Quiet Vehicles

[Echard]

Check the tires and the are Michelin Latitudes. A little research suggests they are rated as a very quiet tire. Too bad as that could have been a cost effective answer to my issue.

Lexus did cross my mind, but I’ve never been in one, let alone drive one. I’ll put that on the list. I wouldn’t mind a sedan, but DW does prefer the height of an SUV.

Wife drives Lexus RX350. Fabulous vehicle. Any SUV will have a little more noise than a sedan, but the RX is pretty quiet on the road. It was one of the main reasons we bought it besides quality. It is a very highly rated vehicle by consumer reports.

 

[Newventurer]

This may not check any of your stated boxes - bought a new Lincoln Aviator and it is the quietest vehicle I have ever owned…it is not without some quality issues which have been corrected, but we love it and bought it specifically for the road trips reason. Prior post mentioning the Lincoln Nautilus may meet your size requirement better, with similar quiet ride

 

[latexman]

Consumer Reports assigns a noise rating to the tires they review.

 

[ncbill]

'noise-cancellation system that quells sounds, thrums, and mild vibrations in inline-4 models after you're underway'
https://www.thecarconnection.com/overview/chevrolet_equinox_2017
Implies V6 might not have.

'This part is compatible with'
2017 Chevrolet Equinox Premier Sport Utility 4-Door 3.6L 3564CC 217Cu. In. V6 FLEX DOHC Naturally Aspirated
2017 Chevrolet Equinox Premier Sport Utility 4-Door 3.6L 3564CC 217Cu. In. V6 GAS DOHC Naturally Aspirated
https://www.ebay.com/itm/183782338006
States that part can be fitted to V6.

Probably cheaper to add that versus taking it to a specialty shop have more sound insulation installed.

 

[braumeister]

I took a trip in my Equinox this week.

For something in the same size range as the Equinox, I would recommend a Volvo XC60. Extremely quiet IMHO, but about as far from GM as you can get.

 

[Jerry1]

Good information. I’ll have to check and see if I have the noise cancellation already installed. That would probably be a good first step. I’ll also go do some research into the tires and see if I can do any better than the OEM Michelin’s. They’re low mileage but about 5 years old so I wouldn’t mind replacing them if it made a noticeable difference.

Thanks for the input. Might start looking at a Lexus. The Lincoln might be the trick too. Thankfully, I don’t need to hurry. It’s not exactly the best time to be car buying.

 

[Closet_Gamer]

Quietest car we ever owned was a Lincoln MKT. Amazing. Zero road noise and very relaxing on long drives. We have a Mazda CX-5 right now that is very nice in every respect but noticably louder than our Lincoln was. When we lean back into a luxury SUV Lincoln will get a hard look just because it was so quiet.

I recently got a Porsche Boxster S ... it is not quiet

 

[zinger1457]

A friend added sound proofing to his wife's Mazda by removing panels and it made a big impact. Probably can be done on any car...

I had a 2016 Toyota Tacoma and it was the noisiest vehicle I've ever owned. While I was upgraded the stereo system I also installed soundproofing panels in all the doors and the back wall, made a huge difference. Easy to install, the SP panels are about 1/8" thick and very sticky on one side, once pressed on they aren't easily coming off. Hard part was getting the door panels off without breaking the holding clips, definitely want some spare clips on hand. If you're happy with your vehicle it's a fairly cheap option to make it quieter.

 

[TheWizard]

I just got new tires for my F-150. I want tires that are good in snow (if we ever get any) as well as off road when I go logging.
So I buy all-TERRAIN tires which are a bit knobby but do the job.

If I wanted super quiet, I would go with all-SEASON tires...

 

[jimbee]

Jerry1, you could check fuse 7 as indicated on this page from the owner's manual and verify it's good. That would verify the automatic noise cancellation (ANC) system is powered. There may not be a fuse at that location, but I think all second gen Equinoxes have ANC.

 

[Jerry1]

Jerry1, you could check fuse 7 as indicated on this page from the owner's manual and verify it's good. That would verify the automatic noise cancellation (ANC) system is powered.

Thanks. I’ll look at that.

 

[freedomatlast]

Good information. I’ll have to check and see if I have the noise cancellation already installed. That would probably be a good first step. I’ll also go do some research into the tires and see if I can do any better than the OEM Michelin’s. They’re low mileage but about 5 years old so I wouldn’t mind replacing them if it made a noticeable difference.

Thanks for the input. Might start looking at a Lexus. The Lincoln might be the trick too. Thankfully, I don’t need to hurry. It’s not exactly the best time to be car buying.

I doubt tires are the answer if it's always been loud. I've had many sets of Michelin tires and never experienced an increase in noise over the life, as long as the alignment is good. Try this....go out to the vehicle and run your hand over the tread of the tire in both directions. Look closely at the edges. Do you feel a difference in in one direction over the other? Take a real close look at the tread. Does the tread appear to have a sawtooth appearance, especially at the edges? If yes, the tires will definitely be loud. If not, the tires are not the first place I would look. In an effort to improve mileage, GM has really cut back on the weight of the sound deadening materials. Pull the back seat and see what's there. Probably not much. There's plenty of options to add sound deadening material, but honestly I wouldn't bother. BTW years ago, I was also a big GM guy, but those days are long gone for a variety of reasons.

I just went through an extensive search looking for a new vehicle. I immediately discarded most of the domestic brands that have small turbo charged engines powering larger vehicles. Ford and GM just haven't done a great job with turbocharger longevity and there continues to be expensive issues down the road with most of them. Also, generally speaking, you just don't get the immediate low end torque on a smaller turbocharged engine as compared to a larger naturally aspirated engine

So, my search was narrowed down to looking only at naturally aspirated SUV's without CVT's and that came with a spare tire.

That shortened the list real quickly and unfortunately ruled out BMW. I've always been a Toyota and Honda fan. I liked the Lexus RX350 and almost bought one, but I just can't get past the (horrible IMO) look of the front ends. The Highlander was ok, but wasn't real comfortable to me, was longer than what we need and the short supply negates getting any kind of a deal. Jumping over to Honda, we have the Pilot, Passport and the Acura MDX. We didn't need anything as long as the Pilot and didn't need third row seating so that ruled that out. Now we're down to the Passport and MDX. Beneath the skin they are close cousins sharing basically the same engine and transmission. Both are very quiet on the highway and the top level stereos are just absolutely incredible. The heated and cooled seats, the heated steering wheel and the wireless phone charging are nice features as well. Comparing the Passport Elite (highest trim level) to the MDX, I'd be happy with either one. One consideration was that, especially on long road trips and high crime rates, I don't want to stand out in any way, and prefer to blend in with the crowd, not showing any sign of having money. So with that and the much higher price of the MDX compared to the Passport, we went with the Passport Elite after finding the right color at a dealer that we were able to negotiate $3800 off MSRP with no ridiculous add ons or fees. Then the 2.9% finance option didn't hurt either. Extremely happy with the vehicle so far. Very quiet even at 80 to 100 MPH. Impact harshness on extremely rough road could be better, but that's the only room for improvement that I can find so far. I'm sure this could be dramatically improved with smaller diameter wheels and higher profile tires, but that would come at the expense of the existing sharp handling.

Good luck on your search. And the winter months, at least in the Northeast, isn't a bad time to shop around as the cold weather usually keeps dealer showroom traffic down.

 

[Music Lover]

My last vehicle had poor soundproofing. When it was time for new tires I went with ones that had a high rating for being quiet. The difference was noticeable. Several websites rate tire noise.

 

[JoeWras]

Wife drives Lexus RX350. Fabulous vehicle. Any SUV will have a little more noise than a sedan, but the RX is pretty quiet on the road. It was one of the main reasons we bought it besides quality. It is a very highly rated vehicle by consumer reports.

SUVs have a few issues:
1) Larger tires. More surface area means more sounding board for the tires to sing.
2) OPEN back wheel wells to the cabin. This is a huge thing.

When I was looking at Subarus in 2009, the Legacy and Outback sat on exactly the same platform, with the Outback only having slightly higher springs and shocks. The tires were even the same. But the Outback was louder because there was no sealed off back seat.

We have an obsession with SUVs these days. I hope some day it ends. Not so much because they are SUVs, but because people think and drive them like tanks.

 

[explanade]

That's the other factor, V6 cars were quieter than V4. But that may be that luxury cars tended to at least have V6 engines.

Not necessarily true any more.

 

[Car-Guy]

I usually have one (or more ) opinions on anything car related but I really can't help this time. Quiet, never enters into my car buying decisions. Although I will say, as other have pointed out, that Michelin tires seem to generate less road noise. I would think that luxury cars would typically have better sound proofing, but that's just a guess. I'd also think that low profile and/or streamlined cars would be quieter too... (Another guess) Although my Vetts were certainly not what I'd call quiet.

 

[Newventurer]

What he said:

I had a 2016 Toyota Tacoma and it was the noisiest vehicle I've ever owned. While I was upgraded the stereo system I also installed soundproofing panels in all the doors and the back wall, made a huge difference. Easy to install, the SP panels are about 1/8" thick and very sticky on one side, once pressed on they aren't easily coming off. Hard part was getting the door panels off without breaking the holding clips, definitely want some spare clips on hand. If you're happy with your vehicle it's a fairly cheap option to make it quieter.

I have that 2016 Tacoma which is why the Lincoln Aviator was such a civilized pleasure to drive, someday the Toyota will be replaced by an electric vehicle, my days of needing to move people and pick up mulch are mostly over

 

[aaronc879]

I would think any of the largest GM SUV's would be quiet enough. I'm talking GMC Acadia, Chevy Traverse or Buick Enclave.

I have a Toyota Venza SUV which is Hybrid and All Wheel Drive. It's incredibly quiet around town as it's running much of the time on electrics. In hard acceleration it is a little buzzy, but at steady speeds it's quiet. What we like is the 41.5 mpg. The big selling RAV-4 Hybrid is basically the same vehicle, and it can come in a plug in hybrid that's incredibly quick. It seems most hybrid buyers love'em.

When I was car shopping around a year ago the RAV-4 Hybrid was my first choice on paper but didn't buy it due to bad interior design. The center console widens too much leaving not enough room for the right leg of tall people. No reason for it and unacceptable. I went with a smaller SUV that was designed appropriately.

 

[JoeWras]

So this is a great discussion and reminds me why I absolutely need a test drive before I make such a huge financial decision.

I can't believe all the people buying last year without a test drive. I guess it is like all the homes bought without inspections.

People lose their minds during supply crunches.

Hopefully, our cars can get us through this crunch and back to normal times where you may pay, but at least can test drive the dang car.

 

[homestead]

Rotating the tires every 5k miles helps with road noise. For those who like the Equinox there will be an EV version out in the fall so it should be even quieter.

 

[REWahoo]

For those who like the Equinox there will be an EV version out in the fall so it should be even quieter.

I've heard there are a ton of preorders for the Equinox EV so don't expect to get your hands on one until some time in 2024.

 

[aaronc879]

I've heard there are a ton of preorders for the Equinox EV so don't expect to get your hands on one until some time in 2024.

Only one trim of the 3 will be released in 2023 anyway. I would think most people would get the LT2 which is not released until Spring 2024. I agree though that if you are ordering the RS you still may not get it until 2024 even though it is supposed to be release in Fall 2023.

 

[ls99]

My 2020 Cadillac CT6, so quiet, there is an app to select the kind and amount of engine noise to be piped in through the Sound System.

 

[explanade]

They may be reusing that name, may not be much like the ICE version of the Equinox.

The main appeal of the Equinox EV is the low starting price.

Now can you actually get a basic Equinox EV or will the demand be high and the ones that dealers get mostly have options you don't want or want to pay for?

If it gets the full tax credit though, that could be as attractive as the Bolt EUV or even more attractive, suppose to be on GM's Ultium platform, compared to the Bolt EUV which is on an older platform.

 

[Jerry1]

My 2020 Cadillac CT6, so quiet, there is an app to select the kind and amount of engine noise to be piped in through the Sound System.

Thanks. I was looking at the CT5. I think (don't know) that the CT6 is bigger than I would like.

I'd driven Buicks so much that I forgot about Cadillacs. I never considered one before because the premium over Buicks for what you got didn't seem worth it. I'll have to revisit that since Buick doesn't have anything in their lineup that I want. I'd have to believe that a Cadillacs would be as quiet as a Buick.