20" Wheels - excessive road noise

[Philip Fisher]

It would appear from your investigations that there simply isn't a solution from Volvo. I would suggest that this one is going to run and run.

It would seem to be a problem with resonance and that can be overlooked even by the best engineers - see Tacoma Narrows for details.

If you want to get rid of the noise then I would suggest your only solution is to trial the 19's as described in my post and then push the dealer for a free swap. Without wishing to be prematurely negative I don't think anything else is going to fix it....

[familymangreg]

Originally Posted by Denedriver

Don't be fobbed off off on this. Volvo are fully aware of the problem and have investigated it at manufacture level. Running at lower pressures is well documented, they are well below the recommendation in the book, so is it safe? What about tyre wear?

I followed the following pattern with my also very helpful dealer:

1. Run lower tyre pressures-Unacceptable
2. Change wheels to 21 inch with Pirelli PNCS - Unacceptable and now even harsher ride, although massive resonance on concrete relieved.
3. Work to B Post to fill gaps to sill to reduce noise carried up to ear.- Minute improvement
4. Despair of hating the car and PX for Q7 - Acceptable but £,000s out of pocket.

I continue to watch these forums as I am amazed that Volvo customer care UK continue to mislead customers by saying there is not a problem they are aware of. RUBBISH! Also I am curious as to whether they will ever be able to resolve the problem, it seem not so far.

The route of discovery cost me a lot of money and a loss of faith in Volvo as a brand.

Originally Posted by Philip Fisher

It would appear from your investigations that there simply isn't a solution from Volvo. I would suggest that this one is going to run and run.

It would seem to be a problem with resonance and that can be overlooked even by the best engineers - see Tacoma Narrows for details.

If you want to get rid of the noise then I would suggest your only solution is to trial the 19's as described in my post and then push the dealer for a free swap. Without wishing to be prematurely negative I don't think anything else is going to fix it....

Thanks Phillip, and yes I agree. I'm still not convinced that different tyres could make all that much difference.

19's will be the only way to go, but I do like the looks of the 20's!

I'll further test the Volvo experience by leaving it a day or two to see if they come back to me now we've had the dealer inspection.

:wq

[Denedriver]

Hi, thanks for this. Just to be clear on a couple of points:

Quote:
2. Change wheels to 21 inch with Pirelli PNCS - Unacceptable and now harsher ride, although massive resonance on concrete relieved.even
Did you do this at your own expense? RESPONSE: NO, it was a trial by Volvo, it worked on resonance(humming inside car on certain surfaces) but not really on high road noise.


Quote:
3. Work to B Post to fill gaps to sill to reduce noise carried up to ear.- Minute improvement
Did your dealer do this for you? Is it a documented issue/procedure? RESPONSE: YES and YES, but yours is a MY17, so it should have been done.
Quote:
4. Despair of hating the car and PX for Q7 - Acceptable but £,000s out of pocket.
So you have changed to a Q7 now? RESPONSE: YES. It is a better car all round although not as good looking as the Volvo I think. It does though have a certain presence. Better ride on all surfaces, soaks up the road bumps. The XC skittered around, crashed and bounced, especially on he 21 inch wheels. It is faster and smoother with a great engine. I enjoy driving it whereas I got to the stage with the Volvo that the thought of a long run made me fed up.

[gaby]

Both cars on air suspension?

[eax]

Interesting read from almost 10 years ago. Seems road noise and Volvos have been synonymous for quite a while now

http://www.volvo-forums.com/t24524-x...se--help33.htm

[BTXC90]

Originally Posted by Denedriver

Hi, thanks for this. Just to be clear on a couple of points:

Quote:
2. Change wheels to 21 inch with Pirelli PNCS - Unacceptable and now harsher ride, although massive resonance on concrete relieved.even
Did you do this at your own expense? RESPONSE: NO, it was a trial by Volvo, it worked on resonance(humming inside car on certain surfaces) but not really on high road noise.


Quote:
3. Work to B Post to fill gaps to sill to reduce noise carried up to ear.- Minute improvement
Did your dealer do this for you? Is it a documented issue/procedure? RESPONSE: YES and YES, but yours is a MY17, so it should have been done.
Quote:
4. Despair of hating the car and PX for Q7 - Acceptable but £,000s out of pocket.
So you have changed to a Q7 now? RESPONSE: YES. It is a better car all round although not as good looking as the Volvo I think. It does though have a certain presence. Better ride on all surfaces, soaks up the road bumps. The XC skittered around, crashed and bounced, especially on he 21 inch wheels. It is faster and smoother with a great engine. I enjoy driving it whereas I got to the stage with the Volvo that the thought of a long run made me fed up.

I used to love Q7, my favourite car until the new XC90 was released.
I like the previous version and would have been a difficult decision (Q7 vs XC90) if they didn't change the model and look.

It kind of looks more like a Wagon now, more than a full size SUV

[gaby]

Originally Posted by eax

Interesting read from almost 10 years ago. Seems road noise and Volvos have been synonymous for quite a while now

http://www.volvo-forums.com/t24524-x...se--help33.htm

Having owned Volvo's sinds the 1970's, I don't agree. I have had more or less road noise,
depending on tyres/wheel sizes.
I think it is more realistic to say that road noise is a problem for some people,
driving a combination of some cars and some tyres/wheels.

[savita108]

I have owned two Volvos before (V70 2006 and XC70 2014). I bought XC90 2016 in February and yes - apart from many good features, I find the noisy cabin to be the weakest point of this car. Before I sold my XC70, I had a frequent opportunity to still drive it and compare it to XC90. The engine noise is definitely louder in XC70 (comparing to XC90 it sounds almost like a howling tractor), but road noise is much higher in XC90. Also the softness of the drive is much better in XC70, XC90 is quite hard in comparison.

I started with 19''winter tires (Nokians). I then changed them for the original 20''wheels with Continentals Conti Sport and was shocked by yet higher noise (and also bigger resistance resulting in less lively acceleration). I immediately threw them out and replaced by 19''wheels with Michelin Sport Latitude. The noise is less, the car is more lively, but not really night and day. I have laminated windows. My feeling is the the sound insulation of the chassis is quite bad - and this is the main reason why the cabin is noisy. I have driven Audi Q7 2016 and apart from many features where XC90 is clearly better, it is definitely more silent and smoother inside.

It somehow happened that my XC90 collapsed and is now is being replaced with XC90 2017 (D5 Inscription). Picking it tomorrow. It will have air suspension now (my previous car was without air suspension) and for sure I will replace the OEM 20''wheels (with those horrendous Continentals) by my previous 19''wheels with Michelin.

I am really curious how it compares to my XC90 2016 in terms of cabin noise. From the reports I heard that at least the engine is quite smoother than it was in XC2016.

It is really a bit disappointing that Volvo announced its new luxury car generation with amazing promo etc. But what is the use of Swedish flags on the seats when of the essential "luxury" features - smooth silent drive - is somehow missing ...

Originally Posted by familymangreg

1. A journal related to excessive noise coming up the B-pillar via the area where the front seatbelt runs. There is a service procedure associated with this which involved installing additional sound proofing material in this area. However, as my car is a 2017 car, it already has the additional sound proofing and no action is required.

This is my hope that after hearing numerous complaints about the noise, Volvo could secretely improve it in 2017 model ... I will find out tomorrow (and since my previous XC90 2016 is still standing there, I can directly compare these two cars XC90 D5 2016 vs. 2017)

[savita108]

On the other hand, in this comparison table, XC90 shows very similar cabin noise (in 70 mph) as Audi Q7, Range Rover or BMW. It is, of course, T6. But as for the road noise, it should be the same. I will measure the noise level in my XC90 D5 2017 today

http://www.caranddriver.com/comparis...e-specs-page-6

[gaby]

Originally Posted by savita108

The engine noise is definitely louder in XC70 (comparing to XC90 it sounds almost like a howling tractor),
but road noise is much higher in XC90.

What engines do you refer to?