road noise - BRZ vs FRS
 

Hello gang,

I had the opportunity to drive a 2013 FR-S this weekend and was surprised at the level of road noise on the highway. The car had about ~30k miles on it but the tires still had plenty of tread life.

Is the insulation on the BRZ any better/worse? I just felt like even at 65-70mph, it was hard to hear anything but the highway.

side note: debating between an older 370z and a BRZ. BRZ was less exciting accelerating but I feel like I could love the car more at time progressed. I just can't live with so much road noise.

It seems like you want something with a more quiet and smooth ride while still offering levels of performance. I'd say that the 370Z or the Genesis Coupe are better suited to meet what you're looking for in a car. The BRZ is more raw compared to the previous cars listed. Another important detail to keep in mind is that the BRZ has a "sound generator" installed. It's basically a tube that sends sounds from the intake to the cabin. This can either be plugged up or removed and it does make a noticeable difference. However, overall there will still always be road noise in the both the BRZ and FR-S.

FRS and BRZ have the same amount of sound insulation.

From what I have read several times within this forum (I think?) the BRZ has extra sound dampening compared to the FRS, which makes sense to me because I've never been bothered by the road-noise in my BRZ, even on the freeway...unless it strays off the side of the freeway which results in running over that strange material which makes the entire car vibrate.

I mean, I'm not kidding. I also drive a Toyota Highlander and I think the road noise is comparable.

For comparison, I can hear "Jive Talkin'" by the Bee Gees on the freeway going 80 mph just fine with the volume at about 12.

I'll bet a large number of the people who sold theirs after 6 months said the same thing.

Have you driven a Z? The 86 is like driving a luxury car compared to the roar of road noise you're bombarded with in a 370Z.

The FRS has slightly less sound deadening material then the BRZ so the FRS should have a bit harsher amounts of noise. The tires, even new, can cause major differences in noise levels. If they are the exact same tires on both, you are hearing the difference between the cars. All tires create different amounts of noise. Some are worst then others.

They are exactly the same as far as noise proofing goes. The only difference is the liner on the BRZ trunk lid and I highly doubt that makes a massive difference.
Noise is so subjective anyway since I find the FRS perfectly acceptable.

I actually enjoy the road noise. It keeps me awake while cruising on boring straight-away highways. Lol

Do you have any aftermarket audio stuff in your car? I can barely hear music with the volume at 12 when I'm sitting in my garage.

Not to derail the thread, but I still can't relate to others having issues with the spealer volume. If I simply want to hear a song in the background (street driving) I'll keep the volume anywhere from 7-21. If I want to really, as the cool kids say "ROCK OUT!" I'll bump it up to around 32-43; flipping my hair in the wind... Queen, ELO, and Foreigner come to mind.

Ok, I think that's the difference. If my music is <20, I can hear it, but not enough to really tell what's going on. At that point it really is background noise. I usually have it between 34-42 because I want to be able to hear all the details over the road noise.

The two cars are identical when it comes to sound insulation from the factory.

-alex

Perrin exhaust, poly bushings, music loud.... what road noise??