supporting anything]

This got me a bit excited, another opportunity to kill a rattle.

First step. Jack up the rear of the car from the driver’s side. Placed a jack stand for safety. Remove the rear tire.

I took a good look underneath and noticed that there were 5 bolts that held it. I took out the required tools, and pulled out the bolts.



I washed the plate from dirt and grease. This allows a clean surface for the insulation adhesive. I put about 2-3 sheets of Damplifier Pro. Applying it on is quite tricky due to all the curves and uneven surfaces. I just cut up the material in small pieces and applied it. The material needs to be placed solid on the plate without any air bubbles. Once the plate was done, it was nice and solid.



I then proceeded to put the plate back on.

PROBLEM.

The plate would not go back on. The distance between the plate and the bolt location was too far. What happened? Well, the plate is not just a protector but it also holds the gas tank up. When the plate came off, the gas tank sunk down 3-4 inches.

I tired pushing the tank up, aligning the plate and trying to put the bolt on. It did not work, it was a PITA, I could not lift it high enough and do everything at once. I got a bit frustrated. Then I thought for a moment, how am I going to lift this up?

Then I remembered that I had bought a scissor jack awhile back. I never used it, because it turned out to be a piece of junk and it couldn’t lift the car up.





I placed the scissor jack on the gas tank and slowly pushed the tank up. I was able to align a couple of bolts, but I did not tighten them. I then move the scissor jack to the other side of tank, this allowed me to align the plate and place the rest of the bolts. I tightened all 5 bolts slowly three times around, I wanted to make sure I did not bend the plate.

I went back to the driver’s area and repeated the prior test. BINGO. Rattle is gone.





Removal of wheel well liner



Since I had the car up and the tire out, I decided to remove the wheel well liner.



I thought it would be a good idea to insulate the inner well. The distance between the tires and hatch is very close and I wanted to reduce the dreaded tire roar.

I did a visual and noticed that 11 bolts held it in place.



You see two bolts here holding the liner to the rocker panel.



Another two bolts as shown.



The other 3 bolts.




The last 4 bolts. You only see 3 bolts due to the angle of the camera, but there are 4. You will find them easily.

I took out all the bolts and proceeded to remove the liner. There is 3 tricky areas about removing the liner.

The first area is where the liner is tucked into the rear bumper. You have to slowly pull it out without breaking the plastic. It requires a little play and slight bending of the liner.

The second spot is the complete opposite side. The liner is tucked into the rocker; it requires a little bit of play to remove it.

The third spot is the area around the rear brake duct. You have to fiddle and slightly bend the liner to remove it.

After that, it comes out quite easy.



There are a couple small pieces of insulation material on it, I doubt it’s really helping.

Also, let me back up a bit. While you are taking out the liner, you will notice a lot of dirt and rocks coming out from the liner and the rocker panel. I am sure you guys have lots of rocks stuck in between the panels. Go take a look at it. A quick and partial solution (clean out rocker panel) is to remove the two bolts by the rocker panel (see pic below). That should get it partially loose and enough space to wash out the rocks.



I was thinking about cleaning the wheel liner but soap and water would not work. The wheel liner needs a good degreaser. I guess I will do that later in the future when I have the degreaser.

With the liner out, I got a rag and cleaned off the dust and dirt from the inner wheel well and the inner fender. I got out the Damplifier Pro and placed the pieces where I thought they would be most effective. That area was the walls on the hatch.



I also placed some material on the inner fenders. The inner fenders are very thin and I am sure the noise vibrates to inside the car. Looking directly up into the inner fender, I could see light coming from the hatch, so it’s obvious the area is not sealed. After I placed the insulation on the inner fenders, I gave it a test and a nice thud sound was present.



So, today I finished the drivers rear side. I still have the passenger rear side to do and I am debating to do the two front wheel wells. I will inspect the area to see if there would be any benefit.


TO BE CONTINUED

crease-guard

I've bought just about the same kit you did a year ago and it's sitting in my garage. I've been too daunted by the undertaking and plus, I want to put in a sound system and some other goodies and I want to do it all at once.

Thanks for the write up, I will definitely follow this and get some pointers from you. I have the QM600 as well and am very interested to see the results in SPL changes.

Jay

kawal

805Z06,

You're doing a really nice job on this write-up, and this kind of detailed information is very valuable to other owners.

I've done a number of mods to my Z06 as well, and I've been thinking about the insulation project too. But so far I've been reluctant to because there haven't been any really definitive results. Your procedures that include taking the before and after sound measurements should provide a lot of good information to other owners.

Thank you for your time consuming efforts to post this information!

Ray

slamar1

805Z06

Yes, I would definitely recommend doing everything at once. Keep an eye on my audio write-up coming soon. It's gong to be interesting what the insulation will do. With my setup (QM600), my car can be heard throughout the house while it's at idle.

Thank you. I am trying to keep all the details so I could put that data into useful information. I know one guy with a C6 on this forum did a lighter version on insulation and got some good results. Will see..

More coming

805Z06

PART 5

Luxury Liner Pro (LLP)


The first layer of the car was done with Damplifier Pro (vibration & noise insulator). The second layer was Heat Wave Pro (Heat & noise reduction). The final layer was Luxury Liner Pro (LLP). This material has a vinyl top and a sponge like substance on the other side. LLP acts like a heavy-duty sound barrier. Out of the 3 insulation materials, LLP is the heaviest and thickest.



You need to be very critical on applying this layer. The main reason is clearance for panels and the carpet. The car already has Damplifier Pro and Heat Wave Pro, so it’s already thick. The LLP final layer really puts some thickness on the insulation.

I put about two sheets on the hatch floor area. I partially covered the wheel wells, but this was not easy to due. I had to cut up a bunch of pieces due to the curvature of the wheel well. Between each piece, I applied some foil tape. The foil tape is only partially effective, since it does not like to stick to well on vinyl.







I put about one sheet on each passenger/driver floor area. You want to make sure that you cut the opening for the seat rails quite large. There is a lot of thickness and you want to make sure the bolts will go through the rails.

I covered the tunnel area about ¾ the way up (from the floor). You don’t want to go any higher otherwise you will not be able to put back the center console. The tunnel area and center console area already has Damplifer Pro and Heat Wave Pro, so that should be enough insulation.

I did not put any LLP on the center console or shifter area (basically no LLP on the top). There is no more clearance for added insulation. There is such little clearance for the center console that the factory insulation for the center console had to come off for it to clear. Even with just two layers of insulation, the center console will fit very snuggled.

I also covered the waterfall area (wall behind passenger/drivers seat) with LLP. I made sure that the LLP did not overlap the center console area. If I were to do this again, I would leave about 2 inches from the edges with no LLP (where the waterfall meets the door frame). Having the LLP so close to the edge makes putting the panels a real PITA.



These 5-6 sheets added a lot of mass to the car. But I think it will have a significant impact on road/exhaust noise.

LLP is best cut with scissors and a razor blade for minor trimming. Installing it at first might seem a bit tricky but after a couple of sheets it becomes easier. You will need adhesive spray either from Second Skin or from the hardware store sold as 3M Adhesive spray for upholstery. Make sure you have plenty of adhesive spray cans; I went through about 6 cans of adhesive. The spray is not cheap either, it’s about $15-$18 per can. You want to spray the sponge side of LLP (not Vinyl layer) and the surface you are going to put it on. They recommend that you wait two minutes before applying the LLP to the surface after it has been sprayed. But the problem is that it becomes very sticky and you can’t move the LLP once it has been set. For tough areas, I would apply it right away to the surface and move it to the exact spot and angle.


Removal & Insulation of Door Panels

This information might be beneficial to others if they decide on upgrade speakers or insulation of the doors.

The driver’s door

The first thing you want to do is raise the window up. Once you pull off the panel, you can’t raise the window and you won’t have access to the inner shell of the door.



The driver’s door has a total of two bolts. They are located right below the door handle. If you look closely, you will see a small plastic cover. Remove the cover and you will see the two bolts. Uses the proper tools and remove the bolts, failure of using the proper tools may strip the bolts.





On the bottom of the door there is a little opening to pull the panel off. Just pull away at different positions. It’s going to sound like the door is ripping apart, but that’s from the plastic holders. Once you have the panel loose, don’t yank it out. There is one main cable harness that needs to be taken off.





Once you get to this point, you will see the exposed outer door shell. You will also see the 10” Bose woofer and a large rubber cover on the left side of the door. The rubber cover provides access to the inner shell of the door.





Remove the Bose woofer from the door. There is a little connector that you need to disconnect when the speaker is loose. Then you want to remove the large plastic cover on the left side of the door. Once all that is done, you will have partial access to the inner shell of the door. Do not remove any bolts on the outer shell of the door; these bolts hold the window system.







I basically covered ¾ of the inner shell of the door with Damplifer Pro and Luxury liner. It’s a tight squeeze but it’s doable with the speaker and rubber opening. That area took me about an hour or so to do. I then did the outer shell of the door with Damplifer Pro. This area is very hard to do and the surface is not flat. The outer shell took me 2-3 hours to do.






This pic shows an upgraded JL speaker and mount plate.

A WARNING – be careful not to insulate the edges of the door because they are exposed with the door panel on. I made this mistake on the outer shell and it took me a couple hours per door to clean up. Just insulate to the edge of the panel clips, basically leave at least one-inch strip around the door without any insulation.



The driver’s side has about 10-15 pounds of insulation. But, it is so solid and it shuts better than a Lexus, a nice thump. This will definitely improve the sound of the speakers.

Putting the door panel back is a partial PITA. On the top of the door panel, there are metal hooks. You want to put those in before pushing in the clips. It will help to have the window down. Just take your time to figure it out so you don’t scratch your door. When you push in the clips, make sure they are perfectly aligned, so you don’t break any.



The Passenger Door

Removal of the passenger door panel is different than the driver’s side. First you have to pop off the door open button plastic piece. You will see a bolt; just remove it with the proper tools. There is another bolt on the bottom of the handrail. Repeat the process similar to the driver’s side.














TO BE CONTINUED

Hirohawa

Amazing project

Hawkeye2

Dude!!