Recently entertaining the idea of DIY sound proofing of the wheel wells, but there are soooo many products to choose from and i have no idea which ones will actually produce audible difference. Some have said simply to skip this as end results usually do not justify the cost and work. Also, are the wheel well fenders easy to remove? Any video or instructionals for that? All pointers welcomed and appreciated, thank you.

 

Sound reflects and reverberates and will travel through acoustical flanking paths of which there are plenty around a wheel well. The underside of the wheel well itself, as well as the car's whole underbody, is already coated in a rubberized coating that both protects the metal and attenuates sound waves to a certain extent. If sound traveled in a straight line through the wheel well the sound would also have to go through several layers of metal to get inside the cabin, that path is already highly attenuating sound. The greatest sources of sound leaks into the cabin are through its paths of least resistance, around the wheel well and into the cabin from the side by the doors, the body underneath where there is just one layer of metal, or in the rear where the strut towers are actually inside the cabin. Probably the most effective thing you could do is invest in quieter tires and make sure your tires are aligned properly and suspension system is assembled nice and tight. Other than that it's probably better to find the sources of sound leaks into the cabin and solve them at the leak's source. I'd probably buy an auto mechanics tech stethoscope to try and locate where the sound is coming through then try to tackle those spots individually. Testing the edges of doors and windows especially, as well as other places there are ports in the body to the outside.

In summary, because road noise travels around the wheel wells more than straight through them, there would be a negligible difference in sound attenuation by adding additional sound proofing to the wheel wells themselves.

 

Excellent explanation

 

Thanks, mate.. now i know.