I supposed it depends what other car you have, because my 09 sport is on the quiet side. I have a WRX and a Mitsu SUV, both are much more noisy car. RE050s on my car has lots of tread lefts after 10K miles and no funny wear pattern yet. Tires with least road noise I have experienced with is BF Goodrich KDW, but generally if a car have alignment problem it will be much noisier.

 

RE050s are known to be noisy. Tirerack.com has surveys on tires re noise, grip,etc. Check it out. Michellin PS2s are quiet but expensive.
Check your tires too for cupping. Tire cupping produces a lot of noise.

 

I've been using Tirerack's surveys and comparisons for years, to decide which particular tire brand would best suit my needs.
I've had a few sets sent that were already mounted on new wheels, but usually I just buy tires from them and have them shipped to a tire dealer, they recommend, to have them installed.
Everything is a compromise. You have to decide what is most important for you as far as dry grip, wet grip, snow/ice grip, ride comfort, noise, wear factor,price,etc.

 

Herkypiloy: That is good to know about the Michelin Primacy's. I am just learning to live with the road noise. It is very bad on some road surfaces and not bad at all on others. You just have to get past the bad sections of road. The newer the surface, the louder the road noise is.

I had the opportunity to drive a Lexus IS250 and a Lexus IS350 this weekend (both were 2007 models) and while they were very soft and quiet riding, I could not wait to get back in my G37. My G37 fits my driving style and performance desires much better than the cars mentioned above. I actually also drove a new VWGTI and it was not real fast but had a very competent chassis, I thought.

I actually liked the IS250 better than the IS350. The IS350 was noticably heavier and did not handle as well. Maybe an IS250 with a turbo would work. I stll love my G37. As someone said, no car is perfect.

Hot Toddy

 

There's about 72 pounds separating the two cars, and more than 100 horsepower. I had an IS350, and it certainly didn't handle worse than a 250 IMO.

 

I still have my IS250 and it drives smoother than my G37. The transmission shifts smoothly and the interior is topnotch. The driving position and seats are better IMO. But I'll take the G anytime for power and performance. ISx50 is just too cramp and small.

 

I'm absolutely baffled that nobody has mentioned using dynamat to deaden and quite down on the road noise. Dynamat and tint (done at the same time) was the very first mods I did to my 09 G37S Sedan. I dynamatted both front doors and behind the subwoofers, both rear doors, took the rear seat out and dynamatted all available spots under there as well as well as the rear deck itself. (You could do the floor of the car as well which would make noticeable difference.) There is NO DOUBT it made a difference. Not earth shattering, but noticeable for sure. It's funny I stumble across this thread today. I'm actually driving a 09 G37 (Non sport) as a loaner at the moment and it, for sure has more road noise and an overall louder cabin than my 09 G37S. Fwiw, I have Michelin Pilot Sport AS+ tires. (They make about the same noise as the stock Bridestones.)

 

i noticed when i fully deadened my previous car (the roof, everything except the hood) that the wind noise was more noticeable after.

 

I will take a serious look at Dynamat. I took a short (30 miles one way) trip last night, and my car even had a very noticable difference in the loudness of the road noise depending on which direction I was going even though I was on the same road. It was very loud on the trip over and a bit less noisy on the trip back. I would have been embarrased to have had anyone riding with me on the trip. They would have to be wondering why in the world I bought this car or these tires.

Slickrck, what did you use to deaden your car? Does additional undercoating make a difference in road noise or does it have to be the full Dynamat treatment?

 

never used undercoating but I know some people had success with deadening the wheel wells. I used second skin and second skin pro damplifier years ago. I think I had 250sqft of deadening in the car. Every inch of metal was covered and the entire car was stripped. I have an 09 g37 sedan on 18" dunlops and I think the road noise is acceptable. I've driven Lexus GS, LS, and IS and they all ride a bit smoother and quieter but lull me to sleep doing it. I noticed on my car that was deadened that going from directional yoko tires to kumho lx platinum made a huge difference in road noise. I plan to use these tires soon on the G.

 

Thanks for the info Slickrick. I will check out those Kumho lx platinum tires. I think that my best bet is to just change out the new tires on my car. I spoke to a soundworks place today about the Dynamat treatment and it is just not cost effective to pay someone to do it. They have to completely strip the interior out of the car to get the sound deadener throughout the inside of the car. Their advice was to get some softer tires without any sipes or horizontal spaces on the edges of the tires.

 

I know this isn't a solution, but it seems that once we zone in on something that slightly bothers us, it gets worse with time...some things are just tough to tune out. Also, all things are relative. Jump out of a Ram 4x4 with mud tires into a G and there's no road noise!

We ran Goodyear, Michelin, Kuhmo & Continental on our 03 G and if there was any difference it was minor to my ear. Road noise never bothers me, I look at it as part of the sport driving experience. I suspect our new G37 is quieter...but come to think of it, I haven't really noticed. The dealer warned us the ride in the sport model would be a little stiff...haven't noticed it one bit. Let me feel and hear the road!

I don't know much about the M's, but I would think Infiniti would focus more on road noise reduction with them? If they are quieter, maybe investigate what and why? Best of luck!

 

It is interesting to read this thread. I guess some of us are more sensitive than others...what bothers me is the type of road noise sound being generated on hard or rough surfaces from the front end. Although the noise sounds "solid", its almost like the front springs are reverberating a bit. I don't really see tires fixing this....and the car otherwise drives great...good balance, alignment seems perfect. I believe the test car I drove also made some of this noise, but I failed to recognize the source (unfamiliar with the car). I'll live with it...certainly don't want the dealer jacking around with the suspension.

 

Financeman, that is exactly what I have on my car, road noise being generated on hard or rough surfaces coming from the front end. I would add that the newer the road surface, the louder the road noise is. I am sure that it is also largely a matter of expectaions and an issue that starts out and just gets worse. Possibly, I was so enamored with the G37 performance at the time of purcahse that I did not notice the road noise. But, my test drive took place on a concrete Interstate, and when I drive on a concrete road now, it is very loud. My OEM Goodyear tires immediately cuppe (at 1,800 miles) and the car became louder and louder to me until at 16,000 miles I was ready for some new tires.

I checked out the Kumho LX Platinum tires (as mentioned aboveby Slickrick) on Tire Rack's website, and while they were indeed highly rated for having low noise, the other tires which they were compared to (including the Michelin MXV4) were not far behind in quietness. I am beginning to agree with Financeman (reluctantly) that a tire change will probably not solve my situaton. Then again, any decrease in unwanted db may help just enough. I just hate to throw away my new $800 Michelins, which drive and handle just great.

I will try to find out how the M series handle road noise, as suggested above.


I wonder if all of the aluminum suspension pieces on the G37 let a lot of road noise through? More so than some other cars with steel suspension parts?

 

I guess its somewhat reassuring to realize this is "normal".....and I do think its related to all the aluminum in the front suspension. I will be interested to learn if another tire choice might help this situation. The only thing that has helped my car is lower tire pressures. I currently run 31# cold.