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this is my first question and I am pretty new to this world so I apologize for what might be obvious (I've searched through the forums and found some info but not exactly the answer I'm looking for). According to Porsche there are only two tires available to match the stock tires on the s4: Continental ContiSportContact or P Zero Rosso.
These are the tire sizes for this car: Front, 225/50 ZR16 Back, 245/45 ZR16
I can't actually find the Contis in these sizes leaving only the Pirellis. I would love to get some nice quiet touring tires for this car but I'm wondering how much I can push it with alternative sizes, I'd be really curious if you all have had a good experience with trying other sizes on the 16" wheels.
Gratuitous photo of the car included (it's in incredible shape but has 11 year old tires on it!)
If you want quiet, stay away from Conti's. Ran though two sets and swore I'd never have another set. Once they hit 1/2 tread they were freaking loud.
How long ago was that? The conti's have come along way in the last few years. I have the new Contact Sport on the 928 and love them. And I have the Extreme Contact DWS 06 on my dailies and they have been great as well, second set on my SAAB which I ran down to wear bars with no issues other than in the rain. LOL
Is your concern specifically with the noise the tires make or are you more concerned with the amount of road noise in the car? The 928 S4 does have a fair bit of road noice the enters the car and the sound factory sound proofing is not good. As you noticed there are not that many tire options to choose from in the stock wheels. You can also look at the Toyo Proxies which I have on my S4 Stock wheels.
However, if you are chasing road noise then you may consider an additional route. The biggest offenders are the rear wheel arches. They produce a lot of noice. GTS had some nice insulated wheel liners to help. An alternative it to use sound insulation on the rear arches, especially in the cavity behind the speakers on the B-pillar. As a data point, I added some bits and pieces of dynamat style material to the cavities and that make a big impact on road noice and improved the speaker performance too.
The next big offender for road noice is the door panels. Giving those a full coating of sound deadening will also quite down the inside of the car as well. If
Last edited by Michael Benno; 07-03-2018 at 07:37 PM.
well, both really. I have want to change the tires because they are very old and pretty cheap tires AND I want to quiet the car. I am looking into taking the car into a local high-end stereo shop to do a full dynamat routine on the interior including the door panels but I was thinking about trying the speaker cavity trick on my own, I have read about it elsewhere.
So, two questions:
is there a reason you choose the dynamat in the speaker cavity instead of an expanding spray foam like "good stuff"?
I thought the Toyo Proxies where like race wheels for summer only, it doesn't rain much here in SF but it does rain and I want to make sure I don't go sliding off the road. Do you think they are quieter tires?
My recommendation is that you do not have it professionally installed.
I went down this road with my first audio install in my 928 and ended up re-doing everything they installed. Professional installers are really good at picking the right components, connecting it all together and doing the final tuning. They are not good at knowing the specific peculiarities of how old cars are assembled. The will break stuff and not necessarily understand how to properly disassemble and re-assemble your car, they will loose parts and use generic hardware.
My recommendation is that us use the professionals to help specific the parts and materials you need any then you take the time to learn how to install them. The 928 forum and search function will be your guide. I had very little understanding of many aspects of my car but with the help of list members I have been able to tackle some pretty impressive projects. The list will also give you guidance on which speakers will fit in the stock locations. I have some recommendations as so can everyone else.
For example, here are some recommendations for sound insulation for your car:
For the door panels, floors, and inside the speaker wells of the wheels use this stuff: http://cascadeaudio.com/car_noise_control/vb_2_hd.htm. You will need two rolls, one for each door and then the extra material should cover everything else.
For the inside side panels (between the side trim and the chassis use this stuff: http://cascadeaudio.com/car_noise_control/vb_4.htm. You will need two rolls and should have enough for the trunk floor as well.
Regarding filling the cavities with expanding foam, it does a good job of filling the space and will muffle the sound some, but it does not have the mass needed to stop the noise vibrations. So you need to use something that has mass. Some folks recommended spray undercoating in there. That will add some mass as well.
My recommendation is that you do not have it professionally installed.
Thanks for the recommendations. This is my only car, and even though I only drive on weekend it makes me pretty nervous to pull the whole thing apart. I am moderately mechanical (an architect by trade) but man have a broken a lot of things when taking them apart to "fix" them.
Originally Posted by Michael Benno
Some folks recommended spray undercoating in there. That will add some mass as well.
What is an example of the "spray undercoating" you are speaking of here? Also can this cavity be accessed soley via the speaker well or do I need to enter it from wheel side as well (don't really have the means for that).
07-03-2018, 05:13 PM
Quiet tires for a 87' 928 s4 ?
