SeattleGS400

iTrader: (1)

I’ve noticed a problem recently while driving for an extended period on the freeway, as I usually just drive short trips around the city. Nonetheless, at freeway speed, it’s what I would deem excessive “gushing of wind” noise on sections of smooth, dry road (wet roads tend to null the described wind noise).

It sounds like a constantly loud gushing of wind. I only notice it when the car is on relatively smooth, dry pavement at any speed over 45 mph. At cruising speed of 75 mph, the volume of the “gushing of wind” noise seems really bad. On semi-smooth patches of road (most roads), the “gushing of wind” is not that bad and tolerable, but once I’m on absolutely smooth sections of road the rather loud “gush of wind” noise returns, so much that my ears were hurting on a recent 6-hour trip. My tires are only 40% worn, and are in good, balanced condition. My Acura TL never gave me such grief—even after 3 straight driving days of 700 miles/day.

I’ve done some reading here on CL, and from the posts it seems like it might be the following:

1. A loose/missing floor rubber plug—causing apparent turbulence, which leads to noise in the cabin.
2. Sunroof drain tubes/pipes that stick down too low—which transmits wind/road/tire noise to car’s interior.

My questions for everyone are the following:

1. Has anyone else had the same symptoms I’ve had, and if so, how did you fix them?
2. Does anyone have other fix suggestions other than the 2 above?
3. The sunroof drain tubes—where exactly do they exit? Anyone have pictures of the locations? Also, is there just a rear set of tubes (by the rear fenders as someone said), or is there also a front set of tubes?

While the noise is non-existant driving around town, I’m going to be taking a roadtrip in March where I’ll be putting about 1600 miles in the span of a week, so I’d like to get this solved soon. My ears and my passenger would greatly appreciate it.

Thanks for the help guys.

ligflava

seattlegs400 - do you open your driverside front windows often? some CL members say that they have reduced wind noise when they don't open their front windows for > 24 hours, so the window seals can conform optimally to the window. I've also read some users having window trim/weather stripping loosening up and partially detaching, causing turbulence -> noise.

I've only seen drain tubes in the rear fenders in my GS. I believe they were on the anterior aspect of the rear wheel well.

Is your moonroof completely closed? That could be a source of windnoise. I would close the sliding shade sometimes to insulate the cabin even more sometimes.

As an aside, I used to get horrible wind noise in my Q45. So much for those "zen" commercials talking about low wind noise So what I did was wax the A-pillars and rearview mirrors until they were buttery smooth! Sounded like it helped.

Also, sometimes it doesn't matter what you do, because if the wind is coming from the side, it'll be noisier than usual.

Good luck!

PHML

iTrader: (33)

Do you know where the noise is coming from? Not sure if its the wind noise from the driver-side mirror.

https://www.clublexus.com/index.php/...iew/1814/1/60/

Pete

SeattleGS400

iTrader: (1)

Thanks for the replies so far. Here's some more info:

1. I've been driving with my windows closed for the past few months, as it's been constantly raining in Seattle.
2. The moonroof hasn't been used since late September, so those seals are probably nice and tight.
3. Again, the "gushing wind" noise only occurs during freeway driving over smooth, dry roads only. The side mirrors might be an issue, but the drain plugs might have a large role in causing the noise as well, depending on how low it has dropped. Speaking of the drain tubes, can you kneel down and see the drain tube or do you need to get underneath the car to see them?

Any other ideas/information? Thanks fellas.

ligflava

i can see the drain tubes by kneeling.

do you notice the noise more toward the front of the car?

also, have you have used any rubber/vinyl conditioner to "rejuvenate" the weatherstripping, door seals? I would do a visual inspection of the areas surrounding the windows, and the weatherstripping surrounding the windshield/moonroof.

so here's a list i would go down to try to reduce windnoise.
1. Visual/tactile inspection of seals. Check for gaps. Look for discoloration. Feel for hardening of the rubber. If the seals look/feel rough or hard, recondition to soften up the rubber.
2. Check windshield wipers to see if they are in the "hidden" or "winter" position. "winter" position usually sits higher on the windshield, meaning it's more exposed -> more likely to cause turbulence.
3. Just to be sure, close all the windows and moonroof. pull on the button to make sure it hasn't crept open somehow. Since you felt the seals, you probably have already opened and closed the windows/moonroof.
4. Feel how smooth the A-Pillar/rearview mirrors are. if the paint feels oxidized (you feel little rough spots), clean/polish/wax.
5. Check the drain tubes.
6. Check tire pressure.
7. Test drive!

I might have left something out, hope others can chime in.

Once again, best of luck!

RON430

Actually, I don't find the GS to be all that quiet. My wife complained about hers and was told the GS was sporty and not meant to be all that quiet. In any event, the famous drain tubes are very easy to see if you get down on the ground and look right behind the rear tires. On our GS's they are clear vinyl tubes probably half an inch in diameter. They need to be pushed up and barely exposed. The big but here is not that they pick up wind noise but tire noise, they are ideally placed to funnel noise from the rear tires up to the sunroof drain channels. Of course the problem is that, with the exception of some folks here who change things on their car long before there is any wear on them, the tires change the amount of noise they put out as they wear. The Michelins that were also on my GS were just awful on my wife's GS. To Lexus credit, they asked what tires we wanted and they replaced the tires with Yoko AVS db. My Michelins were OK for about 15K miles but then started to give out that wonderful Michelin howl. Got to around 30K and then spent a couple of days at Laguna Seca and took what rubber was left off of them. Got a set of Pirelli's and the car is noticeably quieter. May or may not be something in the Pirelli's, more due to just putting new tires on.

The point of all this is if you really feel you have something that is "wind" noise, the drain tubes are likely not the place to look. If you find it is worse at speed and somewhat dependent on the road your on, it sounds more like tire noise. Final note, I have spent a fair amount of time sound deadening my car (the auto electronics section is where to look for notes on this) and fully intend to give my wife's car the treatment as soon as it warms up enough (and business slows up). My GS responded very well to putting a good amount of sound deadening material in the doors. Good luck and be sure to let us know if you find something.

CokeBear

I have a 2000 GS4 and it definitely has more wind noise than when I first received it. Over the years, I initially thought it was just because I’ve had the car for a while now and I am use to the 'quietness' and became more picky.

Recently, I rented a brand new Ford Taurus from Hertz while vacationing and the first thing that stuck me was how much quieter the Taurus was at 80mph when compared to my GS. Now before I get flamed, the Taurus handled like a boat and i'm not comparing any other aspects of the two cars other than wind noise.

It is possible as described earlier that the rubber seals around the windows have hardened and is no longer conforming to the windows. Has anyone ever replaced the rubber seals around the windows in their GS and noticed any difference?

ligflava

interesting, i've driven a new taurus and i don't think it's as quiet as my '03 GS. i find myself turning the volume up on the taurus to hear the radio.

I actually don't have as much of a problem with wind noise. it's the little rattles in my steering column that annoy me.

SeattleGS400

iTrader: (1)

ligflava: Great info. I'll check all of those elements this weekend, and will try to isolate my problem. My wipers are definitely in the concealed position.

PHML: I'll give the side mirror TSB a shot--who knows?

Ron430: I'm almost starting to wonder if it's more road noise related than wind noise. I don't hear the "gushing wind noise" until I'm at speed, and only on smooth pavement--it's rather loud. Now let's say the smooth pavement on the freeway changes to something with a subtle texture, it gets a bit quieter. It may very well be due to the tires wearing down (I have the wide, low-profile 235/45R17 Bridgestone LM-22 snows on it right now--which does not help w/ noise quelling), and have put on another 4K miles on them since fall. I know that as tires wear down, the tread design can change due to odd wear patterns. Wearing of the tread, could make for louder tires, which can be transmitted into the cabin. In any event, I'll check everything and will report back when I figure out more info.

CokeBear: The GS is really not a very quiet car--average noise at best (esp. w/ large rims). While the engine is quiet, smooth and powerful, the cabin is louder than you'd expect. I know that for me, my 235/45R17 definitely contribute to the noise, but that is expected for a wide, low-profile tire. Nonetheless, my car shouldn't be excessively loud as I'm finding out over sections of smooth freeway (whether the noise this thread mentions is related to tires, I'll see for sure when I get new Michelin Pilot Sport A/S on this spring).

More questions for all:

1. Someone mentioned the "cowl" could be the problem to the wind/tire/road noise in an old thread. Can anyone tell me what the cowl is?

2. In the attached pic--can anyone tell me what this drain tube is for? It's hard (either very hard plastic or metal) and it won't budge at all. It's not like the rear vinyl drain tubes. It's in the front passenger wheel well. It's close to the back of the well. However, there is NOT an analogous one on the front driver's wheel well.

3. I read in the factory service manual that there are in fact (4) drain tubes (2 front, 2 back). Unfortuanately, the manual does not tell where the front drain tubes are. Anyone know where they can be found?

I found the rear clear vinyl drain tubes without any problems by accessing the trunk storage area (the two pockets--one on the left and the right side, where the jack and jack tools are kept)--see the following pics.

SeattleGS400

iTrader: (1)

Trunk drain tube #1: Rear Left Side

I pulled the drain tube up about 1.5" (notice the road dirt on the bottom of the tube. To keep it up and from dropping again, I'm going to wrap a couple of rubber bands around the drain tube.

SeattleGS400

iTrader: (1)

Trunk drain tube #2: Rear Right Side

I'll do the same on the rear right side vinyl drain tube with the rubber bands wrapped around it to keep it from dropping again.

Now that the rear drain tubes are up higher, I need to find the front 2 drain tubes. This might the ticket to get my car quieter again. . .

Will update later when I find out more on isolating the wind/tire/road noise. Of course, anyone has more info, pass it along--thanks!

chicagoblknazn

I have always wondered what those tubes were for.

LS4fun

Do you have a rear window spoiler...that can be a culprit of wind noise as well...

Manuel

doug_999

SeattleGS

To isolate if it is the drain tubes, close the sunroof shade while driving. If the noise goes away, it is probably them. I could not drive my car on the highway without the shade closed - unfortunately it took two dealers to figure out that my drain tubes were sticking down about 6 inches in back. BTW, those tubes are the drains for the sunroof incase people were wondering. I should also mention that I need to push mine up every now and then - I may try your fix once the weather gets better.

RON430

What he said. The tubes don't want to stay up unless you do something to them. I got a plastic barbed angle tubing connector to push in that puts a bit of a baffle in the end and the slight flaring it does holds the tube in the grommet better so it doesn't tend to slide out as easily.