Anyone Ask About Interior Noise?

[JEBar]

given a standard $6,800 Elio with no aftermarket additions .... realizing that at this point nobody knows for sure, how high would you anticipate the noise level inside the passenger's compartment to be when cruising at interstate speed .... car companies spend a good deal of effort sound proofing the passenger compartment and I haven't heard it mentioned Elio Motors .... will it be quiet enough for the driver and passenger to carry on a conversation ? .... will the person in the back seat be able to hear the radio ? .... will headsets similar to those used on motorcycles be needed ?

just wondering

Jim

Moderator comment: Merged into existing interior noise thread

 

[NSTG8R]

Good question. I think, as long as there's a little Dynamat or the like on the firewall and floorboard, the road noise won't be that bad. Front wheels are out there by themselves, free-wheeling rear, VERY slippery body design. Not sure how it'd be with both windows down on the highway though.

 

[goofyone]

Jim, this is an excellent question!

As you already said we really don't know for sure at this point and the prototypes until now have not actually had any sound deadening material in them so that does not really help us. Having said that I expect the Elio will do quite well as it has several advantages.

The biggest advantage I see is the fact that two out of three wheels are not located within the structure and the only one within the structure is not driven as well as being underneath both a layer of insulation and the one piece floorpan so this should reduce road noise quite considerably. Slippery aerodynamics should cut down on wind noise and the SMC composite body panels are naturally better at sound deadening than metal panels.

So all that tells me that even with standard econobox insulation the Elio should still be very quiet for an economy car.

 

[NSTG8R]

Jim, this is an excellent question!

As you already said we really don't know for sure at this point and the prototypes until now have not actually had any sound deadening material in them so that does not really help us.

Having said that I expect the Elio will do quite well as it has several advantages. The biggest advantage I see is the fact that two out of three wheels are not located within the structure and the only one within the structure is not driven as well as being underneath both a layer of insulation and the one piece floorpan so this should reduce road noise quite considerably. Slippery aerodynamics should cut down on wind noise and the SMC composite body panels are naturally better at sound deadening that metal panels.

So all that tells me that even with standard econobox insulation the Elio should still be very quiet for an economy car.

Yeah! I forgot about the composite panels being quieter!

 

[JEBar]

prior to making the above post, I did try the search feature and somehow couldn't find this thread .... the comments about tire/wheel location makes sense and I'm glad to see Elio Motor's commitment to building a quiet interior .... how about motor noise out the tail pipe .... restrictive mufflers tend to be quiet but also tend to decrease mileage .... open mufflers tend to be loud but often increase mileage .... personally, I like to hear a low rumble but I no longer enjoy the loud mufflers

Jim

 

[Norahsbed]

I'm deaf in one ear and can't hear out the other, so when I get my hearing aids, I'll just turn them off!

 

[NSTG8R]

I'm deaf in one ear and can't hear out the other, so when I get my hearing aids, I'll just turn them off!

I hear ya Norahsbed...uhh, so to speak. Jet aircraft and rivet guns for 30+ years weren't kind to the ear drums.

 

[Norahsbed]

I hear ya Norahsbed...uhh, so to speak. Jet aircraft and rivet guns for 30+ years weren't kind to the ear drums.

Mines more medical, ears don't drain properly and have busted the left ear drum 3 times due to pressure and fluid build up. Every time I went to see ENT doc about tubes, nothing was there, so never got them. Now I just ingest lots of decongestants to keep the fluid build up at a minimum. Of course rock concerts didn't help much either!

 

[goofyone]

prior to making the above post, I did try the search feature and somehow couldn't find this thread .... the comments about tire/wheel location makes sense and I'm glad to see Elio Motor's commitment to building a quiet interior .... how about motor noise out the tail pipe .... restrictive mufflers tend to be quiet but also tend to decrease mileage .... open mufflers tend to be loud but often increase mileage .... personally, I like to hear a low rumble but I no longer enjoy the loud mufflers

Jim

Well we know Eastern Catalytic will be supplying the entire exhaust system. We will just have to wait and see what it sounds like however I am sure IAV knows exactly how much back pressure the system will create and have taken this into account in the engine design. The exhaust will exit at a bit of an unusual location as the muffler is actually located under the passengers' feet with the exhaust exiting under the car near the right frame rail.

 

[goldwing06]

I hear ya Norahsbed...uhh, so to speak. Jet aircraft and rivet guns for 30+ years weren't kind to the ear drums.

some ear buds for your tunes and hands free cellphone use can knock the noise down by several db.