Corolla road noise

[Eggboundterminus]

Although I enjoy driving my 1.8 Corolla Design, I find there's lots of road noise when travelling at higher speeds. The car is running on 17" wheels. Can I swap to 16“ wheels? And would that help? 

[MarcusWatson]

I have 16" on my Icon Tech and there's lots of road noise on stock tyres, maybe better to change tyres to a set that have low cabin noise figures in reviews such as the Avon ZV7. I'd ignore the manufacturer's  noise ratings and go off press reviews.

[TonyHSD]

Yeah tyres are more important than the wheels although large wheels with low profile tyres is the worst combination. Goodyear efficient grip performance 2 one of the quietest tyres I ever tried and my auris is completely silent at high speeds with only windshield and Wiper Blades air noise when driving on smooth asphalt. 16” btw changed down from 17” but previously even with 17” wheels was quieter too with the better tyres fitted . 

[Trewithy]

Had my Corolla for 5 months now and have always thought it is nosier than I would like, mostly road noise from the rear, although recently I have been thinking it is not quite as noisy so perhaps I am getting used to it.   I have been wondering if it would help if I took everything out of the boot and lined the floor with a felt mat or maybe carpet underlay, not sure of what to get or where to get hold of something suitable.

[Catlover]

 Ow the engine is quiet, sometimes it’s not in use, you started to pick up every other noise. Less hassle and expense just to mp3 your favourite music and away you go. 😀

[Maxi9]

My Excel is on 17 wheels with OEM Falken tyres, it would be nice to listen to music to drown out the noise of the tyres but I would have to have it so loud the owners of neighbouring cars would complain. I have never sat in the back of the car but the 3 people who have, all comment on the tyre noise. Only just done 2500 miles so I will have to put up with them a bit longer. When driving i am always checking to see that the windows on the passenger side are closed.!!!  I seem to remember when I first got the car I thought it was really quiet but the noise level seems to have risen the more miles I do. Pity really because apart from the noise, I like this car a lot.

 

 

[bewA]

The road noise is a bit more obvious with the 18s on my GR compared to the 17s on my previous Design spec, but tbh I just tune it out 😂

[frazthewise]

My 2.0L sports tourer excel is coming with 18" wheels, so getting a little nervous with the comments being made - are ear plugs legal whilst driving?!!!

[Trewithy]

22 minutes ago, frazthewise said:

My 2.0L sports tourer excel is coming with 18" wheels, so getting a little nervous with the comments being made - are ear plugs legal whilst driving?!!!

I think I read somewhere that the 2.0 litre is better than the 1.8 as it has thicker side windows and additional soundproofing.

[bewA]

29 minutes ago, frazthewise said:

My 2.0L sports tourer excel is coming with 18" wheels, so getting a little nervous with the comments being made - are ear plugs legal whilst driving?!!!

Don't worry it will be fine 🙂

The TS might have taller tyre walls compared to the hatchback due to weight so I wouldn't worry!

maybe you could ask your dealer if they have one to test drive?

[Leo63]

Hi I too have corolla with 17inch wheels on the cheaper option is change the tyres not the wheels  and tyres.

I found that the falken tyres after about 12'000 miles started to get noisy.

I have fitted michelin primacy 4 tyres which very quiet and hold the road in the wet and dry very well better than the falken tyres.

[AndrueC]

Some surfaces can be bad. The main road near me has just been resurfaced (on the third attempt, lol) and it is quite noisy. However it's never so noisy that I can't hear music or hold a conversation. However a couple of weeks ago one of my ears became bunged up and then the noise sounded really bad and it was hard to hear anything else.

I'd therefore suggest that people experiencing loud noise firstly check their tyre pressures (especially if newly bought since dealers seem to have a habit of setting them too high) and secondly get their ears checked 😉

While it's not the quietest I've been in the Excel doesn't seem to be any worse than other cars I've owned.

[Rosgoe]

I’ve noticed a lot more road noise with the corolla than with the auris. I think it’s a lot to do with the grit they now apply to road services to make the road service last longer. The corolla has 18” wheels and lower profile tyres so has been said previously maybe it is down to the lower profile tyres.

I recently had a Yaris with 16” wheels as a courtesy car and I had noticed that the road noise was about the same as the corolla.

 When the falken tyres ware out will look out for quieter tyres. Why the 2.0 litre has a noise reduction layer on the windscreen and not on the 1.8 is a mystery I just can’t understand Toyota’s thinking on different extras on there cars eg: rav 4 excel has heated steering wheel where as the corolla excel has not nor has it got auto locking after a certain speed🤷

[Cyker]

My Yaris came with 17" rims and 205/45r17 Bridgestone Ecopia tyres, and I had them changed to 15" rims shod with 185/65r15 Hankook Kinergy tyres - I don't know how much is down to the rims and how much the tyres, but it is noticeably quieter on the 15" hankooks.

Also, just a note when tyre hunting - The noise rating is an external rating, measured from outside the car as the tyre passes by; It is not how noisy the tyre will be to the occupants of the car! So far, I've found that tyres with higher noise ratings are actually quieter to me when I'm driving!

 

[trashman1965]

4 hours ago, Trewithy said:

I think I read somewhere that the 2.0 litre is better than the 1.8 as it has thicker side windows and additional soundproofing.

I'm finding the 2.0 excel on 18s a lot quieter than the auris on 17s. Falken tyres from factory interested to see how much noisier they get with wear. This is in the cabin of course, but that's what matters!

[TonyHSD]

Tyre pressure very important as been mentioned, overinflated tyres are noisier and usually when tyres gets worn down a bit they should become quieter than new. Deeper water channels on the protectors creates more noise when tyres are new. If the tyres gets noisier when old may have been because of tyre cupping, here it is more information about it: https://www.eeuroparts.com/blog/causes-solutions-tire-noise/. I don’t know about Corolla but I can compare Auris from 2010 with Auris from 2014 and the older model is quieter inside on motorway speeds both cars equipped with same tyres . Second gen Auris has louder side mirrors wind noise where first gen is completely silent on that part and the only noise comes from windshield and wipers since latest are exposed and not hidden under bonnet leap like most modern cars. Tyre noise slightly less in older model, that can be because of the materials used in interior, more soft touch materials less cabin noise. 👍

[Blue Canary]

On 9/26/2021 at 5:03 PM, Trewithy said:

I think I read somewhere that the 2.0 litre is better than the 1.8 as it has thicker side windows and additional soundproofing.

Yes I have read that too. I think it is because the 2.0 engine is noisier, despite being a more modern design than the 1.8.

[RabButler]

On 9/26/2021 at 7:11 PM, Rosgoe said:

..cut...Why the 2.0 litre has a noise reduction layer on the windscreen and not on the 1.8 is a mystery I just can’t understand Toyota’s thinking on different extras on there cars eg: rav 4 excel has heated steering wheel where as the corolla excel has not nor has it got auto locking after a certain speed

My 1.8 TS has an acoustic windscreen. I assume they all do.

[Rosgoe]

2 hours ago, RabButler said:

My 1.8 TS has an acoustic windscreen. I assume they all do.

When l looked at the specs for the 1.8 and 2.0 for the hatchback I was sure it was only on the 2.0 maybe they only put it on the T/S only unless they have updated the specs for 2021.

[clix]

How to check if corolla has acoustic Windshield?

[RabButler]

It says so on mine. "Acoustic".

[clix]

I checked it on mine. It only says laminated, and on side windows tempered. No acoustic glass for me, apparently... It is 1.8 hybrid TS SOL, but it was not for UK market. I was under the impression that all windscreens are acoustic, and on 2.0 front side windows are as well...

[Roy124]

Just driven a Yaris courtesy car.  First impression, once I figured it out, is that the steering wheel controls were in the same locations at the Corolla but far superior in design with less chance of pressing ACC Off instead of Resume. 

I also noted the ACC incremented in one mpg steps. 

The road noise was subjectively much louder. 

[AndrueC]

2 hours ago, Roy124 said:

with less chance of pressing ACC Off instead of Resume.

One of my bugbears. It'd help if the buttons were more rocker like and had a raised edge. The ones Honda use are like game controllers with a definite rocking motion. Mind you my Jazz also had a push/release switch to switch the ACC on or off so you could leave it permanently on like I used to. I don't really see the need for on/off when you already have active/inactive.

[forkingabout]

On 9/28/2021 at 6:10 PM, Blue Canary said:

Yes I have read that too. I think it is because the 2.0 engine is noisier, despite being a more modern design than the 1.8.

 

The 2 litre engine has both direct fuel injection & port injection fitted, its the direct injection fuel pump under the bonnet that makes the noise - when its in operation.