A3 assessed as a quiet car, just behind the Rolls Royce Ghost and Bentley Mulsanne!

[BigD289]

Bruel & Kjær, who make noise measurement equipment, have tested 14 cars on how noisy they are. Its interesting to see the A3 ranked amongst the quietest, only behind the Mercedes S-Class, Rolls Royce Ghost and Bentley Mulsanne!

In search of the world's quietest car - Brüel & Kjær

 

[veeeight]

Bet it wasn't running Conti SportContact 5's !!!!

 

[BigD289]

True, they are noisy tyres!!!!

 

[veeeight]

Just checked the results, it was running Dunlop Sport Maxx RT

 

[Daz Auto]

This would have been more interesting if they had compared like with like.

The Golf was a diesel and the Audi a petrol. I could have told them which one would have been quieter at low speeds.

Also, the 180ps Audi would have had multi link rear suspension and the 105psl Golf has torsion beam rear suspension.

Does anyone know if the Audi had sport or standard suspension?

 

[warren_S5]

Just checked the results, it was running Dunlop Sport Maxx RT

That will help, they're rated at sub 70db which is one of the quietest tyres around.

 

[mfspen]

Baffling results.

The tyre noise on my car is atrociously bad (17" wheels, Pirelli Cinturato P7). It is undoubtedly the worst car I have ever owned in that respect. I've also driven A3s with Michelin and Bridgestone tyres, and they were equally as bad.

I also drove the Mk.7 Golf GT with identical wheels/tyres to my car, and that was much quieter.

 

[warren_S5]

Baffling results.

The tyre noise on my car is atrociously bad (17" wheels, Pirelli Cinturato P7). It is undoubtedly the worst car I have ever owned in that respect. I've also driven A3s with Michelin and Bridgestone tyres, and they were equally as bad.

I also drove the Mk.7 Golf GT with identical wheels/tyres to my car, and that was much quieter.

I'm inclined to agree here, it was one of my minus points when assessing the 8V, the road noise / general interior cabin noise wasn't particularly good on the M4 motorway.

Maybe the tests were conducted to assess engine noise ingress rather than tyre noise/?????

 

[h5djr]

I think the make of tyres used can make a really big difference. Some time ago a member was complaining about the tyre noise and I suggested he tried some Hankook Ventus S1 Evo tyres. These are the tyres that came factory fitted on my current 8P Sportback and they are some of the quietest tyres I used. They also get very good noise ratings in some tests I have read.

The member concerned changed his tyres to either the Hankooks or the Dunlop Sport Maxx RT and by all accounts it made a world of difference by just changing the front tyres. He was then going to go ahead and change the rears as well.

I have budgeted for 4 new Hankook tyres if my new 8V comes on anything else.

 

[mfspen]

I think the make of tyres used can make a really big difference.

Whilst I'm sure that the type of tyre does make a difference, I'm not convinced it is the main factor with the A3. The example I gave with the Golf proves that. It had 17" wheels and the exact same Pirelli tyres as my car, yet was night and day quieter. Incidentally, it had a much more comfortable and compliant ride than my car too, despite being a notionally 'sporty' model.

 

[BGS]

Got the Dunlop Sport Maxx RT's on mine and can confirm just how quiet they are, even on 19' alloys. Level increases a little in Dynamic but really barely noticeable difference.

EDIT: Just a thought, do you think the saloon may be quieter still because of the seperate boot compartment. It being a 3 box rather than a 2 might offer better sound dampening from the rear?

 

[Daz Auto]

Just checked the results, it was running Dunlop Sport Maxx RT

Do these come fitted as standard to Golf and A3?

The 105ps Golf would have had 16" tyres as standard.

I see they compared 17 and 18 inch tyres noise. These are sport and super sport tyres which have a lower profile and usually stiffer side wall. Would have been interesting to see them compare these with 16 inch premium touring tyres with higher profile and softer side walls.

 

[Daz Auto]

EDIT: Just a thought, do you think the saloon may be quieter still because of the seperate boot compartment. It being a 3 box rather than a 2 might offer better sound dampening from the rear?

From the article...

7 Is a station wagon louder than a sedan?

Yes! An Audi A3 Sportback (at a constant measured speed of 100) is actually a bit louder than the identical A3 with a boot. In fact, there is only 1.4 sones difference between the Sportback and the notchback.

 

[BGS]

Cheers, firewalled to heck here so hadn't read the article.

 

[PembsA3]

Strange... Mines on Contis and I'm not aware of significant road noise. Certainly a lot quieter than my old Golf!

 

[cuke2u]

Mine is quiter than my Mk3 Focus on 18" Michelin PS3's, but that was a quiet car anyway...

 

[Rexus]

I've got Dunlop Sportmaxx on my 17" wheels with standard suspension, 1.4Cod, and while it can be quiet on a good road surface, as soon as I get onto rougher surfaces, even at relatively low speeds, the noise immediately ramps up and can get loud enough to make conversation difficult.

 

[leosayer1]

I drove a Golf TSI on 16" wheels and A3 TSI on 18" wheels back to back and found the Golf had the more intrusive road noise - almost all the time whereas the A3 it seems to be dependent on the road surface.

 

[h5djr]

Unless everyone is comparing on exactly the same stretch of road is all very subjective.

On one stretch of the A421 between the A1 and the M1, the newer sections have very low road noise, but the original section around Bedford is quite the opposite and very noisy. The quieter sections are topped with the latest porous tarmac surface which also reduces spray in wet weather. The worst road for I've driven on for road noise is the M5 between and Bristol and Birmingham.

 

[cuke2u]

I am comparing my cars over the same stretches of road that I always travel...

 

[GreatBallsofFire]

Baffling results.

The tyre noise on my car is atrociously bad (17" wheels, Pirelli Cinturato P7). It is undoubtedly the worst car I have ever owned in that respect. I've also driven A3s with Michelin and Bridgestone tyres, and they were equally as bad.

I also drove the Mk.7 Golf GT with identical wheels/tyres to my car, and that was much quieter.

Ops, one of my reasons (self justification) to switch to the new 8V was to get rid of the high tyre noise The 8V 1.6 Tdi SE I had for a week was quiet though.

 

[Itguy]

I think our S3 on conti 5s is quiet. I've never had a situation where I struggle to talk to my wife in a normal voice or talk on the phone etc.

Have always thought how quiet the 8V is.

 

[GreatBallsofFire]

I think our S3 on conti 5s is quiet. I've never had a situation where I struggle to talk to my wife in a normal voice or talk on the phone etc.

Have always thought how quiet the 8V is.

Interesting. Strange how the views differ.

 

[oufc1976]

Not sure what tyres are on my S-Line but it's far and away the quietest car I've owned!

 

[m0sbf]

I think the road noise is very surface-dependant as another poster states in this thread. Of all the things about my car it is the thing I remain very disappointed with, especially when I compare the road noise to my Mk VII 1.6SE Golf, which is so much quieter. I would not call my car quiet by any means, chatting to rear seat passengers can be a struggle at speed. Good job I have the *** to try to drown some of it out.

I ditched the Conti Sport5's on the front of my car early on (now have Good Year Eagle F1's) and that helped lower the road noise, but I still have Conti's on the back. I looked at the Dunlop Sport Maxx RT's but they are a very soft compound tyre and have relatively poor life. The biggest improvement the Good Year Eagle F1's gave was in the ride. They have much softer side walls and the ride quality is noticeably better than with the Conti's. Now I don't notice that dramatic a difference in ride between the Golf SE standard suspension and my A3 Sport suspension. It is firmer, but not dramatically and I don't find it spine-jarring. I still have issues with the Sport Contact 5's on the back, which roar badly on certain road surfaces. The M40 is particularly bad and on the flip side the new stretch if the A46 near Newark is blissfully quiet.

I drove a 2.0tdi SE Sportback on 16in wheels before I bought my 2.0tdi Sport Sportback with 17in wheels and sport suspension. I think the 16 in wheels on an 8V 2.0 SE were quieter. It seems (not surprisingly) that the lower profile 225-45-17 tyres make the problem worse.

I may change the rears on my car although they have lots of tread left.

I will read the report that the OP posted. Sounds interesting.

 

[m0sbf]

That will help, they're rated at sub 70db which is one of the quietest tyres around.

Don't forget that the noise rating is outside noise, measured with the car driving past under fixed test conditions. The actual noise in the car's cabin may not reflect this. That said, the Dunlop's are supposed to offer low cabin noise too.

 

[GreatBallsofFire]

Don't forget that the noise rating is outside noise, measured with the car driving past under fixed test conditions. The actual noise in the car's cabin may not reflect this. That said, the Dunlop's are supposed to offer low cabin noise too.

I am not surprised the A3 is quite measuring outside, as almost all the produced tyre noise seems to be funnelled in to the cabin (that is likely what happens in my current A3 in any case ;-))

 

[m0sbf]

Interesting in the report that the 18in wheels when tested on the A3 only increase road noise by a tiny amount. I was expecting more

 

[Daveotto]

My view, for what it's worth..........the tyre noise in the 8V A3 is overplayed because the other sources of noise (engine and wind) are so god damm low........anyway I can always drown out any little bit of road noise I get by turning the volume knob above about 13/14 (Audi speaker upgrade)

 

[GreatBallsofFire]

In two weeks time or so I will be able to testimony if I in my mind think you are correct or not. There is a terrible road noise in my current 8P A3 (how can they sell that?), and I really expect the 8V to be considerable better in this respect - if not, I will consider never buy a A3 again. However, it so much depending on the condition on the road (other contributing factors is of course speed and tyre pressure and type of tyres). I commute on fairly rough surface every day, although a major "E" road (6 lanes) - and the noise around 100 km/h is usually terrible, especially now after the winter (although I am used to it). I suspect the concrete roads (Autobahns) in Germany is less rough and sound producing, so for the common German commuter (and engineer) the tyre noise is perhaps lower, and not regarded as an issue.

 

[Daz Auto]

At this point, having only driven a few hundred miles over the weekend, the car is very quiet. It has come on 16 inch Dunlop Sport Maxx tyres. More on comfort when I'm allowed to drive it more.