Hello

In keeping with the GT nature of the F Type we are planning a 9 day road trip to Ireland in a months time. While I have confidence in enjoying the car on the country roads, the motorway trip to get there could be hard work due to road noise.

On motorways the car sits at about 1700rpm. Opening or closing the exhaust valves (ASR Controller) make little difference. The fake engine noise (NGPTSQ) pipped through speakers has been disable. Tyres are P-Zeros.

Has anyone made a significant reduction in road noise from their F Type? Was it worth the effort? Or any recommendation for earplugs 😊

(probably should mention this is the coupe &#128522

 

Unless you wanted to swap out the tyres for supersports which I thought ride very nicely as well, I'd just turn up the stereo, but in my experience it is best not to do that when your lovely wife is in the middle of a story.

 

I'd imagine it's worse because of the aftermarket cats you have on the car? I don't think they make crazy noise at a nice cruise like that.

Overall it's not a GT car, it's a sports car. You could pull paneling and add insulation, but I don't know if that would really give the desired results. One downside of aluminum unibody cars is they transmit noise in weird ways. You could be hearing powertrain noise transmitted through the body structure that would be tough to reduce.

 

Both you and your wife should simply wear earplugs. I wear them on long highway drives and they do wonders to reduce stress and fatigue.

 

The cats are definitely the issue. My MY23 is plenty quiet at cruising speed on the highway--even with the VAP valvetronic exhaust (valves closed). Absent swapping the cats, your only solution will be turning up the stereo or ear plugs.

 

Thanks for all the comments. @cwisenheimer Yes I tend to use AirPods on long solo drives which make a big difference in noise cancelling mode. Its looking like earplugs for both of us is the way forward for the trip. If anyone hears a couple shouting at each other at a service station it might be us having forgot to take then out!
@Thunder Dump and @RoverJoe . Respectfully I am pretty sure the main source of noise while cruising is road noise. The different road surfaces can makes a big difference, and it sounds like road noise. Was looking for an easier solution than crossing the UK using only freshly laid smooth tarmac roads.
That said the F Type has less road noise than the 992 I have previously. But rather more than our Land Rover. Tinnitus is one of the curses of aging and not helped by spending hours in the Jag on a motorway.

 

If it changes with road surfaces then yes it's going to be the junk Pirelli tires. Tough to compare the jag to a big Rover, as they are so much quieter inside, and yet we still have tire noise issues in the new ones using the 23" Pirelli tires.

 

There may be something to gain with better sound deadening in the boot. I noticed when I had all the panels out it was definitely louder, but I'm not sure how much the real-world benefit would be. I expect some, but would it be enough? I don't have that answer.

 

Check local laws before wearing Airpods while driving. In my state doing that will get you a ticket. Not sure I agree as I can crank up the stereo as loud as I want with no issues. I am not sure if wearing earplugs is allowed.

 

There's not much one can do and as said most of the noise is road noise, especially from the rear of the car. I did a multi layer sound deadening of the doors to improve the stereo sound which I think helped a bit. I also added sound deadening to parts of the trunk floor and the rear wheel arches when I stripped the trunk for some leak sealing. I think that helped a bit too but it's not night and day. Having the trunk full of luggage also helps a bit.

The road surface really makes a huge difference in a car like the F-Type with hard fat tyres and limited sound deadening. I do a lot of road tripping all over continental Europe on mostly very smooth roads which is fine. French, Dutch and Italian highways are some of the best in terms of smoothness and minimal road noise. I also took it up to different parts of England once and those were some of the worst and noisiest roads I've ever experienced. I'd probably need ear plugs on any longer journeys on English or Scandinavian roads.

By the way, how did you manage to disable the NGPTSQ?

 

Hi, Thanks for sharing, it was a bit of a long shot but good to get your information on sounding deadening.
While I think the NGPTSQ can be disabled by Pathfinder software I used the wire cut method! I made a post here
Forum Post
Its also
Website

Finally thanks for the understanding regarding our roads

 

My MY19 does seem to produce a fair amount of road noise from the rear, too. I’ve noticed that its incongruous with the quietness of the cabin. I kind of prefer driving with the window open because it evens out the sonic impression. It’s not enough for me to fret over, but it’s an imperfection of the F-Type (presuming my car is not unusual).

 

I can attest the cats really shouldn't be the issue. I have them, and they make it really loud when the valves are open (basically muffler bypass). BUT the stock mufflers do a great job when the valves are closed, and my R (stage 3 + cats and intake) cruises really nicely when everything is dialed down. It does have some road noise though - keep in mind these are "sporting" GT cars, intended to be a bit sharper and a little closer to a 911 competitor than something like an XKR. You'll have road noise as they are fairly stiffly sprung. All that said, definitely look at tires - how old are your Pirellis? When a tire gets a bit older and more worn down, often they transmit a bit more road noise. I don't have first-hand experience, but there may be alternate tires that fit your needs that are quieter - the defacto upgrade for the stock Pirellis are the Michelin PS4S's (or whatever they have now) for a high performance tire. If you're willing to give up a little sidewall stiffness, there are models (like the Primacy 4+) that sacrifice a little bit of response for a smoother and quieter ride. Also I have actually heard of alignment causing noise - is it just white road noise or do you hear a pattern to it (like a quiet buzzing/vibrating sound)?

 

I have a question regarding NGPTSQ. How do I know if it even works? I have it in my 2022 and according to one article I read the volume can be adjusted via the entertainment system but I have tried repeatedly to ascertain if there is any enhancement coming thru the speakers and can discern nothing. Am I missing something?

 

Thanks, Yes like you I am enjoying the range of exhaust sounds I available. The main reason for getting the CATS changed was to allow a pop and burble tune. I did get this and the standard stage 2 tune but the car behaves so well with the exhaust valves closed I never installed the standard version.
I am sure its just standard road noise I am complaining about. It would be good to have a car that was good at everything but in many ways its flaws are what makes the F Type unique.

 

I am pretty sure all 2022 cars will have the NGPTSQ. Its listed on my cars build sheet as "NGPTSQ HIGH" There is no way to turn the system off. It does behave differently making a lounder sound when the exhaust valves are in open mode to what you get when the valves are closed.
If you are parked and switch the exhaust valves by far the majority of the difference in sound is coming from the speakers.
You could also try driving a steady 10mph and pressing the exhaust valve switch. At this speed the valves will not open even it the button is pressed. Any extra engine sounds you hear are coming from the speakers.

Actually just found a helpful website. Put you VIN in here are it will tell you if you have the system.
VIN Lookup – OEM ACTIVATIONS

 

One more idea: if your purpose is to quiet down the car for a specific road trip, consider replacing your tires just prior to the trip. New tires with full tread depth are decidedly quieter than tires with a few thousand miles on them. If you are 80% through the life span of your current tires, think of the expense as paying 20% of the cost of a set of tires to have a quiet trip.

 

Thanks for your reply. I'll give your suggestions a try to see if I can discern any output from the speakers. Yes, the NGPTSQ is listed on the build sheet for my car and that's why I have tried to see if it really has any effect. I'll put fuse 15 in for the experiments.