Wind and Road Noise

[Jamie307]

Can anyone comment on the J12 wind and road noise in the cabin at 70mph?

I've read a few reviews suggesting this is a weak point, but I'm taking them with a pinch of salt at the moment.

Could anyone compare with their previous car of whatever make? I'll be coming from an XC40 but haven't driven the Qashqai yet.

[gloucester]

I find Autocar road tests very fair based on experience.

They say in their road test - https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-review/ni ... shqai/ride:

It’s a shame, then, that it is let down by the noise levels. The engine is not the issue, as it is quiet unless worked particularly hard. Instead, road roar is to blame.

This is borne out by the 39dBA measurement at idle, which is better than most competitors. However, as the speeds rise, the Qashqai gets louder than average, and it is a good few decibels worse at 70mph than its rivals. It shouldn’t be a deal breaker, but it might just be worth coughing up for the upgraded Bose sound system, as the standard one isn’t the best, either.


Didn't mention it in their long term test though - https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-review/ni ... erm-review

[ilkka]

Not really a problem for me personally. It's quieter than my old J10 QQ so it's lovely to drive.

[gloucester]

Of course tyre size will affect road noise too. And exact brand/type of tyre too - when I put Dunlops on my Qashqai it was much quieter than the original worn Michelins.

[hootintootin]

Can anyone comment on the J12 wind and road noise in the cabin at 70mph?

I've read a few reviews suggesting this is a weak point, but I'm taking them with a pinch of salt at the moment.

Could anyone compare with their previous car of whatever make? I'll be coming from an XC40 but haven't driven the Qashqai yet.

As an owner of a J12 and having done a huge amount of motorway and A road mileage recently...I can confirm there is no issue with the J12 and wind/road noise. The only time I hear the road noise is when it is made of concrete rather than tarmac. That is to be expected.

I tend to ignore many of the reviews you read in car mags...as for example they are often driving top spec cars with silly big wheels. You also never know the bias that the reviewer has as it's not a German car.

The car is comparable with my old XC40 RD on 18" wheels. QQ has 19" wheels.

[xavpiq]

I'm quite sensitive on this subject and having read many different different numbers and evaluations, I finally trusted those given by German Automobile Club (ADAC), which differ considerably from those of UK magazines. The most important point in this matter is that the measurements are taken with the same setup and procedure, which I think is the case of ADAC. The car tests can be found here ( https://www.adac.de/rund-ums-fahrzeug/tests/autotest/ ) for present and past models. You can download the PDF of each test where you find the "Innengerausch" voice which measures the cabin noise at 130 km/h (81mph), along with many other figures.
ADAC measures 67.1 dB(A) for J12 Tekna+ Xtronic which is a good number, typical of premium models. For comparison, J11 1.3 DIG-T DCT was 68.8 dB(A).
The new Hyundai Tucson 1.6 T-GDI Hybrid ( 68.2 dB(A) ), and new Kia Sportage 1.6 T-GDI ( 68.8 dB(A) ) are both noiser.
To give an idea, they say that a +3 dB(A) value means to double the noise.

[Jamie307]

Thanks, good to know the details.