Too Much Wind Noise

[jetman]

Now that I've had my RX330 for a little over a month I'm forming my overall impressions of the vehicle. While generally I'm satisfied, the one thing that I'm somewhat disappointed in is the amount of wind noise at highway speed. While I wouldn't categorize it as "excessive", I would consider it "moderate", certainly more than I would expect in a vehicle costing over $40K. I am surprised since some of the reviews I've read made comment about the quietness in the cabin. My old 98 Ford Explorer, for all its other faults, had less wind noise than the Lexus.

Is it just me, or do others here think there's just a little too much wind noise, or am I the one who's full of wind? :)

[Husker4theSpurs]

I don't think it's bad at all, but many seem to. Did you have the TSB done that supposedly fixes the windows seals that some feel are causing the wind noise problem?

[jetman]

I don't think it's bad at all, but many seem to.  Did you have the TSB done that supposedly fixes the windows seals that some feel are causing the wind noise problem?

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The noise doesn't seem to specifically be coming from the area of the window seals. It just seems to be the general flow of air over the top of the vehicle. I tried lowering the front windows very slightly (as has been suggested as a "fix"), but the noise level does not change. Seems to me to be an engineering flaw.

[4482]

The very first thing I did to my 05 RX after delivery was to remove the 2 cross rails from the roof luggage rack. I think it cuts down not only on wind noise, but makes the car a little more aerodynamic.

[RX in NC]

You can also move the crossrails around on the luggage rack in order to experiment with wind noise reduction for your particular vehicle. In our case, moving the front rail back towards the rear of the vehicle, and therefore away from the sunroof, made for quite a reduction in wind noise.

Experiment with your crossrails and you'll probably find a quieter setting for them.

[lexusjohn]

Hi Guys, I'm from UK and I had this wind noise which seemed to come from the door mirrors, My RX was 2005 model, I have Part Xed it for the new GS300SE, and boy is that a nice motor.

[kh046]

From my experience, my dealer's technician told me that most of the wind noise is coming from the two rear side view mirrows. Basically, there's not a lot that they can do to minimize that because of the size of the those two mirrors. But, I do agree with you guys, the wind noise is much louder than I expect in this vehicle.

I might try adjusting my cross bars on the roof rack to see if it helps in the reduction of some wind noise.

[scoobie]

People who claims moving the roof rack cross bars makes a difference in wind noise, are you pulling our legs ? Unless the bars were loose and wriggly to begin with and you somehow secured it by 'moving' it, I cannot believe the position of the cross bar changes the overall aerodynamics of the car measurably. What's next ? Bending the antenna ?

[RX in NC]

scoobie,

We're not talking about changing the aerodynamics of the vehicle here, we're talking about moving the primary culprit (the front crossrail) away from the sunroof in order to lessen the disturbance of the airflow there, where it appears to be most annoying to the ears since you're sitting inside the vehicle directly under all the airflow commotion.

I wouldn't have suggested this approach if it didn't help reduce the wind noise on our particular vehicle. Notice that I didn't say it eliminated the noise, I said that it reduced it. You should try it before you arbitrarily proclaim that it won't work. As I said before, in our case the wind noise was lessened quite a bit. My wife hasn't complained about the wind noise since I moved the front rail rearwards in autumn 2003, so I couldn't care less what you think or say - my mission was accomplished.

[scoobie]

scoobie,

We're not talking about changing the aerodynamics of the vehicle here, we're talking about moving the primary culprit (the front crossrail) away from the sunroof in order to lessen the disturbance of the airflow there, where it appears to be most annoying to the ears since you're sitting inside the vehicle directly under all the airflow commotion.

I wouldn't have suggested this approach if it didn't help reduce the wind noise on our particular vehicle.  Notice that I didn't say it eliminated the noise, I said that it reduced it.  You should try it before you arbitrarily proclaim that it won't work.  As I said before, in our case the wind noise was lessened quite a bit.  My wife hasn't complained about the wind noise since I moved the front rail rearwards in autumn 2003, so I couldn't care less what you think or say  -  my mission was accomplished.

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NC,

First, please accept my apologies if my post seemed too abrasive, judging from your response you may have interpreted it as a somewhat personal affront. That wasn't my intention. I only wanted to voice my doubt regarding the theory that the cross bars were the main cause of the wind noise (and btw you weren't the only one with that opinion.)

Having said that, I still find it hard to believe the front cross bar can cause that much wind noise, did you have the sunroof open by any chance ? In any case, I'm glad it worked for you; even if it hadn't reduce the wind noise, its probably a good idea to move the cross bar away from the sunroof anyway.

Now as for trying it myself, I mainly use the car for my daily commute, I rarely get a chance to go above 35 mph (and that's on the freeway) so we'll have to hear from someone else to get another data point.

[OKEH1]

I removed both rails tonight , took me 10 minutes.

I have never used the roof rack since buying the vehicle 12 months ago, so I wont miss it, and if you read the manual it cant carry much anyway.

I expect some slight reduction in wind noise and even the mpg may go up very slightly too.

One other bonus is it makes cleaning the roof tons easier as you dont have to move them or squeeze between them.

In all a worth quick mod.

[ritchieg]

People who claims moving the roof rack cross bars makes a difference in wind noise, are you pulling our legs ? Unless the bars were loose and wriggly to begin with and you somehow secured it by 'moving' it, I cannot believe the position of the cross bar changes the overall aerodynamics of the car measurably. What's next ? Bending the antenna ?

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I have experienced an excessive amount of noise from the cross bars of a roof rack. I had a Toyota Camry and after installing a roof rack with cross bars, noticed a great mount of noise. I eventually made aerodynamic surfaces that wrapped around the cross bars to reduce the noise.

I guess for me, it is only common sense that if the cross bars are moved away from the front of the car, it could reduce the noise level.

Just my opinion.

Gordon

PS: I have a bit of wind tunnel experience & drag forces have a component of noise related to to the drag forces.

[vgmd]

I removed both rails tonight , took me 10 minutes.

I have never used the roof rack since buying the vehicle 12 months ago, so I wont miss it, and if you read the manual it cant carry much anyway.

I expect some slight reduction in wind noise and even the mpg may go up very slightly too.

One other bonus is it makes cleaning the roof tons easier as you dont have to move them or squeeze between them.

In all a worth quick mod.

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so, have you noticed a change in the wind noise??? I too am very disturbed by the amount of wind noise in this car...

[edwardh1]

to test the door seals take it up to 65 or70 and then bump the drivers window down about 1/8 inch to see if the noise changes.

the bottom part of the window at the door top moves out about 1/4 inch sealing the noise out

[OKEH1]

I removed both rails tonight , took me 10 minutes.

I have never used the roof rack since buying the vehicle 12 months ago, so I wont miss it, and if you read the manual it cant carry much anyway.

I expect some slight reduction in wind noise and even the mpg may go up very slightly too.

One other bonus is it makes cleaning the roof tons easier as you dont have to move them or squeeze between them.

In all a worth quick mod.

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so, have you noticed a change in the wind noise??? I too am very disturbed by the amount of wind noise in this car...

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There is a noticable drop in wind noise on the freeway and I can see my gas mileage creeping up , this morning my readout went up over .5 mpg, so cost saving with comfort pleases me. :)

[jetman]

I removed both rails tonight , took me 10 minutes.

I have never used the roof rack since buying the vehicle 12 months ago, so I wont miss it, and if you read the manual it cant carry much anyway.

I expect some slight reduction in wind noise and even the mpg may go up very slightly too.

One other bonus is it makes cleaning the roof tons easier as you dont have to move them or squeeze between them.

In all a worth quick mod.

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How exactly did you remove the rails? I'm all thumbs, so I could probably do it in, say, a half hour or so :)

I have no use for the roof rack and would eliminate it all together if it would help reduce the wind noise..

[OKEH1]

I removed both rails tonight , took me 10 minutes.

I have never used the roof rack since buying the vehicle 12 months ago, so I wont miss it, and if you read the manual it cant carry much anyway.

I expect some slight reduction in wind noise and even the mpg may go up very slightly too.

One other bonus is it makes cleaning the roof tons easier as you dont have to move them or squeeze between them.

In all a worth quick mod.

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How exactly did you remove the rails? I'm all thumbs, so I could probably do it in, say, a half hour or so :)

I have no use for the roof rack and would eliminate it all together if it would help reduce the wind noise..

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The crossbars are easy to remove and install. The rear endcaps of the the rails are plastic. They snap off by sliding rearward. There is a set screw that prevents the crossbars from sliding off of the rails. Unscrew the set screw on both sides and the crossbars slide off the end. Replace the set screws and snap on the endcaps by sliding forward and down. Removal and installation is fast and easy. The trick is knowing how the end cap is removed.

[BillT]

I removed both rails tonight , took me 10 minutes.

I have never used the roof rack since buying the vehicle 12 months ago, so I wont miss it, and if you read the manual it cant carry much anyway.

I expect some slight reduction in wind noise and even the mpg may go up very slightly too.

One other bonus is it makes cleaning the roof tons easier as you dont have to move them or squeeze between them.

In all a worth quick mod.

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How exactly did you remove the rails? I'm all thumbs, so I could probably do it in, say, a half hour or so :)

I have no use for the roof rack and would eliminate it all together if it would help reduce the wind noise..

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The crossbars are easy to remove and install. The rear endcaps of the the rails are plastic. They snap off by sliding rearward. There is a set screw that prevents the crossbars from sliding off of the rails. Unscrew the set screw on both sides and the crossbars slide off the end. Replace the set screws and snap on the endcaps by sliding forward and down. Removal and installation is fast and easy. The trick is knowing how the end cap is removed.

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It might remove, but how? They do not seem to move rearward on a 400H. How hard do you have to move them? Where should you grab hold? Move them straight back or left up the very ends a little bit or a lot or how much?

[OKEH1]

The same roof rack is on all models , so the black end caps should come off .

They are tight , just crasp firmly and slightly lift to clear to seal, then slide back and upwards at the same time, towards rear of car, they are tight so a bit of force is required.

My dealer service tech showed me and it works, getting back on is reverse method but again needs a little force.

I suggest you call in to your service dept and ask one of the techs to do it, only takes a few minutes.

There is a definate drop in sound and my mileage went up around 1 mpg so for me thats roughly an extra 20 miles per week.

[skyfish400h]

I removed both rails tonight , took me 10 minutes.

I have never used the roof rack since buying the vehicle 12 months ago, so I wont miss it, and if you read the manual it cant carry much anyway.

I expect some slight reduction in wind noise and even the mpg may go up very slightly too.

One other bonus is it makes cleaning the roof tons easier as you dont have to move them or squeeze between them.

In all a worth quick mod.

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As an aside, do you happen to remember how much capasity the roof rack is rated for according the the manual?

I want to add on one of those Thule roof boxes and there are a lot of sizes to choose from based on the capasity of the roof rack.

Thanks in advance.

[OKEH1]

I removed both rails tonight , took me 10 minutes.

I have never used the roof rack since buying the vehicle 12 months ago, so I wont miss it, and if you read the manual it cant carry much anyway.

I expect some slight reduction in wind noise and even the mpg may go up very slightly too.

One other bonus is it makes cleaning the roof tons easier as you dont have to move them or squeeze between them.

In all a worth quick mod.

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As an aside, do you happen to remember how much capasity the roof rack is rated for according the the manual?

I want to add on one of those Thule roof boxes and there are a lot of sizes to choose from based on the capasity of the roof rack.

Thanks in advance.

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max loaded weight - 75kg or 165lbs

[jetman]

The same roof rack is on all models , so the black end caps should come off .

They are tight , just crasp firmly and slightly lift to clear to seal, then slide back  and upwards at the same time, towards rear of car, they are tight so a bit of force is required.

My dealer service tech showed me and it works, getting back on is reverse method but again needs a little force.

I suggest you call in to your service dept and ask one of the techs to do it, only takes a few minutes.

There is a definate drop in sound and my mileage went up around 1 mpg so for me thats roughly an extra 20 miles per week.

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It was actually quite easy to do, even for me. The trick is to not be afraid to give the end caps a good hard tug. At first I was reluctant, fearing I might break the plastic, but they came off undamaged.

Whether or not removing the crossrails will actually reduce the wind noise remains to be seen. My guess is that it can't hurt, but I have a hunch that most of the wind noise is coming from the air hitting the large side mirrors, as kh046 suggested.

[prydgren]

I just went down and took them off. I lifted the cover over the seal and applying mild preassure in 45 degree angle back and up. Just as described earlier in this thread. Then I gently vibrated in the other end and it came loose without any violence.

It was easier than I anticipated. Next step is to find out how much more silent it becomes. My previous experience is that a roof rack is making quite some noise in higher speeds. I expect the low frequency sound that occurs at 70 mph+ to disappear. The high frequency is probably around the rear mirrors and will stay.

PeO.

[jetman]

I just went down and took them off. I lifted the cover over the seal and applying mild preassure in 45 degree angle back and up. Just as described earlier in this thread. Then I gently vibrated in the other end and it came loose without any violence.

It was easier than I anticipated. Next step is to find out how much more silent it becomes. My previous experience is that a roof rack is making quite some noise in higher speeds. I expect the low frequency sound that occurs at 70 mph+ to disappear. The high frequency is probably around the rear mirrors and will stay.

PeO.

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I do think that removing the rails has reduced the wind noise somewhat. I don't seem to notice it as much as when I made my original post. Whereas the wind noise seemed to be coming from all over the vehicle body, now it seems to only be coming from around the side mirrors. And I don't think I'll be removing the mirrors any time soon :)

[marin49er]

Now that I've had my RX330 for a little over a month I'm forming my overall impressions of the vehicle.  While generally I'm satisfied, the one thing that I'm somewhat disappointed in is the amount of wind noise at highway speed.  While I wouldn't categorize it as "excessive", I would consider it "moderate", certainly more than I would expect in a vehicle costing over $40K.  I am surprised since some of the reviews I've read made comment about the quietness in the cabin.  My old 98 Ford Explorer, for all its other faults, had less wind noise than the Lexus. 

Is it just me, or do others here think there's just a little too much wind noise, or am I the one who's full of wind? :)

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