Helpful Nephew Posted February 4, 2017 Share Posted February 4, 2017 My aunt wanted an all-wheel drive sedan with all the latest safety and driver-assist. She bought a 2017 3.6R Limited and loves everything with exception of what she feels is excessive road noise. She did test drive the vehicle beforehand but failed to get it up to freeway speed (no doubt a rookie mistake). She asked me about what she could do to mitigate the road noise. My first thoughts are quieter tires and maybe some sort of sound-deadening insulation of the sort that audio gurus might install. My concerns are her voiding any manufacturer warranties and spending a bunch more money with perhaps little assurance that this will make things quieter. I registered for the legacygt site and joined this 6th gen forum in the hopes that one or more Subaru gurus out there can help provide me with some good counsel that I might pass along to my aunt. I appreciate any suggestions/recommendations you all might offer. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrew_l_s Posted February 4, 2017 Share Posted February 4, 2017 You've got the right idea. I'd start with tires and see what happens. See the attached pic for Tire Rack's top rated tires in terms of quietness. My entire car is soundproofed with this stuff https://m.lowes.com/pd/Peel-Seal-Instant-Waterproof-Repairs-6-in-x-25-ft-Aluminum-Roll-Flashing/1018733 It definitely made a difference, the doors are super solid now. I'd recommend doing on top of the gas tank (under the rear seat cushion) and the spare tire well. Both being large cavities allow the sound to echo and made the biggest difference. Do keep in mind though you'll never get to a point of luxury car silence. If that's required, look at a different car. Lighting Mods: $10 Footwell Illumination | Tail as Turn | Fog as DRL Diode Dynamics C-Lights | RX350 Bi-Xenon Retrofit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TTG Posted February 5, 2017 Share Posted February 5, 2017 Yes, these cars are not quiet at all. I am also not sure if your aunt is willing to ditch brand new tires so that the car is a little bit quieter. Welcome to the forum and keep us posted on what you do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brisvegas Posted February 5, 2017 Share Posted February 5, 2017 Yes, these cars are not quiet at all. I'd be interested to know if other 3.6R owners would 100% agree with your comments here. I'm not suggesting that the 3.6 is best in it's class, but to say that they "are not quiet at all" seems a little harsh to me. Maybe our Japanese built cars are different? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark N Posted February 5, 2017 Share Posted February 5, 2017 Wow...I'm 12,000 miles, (With a large percentage of that being on 80 MPH freeways) and noise has never been an issue to me. My other cars are a '13 Ram 3500 Turbo Diesel, a '12 Honda CR-V, and a '10 Toyota Prius as my "comparison" group. My Ram pick-up is the quietest of the group, then the Legacy, then the Honda, then the Prius. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hkshooter Posted February 5, 2017 Share Posted February 5, 2017 One person's quiet is another person's noisy, another objectionable opinion based on experience. My 3.6R is the quietest car I've ever owned. And it's quieter than the 2.5. See? That didn't add anything to the conversation now did it? I like the idea above with the home brew sound deadening material. Perfect solution for those with sensitive ears and way cheaper than use specific products. Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beamercub Posted February 5, 2017 Share Posted February 5, 2017 Check with the dealer. There is a tsb out with a repair part called wind noise kit. They don't offer it until you complain about wind noise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
upstater Posted February 5, 2017 Share Posted February 5, 2017 My wife's former 2014 BMW X3 was quieter on the highway than my 2017 Legacy 2.5, and was quieter than her 2017 Acura RDX. Is your aunt game to spend $20,000 more for a quieter vehicle? If not, tires and call it a day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fiatz79 Posted February 5, 2017 Share Posted February 5, 2017 My wife's former 2014 BMW X3 was quieter on the highway than my 2017 Legacy 2.5, and was quieter than her 2017 Acura RDX. Is your aunt game to spend $20,000 more for a quieter vehicle? If not, tires and call it a day. The Legacy is not as quiet as my 2 former BMWs or my Alfa 164. (Except for the run-flat tires). I DID know what I was buying and the Legacy is NOT a Euro Lux Sedan. OTOH... It's HALF the price for most of the features and very reliable. (I agree with tires but I'm wearing out the stock tires first). ;-) Lighting Mods Low Beams: D4S - OSRAM XENARC 66440 CBI HID BULBS Highbeam/DRL: 9005 - OSRAM NIGHT BREAKER UNLIMITED 9005NBUHCB BULBS Fog: H11 - OSRAM NIGHT BREAKER UNLIMITED 64211NBU-01B BULBS Subaru 20mm RSB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WILLINH Posted February 6, 2017 Share Posted February 6, 2017 My 2.5 is not really quiet, I had a rental 2016 Avalon for a week and GREAT SEAT"S AND QUIET!!!! Had michelin tires, very quiet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WILLINH Posted February 6, 2017 Share Posted February 6, 2017 I'll give sound deadener a try and some different tires when the time comes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helpful Nephew Posted February 12, 2017 Author Share Posted February 12, 2017 Thanks to all for the forum feedback! Now that she's had the car for a couple of weeks, I'm going to see how much the road noise is still an issue for her. I will talk through the tire and sound deadening material options with her. I am very interested in hearing more about any Technical Service Bulletins (in the US) regarding road noise reduction...similar to what Beamercub was mentioning. Does anyone have any more insight or details (TSB#, etc.)? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crisscross Posted February 18, 2017 Share Posted February 18, 2017 I don't think anyone has suggested the obvious - Learn from the millennials - play music that is sufficiently loud to be what you hear. If you don't want to play your iPod then turn on the radio. Accordionists are always available for hire too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mwlegltd Posted February 18, 2017 Share Posted February 18, 2017 I'll give sound deadener a try and some different tires when the time comes. Before you go & drop $700+ on decent new tires -- What roads is she noticing the noise on? Consider trying the noisiest ones with a different car & see whether they are also considerably noisier it too. I have found over that last 5 years that even newly resurfaced roads, especially in Illinois, can have very variable ride & noise. One highway done last year sounds like rough grooved surface, I-90 south of Madison had me convinced that I had a flat [thump thuump thuuummp] the 1st time I drove southbound on it; back when it was redone in 2010. >I had General AT2's on an old Chevy truck & man did they growl at 50+. Sadly the only quiet thing on the old beast was the engine & exhaust which was all original & OE sold to the Canadian Mounties. >My Scion tC runs UHP's which provide great traction & performance, but are not quiet. I believe they have discontinued now both my summer & winter tire choices: General Exclaim UHP 18's & Dunlop WinterSport M3 17's [OE size same as orig Porshe Boxster] Since both were excellent, I am sad they have not been replaced with something better, especially the Dunlops - I have ridden with people who have the other WinterSports now sold & they suck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2manysubies Posted February 23, 2017 Share Posted February 23, 2017 WILLINH, The 3.6 is quieter than the 2.5i for sure(CVT doesn't hunt as much), I had a loaner(2.5) for 2 months, My Leggy 3.6(suspension) will absolutely beat the s#%t out of me on these Maine winter frost heaves. Add studless Sow tires, it gets WAY loud. Soundproofing, properly applied, works well. It just is not a quiet car IMO. R/Mac Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capttris Posted March 2, 2017 Share Posted March 2, 2017 Agreed with everyone here. It all depends on "what degree of quiet" she wants, vs how much money to spend, either to sound-deaden the Legacy or buy another car. Only SHE can determine this. I came from an Audi A6 Bi-Turbo V6. It was a sleeper rocket ship. It was eerily silent on the inside, even at highway speeds. It felt like I was floating down the highway. The only noise at high speed was generally some light wind noise. No road noise. No engine noise (unless under heavy acceleration). So does you Aunt want to spend hundreds, possibly over $1000 on new tires and hundreds on having a shop install sound material, or does she want to spend close to double the price of the Legacy for an AWD Audi A6? lol Or maybe the noise doesn't bother her anymore? lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saltdet Posted March 12, 2017 Share Posted March 12, 2017 Loudest car I have owned in 35 years. Had car Dynamatted and put Toyo Versado Noirs on. Minimal difference. Thin metal zero insulation plastic wheel wells thin glass and side view mirrors all part of it. I have a 3.6 Legacy, turn up the radio that makes it worse. Sound system sucks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
upstater Posted March 17, 2017 Share Posted March 17, 2017 I've driven plenty of cars that were much louder, just recently a rental 2017 Dodge Journey with 1,100 miles on the odometer that was loud as shit on the highway. And the immediate predecessor to my Legacy, a 2015 WRX, which was loud at low speeds (exhaust rumble) and high speeds (road noise). My 2017 Legacy is no louder on the highway than my wife's 2017 Acura RDX (a bit quieter actually), though it is louder than her former car, 2014 BMW X3. $20,000+ more gets you a quieter ride. I still preferred driving my Legacy (and my WRX) to her X3. Good news is, if you hate the Legacy, you can trade it in and get something else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YeuEmMaiMai Posted March 17, 2017 Share Posted March 17, 2017 turn the radio up Does Subaru use active noise cancellation? if so it may not be working right Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.