[shagwit]

I am awaiting my STi which should be here any day now. I sold my WRX 2 weeks ago in readiness (offer could not refuse). I have read all of the reviews from owners of the cars and the performance is just barmey but I get a sense that the car has a problem with road noise?
Can you guys who have the car give me some form of idea of noise, eg tire related, transmission, louder than the stereo!!! I spoke to a buddy out East who has one, he said he was dissapointed with the amount of noise generated and even went as far to say that without the stereo on it became quite annoying. Today I had a test drive in a Nissan 350Z, top car, very quiet, not bad performance, 18" wheels with Potenza tires I noticed no rod noise at all at 130kph. I still think the STi is better looking but some input would be nice. Ta.

 

[ingraham]

Well, its loud. I think its because it basicly has racing slicks on it. I dont have a stereo installed yet and am enjoying the motor sound / turbo whine, but it is noisy

 

[darwood]

The STi has alot of road noise, yes. Since I don't have a stereo yet I can't say if it will be louder than the stereo. The car is definetly missing some sound deadening installation. Of course that's what I expect out of a dedicated performance car. If you want a quiet cushy ride I wouldn't go with the STi.

 

[TotallyImports]

The 350z can not be compared to the STi in terms of performance...For performance and no noise your talk'n atleast m3

 

[ldivinag]

oh man... i passed over some rather new section of a freeeway and MAN it was loud...

this is concrete with the perpendicular (to the tire direction) slices cut into it...

 

[SFRinNJ]

Re: DEALER SAYS CREDIT UNION ILLEGAL???

Let's not forget why we bought the car. The engine. And the Subaru company. Now before you all jump on me it is loud. One is the tires. They grip the road, but do nothing to deaden the sound. Change tires to deaden the sound and you change performance. But here is my best suggestion. Was having the sound system put in today, and my tech asked me if I knew that under the carpet there was NOTHING! No padding or anything. He was going to put any left over dyna-mat from the speakers under the carpet. That may be a simple fix to adding some sound deadening to the car without giving up getting the car because of the 'noise'. I might add some more anyway. SFRinNJ

 

[soma]

I had the dealer get ContiExtremeContact tires for me as I need all season tires. My wife and I both believe that the STI is quieter at 70 MPH than our WRX was. The ride is still more stiff than the WRX, but not bad.

 

[WRX_XB9R]

I GOT MINE ON THE 23RD OF MAY

Road noise is most definately due to the tires. The other parts of the car are similar or less intrusive than the WRX. The only louder part is the growl of the engine and I will take that any day.
I put in a decent radio and do not have any problems with road noise now.

 

[hatchy]

Very loud. The tires, thin glass, thin carpet, thin headliner, no sound dampening. It is fine on the streets, but can get annoying on the freeway.

 

[sakura-iro]

i feel like it's pretty loud, but i think it sounds good. every part of the car, engine, tranny, diffs, and tires makes exactly the right noises. no stereo yet and i don't miss it.

 

[CloNeGTS]

I'd compare the overall sound volume to that of my Celica with mild exhaust (no fart can) and a CAI. Of course it's a different kind of noise...but I don't find it at all unusual.

 

[MKIVSupra]

Yeah it's loud but nothig I did not expect from a car like this, just like the rough ride. Like someone said the tires have a lot to do with it.

 

[SFRinNJ]

Got the car back today from the install of the sound system. The padding under the carpet made a big difference, for all that it mattered in the first place. I love everything about the car from the ground up. I'm not going to change the tires until I strip some of the rubber off of them, and the fall comes to the east. So now I crank up my new system and road noise be damned! SFRinNJ