sound deadening in Elise S2 - quiet or just less noise?

[aea730]

Ive dropped my deposit on one of the last SC models in the facelift spec. Its got the sports pack and although no touring pack as such it has all the T pack through dealer upgrades except the sound deadening.

The car is 5 hours drive away so Ive not actually driven it but Im interested to know whether I will get in the car an go deaf within 40 miles or whether the sound deadening bit is a gesture rather than a full on removal of engine and road noise.

I get the impression that "roof off" which covers 95% of my use the effects of the kit are negligible and its only once you put the top on that the difference can be heard.

Ive read some easy DIY deadening fixes on seloc which I am happy to consider.

Its a bit of an hobsons choice anyway as Im wanting the latest shape SC but not an RGB special which leaves next to nothing to choose from given these cars are now obsolete.

[bogie]

wouldnt worry about it...its only the last year or two any Elise has had it...never stopped sales then

like you say, once the roof is off, you have 100dB of wind noise so makes no odds anyway

[Geneve]

I thought the extra sound insulation had been part of the Touring Pack for a few years. Purely, subjective, but think it does help soften cabin noise.

[aea730]

yes its been an option on the elise for a while, my current one has it. Ive found quite a few threads on various forums detailing DIY sound insulation which given the simplicity of the car seems nothing too onerous seems to be about £200 and a few hours effort for a decent job

[bogie]

I think theres 2 different things here

quite a few years back on S2s they started adding a bit of dynamat type stuff at one point called part of a "touring pack"

later on, more recent years on the posher Toyota engined cars they put more substantial sound deadening pack on, like a "regular" production car; big acoustic foam inserts in all the voids in the car

the latter, is difficult to retro fit unless you are a body repair centre and taking the car apart for a rebuild

[icepop]

I find this all a bit bemusing. When I rode my motorbikes I always wore earplugs, as from my experience at work, and from external pursuits anything over 85dB is damaging to ears dependant on the time scale involved. The problem is the scale is exponetial and doubles with every one point increment.

So when I got my Caterham, I always continued to wear earplugs, especially with the roof on, as it was far louder than without.

The same applies to the Elise, I always wear earplugs with the roof off and definitely with the thing in place.

A good motorcycle helmet, with plugs, is quieter than either of the two cars above, use those plugs, or you'll regret it later in life.

[k wright]

I always wear earplugs in the Exige S as well. Posters in the USA go wild about this reporting that I'll soon be dead as a result of not hearing a horn or something but I can hear everything fine, just at a reduced volume.

There is no insulation that is more effective nor lighter and easier to install.

[RobM77]

k wright said:

I always wear earplugs in the Exige S as well. Posters in the USA go wild about this reporting that I'll soon be dead as a result of not hearing a horn or something but I can hear everything fine, just at a reduced volume.

For example, if you can't hear someone in a nightclub or over the roar of a loud racing engine, stick your fingers in your ears and you'll hear them fine. My hearing's note great and I've been chatting to friends in clubs and noisy pit garages like this for years.

Does anyone know how much the sound deadening on these new cars weighs?

[TIPPER]

Set of decent earplugs makes a massive difference: filters out a lot of the car noises and you can hear the stereo more clearly. You can also more clearly hear conversation with a passenger.
The plugs shouldn't be designed to block sound, just attenuate it. There's a couple of specialist earplug e-shops that offer a bewildering array of products but a bit of research and thought should see you sorted. Its also a lot cheaper than messing with the car.