Tact

iTrader: (1)

Thanks for the info. I checked under my car and I was missing all of the plugs, mine has a total of six, three on each side. On each side there are two holes behind the front tires, one of the holes is oval and the other is round. The third hole is in front of the rear tires.

I reached inside of the holes and found all of the plugs, except one of the front round plugs, lying loose. I pulled them out and popped them into place. Why is it that they weren't installed? Is it a slip up during assembly? Edit.....I just read oldgrump's post above.

What can I use to plug the missing round hole? I don't think tape will last long. I hate to make a long trip to the dealer for one plug.

sdman

I'ts the surface that Texas is putting down, not the tires or car.
Talked to an Highway Department employee, said the new surface is more noisy than the
standard blacktop overlay.
Wish they would go back to the regular blacktop overlay.
You can really tell the difference when you hit a stretch of the old type of blacktop,
it's heaven to the ears.

I'm running Michelin Primacy MXV4s 2010 ES350.

sam

Tact

iTrader: (1)

Well, I found a rubber plug in my garage that I cut down and it fits perfectly in the round hole. I secured it with black silicone and I'll let it dry.

I hope this will "help" with some of the road noise.

Tact

iTrader: (1)

Sam,

I agree that the road surface in TX is a problem pertaining to road noise, but I encountered the noise the entire trip. The majority of the trip was in Arkansas. I'm sure I'll still have some road noise as expected, but maybe now that I have all my holes plugged I'll have a quieter ride.

RickC5

Yep, replacing those plugs should make a noticeable difference in the noise level. We were missing several of the plugs, and since Lexus wants like $8-9 for each plug, I also used alternative methods and was surprised by how much quieter our '08 is now.

There are at least two other long threads on this forum on the topic of wind/road noise. The search function is your friend. Buried in those threads are lengthy discussions on the subject of those plugs, as well as other DIY fixes to help quiet the noises.

sdman

Is there a diagram that shows the location of these plugs?

2010 ES350

sam

gemigniani

Newer model cars just don't have heavy road noise absorbing material under the carpets anymore. And combine that with the extra wide tires on newer luxury cars and you've got a receipe for a primitive, noisy ride. Even American cars. Like a brand new Buick LaCrosse I rented two weeks ago had an appalling amount of road noise on concrete pavement even though the car had only 713 miles on the Michelin tires. Back in the 70's and 80's many luxury American cars offered good road noise suppression. The '77-78 Chevy Caprice was outstanding in that regard and if you look under the carpets of that car you'll see muilti-layers of different sound absorbing and blocking materials including Depont Keldax material.

The only new cars that offer fairly good road noise suppression seem to be the body on frame SUV's like the GX460. The base and LE models of the 2012 Camry I have rented were also pretty good as those models have old fashioned tall 16" tires that cushion road shock well and are slightly quieter than the wider wheels and tires than come on ES's. Today I saw the all new 2013 ES on the streets and it has even wider tires than the 2012 model which made me kinda mad because it could alienate loads of 50+ year old ES buyers like me that want the smoothest, quietest ride possible. So even though I can afford a new LS or ES, I may be forced to buy a $20,000 Camry LE because that's the only way I'll be able to get a car with the 16" tires that ride real smooth.

SW17LS

Actually the Camry has the same width tires as the ES350, they are both 215s. The ES350 is definitely quieter than a Camry...my 350 is also quieter than my 300 was, same width tires but my 350 has 17s obviously.

No road noise suppression problems with my ES.

RickC5

Two plugs on each side are located in the torque boxes just behind the front tires--one round & one oval. There are two more larger round plugs on each side further along toward the rear of the car, near the rocker panels. Then finally there's another oval plug just in front of the rear tire on each side. You will need to get down on the floor/ground & use a flashlight to see them. There's a total of TEN plugs. Your car should have all ten in place.

Use the search function on this forum and enter "es350 wind noise". There are at least two long threads on the topic, complete with photos and DIY fixes. Worth the reading and a little effort if you want less wind/road noise. It worked for me!

Joeb427

iTrader: (1)

I have test driven a new Camry and on regular roads it's not as quiet or smooth as the last generation Camry,let alone the ES.
No noise issue with my ES except on concrete roads,there's more road noise like there would be in any other vehicle.
My son in law has a '11 Benz S 500 that rides louder on concrete roads.

Here's a thread with a couple of posts from today on the Car Chat forum on the new Camry ride quality.

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/car...est-drive.html

I agree on " the ES buyers like me that want the smoothest, quietest ride possible".The only reason I bought the ES is for the quiet and ride quality.
I wouldn't buy a Camry,though.I think it's one of the ugliest vehicles on the road.No more ES smooth,quiet ride,then I'd buy an Audi.

RickC5

Before we dumped our two Hondas in favor of two Lexus, the Service Rep @ the Honda dealer told me that Honda no longer adds noise suppression materials in order to save weight and improve gas mileage. It's no wonder that Hondas are terribly noisy on the highway--they're designed to be noisy. Personally, I dislike noise on the highway as we take lots of long road trips. Even adding hundreds of dollars worth of Dynamat to our 2010 Accord & 2010 Ridgeline didn't quiet them enough for me, which is why we no longer own them. IMHO, good noise suppression must be designed in, not added later.

I agree that most older cars are quieter than most of today's cars, but some manufacturers (such as Lexus) do a much better job of noise suppression than others. Of course, us Lexus owners expect our vehicles to be quiet. Most Honda owners must not care.

Joeb427

iTrader: (1)

True on all Honda and Acura vehicles.They all have more road noise and rougher ride but handle better.Some people prefer better handling.I'll take the better ride quality in a heartbeat.
The new generation ES will have better handling.I hope the ride quality doesn't suffer.Even a little bit.

Over the years the ES had more sound deadening material than the Camry for a quieter ride.

Tact

iTrader: (1)

I took the car out for a short drive today and I believe it is actually quieter. Maybe it's my imagination, but I don't hear the noise as intense as before. Soon I'll take it on the interstate and get a truer experience.

gemigniani

I've done much more than test drives. I've rented about five 2012 Camrys so far and about ten of the previous generation Camry's and drove them 1000's of miles (on fly and drive business trips). I thought the 2012 Camry models suppress road noise a little better on concrete and coarse road surfaces than the previous generation Camrys, especially when fitted with the Michelin Energy Saver A/S tires (a tire, incidentally, that got top marks at tirerack.com for ride comfort and quietness). I find the 2012 Camrys are also a tad smoother riding due to the more rigid body structure. Overall, I like the 2012 Camry LE and XLE models for their refined powertrain, supple ride. agile handling, reasonably good suppression of road noise, and seat comfort. I won't buy one though until I have an opportunity evaluate the ride comfort and quietness of the 2013 Avalon and 2013 ES350.

Anyway, if anyone is looking a tire that helps suppress highway road noise and also offers bump smothering ride comfort (+ low rolling resistance for great fuel economy) I recommend the Michelin Energy Saver A/S http://www.tirerack.com/tires/survey...ay.jsp?type=AS I think its better in those three qualities than the Michelin Primacy / MXV4 series tires too.

iceblast

Has anyone done anything other than the plugs to surpress road noise?

I was hoping for some other DIY tips to reduce road noise (mainly @ highway speeds; seeems to be the big issue).
Or has anyone done anything complex like add more insulation to the fenders?

Thanks!