I feel like I am going crazy. I cannot find anything on road noise. Someone please tell me you have experienced this. When we test drove, I noticed the road noise but didn't think too much about it...thought I'll get used to it. But ever since we took it home last Wednesday, I have been nothing but frusterated everytime I drive it. On smooth asphalt it is just fine. But as soon as it hits pebbley type asphalt or chewed up asphalt it hums loudly, so it's quiet/loud/quiet/loud/quiet/loud. I have to either just turn the radio off and listen to the humming or turn it up really loud, in order to not hear the humming. The roads around my town are pretty bad, so maybe I just have to live with it. We asked our dealership, and they told us they don't get complaints about it. We even went and bought expensive tires because the stock ones were very inexpensive, and that didn't make any difference at all with noise (only the handling).
We are wondering if the Sport and Limited models are better insulated? I have a friend that has a Sport and she says hers is very quiet.
This is a known issue, and I am afraid to say there is nothing that can be done about it. My '08 Ltd (built May '07) does the same thing and I have exhausted every avenue available to me trying to fix it. It really bothered me for the first couple of years, but now I just crank my JBL at all times. Not optimal by any means, but I simply cannot afford to sell my HL at such a huge loss, so I live with it.
Have you tried after-market sound proofing? Where they pad inside your doors and the floor. That's what my husband wants to do next. It's $1000 which is probably worth my sanity.
There's a lot to be said too about tires and their ability to transmit road noise, and some are definitely better than others. When you replace your OEM tires I'd pay special attention to assessments about road noise. As for me and my Base model, I haven't experienced road noise that I'd consider excessive, even on rough pavement at highway speeds. Part of that reason may be because I owned an Acura Integra for many years that without a doubt was the loudest car I've ever owned, and I wore earplugs not only while driving not only on the freeway but surface streets too....
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2008 Highlander Base 4WD
2002 Avalon XL
1987 Suzuki Samurai 4X4 - Treading where no Jeep can follow....
I guess sound-proofing or sound-deadening will certainly help. But, we have to shell out dollars to the people who do it. I like to be done it but cannot afford. I have heard improved results from people.
Yes you are. The HL is one of the quiestest non-luxury SUV out there.
I strongly diagree with your first sentence. I have driven alot of 08+ Highlanders. Some are dead quiet, but some exhibit the road noise discussed above. This noise can also be present in the RAV4. It is readily apparent and very, very annoying.
In addition, and quite separately, the HL is well known for it's symphony of squeaks and rattles (well documented on this board, and others)
Just because your HL is quiet does not mean they all are. Not by a long shot. In fact, my HL is by far the noisiest vehicle I have ever owned.
Have you tried after-market sound proofing? Where they pad inside your doors and the floor. That's what my husband wants to do next. It's $1000 which is probably worth my sanity.
Has anyone done it with good results?
In my area it would cost me more than $2000 to do this, so I have not tried it. I simply cannot afford to spend that kind of money. When I said I exhausted every avenue available, I meant through Toyota.
I strongly diagree with your first sentence. I have driven alot of 08+ Highlanders. Some are dead quiet, but some exhibit the road noise discussed above.
That's exactly why I suspect it's the tires since it's so varied among Highlanders from the same model year.
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2008 Highlander Base 4WD
2002 Avalon XL
1987 Suzuki Samurai 4X4 - Treading where no Jeep can follow....
Perhaps that's why my new '10 SE has carpeted rear wheel wells. I had never before seen that on any vehicle and didn't notice it until I got it home. The SE we have is super quiet running the factory Toyo tires on it.
My 08 Sport is the quietest vehicle I have ever owned so I’m surprised there is a complaint about excessive road noise. It’s maybe not as quiet as some luxury cars, but still very quiet. What type of cars are you comparing it to?
I would suspect the tires would be the primary cause of any excessive noise. Maybe one of your tires is defective or has a broken belt? I was having excessive road noise in the past car and thought it had a bad bearing. The noise went away once the rotated the tires. Maybe tire rotation could help you as well. This is a free/low cost thing to try and could help isolate a potential problem tire. This would only help if the noise seemed to be isolated to one of the tires, not if all the tires had the noise.
My 08 Sport is the quietest vehicle I have ever owned so I’m surprised there is a complaint about excessive road noise. It’s maybe not as quiet as some luxury cars, but still very quiet. What type of cars are you comparing it to?
I would suspect the tires would be the primary cause of any excessive noise. Maybe one of your tires is defective or has a broken belt? I was having excessive road noise in the past car and thought it had a bad bearing. The noise went away once the rotated the tires. Maybe tire rotation could help you as well. This is a free/low cost thing to try and could help isolate a potential problem tire. This would only help if the noise seemed to be isolated to one of the tires, not if all the tires had the noise.
What kind of tires do you have?
I am comparing my HL to previously owned Hondas and Toyotas. The road noise on my vehicle is not subtle, and it it not related to the tires. I have had my tires rotated, aligned, rebalanced and subsequently upgraded with no difference to road noise. The noise is a very clear reverberating sound that is pretty much impossible to localize. I have taken my vehicle to several Toyota dealers on too many occasions to remember. On each visit the techs can hear the noise, but after two years of chasing it they can do nothing about it. Canada has no "lemon law", and the resale value of my HL is so low that I really have no alternative but to crank the JBL put up with it. In fact, a potential buyer would be crazy to buy my vehicle after hearing the road noise during a test drive. Clearly this is not the case with all 08+ Highlanders, but it is with mine and I am not at all happy about it.
Everyone kept telling us..it's the tires. It came with the Toyo Open Country. We immediately went to Goodyear and bought their 2nd quietest tire. The Fortera. We didn't get the quietest because we wanted the snow rated tire because we do ski and would prefer not to have to chain up. They are $1000 tires but they came down to $750 and the dealership gave us $400 because they felt bad. This did not make a bit of difference in the noise. Improved the handling but not the noise.
My 2002 4Runner doesn't even come close to this. My MIL's 10-yr-old Camry doesn't touch this.
I know 3 people that have the Sport and Limiteds...they all say it's not a problem with theirs. It is beyond me why one would have it and one would not.
KTMD...I am right there with you! I compare this to taking off in an airplane. It hums and rumbles, and it's thru-out the car. And I don't have the JBL system...the factory radio sucks and doesn't drown out the road noise. As soon as I get off the freeway and back to a lower speed, my radio is blaring, and I have to turn it way down.
I love the car...other than this...so we are spending $1200 to get Dyanmat put in...it's worth it to me, so I can be at peace when I am driving and enjoy the vehicle. But I am definitely disappointed that I got one of the bad ones.
I sure as hell hope this Dynamat does the trick. If it doesn't - UGH!!!!
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Road/cabin noise - 2010 Base Model
to the dark side 
Linear Mode
