LS - 4th Gen (2007-2017) Discussion topics related to the current flagship models LS460, LS460L and LS600H

Window trim wind noise ‘fix’

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Old 10-18-23, 08:28 PM
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SloanWhale
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Default Window trim wind noise ‘fix’

Hi Forum,
There are pages and pages of wind noise discussion, and I’ve scrolled through lots of it and tried various things on my 2007 LS460 to see what helps. I’ve tried JMcraney’s fix, plugging some holes under the car, and a new thing I haven’t seen on the forum (that may very well already exist) I wanted to share today.

After I did JMcraney’s fix (which I unfortunately made a mess of), I looked around the same area and noticed there was a sizable gap between the silver window trim and the main door. It looks like the rubber there shrunk, or has pulled away. Plastic thing for scale/to demonstrate, I didn’t push it apart.




To see if this was a source of wind noise, I took clear packing tape and went over the gap across the whole length of both front doors - and it made a noticeable difference! The back door’s window trim seems to be flush and not have this issue.


I don’t have a ‘permanent’ fix planned yet, but I’ve been driving my commute for about a week with the tape and I am confident the trim gap was the main issue in my case. Wanted to share my discovery with you all, please let me know if someone has already come up with a better solution.​​​​ I can’t have tape on my car and I’m not great with the silicone 😂.
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Old 10-19-23, 06:34 AM
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Pro tip when using caulk: tape first and you can wet your finger to smooth it out. Then pull the tape and you'll have clean lines.


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Old 10-19-23, 07:48 PM
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Tnxx
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I am interested in this thread as I have tried these exact two steps and still having wind noise, even at low speeds.
Old 10-20-23, 05:59 AM
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jmcraney
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Originally Posted by SloanWhale
Hi Forum,
There are pages and pages of wind noise discussion, and I’ve scrolled through lots of it and tried various things on my 2007 LS460 to see what helps. I’ve tried JMcraney’s fix, plugging some holes under the car, and a new thing I haven’t seen on the forum (that may very well already exist) I wanted to share today.

After I did JMcraney’s fix (which I unfortunately made a mess of), I looked around the same area and noticed there was a sizable gap between the silver window trim and the main door. It looks like the rubber there shrunk, or has pulled away. Plastic thing for scale/to demonstrate, I didn’t push it apart.




To see if this was a source of wind noise, I took clear packing tape and went over the gap across the whole length of both front doors - and it made a noticeable difference! The back door’s window trim seems to be flush and not have this issue.


I don’t have a ‘permanent’ fix planned yet, but I’ve been driving my commute for about a week with the tape and I am confident the trim gap was the main issue in my case. Wanted to share my discovery with you all, please let me know if someone has already come up with a better solution.​​​​ I can’t have tape on my car and I’m not great with the silicone 😂.
I can see, from your posted pictures, that you did your repair without removing the trim. You will get better results by removing the trim, breaking off the registration pins, and sealing all the area behind the trim. I posted details that have a high probability of getting excellent results.
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swfla (10-20-23)
Old 10-20-23, 06:07 AM
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Wind noise that appears after all these years is going to be from age or an improper repair. Replacing suspect parts makes sense if the "bandaids" don't address the issue. Hope you can see the reasoning in this.
Old 10-20-23, 06:50 AM
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jmcraney
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Originally Posted by swfla
Wind noise that appears after all these years is going to be from age or an improper repair. Replacing suspect parts makes sense if the "bandaids" don't address the issue. Hope you can see the reasoning in this.
For most of the LS460s and LS600s that had or have a "wind noise" problem, it came with the cars or the onset was early in the life of the car. In the vast majority of the cases it is caused by a trim piece on the front doors being detached. That trim piece can become detached at anytime in the life of the car, so wind noise onset can be at anytime. Lexus has never been willing to help with the problem, so many of the cars have had a wind noise problem since they were new. In most cases there are no replaceable parts that will stop the wind noise. A method for repairing this problem is described in this forum.

Last edited by jmcraney; 10-20-23 at 07:00 AM.
Old 10-20-23, 08:18 AM
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swfla
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Thanks for the knowledgeable specifics of trim based wind noise issues. Are you referring to the triangle specifically? I imagine the trim piece the OP pointed out can have the same issues.
Old 10-20-23, 08:28 AM
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jmcraney
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I am referring to the "triangle trim." Well, the OP may be referring to something else but the detached triangle trim is by far the most reported cause of wind noise in these cars in the past 15 years. I have followed this closely for many years and I am confident that I am giving good advice. If the OP does an adequate repair on the triangle trim it is likely that his problem will be gone.
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Old 10-20-23, 09:34 AM
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You've helped so many over the years. I appreciate your contributions and posts.
Old 10-25-23, 05:14 PM
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OP, any updates on this?
Old 11-03-23, 05:00 AM
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JohnnyC407
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I just repaired my 2008. I pulled the piece and caulked it where the triangle adhesive was and also the vertical line. I left one of the pieces in as a guide so I didn't follow jmcraney's directions exactly but so far so good. His method would cut the noise down even farther.
Old 11-03-23, 06:45 AM
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I'm glad you're happy with the results. Personally, I'd follow the entire procedure for the best results. Not being critical.
Old 11-03-23, 06:51 AM
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JohnnyC407
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Originally Posted by swfla
I'm glad you're happy with the results. Personally, I'd follow the entire procedure for the best results. Not being critical.
I agree. I wanted to see what would happen if I left out the sub-piece that covered the 3 holes.

This is one of those fixes that everyone should do. The adhesives were really bad and caused a huge amount of noise for such a small area. Those 3 holes lead directly into the door and have no sound insulation behind them. I looked when I had the door panel off replacing the 6x9. That's probably b/c it gets wet and they couldn't put any insulation there.
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Old 11-07-23, 04:42 PM
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I am going to have to try this because I still get a ton of wind noise in that spot even though I completed the triangle trim fix. This is making me CRAZY!!!! How does it get in?!

The triangle trim fix was amazing for cutting down a lot of it but this wind still sneaks in somehow and it is bang on the money with other reports with wind when turning right and crosswinds.

Last edited by Lolrax; 11-07-23 at 04:47 PM.
Old 11-07-23, 05:32 PM
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Tnxx
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What drives me crazy is the cross wind even at low speeds, it's like having the window down.
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