I would like to continue the story i started in response to SwIIz's question and tell more on other "experiences" with sound deadening I had.
Actually, I've spent a lot of time reading this forum and I would like to pass my special thanks to
@Sunken,
@Lindenwood,
@Torque as well as many others who shared their story.
I've got a 2022 4WD Hybrid Black Edition, which might be comparable to the Limited trim in the US. Not sure if any Black Edition has been offered in the US or CAN but I guess it might be a match based on the extras loaded.
Received the car back in May, took it on a long trip the next day, and been swearing the whole journey.
It turned to be by far the loudest car I had in the last 20 years, especially as soon as you exceed 65mph. Once returned back, I started to dig deeper and finally ended up here. (of course i made a test drive before and been reading reviews, searched the forums etc.prior to sign the contract, but thats a different story). Unfortunately I missed this forum prior to signing the contract. And my second mistake was not taking the car to the highway during test drive.
Anyway, after going through a bunch of stories here, I've decided to do some sound deadening as well and hopefully to bring the noise to more tolerable level.
Following the advises here, I found the proper materials, and started with the cargo area. I did the trunk, the doors, the hatch, the hood, the doorcards and the wheel liners.
But to be honest gentlemen, while it all makes it better, it doesn't makes it good!! 🤬
Several hundred bucks and around 2 weeks of labor work later, I can confirm the following (% = personal feeling, in brackets = measured):
1. Deadening trunk -> -10- 20% noise from the back (-1 -2 dB)
2. Deadening doors -> -30-40% noise from the side and the bottom (-3 -4 dB). The doors feel and close much more solid, confirmed.
3. Deadening hatch -> -5-10% noise from the back (-1 dB)
4. Adding weatherstrips on the lower frame of the doors --> -5-10% road noise (-0.5 dB or something) --> that was advice by
@Torque, confirmed
5. Adding weatherstrips on the top frame of the doors (from A- to C- pillar like shown in some videos) --> Useless
6. Adding weatherstrips between the doors and front-rear fenders --> Front contributes to little less wind noise, but hardly measurable in dB.
7. Replacing the side windows by double layer glass taken from Prime --> -20-30% wind noise from the A-pillar --> best choice along with Nr. 1 and 2.
8. Deadening wheel wells --> -20-30% road noise (-1 -2 dB) depending on road surface
9. Deadening the hood (add some mats behind OEM) --> 5-10% less engine noise (not really measurable but noticeable) --> spare your time if you have OEM mat installed already.
10. Killing the pedestrian sound --> priceless.
All in all the level of noise went down from 72-74 dB @130km/h / 85mph to 64-67 dB depending on tarmac you drive on. The loudest it is on bridges, where they often use concrete layer.
I've used my Pixel phone which is of course not calibrated, but initial 72-74dB matched quite well with the data from public test drives and reviews. And the difference is confirmed as well.
If you count all the percentage numbers, you may think that the car is already gone quite by 150%. Since sound measures in dB which is logarithmic, it is not that simple (will not add on details here).
A good portion of noise still remains and is quite annoying.
What drives me crazy is the road noise remaining, the engine noise when you hit the pedal, as well as the wind which comes up when you hit 60mph and more. I did a lot of observation, research, due diligence, reading forums, watching videos, adding a strip here, a mat there etc., trying to find out where this f.. noise comes from.
The conclusion i have is that the road noise mainly comes from the bottom of the car by reflection from the road surface as well as from the C-pillars (after deadening the trunk and doors of course). Not sure how it finds it's way to the C-pillars but it does somehow. After deadening the wheel liners the noise on C-pillars has been reduced, but it's not gone completely.
The poor insulation of the firewall greatly contributes to the coarse noise of the ICE once it's hit properly. The poor sound proofing of the base contributes to the ICE noise coming from the bottom as well.
The poor design of the A-pillars, the mirrors and most likely the roof rails greatly contribute to the annoying wind noise. While the wind itself is not that loud, the whoowing and turbulent sound, especially at crosswinds can drive you crazy. My biggest suspect are the poorly made roof rails, which are even not properly fixed, but clipped on the roof. You can move them back and forward at teh ends. On my impression, since the rails are not properly sealed, and not really aerodynamic, the wind blows across and creates these turbulence's. Adding the holes for the clips, which go just trough into the cabin, this might be the reason for.
To stay with the wind: I've got my side windows replaced by Lamisafe ones taken from Prime. Unfortunately, there are no such windows available for the rear. This area remains one of the weakest points, and i could not find any solution till now. I was thinking to adjust the rubber seals or bring them somehow closer to the glass. But even if you press the glass by hand while seating in the back, it doesn't make it any better. There must be some cavity or something which lets the noise in. And, if you seat in the back, you can hear some additional noise coming from the C-Pillars, especially when the cars are passing by or you overpass a noisy truck. Feels like the window would be open a bit or there is a hole somewhere. There are indeed 2 holes in the C-pillar holding the clips from the fancy useless cover, which attributes to some design specialties and makes the roof appear "disconnected from the rear body" when you look at it from the side. This is especially noticeable when you have a 2 color trim. This fancy cover is held by 2 clips and a bunch of double sided tape. The same applies to the cover on the A-pillar. I really wonder why they didn't tape the whole car together. That would be smart, innovative and cheap indeed. For those who do not believe, you can easily unclip the cover and convince yourself.
Last but not least: once you enter a tunnel, which we have plenty of back here, you just hear a loud ground noise coming from everywhere. 🤬
To make the long story short, I'm highly disappointed with this crap. It could have been such a nice car, if Toyota would spend at least a few bucks to mitigate the noise. It looks like Gen 5 has been designed by a pro, but built by the interns. On top they've engaged a project manager and/ or product manager who apparently did not even test drive their baby. Maybe it would be tolerable if it would be cheap. It is build cheap, i agree. But it comes with a premium price tag here in Europe. they claim about 50k for Hybrid and 60k for Prime here.
I'll not comment on ridiculousness's like poor cabin illumination, non- illuminated switches, missing seat pockets (mine only has it on passengers side), outdated navi, vibrating mirrors and hoods, the dashboard displaying "No messages", the beeping and wheening, the goofy powertrain etc.
I like the exterior of the car, and I do not doubt the overall reliability of the car at all. We had 2 Toyotas back in the 90s and they've been good and reliable cars. But after all, i wonder how RAV4 could become a bestseller. Either I'm spoiled or are other people less demanding or tolerable?
To all those who are thinking of buying a RAV4, here is my personal and professional advice: you better revise your opinion and run away. If you love Toyota sooo much, you better go for a Prime or consider the CH-R (new 2022 model). Those are by far better cars in terms of noise and driving fun. In the meantime, Toyota should better take lessons from Stellantis on how to build proper cars. (and how to make roof rails). Apparently they've lost their skills recently.
parts.olathetoyota.com
www.oemgenuineparts.com
