Who has the quietest brand?
01-08-19, 10:09 AM
#76
I drove a mint condition 1999 LS400 last week and it was the quietest car I’ve been in. It was so quiet that I couldn’t tell that the engine was on. I was caught off guard by this because I don’t remember the older LS’ being that quiet and it felt quieter than the LS430, LS460, and LS500. I’ve been in a few S Classes and old school Cadillacs that we’re pretty quiet too.
01-08-19, 10:22 AM
#77
Lexus Fanatic
The LS400 wasn't any quieter than the LS430 or LS460. The only difference with the 460s is the engines are louder at idle because of the timing chain and the direct injection, but that wasn't the case with the LS430. When looking at old cars its all about how they're maintained, how worn are the seals, etc. Having bought them all new though, they're all very similar in terms of quietness.
All of the cars at the flagship level are very quiet, one isn't really any quieter than the other. LS500 is a little louder than the LS460 and other cars in the segment though, which is by design.
All of the cars at the flagship level are very quiet, one isn't really any quieter than the other. LS500 is a little louder than the LS460 and other cars in the segment though, which is by design.
01-08-19, 11:00 AM
#78
The LS400 wasn't any quieter than the LS430 or LS460. The only difference with the 460s is the engines are louder at idle because of the timing chain and the direct injection, but that wasn't the case with the LS430. When looking at old cars its all about how they're maintained, how worn are the seals, etc. Having bought them all new though, they're all very similar in terms of quietness.
All of the cars at the flagship level are very quiet, one isn't really any quieter than the other. LS500 is a little louder than the LS460 and other cars in the segment though, which is by design.
All of the cars at the flagship level are very quiet, one isn't really any quieter than the other. LS500 is a little louder than the LS460 and other cars in the segment though, which is by design.
Prior to this LS400, my LS430 and LS460 were pretty similar and I found the LS500 to be pretty quiet as well. Like you said the other flagships are also on the same level as the LS’.
01-08-19, 11:08 AM
#79
Lexus Fanatic
I found this particular LS400 to be the quietest car. The other LS400’s didn’t seem as quiet. I assume the previous owner changed the seals and had everything done.
Prior to this LS400, my LS430 and LS460 were pretty similar and I found the LS500 to be pretty quiet as well. Like you said the other flagships are also on the same level as the LS’.
Prior to this LS400, my LS430 and LS460 were pretty similar and I found the LS500 to be pretty quiet as well. Like you said the other flagships are also on the same level as the LS’.
Huge impact also is tires. The wrong set of tires will make the car a lot louder.
01-08-19, 05:16 PM
#80
Lexus Fanatic
True to some extent, but, all else equal, new-vs-worn tires can be even more of a factor. I still remember the Ultra-Crap Goodyear Invicta tires that came on my otherwise-excellent 1995 Toyota Celica. Even the Toyota Service manager (who, before he retired, was also a personal friend of mine) said those tires were crap-ola from Day One....not much they could do about them in the service bay. At 14,000 miles, and, even with good alignment/balance, they had feathered and cupped to the point where they made tire roar that would drive you nuts. I finally took the car to the Goodyear tire shop, and, while they did not replace those four rolling pieces of **** under warranty, to compensate, they give me, at around half-price, I think, a brand new set of MUCH better Goodyear Regatta tires that, while not Lexus-LS-quiet, were like a library in comparison.
01-08-19, 06:18 PM
#82
Lexus Fanatic
In that post, I was talking about a specific brand and model of tire, not a vehicle-brand.
As for the quietest mass-produced vehicle-brand, hard to say. Buick, Lincoln, Genesis, Cadillac, Mercedes, and Lexus all have several worthy contenders.
As for the quietest mass-produced vehicle-brand, hard to say. Buick, Lincoln, Genesis, Cadillac, Mercedes, and Lexus all have several worthy contenders.
01-08-19, 06:46 PM
#83
Lexus Fanatic
On a Lexus, tires have a huge impact on the quietness of the interior. All tires get louder as they age, but some tires are much quieter than others. For instance when my LS had 350 miles on it I replaced the terrible OEM Bridgestones with Pirelli P7s which are very quiet tires, and the difference was quite noticeable.
01-08-19, 07:26 PM
#84
Lexus Fanatic
On a Lexus, tires have a huge impact on the quietness of the interior. All tires get louder as they age, but some tires are much quieter than others. For instance when my LS had 350 miles on it I replaced the terrible OEM Bridgestones with Pirelli P7s which are very quiet tires, and the difference was quite noticeable.
IMO, a car in the price-class of an LS should come with good tires like the P7 to start with.
Bridgestone makes some good all-season tires for winter traction (not as good as a true winter tire, but good by all-season standards). But, like those crap-ola Goodyear Invictas I described above, they tend to feather and get noisy with age. In my experience, though, they went longer than the Invictas did before making what I consider an unacceptable road-noise level.
01-08-19, 09:02 PM
#85
Lexus Fanatic
I agree, Lexus though has always skimped on tires as luck of the draw. Some come with good Michelins, some come with crappy Bridgestones
01-09-19, 07:26 AM
#86
Lexus Fanatic
iTrader: (20)
shouldn't in-car noise cancellation systems be able to deal with tire noise? maybe at some point there will be microphones in the wheel wells. 
01-09-19, 07:33 AM
#87
Lexus Fanatic
01-09-19, 07:58 AM
#88
Lexus Fanatic
Interesting question. I think part of the current well-known Buick Quiet-Tuning process is to actually measure tire noise in the development process of new vehicles, though not necessarily as you propose, compensating for tire wear as the vehicle ages. In fact, that appears to be the reason so many newer Buicks come with Continental ContiPro Contact tires from the factory (both my Verano and Lacrosse had them). Buick (supposedly) worked with Continental to develop quiet-riding tires for the Verano...which was specifically designed to set new standards in refinement for that size and class of sedan.
01-09-19, 08:00 AM
#89
Lexus Fanatic
Interesting question. I think part of the current well-known Buick Quiet-Tuning process is to actually measure tire noise in the development process of new vehicles, though not necessarily as you propose, compensating for tire wear as the vehicle ages. In fact, that appears to be the reason so many newer Buicks come with Continental ContiPro Contact tires from the factory (both my Verano and Lacrosse had them). Buick (supposedly) worked with Continental to develop quiet-riding tires for the Verano...which was specifically designed to set new standards in refinement for that size and class of sedan.
Continental developed no tires for the Verano.
01-09-19, 08:08 AM
#90
Lexus Fanatic
Buick "quiet tuning" is just marketing jargon. Buick doesn't do anything that other manufacturers don't do. I've driven many Buicks, none of which were especially quieter than other vehicles in their segments. Drove a Lacrosse and ES back to back, if anything the ES is slightly quieter.
Continental developed no tires for the Verano.
Continental developed no tires for the Verano.
https://www.autobytel.com/car-owners...tuning-125713/
Part of the process includes special-tuned tires. This is not from Buick marketing, but a third-party source.