Corolla v Avensis road noise

[cea]

Hi

I recently tested a 2021 Corolla estate with the idea of changing my 2017 2.0 diesel Avensis estate and it seemed that the Corolla had a lot more road noise, especially from the rear. The engine was more quiet and refined though at cruising speeds overall the Avensis seems more refined. Has anyone swapped and what are your thoughts. 

Thanks

[TonyHSD]

Hi, 

what exact Corolla spec have you tried, engine size and trim level? It seems like Corolla s are built slightly differently and the top spec excel is the right model , most others lack some sound proof, has different front lights etc . 

[davidif]

24 minutes ago, TonyHSD said:

Hi, 

what exact Corolla spec have you tried, engine size and trim level? It seems like Corolla s are built slightly differently and the top spec excel is the right model , most others lack some sound proof, has different front lights etc . 

I can second this. My 2.0 Excel is a fairly quiet vehicle compared to friends Focuses, Civics etc. However I recently passengered in a 1.8 Icon(may have been Icon Tech) which seemed a good deal noisier.

 

[TonyHSD]

5 minutes ago, davidif said:

I can second this. My 2.0 Excel is a fairly quiet vehicle compared to friends Focuses, Civics etc. However I recently passengered in a 1.8 Icon(may have been Icon Tech) which seemed a good deal noisier.

 

Yeap, because here been mentioned many times that 2.0 cars has extra sound proof including acoustic windows where the icon are the basic models, less refined., although they have the best size wheels and tyres for the car. Buy excel, put a new 16” wheels and quality touring tyres and your Corolla will become as good as Mercedes’ c class. 👍

[cea]

2 hours ago, TonyHSD said:

Hi, 

what exact Corolla spec have you tried, engine size and trim level? It seems like Corolla s are built slightly differently and the top spec excel is the right model , most others lack some sound proof, has different front lights etc . 

Thanks for all of the replies .

A 2019 Icon Tech hatchback and a 2022 2.0 Trek estate.

Is the Excel noticeably quieter?

[TonyHSD]

12 minutes ago, cea said:

Thanks for all of the replies .

A 2019 Icon Tech hatchback and a 2022 2.0 Trek estate.

Is the Excel noticeably quieter?

I can’t answer this question but would like to ask you, have you noticed any difference between the two models you had tried? Which one was the better drive overall? 
Thanks 

[davidif]

28 minutes ago, cea said:

Thanks for all of the replies .

A 2019 Icon Tech hatchback and a 2022 2.0 Trek estate.

Is the Excel noticeably quieter?

Owning an Excel and having recently been in a (newer) Icon Tech I would say that the Excel is a good deal quieter.

 

[davidif]

To add to Tony's earlier comments an Excel with Icon 16' wheels/tyres would probably be the best possible combination although not available as factory spec and might lead to insurance issues as a modification from original specification.

[TonyHSD]

2 minutes ago, davidif said:

To add to Tony's earlier comments an Excel with Icon 16' wheels/tyres would probably be the best possible combination although not available as factory spec and might lead to insurance issues as a modification from original specification.

Yes, indeed. But it is not a problem at all. Just a quick call to your insurance to let them know you have swapped the wheels and to make sure they are informed. No problems at all. This is what I had done on my top spec Auris , which equals to excel Corolla, car drives much better. 

[DAN@ADRIAN FLUX]

Hi.

if there was any issues with insurance for a change of wheels then please feel free to drop me a line.

Regards,

Dan.

[cea]

So from the replies it seems that if I want a 'tyre noise quiet' Corolla I will need a 2.0 Excel, thank you all for your input.

Carl

[TonyHSD]

50 minutes ago, cea said:

So from the replies it seems that if I want a 'tyre noise quiet' Corolla I will need a 2.0 Excel, thank you all for your input.

Carl

Actually the oem tyres and sizes on excel are not good at all, it’s the car that has more sound insulation like under bonnet cover, acoustic windows and eventually better sound proofing on ten firewall and door cards are made of better and softer materials. Every little things adds up and at the end you get better car than icon spec in terms of refinement. Add the better headlights and you have the best package overall. The problem with the tyres remains, because they are 18” low profile tyres that literally you are driving on wheel only  almost no rubber between the wheel and the ground. This can be fixed by two different ways: 

1. Buy better tyres on the same wheels, something like Goodyear efficient grip performance 2, Michelin cross climate 2, the risk of damage the wheels remains. 

2. Change the wheels and the tyres set completely, go for smaller size like 17” or even 16” which are the most suitable for this car , again a good quality touring summer or all season tyres are the most important for comfort, efficiency and low road noise and vibrations.

Toyota been following the latest trends of offering customers huge wheels with low profile sport tyres that are not suitable for these cars at all. 

 

[citycash]

FWIW. We had a 2013 Avensis T270 Tourer with Automatic Transmission and paddle gearshift and we loved it to bits.  It had almost everything on it except Auto Folding door windows. We owned form 3,000 miles to 55,000 miles. We travelled to the south coast from the Midlands nearly every other weekend and never thought that it was noisy in any way and compared to the Mondeo Diesel that the wife had for work (A good car in itself) the Avensis was a superb car to drive.

In 2019 we decided it was time for change, I would have bought another Avensis at the drop of a hat but by now it had been discontinued and it was impossible to find a low use petrol model for sale anywhere in the UK, plenty of low mileage diesels going cheap but diesel was now ell out of fashion. 

So we started looking at Hybrids and in March 219 bought one of the last registered Auris Excel Tourers (Jan 2019) with 3,000 on the clock.

So having owned this for nearly for years, I can honestly say that we love driving it, and as per the OP question, We think that it is extremely quiet at pretty much any speed and in particular on motorways is nearly silent. It still has the Dunlop Sport maxx 225/ 45 /17 tyres on, so I have nothing to compare it with apart from the Avensis had Bridgestone Touranza fitted, which I always thought were fantastic

[bigblock]

I had a late model Avensis saloon and those Bridgestone's were whisper quiet. It's a shame Toyota dropped the Avensis. It was a lovely drive. The Avensis would have been nice in hybrid form too. The late model Avensis still looks great as well.

[Cyker]

Yeah, it was the perfect model for people who wanted the Toyota reliability but were more used to german-levels of interior.

I always assumed they stopped them because it was encroaching on to Lexus turf too much  

 

[citycash]

Avensis was Superb

[TonyHSD]

Avensis was a good car indeed. The reason why there is no more Avensis is simple and it’s the same why there is no more Passat, Mondeo , etc  Customer preferences, people switching to suv and cross overs instead. The later doesn’t match the comfort of the saloons and estate’s however they offer similar internal room while remaining just a tiny bit bigger than a regular hatchback outside, something very helpful for congested streets in big cities and towns around the world. Toyota has tried with Camry which btw was the best Toyota offered in UK ever after Prius but obvious there is no large market for these as they are too big. As long as there is Corolla hybrid available I am not worried about any other Toyota models 😂👌

[cea]

I bought my first Avensis in 2003 and apart from 1 month they are all I have owned, I'll have to admit that my 2008 TR. 2.0 D4D has been the pick of the bunch. I'd buy one tomorrow if Toyota started making them again.

[citycash]

You are between a Rock and a Hard Place.

The Avensis was a great car but at 6 years old we decided time 4 a change. As Avensis was no longer made, we went for the last model Auris Hybrid Tourer  Jan 2019 REG, purely because ALL of the new Toyotas have a horrible pitch black Interior and head lining are were so oppressive like being in H!tlers Bunker, Also they have a Great Big Ipad Slab sticking up out of the dash for the infocenter, which we really disliked.

I think Toyota Got it Massively wrong with the interior, otherwise we would have bought a Brand New Corolla which had been launched a few months earlier.

The problem is than now  we have a Four Year Old Hybrid, that had the Catalytic Converter cut of in broad daylight and now we have the flat Battery problems, where if you go on holiday for a week the car wont start without a booster pack and you can't open the boot to get at the Battery because of electronic locks.

But this is another story

 

I think Toyota have become so clever with technology but at the same time lost their way aaand understanding of what their UYK customers need

[Cyker]

I think the problem is people keep buying such vehicles (Stupid giant touch screens) from other manufacturers so they feel they have to follow suit.

I'm just glad they are still making the Yaris and Corolla and not shut them down and gone full SUV like everyone else seems to be!!  

And that they still have buttons for the important things and not done a VW and made everything a touch control or, worse, fake touch button!

I'm with you wishing for more options for interior and colours tho' - Like, they already have the light and dark interior pieces and presumably they are the same fitment in each model of car, and with their just-in-time manufacturing system I don't understand why you can't just pick one or the other when you order the car!

I'm like you but the opposite; Wanted a blue Yaris with a HUD and a dark interior. All Yaris specs have blue colour option and dark interior *except* Excel, but Excel is the only spec with a HUD! I don't get why, despite being the highest spec, Excel can't have blue colour and can only have light interior! Why does this restriction exists for Excel? Does blue colour and light interior weigh too much or something??  

 

[twintopp]

sorry guys but i`m on my second corolla and love it, just been in for service and given aygo x for a loaner and it must be one of the noisiest cars i have ever been in, glad to pick up my own, i know its just a little town car ...but.  

[citycash]

If you think the Ago is noisy you should hear a Suzuki Alto, very noisy but mainly because they all now use the 3 cylinder engine.

Just makes you appreciate your own car when you get it back 

[Cyker]

I'd say they are 'characterful'  but they are definitely nowhere near as refined as the buttery smooth 4-cylinder petrol engines.

If you don't want to hear or feel the engine, the 4-cylinders are the way to go. For me, I find the thrum of the 3-pots quite soothing as it reminds me of my beloved Yaris diesels  

 

[twintopp]

drove an aston martin once and that was what i call smoooth.

[cea]

So Gents it seems that the 2.0 Excel has more soundproofing than other models, is this also the case with the GR ? (And any other above Icon Tech level)

Thanks