Hey, I am contemplating using this product http://www.quietcar.net. Has anyone heard of or used it? I would like to decrease the noise levels in my Mada - it is not bad but the buzz and hum over a long distance is not too comfortable. I like the quiet of the Lexuses. The few reviews available seem to speak highly of this product. Thought about Dynamat but prefer not adding the weight to the Mada - especially if one wants to use it all over.

I am also not much mechanically inclined. How hard would it be to remove /put back the door panels, roof liners, seats/carpets to spray this on?

TIA.

Sounds like a big project to me! I have heard of the product, but don't really know of anyone who have used it!

I would use a more known and respected product.

Dynamat (http://www.dynamat.com/), eDead (http://www.edesignaudio.com/edv2/index.php?cPath=24), SecondSkin (http://www.secondskinaudio.com/cgi-bin/index.cgi), BrownBread (http://www.b-quiet.com/), or RAAMmat (http://www.raamaudio.com/cgi-bin/index.cgi) are all well known and respected sound deading materials in the car audio industry.

Also sound deading is a major project. You have to strip the car down basically to its bare essentials and then give the stuff time to dry. Then put everything back. It is time consuming and for a good job, not something a novice should undertake IMO.

That was what I was afraid of:( . So I should tell my spouse that the recommendation of this forum is that I should upgrade to the QX56:D . I like the secondskin details you sent, maybe I will consider doing it in bits and pieces - doors first, wheel wells, etc. Have the service manual, never too late to learn something new. Wish there was someone in Houston who could do this for me for a reasonable fee though.

Wish there was someone in Houston who could do this for me for a reasonable fee though.

Check your local well respected car audio shops there. If you have some big time shops there, I'm sure they offer sound deading as a service, but it might cost a little bit.

I put some deadener on the the roof and sunroof shade. I used a product called cascade. I got the VB-2HD, it is synthetic material, not the oil based stuff a lot of the other typical deadeners are. I wanted to stay away from something smelling like a hot tin roof since theat was where I was putting it. You don't need a whole lot. 14sf will be more than enough I think. Just pull down the overhead console and stick stips where ever you can to the roof through the headliner. It makes a HUGE difference. Before it felt like sitting in a tin can whenever it rained, it doesn't any more. I also stuck some on the top of the sunroof shade as my shade use to rattle and the added weight stopped that. It also made it a lot quieter in the front as well. If you have the sunroof you can get it in there a little at a time by opening the sunroof and sliding the shade a little. I used a couple of sticks to drop it where I wanted and then rubbed it on. I put a couple of layers on it but don't advise that much as the shade is pretty heavy now and when it is all the way open it'll make some noise when going over bumps as it bounces off of some of the cross supports.

LOL, you won't get the same answer twice! ;)

I used Dynamat Xtreme on my Acura MDX. It is a phenominal product. I pulled my door panels off, covered the door skin from the inside of the door, then covered the metal to which the panel sits against. I had WAY less road noise, and my speakers sounded 100% better. I even had more bass.

I didn't do the headliner or floor panels because I knew it would a real pain. plus I think most the road noise comes from the doors. Now this product is heavy, but all the best installers will tell it takes MASS to deaden sound. And that mass has to weigh something. I bought a bulk kit from Ebay, had enough for the doors, hatch, and bit left over for my Camry. I apid about $130 after shipping. Plus I did it myslef, so I now it was done right.http://cgi.ebay.com/DYNAMAT-10455-XTREME-DAMPING-BULK-PACK-36SQFT-NEW_W0QQitemZ120109955378QQihZ002QQcategoryZ67760Q QssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

I would try real tires. My stock tires were noisy. My A/T Nittos are so much quieter, that the Armada is more quiet than my Infiniti. They also have the added benefit of better handling, wear, etc. Plenty of good options out there like Goodyear Silent Armor or Michelin Cross Terrain SUV. ;)
BTW, the '05 and newer Armadas have the QX sound proofing added. Couple hundred pounds of sound proofing material over an '04.

My Mada is at least 20db's lower inside then my Lexus. The noise in my 2006 GS430 Lexus is unbearable, enough so I'm considering trading it in :( I haven’t checked but I bet my Harley is quieter). Very disappointed with the noise level in the Lexus..... Happy with the Mada!

Wow. My Acura was quieter before and after the dynamat than my Armada. Now granted my Armada is louder than most because I have the tow mirrors...........those added quite a bit more wind noise. you guys must have some quiet Armadas! ;) Hey 92TB, did you have the Michelins as standard equip tires?

My Mada is at least 20db's lower inside then my Lexus. The noise in my 2006 GS430 Lexus is unbearable, enough so I'm considering trading it in :( I haven’t checked but I bet my Harley is quieter). Very disappointed with the noise level in the Lexus..... Happy with the Mada!

Doc, I'm surprised your GS430 is noisy, my GS300 is very quiet, however when I purchased it, I noticed that one of the obvious differences between the two was that the 430 was noisier than the 300. Mine came with 17'' wheels which were alot quieter than the 18's yours came with. I now have 19"s rims on my car and it is still very quiet, quieter than the Armada. Could it be the suspension set up on the 430?

Thanks for all the answers, more inputs always welcome. I am surprised too that the Lexus has more noise than an Armada - did they forget to put in the sound proofing in that particular vehicle??:rolleyes:

I had a quick look at the service manual - looks like the doors, rear liftgate will be easy. The roof and floor perhaps not. If I was to spray the wheel wells with SecondSkin's Spectrum, would I have to paint it black after? What paint would I use?

92TripleBlack, I did take your suggestion about 6 months ago and got the Michelin Cross Terrains, they are quieter than the stock. My hope now is to get it closer to the Lexus quiet (if possible).

Thanks for all the answers, more inputs always welcome. I am surprised too that the Lexus has more noise than an Armada - did they forget to put in the sound proofing in that particular vehicle??:rolleyes:

I had a quick look at the service manual - looks like the doors, rear liftgate will be easy. The roof and floor perhaps not. If I was to spray the wheel wells with SecondSkin's Spectrum, would I have to paint it black after? What paint would I use?

92TripleBlack, I did take your suggestion about 6 months ago and got the Michelin Cross Terrains, they are quieter than the stock. My hope now is to get it closer to the Lexus quiet (if possible).
If that's the case, you have the '04 with lower noise shielding. I would try Dynamat. One of the best sound deaderners. Its a PITA as you need to remove stuff down to the bare metal to install.

ssimon,

I used Second Skin Damplifier and Spectrum Firewall on my 1971 Nova (loud as hell with Headers and 3 chamber flowmasters). So far I have used it on the firewall, floorpan, and doors and the difference is amazing. The Damplifier has not peeled due to heat (I live in Arizona), even at the firewall. Once I do the trunk, roof and hood, this thing should sound like a new car on the inside (granted not a lexus, but not a 71 Nova either):)

Here's a website that has some great info on sound deadeners:

http://www.sounddeadenershowdown.com/

I think you will find that putting product on the doors will work wonders and if you can do the floorpan then that will take out a lot of the noise.

As far as prep went, I had to scrub my floors with denatured alcohol several times to get the glue off from the old barrier, doors were easier.

Hope this helps.

Thanks, all, for all the information. They increased the sound deadening in 05 models???:mad: :censor: - darn, I knew I should have waited!! I am going to do the doors first. Depending on how much effect it has, I may consider additional areas - the firewall may be a good area, but how do you get to the firewall on the Mada? Or is it just reaching in to clean out and stick on the mats in pieces? Any videos/pics of someone who has done it? (No harm in asking, is there?)

My Mada is at least 20db's lower inside then my Lexus. The noise in my 2006 GS430 Lexus is unbearable, enough so I'm considering trading it in :( I haven’t checked but I bet my Harley is quieter). Very disappointed with the noise level in the Lexus..... Happy with the Mada!

I doubt the difference is 20 dB. 3 dB is 1/2 the sound level, so 20 dB is 1/2 seven times.:eek: Also, TB, are you sure the difference between the 04 and the later was a couple of hundred pounds of sound deadening? I agree my 06 is way quieter than my 04 was, but that much weight????

For the Doors, I just did some DynaMat Extreme with a Xsorb behind the speaker. The doors are dead quiet. The trunk rattles slightly with the sub, but it will be taken care of this weekend... :-)