Dissapointing Interior Noise Level..normal?

[deerhunter]

Hi all,

Having owned my old trusty w reg Avensis for 11 years and putting 162k virtually trouble free miles

on her,the time had come for us to part as she was starting to fall apart.

Due to her being a wonderfull servant and a great advert for Avensis, I traded her in for a nice shiny 06 t3x with 49k and full Toyota history on Friday.

I am really shocked by the levels of interior road noise and I am wondering if this is normal ?Compaired to my old bus its awfull .

Can I ask what your thoughts,findings on your Avensis of similar age.

Thanks

DH

[revband]

Yes, unfortunately I went through the same thing five years ago, but I gave my 98 Avensis to my Daughter and every time I go in it I am reminded just how much they have spoilt the new model due to fitting the fashionable 17" alloy wheels.

[Duffryn]

I also owned a 98 Avensis which I used to refer to as 'my lttle Rolls-Royce' on account of the wonderfully quiet ride it provided. This car was a 4dr. saloon which at the time I believed contributed to the peacefulness inside, particularly as a mate of mine had a 5dr. hatchback which he claimed was a lot noisier than my saloon.

With that thought in mind I bought another 4dr. saloon, 07 plate, which, I have to say does not match the previous cars' quietness, whether this is due to wheels, tyres, body design or whatever I wouldn't know. Just a tad disappointing.

Although, as a comparison, I have also owned 2 Hondas, both of which were much noisier inside, if that's any consolation.

[closchkutza]

What tyres do you have on the car?

I have a 2008 Avensis 1.8 vvt-i and with it`s stock summer tyres, Dunlop SP Sport 3000 it a little bit more noisier inside than with the new winter tyres i bought, some Nokian WR A3. Compared to other competitor cars i drove/been passenger in I find the Avensis (with the winter tyres on) a little bit quiter inside. The pre-facelift one is a little bit more noiser inside than the post-facelift one.

So, maybe it`s because of the tyres.

[Mistermena]

I've found my 2007 T-180 estate to be fine on the Goodyear stock 17" tyres! All I can say is it must be the tyre compond you're running on...

[Phil F]

Hi,

I have a pre-facelift 1.8 auto,05 regd,and have found it to be noisy,shame as the car is otherwise fine.I have had several Vectra's as company cars and they are much more refined in the road noise dept,making them a lot less tiring at motorway speeds!

Having said that I also had a Corolla auto for a short time,got rid as soon as possible due to far greater levels of road noise.

Cheers....Phil.

[cabcurtains]

If you read road tests from back in the day this was one of the only negatives.

Its worth checking that all the rubber door seals are intact.

Have a search for dynamat products if you dont mind a bit of cutting and sticking.

[deerhunter]

Hi,

Thanks for the replies fellas.

After getting over the initial dissapointment and getting used to the new car I can honestly say its not as bad now.

I trailed the handbrake for a couple of miles to clean up the rear disks,also found the stupid space saver wheel was not tightened down in the boot....possibly viberating?

Other than this the car is excellent in comfort and the level of toys.

Second opinion........a lot of car for what I paid.

Also the feedback from you guys helped with possibly my over critical first impressions.

DH

[Heidfirst]

can't compare to the previous series but I don't think that it's any noisier than a Vectra etc.

Tyres can make a difference (as can whether saloon, h/b or tourer).

[Phil F]

Hi all,

Deerhunter,just curious,is your shiny new Avensis a hatchback or saloon,and is it the facelifted model please?I have heard a lot of complaints from people who have the hatchback version of the pre-facelifted model but not many about the saloon which I have.

For anyone who has one,is the current Avensis a improvement in this area?

Sorry Heidfirst,but there is a big difference between a Vectra and the Avensis in the road noise stakes and I believe the Insignia is even better.Another car I have found to be exceptionally quite is the Passat.

Cheers...Phil.

[deerhunter]

Hi Phil,

My Avensis is a hatchback and is a facelift model.

DH

[Heidfirst]

Sorry Heidfirst,but there is a big difference between a Vectra and the Avensis in the road noise stakes and I believe the Insignia is even better.Another car I have found to be exceptionally quite is the Passat.

well, it's all subjective but imo equivalent versions of Avensis, Vectra & Mondeo are all very similar in this regard (& I've owned them all). I've never owned a Passat but have driven them & again didn't notice it as being anything special.

I would expect the Insignia or any more modern car (incl. T27 v T25) to be better than an older 1.

Insignia Tourer wasn't available when I was changing so I haven't driven one but I've since heard a few horror stories about them reliability-wise.

[cabcurtains]

I had a 58 Passat for 3yrs and it was as quiet as this Avensis i am running now, never had a previous Avensis so i can only go on the roadtest info.

[closchkutza]

Hi Phil, My Avensis is a hatchback and is a facelift model. DH

That`s why is noisier.

In Romania(where I live) there are quite a few hatchbacks(bought second-hand from Germany) because the hatchback model has never been sold as new car here but we have a lot of Estate version avensis and the owners of the estate complain from road noise coming from the back of the car.

It is only normal since the estate/hatchback version lacks some sound insulation.

[rockerbox]

Hi all,

Having owned my old trusty w reg Avensis for 11 years and putting 162k virtually trouble free miles

on her,the time had come for us to part as she was starting to fall apart.

Due to her being a wonderfull servant and a great advert for Avensis, I traded her in for a nice shiny 06 t3x with 49k and full Toyota history on Friday.

I am really shocked by the levels of interior road noise and I am wondering if this is normal ?Compaired to my old bus its awfull .

Can I ask what your thoughts,findings on your Avensis of similar age.

Thanks

DH

FWIW - Intending to buy a replacement for my ageing carina - I tried all the various engine versions of the MK2 avensis - they all suffered from road noise - the least intrusive was a 2 litre diesel - the worst a T180 - and that was so shocking I thought there might have been something wrong with that particular car. That experience and the uncomfortable seats in all Mk2's - put me off them altogether and so settled for a MK1 (15" wheels) which is much quieter - but still not as quiet as my old carina (14" wheels). Sometimes I wonder what progress has been made in later cars except for perhaps an improved profit margin.