Tuning Two Gripes

[SB1500]

Just got my shocks all put in and my Panda handles and drives smoother than ever! I still love the car since I got it in October, And I still intent to get another 5 years out of it if I should be so lucky.. But two gripes. Two minor but persistent gripes I do have with it..

Head Restraints and Road Noise

Firstly, and there's not much I can do about it, but those very hard and unadjustable head restraints aren't too comfy! I'm aware they did offer in the newer Pandas the fabric head rests (same in the rear) and I'd love a set of new seats but the postage from England to NI even when these do surface online makes it not so viable. Have any of you done anything about this issue or found a work around to make them a bit easier on the head?! Haha

The other issue was just road noise. I noticed myself having to talk rather loud above 40! And having to turn the radio back down when I drive into a 30 or less zone / traffic. Has anyone put any extra insulation inside their doors to downplay the road noise and how difficult vs. Successful was the process?

I'm aware that given all the Pandas benefits and joys these are far from the worst problems in the world - and even if there's not much I can do, it's not a problem. But many of you have had your Pandas for a long time and might have thought up many 'hacks' I haven't yet!

Thanks again,
SB1500

 

[jaywalk]

For gripe #1 : Not sure I understand what you mean! If you mean the head rests of the seats are uncomfortable then I can count myself lucky. Mine are just fine. My current Panda (as well as my last panda) have common head rests in the same cloth/colour as the seat accents (red in my case) and are ajustable in height. My old Panda had no head rests on the rear bench (which was foldable only in one section) while my new does have rear head rests (and a 50/50 splittable bench). Did I misunderstand your question, or is your panda differently configured?

#2 : Yes. The road noise is there. I haven't tried to do anything about it but I'm very interested to hear if someone else has. I have the 4x4 Climbing that might be even more noisy than a 2WD Panda since it has higher ground clearence.

 

[Wee Smurf]

1. Why don't you phone around a few scrapyards in your area to see if they have any Pandas which might have a suitable upgrade? I ordered mine with the sliding rear seat so it came with the adjustable headrests with the covers. Eleganzas will have what you're after.

2. What tyres are you running? Sometimes the tyre choice will make a difference. Michelin Energy are quieter to run.

 

[Sweetsixteen]

I dislike the high level of road noise in my Multijet. I also have a Merc so the difference between the two hits me every time I drive.
It is worse on granite surfaced roads, and also more noticeable with winter tyres.

I have stripped out the entire car and installed both sound-deadening panels and a thick felt layer. This has included all four doors, the entire underfloor (seats and carpet out first) the boot area, underbonnet and tailgate. It has made a difference, especially on smooth tarmac roads, but tyre noise is still very noticeable.

Guess there's not much more I can do that will bring the noise levels down much further. The law of diminishing returns comes into play here. So, as it's such a great little car and real fun to drive, I'm happy to live with it.

 

[jimboy]

Regarding the head restraints, everybody's idea of comfort is different, there are only a couple of options you can do, either adapt the restraints or change them.

The road noise is a characteristic of the car. It is what it is, a wee boxy vehicle with little in the line of sound proofing. (Please don't shoot the messenger.)

The two things that have been already suggested are... changing the tyres & the one that will help the most is extra sound proofing. I believe there are owners of the Panda that have extensively done this & it's made quite a difference.

Personally I would be inclined to go down the sound proofing first, especially if your tyres don't need changing.

 

[jrkitching]

Head restraints are there to protect your neck and spine in case of an accident; they're not for resting your head on in normal driving.

As others have said, road noise is very tyre dependent and I can confirm Michelin Energy's are good in this regard. Tyres are getting quieter all the time, so there may be even better options out there when the time comes to change them.

Driving at modest speeds helps enormously - the car is much quieter at 50mph than at 70mph.

 

[klu01dbt]

I think there have been a few posts about sound proofing in the past. I found a pretty comprehensive guide where someone did a 500 and a panda would probably be fairly similar.
https://www.fiatforum.com/500-guides/165563-500-sound-insulation-floor-pan.html


On my car I find the rear windows drop slightly over time, winding them up again every few weeks makes a pretty big difference to the noise levels so this is worth checking.


As I've spent a lot of time in my car over the last few weeks and haven't had time to keep it tidy I'm currently experimenting whether a thick layer of documents, coats and crisp packets keeps the noise down. Initial findings suggest not.

 

[SB1500]

1. Why don't you phone around a few scrapyards in your area to see if they have any Pandas which might have a suitable upgrade? I ordered mine with the sliding rear seat so it came with the adjustable headrests with the covers. Eleganzas will have what you're after.



2. What tyres are you running? Sometimes the tyre choice will make a difference. Michelin Energy are quieter to run.

I'll phone around, but my part of NI doesn't have too many Pandas so I'd be surprised to find an Eleganza (and a good conditioned one in terms of interior) around here. But I'll give it a go certainly!

I have four brand new 'Lassa' tyres (budget arm of Bridgestone) and they're terrible but they are brand new from last year so it'll probably be a while before I replace them. But I will certainly give those Energy models a try. Do they have any performance compromises for their quiet characteristics?

 

[SB1500]

I dislike the high level of road noise in my Multijet. I also have a Merc so the difference between the two hits me every time I drive.
It is worse on granite surfaced roads, and also more noticeable with winter tyres.

I have stripped out the entire car and installed both sound-deadening panels and a thick felt layer. This has included all four doors, the entire underfloor (seats and carpet out first) the boot area, underbonnet and tailgate. It has made a difference, especially on smooth tarmac roads, but tyre noise is still very noticeable.

Guess there's not much more I can do that will bring the noise levels down much further. The law of diminishing returns comes into play here. So, as it's such a great little car and real fun to drive, I'm happy to live with it.

What was the cost and time involved doing this? What type of panels were they?

Was considering doing this myself. Do you need a continuous covering under the carpet or are a few cut out large panels on each side of the floor sufficient?

Did you do the doors as well?

 

[SB1500]

I think there have been a few posts about sound proofing in the past. I found a pretty comprehensive guide where someone did a 500 and a panda would probably be fairly similar.
https://www.fiatforum.com/500-guides/165563-500-sound-insulation-floor-pan.html


On my car I find the rear windows drop slightly over time, winding them up again every few weeks makes a pretty big difference to the noise levels so this is worth checking.


As I've spent a lot of time in my car over the last few weeks and haven't had time to keep it tidy I'm currently experimenting whether a thick layer of documents, coats and crisp packets keeps the noise down. Initial findings suggest not.

I'll check this guide out. Seems like a good project!

 

[Sweetsixteen]

What was the cost and time involved doing this? What type of panels were they?

Was considering doing this myself. Do you need a continuous covering under the carpet or are a few cut out large panels on each side of the floor sufficient?

Did you do the doors as well?

Did as I said. Door cards off, self-adhesive panel made from some heavyish lead-looking material in centre of each outer skin (bought for the purpose from the Bay), then thick felt cut to shape and stuck with spray-on furniture adhesive over the whole skin. Ditto the bonnet. Seats out and carpet up ( a right pain but worth it) then same felt under the whole lot, including the boot space.

It made a good difference, but tyre rumble was still there. Doors shut very quietly now though!

 

[Wee Smurf]

I'll phone around, but my part of NI doesn't have too many Pandas so I'd be surprised to find an Eleganza (and a good conditioned one in terms of interior) around here. But I'll give it a go certainly!

I have four brand new 'Lassa' tyres (budget arm of Bridgestone) and they're terrible but they are brand new from last year so it'll probably be a while before I replace them. But I will certainly give those Energy models a try. Do they have any performance compromises for their quiet characteristics?

Budget tyres on a small car don't make much sense to me. 13" tyres aren't expensive even for the better brands. I paid £180 for 4 Michelin Energy tyres when I last changed them. I got good mileage, good handling and less road noise so I don't see any bad points with them. I'm due to change them when I change back from my winter wheels to my summer ones. I'll be buying a new set of Michelin Energy without a doubt.

 

[AB100]

I'm due to change them when I change back from my winter wheels to my summer ones. I'll be buying a new set of Michelin Energy without a doubt.

Aaah - I'm not the last one to still be sat on winter wheels then.......maybe in a few weeks eh!

 

[SB1500]

Budget tyres on a small car don't make much sense to me. 13" tyres aren't expensive even for the better brands. I paid £180 for 4 Michelin Energy tyres when I last changed them. I got good mileage, good handling and less road noise so I don't see any bad points with them. I'm due to change them when I change back from my winter wheels to my summer ones. I'll be buying a new set of Michelin Energy without a doubt.

When I got the car it had four pretty good condition budget ones, when I got my flag wheel a couple of weeks ago I decided to just replace it with the same spec and brand.

Then I found the worn shocks and alignment issues ruined the remaining front wheel.. So again, got one to match the others.

When they are due for replacement I think I will get four new Michellin Energy's then

 

[Sweetsixteen]

I find winter tyres on my Panda give such a good grip in the backwoods country area I live in, that this year I might keep them on till the real hot weather (!) arrives.

Both sets of wheels came from a Punto - 14" of course.

 

[Wee Smurf]

Aaah - I'm not the last one to still be sat on winter wheels then.......maybe in a few weeks eh!

Lol I spent some money on a new radiator on mine so I'll have to wait till I have a bit of money together.