ROAD NOISE

[Stiffarm]

Very unpleasant highway driving experience. Driving my Emira back from delivery (300 miles) at 65-85 mph, I found that the tire/road noise in the cabin was extermely high. My car is a touring suspension set up with Goodyear F1s. Due to the cabin noise, I had difficulty in hearing a caller through my Apple Car Play and engaging in conversation.---almost shouting on my end. Itseems like there is little to no insulation in the rear bulkhead (and door panels). The noise seemed louder from the rear. I drove on concrete and paved interstate highways, and while the expansion strips were naturally loud, the paving was too.. I even downloaded a crappy DB better in. my phone and it showed about 70,, which was counterintuitive. I checked my tire pressures when I got home, thinking that they were overinflated. However, 28 F/28 R pressures are not high. Confused because I have never had such an experience and dread having to travel on the highway--in the Lotus it should be a dream.

 

[Aero]

It was a bit louder being a mid engine car but nothing uncomfortable that I noticed.
Where in AL are you?

 

[K_Squared]

I noticed some wind/noise coming from the rear as well but once I pushed up the call volume to max it was easy to talk at 80mph. I don't expect the Emira to be a quiet ride and it isn't. Have you tried adjusting your call volume all the way up?

 

[Porter]

Very unpleasant highway driving experience. Driving my Emira back from delivery (300 miles) at 65-85 mph, I found that the tire/road noise in the cabin was extermely high. My car is a touring suspension set up with Goodyear F1s. Due to the cabin noise, I had difficulty in hearing a caller through my Apple Car Play and engaging in conversation.---almost shouting on my end. Itseems like there is little to no insulation in the rear bulkhead (and door panels). The noise seemed louder from the rear. I drove on concrete and paved interstate highways, and while the expansion strips were naturally loud, the paving was too.. I even downloaded a crappy DB better in. my phone and it showed about 70,, which was counterintuitive. I checked my tire pressures when I got home, thinking that they were overinflated. However, 28 F/28 R pressures are not high. Confused because I have never had such an experience and dread having to travel on the highway--in the Lotus it should be a dream.

It's a sports car, not a luxury car. It doesn't have much in the way of sound deadening, and the chassis is aluminum. It's going to be louder than your average vehicle.

That being said, you shouldn't have to shout to be heard, or anything. I'm wondering if the pavement where you are is unusually rough or something. Certain tires can interact with pavement in unusual ways, and just a change of road surface can change the cabin noise by 10-20 dB. I don't know if that's what you're experiencing, but it's worth checking by finding another road surface type to drive on. Interstate and country highways will typically have a different asphalt mix, for example.

 

[Stiffarm]

It was a bit louder being a mid engine car but nothing uncomfortable that I noticed.
Where in AL are you?

Mobile

 

[DPB]

I noticed a fair amount of road noise on my drive home from dealer, but it was only on certain concrete paved sections. Other asphalt sections were fine and my wife actually dozed off for a bit. So I would agree that it is highly dependent on road surface, but overall I found highway driving to be very comfortable and reasonably quiet.

 

[Blackthought_]

LOL agreed that this is a sports car not a luxury car. You’re supposed to have the windows rolled down and hear that engine roar! I remember my Evora GT I could barely hear the caller on the other end I would need to pull over to talk.

 

[dgrace]

If long freeway drives on the phone are the primary use case, you might not have the right tool for the job. Might I suggest:

 

[Rupes]

Are you close to the dealership? Take their demo out for a spin and see if it sounds the same. If not, then you've got someplace to follow up.

 

[Stiffarm]

Are you close to the dealership? Take their demo out for a spin and see if it sounds the same. If not, then you've got someplace to follow up.

Thanks, but I am not. Will continue my experiment....

 

[wallstbear]

Very unpleasant highway driving experience. Driving my Emira back from delivery (300 miles) at 65-85 mph, I found that the tire/road noise in the cabin was extermely high. My car is a touring suspension set up with Goodyear F1s. Due to the cabin noise, I had difficulty in hearing a caller through my Apple Car Play and engaging in conversation.---almost shouting on my end. Itseems like there is little to no insulation in the rear bulkhead (and door panels). The noise seemed louder from the rear. I drove on concrete and paved interstate highways, and while the expansion strips were naturally loud, the paving was too.. I even downloaded a crappy DB better in. my phone and it showed about 70,, which was counterintuitive. I checked my tire pressures when I got home, thinking that they were overinflated. However, 28 F/28 R pressures are not high. Confused because I have never had such an experience and dread having to travel on the highway--in the Lotus it should be a dream.

You will get used to it. I did. Also try lowering your tire pressure. Mine went from 2.3/2.6 bar to 2.0/2.3 bar and it improved noticeably.

 

[wallstbear]

If long freeway drives on the phone are the primary use case, you might not have the right tool for the job. Might I suggest:
View attachment 38789

Or this:

 

[Nova]

I am not sure if the F1 supersport is a particularly noisy tire. I generally find Michelin Pilot Sport tires to be quieter than others in the same class.

 

[Maurice R]

LOL agreed that this is a sports car not a luxury car. You’re supposed to have the windows rolled down and hear that engine roar! I remember my Evora GT I could barely hear the caller on the other end I would need to pull over to talk.

@ Blackthought. You are absolutely right it’s a damn Lotus it is noisy so what. So @Stiffarm get over it.
This is the quietest lotus ever built.
Just don’t talk in the phone. Pay attention to how wonderful the car is
Talking on the phone is dangerous
Or just sell it and buy a Bentley no noise
Shoot me if you want but just get over it.
The negativity sometimes on this forum just blows me away.
Not to discuss personal issues but I have been dealing with my wife’s serious health issues the last year. That is more important to me than the bullshit fucking minor issues some people spew about a fantastic sports car. Just get a life or sell the car.
I make no apologies for my ranting here
EDIT my dear wife just drove 350 miles with me this past weekend and loved the ride compared to my Evora GT
I was grateful that she was able to be my passenger

 

[Porter]

EDIT my dear wife just drove 350 miles with me this past weekend and loved the ride compared to my Evora GT
I was grateful that she was able to be my passenger

This. This is what it's about, folks. Hug her tight, Maurice. 🙏

 

[Eagle7]

Very unpleasant highway driving experience. Driving my Emira back from delivery (300 miles) at 65-85 mph, I found that the tire/road noise in the cabin was extermely high. My car is a touring suspension set up with Goodyear F1s. Due to the cabin noise, I had difficulty in hearing a caller through my Apple Car Play and engaging in conversation.---almost shouting on my end. Itseems like there is little to no insulation in the rear bulkhead (and door panels). The noise seemed louder from the rear. I drove on concrete and paved interstate highways, and while the expansion strips were naturally loud, the paving was too.. I even downloaded a crappy DB better in. my phone and it showed about 70,, which was counterintuitive. I checked my tire pressures when I got home, thinking that they were overinflated. However, 28 F/28 R pressures are not high. Confused because I have never had such an experience and dread having to travel on the highway--in the Lotus it should be a dream.

Sorry for some of the less than stellar responses. You asked an honest question in a civil manner, and as a member of this forum you deserve an honest civil answer.

There have been reports of loose underbody pan panels on some cars. If you're the DIY type, try looking underneath the car for any loose or missing bolts in the under pan. You might also check to see if the plastic wheel well inner lining is secure in all 4 wheel wells. Whenever I've been hunting down the source of unwanted noise in a car, I'll use a rubber mallet or a wooden handle screwdriver, and tap on various areas (use the handle of the screwdriver). Listen for the same type of sound you've been hearing in the car to try and isolate the source. Just from your description it sounds like it might be a fairly large panel, like a wheel well liner, body panel, or even the rear trunk well. Road noise from tires tends to create resonance that can cause those types of panels to start humming at the same frequency.

If you take it to a dealer, depending on the quality of the dealer, they may or may not invest much time in checking things out. A mediocre to poor dealer will typically just go for a short drive, and bring it back saying they can't duplicate the problem. A better to good one will invest the time, but depending on what it is, it can take some time to track it down. By doing some pre-diagnostic investigating yourself, you can perhaps help isolate the area that the sound is coming from.

Record it with your phone if possible. If you can have somebody come with you, they may be able to help identify where it's coming from since they're on the opposite of the car. They can even do the recording. If you can post the audio file in here, maybe you can get some idea if others have that same noise or not.

Don't give up, it doesn't sound like what you're experiencing is typical. There may be an actual issue, and hopefully with some diligence and effort, it can be tracked down.

 

[JonFuller]

I have to say, my own opinion on the Emira is that I was extremely surprised just how low the road / tyre noise is compared to all other 'sports' cars I've had/driven, especially given the ultra low profile tyres it sports.
I hear a level of engine noise transmitted through the bulkhead, not bad, but noticeable....but tyre (Tire) wise, mine is very, very quiet.
I'm on Tour chassis, with the Goodyears.

I have heard a lot of reports of excessive wind noise from the door seals, but again, whilst I haven't yet exceeded 150mph, mine is devoid of any such wind noise & whistles.

A normal conversation in the car @ 80mph is very easy.

These cars seem to vary a lot!

Jon

 

[Honcho]

Yes, I find it quite loud, but no more so than other cars in this category e.g cayman. I’ve put some foam insulation on mine around the rear bulkhead and behind seats but have not had a chance to test it out yet. After taking off some panels to do this, including door cards, the standard car actually has a lot of material for sound reduction as standard. I’m not 100% sure but I think typical butyl pads will not be too effective as the panels are composite and seem quite dead naturally. I’ve focused more on using lighter 20mm thick closed cell foam.

 

[KJD]

These cars seem to vary a lot!

People vary a lot.

 

[Porter]

I'm actually wondering whether it's possible that the car has a bad wheel bearing from being strapped down for transport. The right kind of bearing failure can cause a roaring sound that's very much like bass-heavy wind noise. Worth checking.