Suggestions regarding "quiet" cars?

dogmatix

I'm looking to get a car in the near future - but it has to be as "quiet" as possible. Thing is that when you research various car types and the like, things like road, wind, tyre and engine noise are rarely mentioned in reviews - for me the cars noise levels are important too.

I'm currently driving a 2000 nissan micra and it's pretty loud - it has bad engine and wind noise. I also sometimes have access to a 2007 Focus and while it is quiet in most areas, it has a really bad wind noise problem.

I've heard the latest Peugeot 207 is very "quiet" - but what about older models if I decide to go down the second hand route?

I was thinking of a SEAT Ibiza but it has been rated as bad for wind noise.

BTW - no jokes about staying off the curries and brussels sprouts if I want to cut down on wind noise - I'm being serious!

jayok

TBH if you want to reduce the road / wind noise you'll need to go up a few classes of car. Generally the bigger / heavier the car the less road noise. Get yourself a BMW760 and you'll hear nothing!

Seriously, the Micra is probably one of the worst (ok other high performance ones are worse) but cars like the Focus, etc, are all quite good.

Go for something with a big engine. One that you don't have to rev the knackers out to move.
Avoid diesels!

TomMc

Unless you buy a flagship Lexus or Merc, best to buy a hybrid or something like that, if its one of your main criteria - Honda Civic IMA or Toyota Prius.

Otherwise a bigger & more luxurious "executive" car will usually have a quieter cabin, more sound deadening, but needs to have a silky smooth (petrol) engine too.

maidhc

ronoc wrote:

Go for something with a big engine. One that you don't have to rev the knackers out to move.
Avoid diesels!

A diesel will be as quiet, if not quieter than a petrol at cruising speeds as it will be running slower. In fact the only time that my focus TDCI doesn't sound like a petrol is on very cold mornings. With something like a Corolla D4D you would be hard pressed to ever tell the difference. Avoid a VW 1.9 TDI maybe!

jayok

maidhc wrote:

A diesel will be as quiet, if not quieter than a petrol at cruising speeds as it will be running slower.

You must have driven some noisy petrols and quiet diesels.

Del2005

A quick way to find out how quite a car will be is to turn the radio up full blast then close all the doors and windows. Depending on how far away you can here it the louder it is. It's not going to let you know how much road noise you'll get but you will be able to tell how sound proofed it is. Avoid hatchbacks and estates as these are generally more noisy then a saloon.

You aren't going to get a quite car unless you (or someone before you) spends serious money for a high end car. The Prius and other hybrids may be quite for town driving, but what are they like for normal roads? I'd imagine that they have sacrificed a lot of sound proofing for fuel efficiency.

maidhc

jayok wrote:

You must have driven some noisy petrols and quiet diesels.

Maybe. Just saying it does not automatically follow if it is diesel it is noisy, unless of course you are J. Clarkson.

Victor Meldrew

Avoid wide / low profile tyres and estates/large hatchbacks, as these have a "boom" from the boot area, also any spoilers will make wind noise bad and roof bars/racks will make you deaf.:eek:

The earlier posts about bigger is better is very true as is buying a bigger petrol engine (less revs).

ensure your test drive includes 70mph on a motorway and 60 on a back road.

A volvo s40 (old shape) would be a good bet, they do a 1.6 which is easy to insure and you'll have toys and good seats.

MercMad

Some of the mags used to post "NVH" results, Noise, Vibration and harshness.

Japanese cars always suffered most from this with German cars being far better. It used to be much more noticeable and it started my hatred of all Jap cars, however it may no longer be the case at all.

A lot of people dislike Opels but I always found them refined in this area !

mike65

German cars are often quite firmly sprung and feature wide wheels so they can be noisy on poor surfaces which in this country is most surfaces!

Mike.

Stephen

My mother's new-model Corsa is really, really quiet. If you sit in it with the engine idling at the lights you wouldn't know its even on. No idea what its like it high speed though, its never been out of town.

Borderfox

Get yourself an old Lexus LS400 all you will hear is yourself think. Seriously though, I got a Citroen C5 and its very quiet on the motorway and in town

Seinas

what about the new Honda's? arent they suppose to have a 'whispa' engine??

JHMEG

maidhc wrote:

Maybe. Just saying it does not automatically follow if it is diesel it is noisy, unless of course you are J. Clarkson.

At a compression ratio of between 20 and 25:1 in a typical diesel, it does follow that a diesel will be noisy. Typically petrols are 7.5 to 9.5 or so.

Even at idle (can't get much lower speed than that) diesels are as noisy as fcuk.

tvr

go with a lexus hybrid , the amount of pedestrians you can run over is unbelievable , they never even here the thing coming its so quiet.

maidhc

JHMEG wrote:

Even at idle (can't get much lower speed than that) diesels are as noisy as fcuk.

But they are not as noisy when they are under load and moving. Why I don't know, but I do know that (leaving aside silky smooth V8s and the like) a normal 1.4/1.6 petrol in a focus sized car straining its guts out on the motorway or on steep inclines will be much noisier than a diesel doing the same thing in the same sized car.

Obviously if noise is the OPs chief and only concern a lexus LS or the like would be the ideal solution, but the cars s/he has suggested do not exactly come close to this category.

In this case a small capacity diesel (like the aforementioned corolla) may be a viable alternative. It may (or may not) be quieter, but it is suggested it should be considered and not dismissed out of hand based on once hearing a Passat driver trying to park.

gyppo

The quietest car i ever owned (actually, I had two of them) was the old shape 92-97 mazda 626. Had a silky smooth 16v engine that was eerily quiet, and tiny road noise at any speed. I still think of them with fondness:)

dogmatix

Ok - thanks for everyone's input. Lot's of food for thought here. I don't think I can go any bigger then a focus-class car due to car space limitations (apartment dweller me).

HashSlinging

Honda accord 1.8 auto very quiet at motorway speeds.

craichoe

Skoda Octavia 1.9TDI - Volkswagen 1.9TDI at cruising speed is FAR FAR quieter than a 1.4 or 1.6 Petrol.

Seat Leon or Golf.

Only cars that have been Quieter that i've experienced are a 2.4L Petrol Toyota Camry and a BMW 520D.

The 1.9 TDI engine is great (Even the older one, not the Pumpe Diese) Although it does sound like a feckin wagon on a cold morning for 15 - 30 seconds when idling.

Ratchet

gs300
gs400
xedos 9
audi 8

if you looking for carpet ride.

unkel

What jayok said ^^^

Any Lexus LS is extremely quiet

This one (from the Buy&Sell) must be a bargain:

LEXUS LS400, 1992, steel blue met, 105k, full Lexus service history, full leather, electric windows & memory seats, 2 owners from new, cruise control, a/c, climate control, NCT passed, superb condition, beautifully maintained, fully serviced, €2950 Ph 087-6699555

Marcus.Aurelius

I've a 98 Lexus LS400, smooth as silk, can't hear anything at 50 mph, unless you rev hard (and even then it's quiet as the night sky! (with a few airyplanes!))

EDIT: I agree with previous poster, GF has Mazda 626 (92-97 shape) 5dr HB 1840 cc, very quiet, very smooth, surprisingly fast too, believe it or not, 105 bhp if I remember correctly, lovely car.