Bring on the Noise

Carmakers have long dueled over features like horsepower and cupholders — things that shoppers can feel and touch on a test-drive. The latest battleground, however, is over acoustics: how a car sounds to drivers and passengers on the road. Buick, for instance, is now touting "quiet tuning" technologies in models like the Lucerne sedan, including things like acoustic laminated glass, baffles in the roof pillars and "quiet steel" to damp vibrations. Other carmakers are going high-tech with "active noise cancellation" systems. But it isn't just about the silent treatment. Automakers are also tweaking engines, exhaust systems, even the burble of the muffler, to try to enhance car personalities. "Part of the brand experience of a BMW is sounding like a BMW," says Bill Sharfman, an auto industry consultant. "It's a selling point."

Given all this attention, you might wonder why many new cars aren't that quiet, especially when it comes to road noise — the droning sound of tires on asphalt that can drown out conversation at high speeds. To some extent, things have improved. Complaints about wind noise declined 36% from 2003 through 2006, according to surveys of new-car owners by J.D. Power and Associates. And consumers are reporting fewer noise-related problems, like leaky door seals, over long-term ownership of their vehicles. Nonetheless, noise remains the top peeve that people have about their cars. And it's even the top complaint for luxury brands like Mercedes and BMW. "We've noticed that people have a certain tolerance for noise, and if it gets beyond that, they complain," says Neal Oddes, director of research for J.D. Power.

Automakers are aware of those breaking points too. But the industry has reasons not to make cars more like padded wagons. Most sound-damping insulation adds weight (and expense) to a vehicle, and the extra pounds drag down gas mileage. That's why cars like the Hyundai Elantra and Honda Civic, which are fuel-efficient, generate more wind and road noise than large luxury sedans like the Audi A8 and BMW 745, the quietest cars on the market, according to road tests conducted by Consumer Reports. Also, the quieter the car, the more noticeable every annoying little sound becomes; owners then complain, and the car-maker can get a bad rap for overall quality. "It's a catch-22," says Jason Kavanaugh, engineering editor for Edmunds.com. "Once you start making the car quieter, every rattle and squeak that comes through sounds louder."

The solution for many automakers now is high-tech materials that reduce noise without adding weight. Ford's F-150 pickup truck is one of several models outfitted with rubberized "quiet steel" to help damp vibrations and noise in the cabin. Honda is equipping its Accord hybrid sedan and Odyssey minivan with "active noise cancellation" systems. Both models feature engines that deactivate cylinders to save gas on the highway, a process that creates a drone during the transition. To mask the noise, speakers pipe opposing sound waves into the cabin. The system also works in the Acura RL, making the cabin about 10 decibels quieter, says Acura product manager John Watts. "The next step is to mask wind and road noise," he says.

Detroit manufacturers, meanwhile, now see sound engineering as a marketing tool. "A person buying a Hemi wants that kind of sound," says Ken Buczek, an engineer for Chrysler, referring to the bassy sound of the power train in models like the 300C. Dodge cars, he adds, are engineered to be louder since they're marketed to younger shoppers. And whether a car gets the full soundproofing treatment depends on its target market. Chrysler figures that buyers of its upscale Pacifica crossover want a quiet interior — which is why that model gets acoustic laminated glass. Buyers of a 300, however, are out of luck.

And that's the thing about car noise: It's a matter of taste. The two models that receive the fewest complaints for wind noise from new owners, according to J.D. Power, are the Mercedes S-class and the Chevy Corvette — the former a quiet, enveloping sedan, the latter a raging machine. "Owners like the rumble of the Corvette," says Oddes of J.D. Power. In other words, don't expect the engineers at Chevy to turn down the volume anytime soon.