milt

While driving on bumpy roads I noticed several squeaks and clicks from various places (rear headrest, gear selector, steering column) after owning my 2001 E430 for a couple of months.

When I brought it to the dealer to get a cd changer installed I pointed out these problems and they supposedly fixed them (no charge, still under warranty).

It was great for a while, but a couple of weeks later I started noticing the gear selector noise coming back.

So my question is how much noise (if any) do you tolerate?

I figure I shouldn't have to listen to all these clicks and squeeks in a $50K car with only 30K miles on it. Am I just being a pain in the *** or should I keep bringing it back to the dealer (which is a pain for me) until it stays quiet?

-milt

karl k

Zero tolerance for squeaks and rattles. Warranty will cover it.

dtkw

In my 86' 560SEL, it makes a huming noise when the A/C is on, even on eco mode. But whenever I get near the MB guy's place, it stopped!! So, next week I am going to take him for a ride to see if the noise comes back or not.

jpb5151

Definitely bug the dealer.

In our c230k, the loudest thing is the defrost fan and I don't mind because it gets things clear pretty quickly. Creaks, rattles, etc, haven't appeared (yet?). Our car didn't cost $50k, but we still have 0 tolerance and will let the dealer know if such a thing arises.

karl k

Tire noises are a major source of annoyance,

always interfing with HIFI stereo listenig pleasure, -- and/or meditation.

The larger the tires, the noisier the cabin.

Additionally, the lower the car sits, the closer you are to the tire noises --

hence more cabin noise from tires, and more discomfort impacting adversely driver and passengers.

:o

New E

Milt,

With respect to the squeak in the rear headrests, try moving the plastic grommet (type thing) the headrest posts go through. There's just enough play in there so that if you center the post in the middle of them it might stop squeaking. The dealer said this is a known problem and he's been telling people to use a small spot of velcro to help secure the headrests in place, but I found this solved the problem. That was really the only squeak or rattle I've encountered in my 02 E430.

Good Luck!

HiDefDave

Time for a new (and more quiet) set of tires.

Same thing happened at 23,000 miles on my 1999 C230 Kompressor mit Sport. The original Pirellis were hard compound "sport" tires and were pretty close to being toast and that worn, hard tread created a cacaphony of noisy vibrations all over the interior. New Michelins alleviated the problem for a whopping 11,000 miles.

Forget about Pirellis. Forget about Michelins. Above all, unless you race on weekends, forget about any "sport" tire. Get real and buy some "touring" tires. My Continental ContiTouringContact tires are smooth and quiet and handle everyt bit as well as the boy-racer tires I had before. Trust me, your interior buzzes and rattles will disappear. (BTW, I'm a broadcast TV sound engineer and am extremely sensitive to things like this.)

Lower suspension...the closer you are to the tires the more noise you'll hear? I don't think an inch of distance is going to make any difference. It's the low mechanical compliance of a sport supension when compared to that of the standard setup that helps transmit road and tire noise and vibration into the cabin more efficiently, not that you're sitting one inch closer to the source. The soft, high-compliance standard setup is inherently smoother and quieter than a "sport" suspension with its OEM "sport" tires.

karl k

Hey Mister sound engineer!

You conveniently edited out in your response

-- LARGER tires generate more noise! --

Certainly, a 19" tire is noisier -- including touring contis.

Too much exposure to selective out-of-context media commentary/blah blah blah?



Here again is my Full statement from above:

The larger the tires, the noisier the cabin.

Additionally, the lower the car sits, the closer you are to the tire noises --

HiDefDave

Sheesh! What a hothead.

That's because I'm not arguing that larger tires don't generate more noise. (It's measurable, yet difficult to perceive.) My point is that sitting an inch or so closer to the tires will not appreciably increase perceived noise. That's why I made a reference to that part of your response. Your point doesn't make any sense, it's verifiably incorrect with a simple demonstration involving an SPL meter along with well-established and recognized measurements of human response to noise stimuli, and insisting that it be coupled with an accompanying true statement doesn't make it true.

And although your point about larger tires creating more noise is true, it is not germain to this discussion since at no point has the Forum Member who began this thread with his complaint stated that he was running 19" tires or anything other than what came stock on his car.

Your remarks don't strike me as those that one would expect from someone who had any sort of expertise in this area.

karl k

Stick to your touring contis...

and sound engineer your interior with headphones.

It's obvious, that you are totally incompetent in the the area of noise dynamiscs, -- other than perhaps

"earmuff engineering"?

HiDefDave

Is this troll the website's official "crank"? Oh, well...fortunately this site has a post ignore list feature so I just put him on my ignore list and I'll never see another post from him again.

Switch to decaf, Karl.

benz2

Granted, larger tires make more noise, but the bit about a lowered car make more noise than one that isn't because it sits closer to the tires just doesn't make sense.

bigtire

I t seems to me that the reason a lowered car has more road noise is because the suspension is firmer and will not absorb the vibrations like a stock setup. Additionally, low profile tires do not absorb the bumps like stock tires with higher and more flexible sidewalls. Just my 2 cents worth.

karl k

Hi Deaf D

Your condescending remarks re Troll, Crank put you into the perfect category of self-realization...

Wear your sound engineer's ear-muffs & enjoy your surroundings the best way you can:

@ 120 + decibels!!

:o