it all depends on the road surface

concrete roads are the worst, through to the new smoother asphalt used on motorways now are the best for noise

I tend to find road noise is more noticeable due to the quietness of the engine and lower wind noise compared to my previous cars

the test for me is how easy is it to have a conversation without having to raise your voice, or how loud do you have to have the radio to mask the road noise

all the stats seem to show the Ioniq is no noisier than most popular cars

 

I think that the road (wheel) noise around 30 mph in EV mode is the most noticeable. I have to problem with the noise level, road or wind, on motorways, no more than most other cars, including my previous car as new.

New or worn asphalt surface makes the biggest difference, though.

I have read the tyres a specially selected for ECO driving, and may be also the recommended tyre pressure?

The Ioniq is by far not most silent one to get. (Rolls Royce Phantom VIII is probably.) The engine (ICE) is described by some reviewers as a bit noisy at high revolutions. More insulation means more weight and volume. And a more silent engine would mean a bigger one, with more sylinders, I guess.

I have a feeling the absence of a running ICE at low speeds may increase my sensitivity to the road noise. Not sure.

 

Yes the very silent engine was also my first answer for the annoying roadnoise.
And IT may be okay silent overall. But Never the less in my ears it is a constant annoying sound..
I tried to listen carefully in my old car a Peugeot 208. Of course the engine noise is far more loud but the roadnoise is way less.

 

Wheelcabins of the Ioniq are not so well sound isolated. Michelin energy savers have a low roll resistance but are not the most silent tyres you can get.
I turn my stereo 20% higher to overrule the road noise.
Get over it. This is one of my high prio functional improvements for the Ioniq.
BTW: BC1; Whats the poll status on my top3 functional improvements?

 

Shame.. dont want to buy a car and have to turn the stereo on. On Long highway runs i like it to be silent
Anyone tried other tires ?

 

I think I am likely to be the first to change tyres due to mileage possibly in 2-3 months, my preference is Dunlop blueresponse they were good on a previous car
@Renescheffers I will be looking at that later, due to personal issues I am a bit pre occupied at the moment

 

But Hyundai must have done some thoughts regarding wheel and tires.
I dont think 15" looks good on this car..
You cant even choose bigger alloys.

 

Where are you located?

17" rims are standard on the Limited trims in Canada and the US, and optional on the Premium SE trim in the UK.

 

15" is standard here in Denmark even in the higest trim edition..
The dealer could fit 17" on it. But from factory it is 15"
Are the noise worse or better with 17"

 

based on driving 17" and 15" back-to-back when I was looking to buy, I'd say the 17's are considerably noisier than the 15's, but it was about 11 months ago and I didn't really do the full gamut of speeds and I had already decided on the 15" wheels because of the superior ride quality and suspension optimisation.

Certainly I don't find the car to be excessively noisy, although there is inevitably some road noise because other aspects are so quiet... Up to about 40 mph I'd say it's one of the quieter driving experiences, above about 70 it does become more obtrusive.

Although opening the window at that speed does give a sense of relativity.

 

I really don't find my 15" tyres any noisier than my last car which had 19" tyres . In fact they are quieter , something that my wife has noticed . On some surfaces tyre noise can be louder but that applied on the same stretches of road with my last car too . I should imagine that the 17" tyres would be a little noisier but only an Ioniq owner who changes his tyres ,for winter use for instance , could really confirm that . Bluecar1 may be right about the Dunlop Blue Response tyres they are 2db quieter and better rolling resistance so maybe he'll be our test guy on that one in the coming months

 

I should imagine that the 17" tyres would be a little noisier but only an Ioniq owner who changes his tyres ,for winter use for instance , could really confirm that .

Not really a fair test, as winter tyres tend to be noisier than all-seasons in general. But I should be getting my 15" winters put on at the end of the month, so we'll see then.

 

i did quite a bit of research before getting them for my old 2012 fabia greenline 1.2TDi

there were concerns about grip and durability on a number of forum from people who hadn't run them, I did about 6000 miles on them and they still had 6-7mm tread, grip was similar to the Dunlop sport01's they replace but noticeably quieter on some road surfaces, but I didn't notice any measurable change in mpg (I keep good records and do regular runs on same roads at same speeds)

 

So silent around town with only the electric engine running.
Design and All tech stuff is amazing.
I would had ordered the car asap.. BUT there is a noise from the tires or wind when running on the highway.

THe problem is, the noise you hear is always the loudest. In the case of a conventional ICE/Diesel it is the engine noise and this masks the road/wind noise. If you take the engine noise away with a HEV/EV you are left with the road/wind noise. Personally I think this is less intrusive than the clatter of a diesel engine.

 

In our Pacific Northwest, pavement technology has been experimenting for 5-8 years on short, but quieter pavements. Pavement technology is more important to quietness than brands & types of tires. A couple years ago, a 25+ mile strip of sweet quiet highway pavement was laid down south of our town. One of my favorite drives, it has become more so, letting cars run through wonderful farm & river bottom lands.... quietly. Now, 20 mile, quiet pavement has been laid down on our east running highway into the mountains. To the west, two towns over, 30 mile quiet pavement has been laid down going to the north. In another place, quiet, smooth, finely tailored pavement has been laid down for 5 miles, on a fairly flat 45mph backroad. That road is delectable to drive on, like a magic carpet of quietness. Unlike most technology that benefits expensive cars first, quiet pavement is most benefiting drivers & passengers of small, inexpensive, high mpg cars that don't have the abundance of insulation of bigger, heavier vehicles. This revolution of quiet pavement is a high water mark of technology for the average Joe & Josephine, who can't afford the "now over-insulated behemoths". This benefit to "lesser people" (as Trump would say), is probably why little is being said about this break thru in pavement technologies.

 

I think it's a question of whether or not members find the Ioniq noisy . Personally , I don't find it unacceptably noisy at all

 

I don't find the noise level unacceptable either myself, but I am almost always playing music when I drive.

But my response above was to correct an assertion of yours that "only an Ioniq owner who changes his tyres ,for winter use" could confirm whether 17" rims were louder or quieter than 15" rims, which was a response to a question posed earlier in this thread by the OP. It wasn't intended to offer comment on whether members found the Ioniq noisy or not in general.

 

as chunga above

 

That's fair enough

 

A mind is like a parachute. It doesn't work if it is not open

Your cute hanger-on, can also be.... "A mind is like a parachute. If the chute is so open that it is in tattered streamers, it won't work."

 

The road noise from the Ioniq is clearly evident by this photo of the BEV version which should be more or less the same with the hybrid models. The lack of sound deadening/soundproofing material is clearly shown, there's essentially two small pieces and nothing else.

I'm very confident that once you cover the bare metal areas with soundproofing material, even with wool or foam, there will be a dramatic difference in cabin noise. I've done a full vehicle soundproofing before so I know this to be the case and problem with the Ioniq. The only thing one might also want to do is rear tire well soundproofing.

My family member has noticed more road noise in the rear as well in our Ioniq Electric BEV.

 

The road noise from the Ioniq is clearly evident by this photo of the BEV version which should be more or less the same with the hybrid models. The lack of sound deadening/soundproofing material is clearly shown, there's essentially two small pieces and nothing else.

I have to believe several hundred pounds extra of battery between passengers and the road add significant noise reduction over the hybrid.

 

What happens to battery temperature?

 

What Road Noise ?? -- Surely you DON'T sit in a Dead Quiet vehicle EVER do you ?? -- Just crank up your Tunes -- No problem !!

 

Very nice picture!
I never did a faster trip in the back seat, so I don't know about noise there. In the front, it's a quiet car. Like happens in the Prius, when you remove the engine noise, suddenly everything else seems to become louder: road noise, then the wind noise crazier than you ever heard.

Don't you find the wind noise incredible too?

One thing is certain, after a long trip, you don't feel as tired, and your ears don't feel the same as after a long 120km/h trip on a silent ICE.

PS: humans can't measure loudness with the ears. It's all relative. The incredible sound proof windows that remove all street noise during the day, are incredibly sound-permeable in the middle of the night.

 

Here's an interesting picture I found. I'm assuming this is an Ioniq Hybrid...but it gives you an idea of what can be done.

 

In fact it is a picture of a non North American 2017 Ioniq HEV. Nice find. Doesn't look like it adds a lot of weight so great modification! As long as you don't care about a spare tire. I'd be interested in doing it myself.

 

By chance does the car you intend to buy have the rear deck lid and is it not closed? It will make a marked difference in how loud the road noise is when driving on the Motor!

 

Just got my cargo screen delivered, as it didn’t come with the new car. Installed it, took the car for a ride. It does make a difference!

 

I find it funny none of the noise deadening products on the market actually state in Decibels how much they reduce per layer of product. I know the ashphault kind can stiffen panels and there by reduce vibrations but if you cannot state the reduction in db then what good is it.

 

the asphalt kind are not applied to a whole panel, just key areas, so no easy way to say how much it reduces sound by as it depends on where the material is applied and to how big an area

 

Fed up with the noise in the rear of my HEV with the load cover removed I tried a low cost option first. I removed the spacesaver spare and fitted a piece of carpet underlay in the floor. After replacing the spare wheel I laid another piece over the wheel and refitted the floor panel. Success- noise level appears to be the same with or without cover in place.

 

Interesting idea. I wonder if you would find extra noise difference in covering the compartments within the foam mold underneath the top cargo liner.

 

It is said that the 17" tyres are noisier than the standard 15"

 

Anyone know how to remove the plastic wheel arch well pieces so I can gain access underneath? Planning to do the rear.