Follow-up on sound deadening project

[Lolvoguy]

As a follow-up to my original post on the Focus sound deadening project, I thought I'd do a follow-up after I've lived with the car for a while. Here's the original thread:

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php/topics/3687944/Re:_Mid_2000's_Avalin_vs_ES330#Post3687944

Results: I honestly wasn't expecting much from my 4 hours of work and $30 of supplies, but I gotta tell you guys the process has made my dd FAR more comfortable and quieter than I expected. Not only do I not have to wear ear plugs when driving my stock Focus, but it's given me more pride in a car that I was seriously considering selling in the VERY near future for an older Buick/Lexus. At idle you can hardly hear the engine, but obviously (being a Focus) I can still notice the engine idling from vibration. At speeds around 20-50mph I hardly hear the engine, exhaust or tire noise (I have a nice set of Conti DWS's). Even on the highway once the car is in 4th (automatic) and doing around 75 mph, engine noise is non-existant only wind noise with a bit of exhaust sound. Hardly anything I'd consider obtrusive

downside: When I used to mash on the go-pedal, I was treated to a nifty sounding, raspy exhaust note. Now, it seems far more subdued...I'm not sure if I consider that a bad thing of not considering I never intended this car to be my "sports car". That's what I have my e30 for!

Overall: I'd recommend this to ANYONE wanting to quiet their ride. It's cheaper, easier, quicker and probably more effective than tearing your car apart to apply that sticky patch stuff.

Here's the links to the products I used:

http://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/rubberized-rockerguard-undercoating-0477935p.html#.VUmaImfn-po

http://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/domini...ml#.VUmaMmfn-po

of you have any questions, pm me

 

[SteveSRT8]

Thank you for the follow up. We have used various materials to quiet down one off customs and used cars for a long time. Sounds like you got great results and were quite cost effective!

Good job...

 

[nobb]

How much undercoating did you use? Just in the wheel wells or everywhere?

 

[meep]

good job!

I recently sprayed one can of rubberized undercoating into each door of my truck (so, 4 cans...) while I had them apart and was surprised by the difference it made, especially with the engine exhaust note.

It smelled like asphalt for a month which was pretty bad at first, but seems have have finished drying now. Very glad I did it, and will likely do the area behind the back seat soon. I'd love to do the underbody but the stuff is messy and I enjoy working on it much more with it being clean.

 

[Lolvoguy]

Originally Posted By: nobb
How much undercoating did you use? Just in the wheel wells or everywhere?


One can for all four wheel wells and another for ANY exposed metal surfaces. Just make sure to run a pressure washer or brush over the wells and it'll adhere pretty well. Even if the well liners are plastic, this spray will work wonders at absorbing sound.

The second can was sprayed anywhere there was metal on the underside. The car is a Vancouver BC car, so it never had any undercoating in it's life. As a result I sprayed anywhere there was no heat shields/exhaust piping.

Originally Posted By: meep
good job!

I recently sprayed one can of rubberized undercoating into each door of my truck (so, 4 cans...) while I had them apart and was surprised by the difference it made, especially with the engine exhaust note.

It smelled like asphalt for a month which was pretty bad at first, but seems have have finished drying now. Very glad I did it, and will likely do the area behind the back seat soon. I'd love to do the underbody but the stuff is messy and I enjoy working on it much more with it being clean.


Yeah, I wanted to avoid applying any spray/toxic substances to any parts of the car that passengers could be exposed to them.

I recall a thread where someone who wanted to reduce the heat in their classic car, had applied the "patch insulation" to the inside of their car. The downside was that it wasn't as good as the OEM product that was applied to the underside of the car.

In my observation, its far more efficient and effective to apply any heat/noise products to the OUTSIDE of the cabin of a vehicle for the best results. It's faster, (no interior to disassemble), cleaner (no messy fumes, gasses to deal with, especially as the vehicle gets into warmer temps), and generally cheaper than products like Dynamat etc.

 

[Lolvoguy]

Originally Posted By: Lolvoguy
Originally Posted By: nobb
How much undercoating did you use? Just in the wheel wells or everywhere?


One can for all four wheel wells and another for ANY exposed metal surfaces. Just make sure to run a pressure washer or brush over the wells and it'll adhere pretty well. Even if the well liners are plastic, this spray will work wonders at absorbing sound.

The second can was sprayed anywhere there was metal on the underside. The car is a Vancouver BC car, so it never had any undercoating in it's life. As a result I sprayed anywhere there was no heat shields/exhaust piping.

Originally Posted By: meep
good job!

I recently sprayed one can of rubberized undercoating into each door of my truck (so, 4 cans...) while I had them apart and was surprised by the difference it made, especially with the engine exhaust note.

It smelled like asphalt for a month which was pretty bad at first, but seems have have finished drying now. Very glad I did it, and will likely do the area behind the back seat soon. I'd love to do the underbody but the stuff is messy and I enjoy working on it much more with it being clean.


Yeah, I wanted to avoid applying any spray/toxic substances to any parts of the car that passengers could be exposed to them. By applying the sprays to the underside, wheel wells and hood (underside), I didn't notice any strange smells/odors as the products dried.

I recall a thread where someone who wanted to reduce the heat in their classic car, had applied the "patch insulation" to the inside of their car. The downside was that it wasn't as good as the OEM product that was applied to the underside of the car.

In my observation, its far more efficient and effective to apply any heat/noise products to the OUTSIDE of the cabin of a vehicle for the best results. It's faster, (no interior to disassemble), cleaner (no messy fumes, gasses to deal with, especially as the vehicle gets into warmer temps), and generally cheaper than products like Dynamat etc.



sorry, meant to edit the post above

 

[HangFire]

Originally Posted By: Lolvoguy
In my observation, its far more efficient and effective to apply any heat/noise products to the OUTSIDE of the cabin of a vehicle for the best results. It's faster, (no interior to disassemble), cleaner (no messy fumes, gasses to deal with, especially as the vehicle gets into warmer temps), and generally cheaper than products like Dynamat etc.


Definitely faster and easier. I discovered Seal & Peel at Lowe's, which is almost as cheap as cans of spray, and is very low odor. The problem with spray undercoating is it shouldn't be used over Catalytic Converters or it'll cook off and smoke. It can also create drainage problems if not used carefully.

There are other issues like firewalls, where it's hard not to spray serviceable items, and/or there is already factory fiberglass insulation and adding more won't do much. For those cases, installing mats on the inside surfaces is safer and more effective, if more laborious (pulling up carpet and seats and such.)

Mass loaded mats also solve other sound problems better, like speakers buzzing the rear deck.

Both are tools to get a job done, there is some overlap, and sometimes one is better than the other.