2018 CX-9 GT Road Noise - Crosspost from Tires, Suspension Section,

M

MattGoose

Member
:
CX-9
Hi,

New Mazda owner here

Very happy so far - still figuring some stuff out, but am concerned about tire/road noise. I'm coming from a 2011 Pilot that was very, very loud and chose the CX-9, in part, because it was reported to be very quiet. The Pilot was on Michelin MXV4 tires, which were quiet enough not be heard over the road noise

And it is - mostly. Took it on a rode trip to kick everything off and was surprised by how much tire/road noise there is on the highway.

It's much like regular tire hum, but much higher pitched. Occurs at highway speeds only, and I can hear it over the radio when driving alone. When driving with the radio off it's quite distracting.

I'm on the Duelers and the sound is intermittent - but only because it doesn't stop happening very often.

Any thoughts? I searched this forum, and others, and see no mention of it. Believe it or not, I'm actually hoping something it wrong so it can be fixed.

Are the Dueler's unidirectional? The tires my Pilot came with were, and the idiots had put them on backwards....

Help, and thank you in advance!
 
First, I thought in the U.S. that all CX-9s from 2016 on came OE with Falken Ziex CT50 tires. Did your 2018 GT come OE with the Duelers? I know the previous gen of the CX-9 had these tires. Second, I think most of the road noise in my 2017 CX-9 Signature is coming from the 20-inch Falken tires. I am a big fan of Michelin tires and will replace the Falkens at the appropriate time, knowing I will get improvements across the board.
 
1--Is the inflation pressure correct? Many are way too high as originally delivered. Follow the owner's manual or the sticker on the door jam for the correct cold inflation pressure.
2--What can you do to temporarily change the noise? If you drive with two wheels on a less-worn section of pavement and two on a more-worn section (safety first, always) does the noise change?
3--Can you locate the noise in one corner of the car? If you get the tires rotated, does the noise change? A defective tire is always possible. This would be covered by Bridgestone's tire warranty (which is really skimpy on new car tires), not Mazda's car warranty.

Try to determine if the noise is actually from the tire tread (varies depending on the road surface) or from another rotating part (the same as long as it's rotating).
 
mifanning said:
First, I thought in the U.S. that all CX-9s from 2016 on came OE with Falken Ziex CT50 tires. Did your 2018 GT come OE with the Duelers? I know the previous gen of the CX-9 had these tires. Second, I think most of the road noise in my 2017 CX-9 Signature is coming from the 20-inch Falken tires. I am a big fan of Michelin tires and will replace the Falkens at the appropriate time, knowing I will get improvements across the board.
Click to expand...

Friend of mine put pilot sport AS3 on his Mazda. Pretty good tire, but I prefer the steering response and wet traction of Yokohama. They are noisy on the highway, but treadwear is good and they feel better matched to Mazda’s chassis than Michelin.
 
I put Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3-plus tires on my 2016 Mazda 6 GT and they transformed the car. Fabulous tire. Never had Yoko's so I can't compare. Also, as we're discussing the CX-9, the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3 is not an option in this tire size. If you have the 20-inch tires, you'd need to go for the Michelin Premier LTX, Defender or Latitude series.
 
mifanning said:
I put Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3-plus tires on my 2016 Mazda 6 GT and they transformed the car. Fabulous tire. Never had Yoko's so I can't compare. Also, as we're discussing the CX-9, the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3 is not an option in this tire size. If you have the 20-inch tires, you'd need to go for the Michelin Premier LTX, Defender or Latitude series.
Click to expand...

in my experience, having compared the AS3 tire to Yokohama advan a83a tires, they are both good tires for sure. but some pointers:

both are a comfortable tire and they wear about the same. the Michelins are quieter.

the yokohamas have a silica based compound for the tread. it corners better over very smooth pavement and the steering feel is better.

the yokohamas were maybe slightly better in the dry (i'll chalk that up to a firmer steering response) but they were noticeably more confidence-inspiring and more predictable when cornering fast in heavy rain or slick conditions. both were just about useless in the snow.

my Mazda came OEM from the factory with Yokohama's, and they feel notably well tuned to a Mazda chassis. you feel the chassis working in harmony with these yoko's. the grip. steering precision and predictability at the limit is very impressive. I also have a Mazda 6 btw.
 
MattGoose said:
Hi,

New Mazda owner here

Very happy so far - still figuring some stuff out, but am concerned about tire/road noise. I'm coming from a 2011 Pilot that was very, very loud and chose the CX-9, in part, because it was reported to be very quiet. The Pilot was on Michelin MXV4 tires, which were quiet enough not be heard over the road noise

And it is - mostly. Took it on a rode trip to kick everything off and was surprised by how much tire/road noise there is on the highway.

It's much like regular tire hum, but much higher pitched. Occurs at highway speeds only, and I can hear it over the radio when driving alone. When driving with the radio off it's quite distracting.

I'm on the Duelers and the sound is intermittent - but only because it doesn't stop happening very often.

Any thoughts? I searched this forum, and others, and see no mention of it. Believe it or not, I'm actually hoping something it wrong so it can be fixed.

Are the Dueler's unidirectional? The tires my Pilot came with were, and the idiots had put them on backwards....

Help, and thank you in advance!
Click to expand...

hey mattgoose,
my 2017 cx9 came with the duelers which are tires that I really started to hate when I happen to use another cx9 with the falkens, the way the cx9 handles is exceptional and its due to the performance of the tires that really depends how further you can extend the cx9s performance, there was quite a big difference where the falkens really had the upper hand. regarding the noise I have no complaints with the duelers unless I'm entering a curve, as soon as the cx9 starts to turn I can hear a loud tire noise getting into the cabin.. not a "screech", just like if the tire had entered a different kind of pavement or something strange.. after reading you commentary I suspect that u might have the tires underinflated.. or at least one of them remember they have to be using 34psi .
I'm strting to look for new tires for my cx9.
 
mifanning said:
First, I thought in the U.S. that all CX-9s from 2016 on came OE with Falken Ziex CT50 tires. Did your 2018 GT come OE with the Duelers? I know the previous gen of the CX-9 had these tires. Second, I think most of the road noise in my 2017 CX-9 Signature is coming from the 20-inch Falken tires. I am a big fan of Michelin tires and will replace the Falkens at the appropriate time, knowing I will get improvements across the board.
Click to expand...

My GT has those duelers as OEM....

I had Michelins on both my old Pilot and my older Jetta. I still remember the first time I drove the Jetta after the change - I spent the entire drive looking for an open window. Tire noise had been the dominant sound for the first 55k miles - not it was all wind noise.

PTguy said:
1--Is the inflation pressure correct? Many are way too high as originally delivered. Follow the owner's manual or the sticker on the door jam for the correct cold inflation pressure.
2--What can you do to temporarily change the noise? If you drive with two wheels on a less-worn section of pavement and two on a more-worn section (safety first, always) does the noise change?
3--Can you locate the noise in one corner of the car? If you get the tires rotated, does the noise change? A defective tire is always possible. This would be covered by Bridgestone's tire warranty (which is really skimpy on new car tires), not Mazda's car warranty.

Try to determine if the noise is actually from the tire tread (varies depending on the road surface) or from another rotating part (the same as long as it's rotating).
Click to expand...

I need to check the inflation level of the tires, but I've never noticed a difference as other tires have slowly deflated (especially between seasons here in New England). The ride was definitely different.

The noise was worse, by far, on a road trip up in NH. They use a different road bed than we do here in MA - more interested in robust cold weather road durability with a much lower traffic load.

The noise has been better over the last long drive or two - but I was mostly in stop and go traffic.

The one thing I did notice about the tires is that I can feel a lot of road feedback from them through the steering wheel - ridges in the pavement. That would lead me to believe they are over inflated.

Gatuno said:
hey mattgoose,
my 2017 cx9 came with the duelers which are tires that I really started to hate when I happen to use another cx9 with the falkens, the way the cx9 handles is exceptional and its due to the performance of the tires that really depends how further you can extend the cx9s performance, there was quite a big difference where the falkens really had the upper hand. regarding the noise I have no complaints with the duelers unless I'm entering a curve, as soon as the cx9 starts to turn I can hear a loud tire noise getting into the cabin.. not a "screech", just like if the tire had entered a different kind of pavement or something strange.. after reading you commentary I suspect that u might have the tires underinflated.. or at least one of them remember they have to be using 34psi .
I'm strting to look for new tires for my cx9.
Click to expand...

Based on my previous experience with, I would go with Michelin. The Premier LTX is, to all accounts, a great tire.

Falkens were the OEM tire through '17.

The Dueler's are actually pretty well reviewed too.

Thanks to all for the input!
 
PTguy said:
1--Is the inflation pressure correct? Many are way too high as originally delivered. Follow the owner's manual or the sticker on the door jam for the correct cold inflation pressure.
Click to expand...

Mazda overinflates the tires from the factory so they dont get any flat spots during the boat ride from japan.
 
Anyone know how I can load either video or sound clips without disclosing my identity? YouTube uses my real name and I don't want that out there!
 
MattGoose said:
Anyone know how I can load either video or sound clips without disclosing my identity? YouTube uses my real name and I don't want that out there!
Click to expand...

Since your YouTube account already uses your real name, isn't it already out there? (uhm)

Having said that, I can use either my real name or original account name on YouTube.... but its been years since I uploaded anything anyway.
 
banjos-n-beer said:
Since your YouTube account already uses your real name, isn't it already out there? (uhm)

Having said that, I can use either my real name or original account name on YouTube.... but its been years since I uploaded anything anyway.
Click to expand...

Yeah, but it's not tied to this username :)
 
OK, I think this will work:

https://vimeo.com/246127433

I speak at the beginning to set volume, and then the sound starts at 6 seconds in and comes and goes. It only happens for a few seconds in this clip, but oftentimes it goes on and on and on... There were no discernible issues with the road or anything else.

It sounds/feels like it is localized to the front left.
 
Gott'a be careful with makes & models. There have been many different Michelin models over the years, some quiet, some not so quiet. Many different Bridgestone Dueler models, some pretty good, some really meh.

When my Falkens are due for replacement, I'll look first at the Michelin Premier LTX...wet braking traction is #1 on my list. Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza Plus and Pirelli Scorpion Verde All Season Plus also seem to be worth a close look--and there's always something newer and maybe better coming out in a year or two. (I want to be on the committee that names tires. It's like everyone at the table gets to include a word in the name.)
 
MattGoose said:
My GT has those duelers as OEM....
Click to expand...

MattGoose, sorry to hear about the road noise with your new GT. Hope your dealer fixes the problem soon.

Just last week, I got a 2018 CX9 GT AWD and it has Falken Ziex ct50. I don't know why Mazda is putting different tires in same model year cars. It is super quiet on highway and no road noise even at 80 mph.

Keep us posted on your fix.
 
karthik1516 said:
MattGoose, sorry to hear about the road noise with your new GT. Hope your dealer fixes the problem soon.

Just last week, I got a 2018 CX9 GT AWD and it has Falken Ziex ct50. I don't know why Mazda is putting different tires in same model year cars. It is super quiet on highway and no road noise even at 80 mph.

Keep us posted on your fix.
Click to expand...

Most car companies have at least two OE tire fitments for each vehicle. The rationale is that should there be quality issues with one of the manufacturers than they will have the other fitment available.
 
PTguy said:
Gott'a be careful with makes & models. There have been many different Michelin models over the years, some quiet, some not so quiet. Many different Bridgestone Dueler models, some pretty good, some really meh.

When my Falkens are due for replacement, I'll look first at the Michelin Premier LTX...wet braking traction is #1 on my list. Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza Plus and Pirelli Scorpion Verde All Season Plus also seem to be worth a close look--and there's always something newer and maybe better coming out in a year or two. (I want to be on the committee that names tires. It's like everyone at the table gets to include a word in the name.)
Click to expand...

I used to work for Michelin, so take this with a grain of salt: The Michelin Premier line is ground-breaking. Awesome tire. As the tire wears, new sipes are opened, so it operates just as well with thousands of miles on it as when new. When my OE Falkens are due for replacement, I'll also be heading toward the Michelin Premier LTX. (2thumbs)
 
Coming back to this, was out of town for a bit!

The noise is still there, any thoughts on what it might be from the video? I'd like to be armed with *some* knowledge before I go fight with the dealer!

Thanks!
 
MattGoose said:
Coming back to this, was out of town for a bit!

The noise is still there, any thoughts on what it might be from the video? I'd like to be armed with *some* knowledge before I go fight with the dealer!

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Hey Mattgoose, I just heard the noise on ur video. its a hum that seems more like a rotation part that might not be the tires, I have the same tires u do and I have never heard something like that yet on my cx9. its very possible you have a faulty tire but I would also ask the dealer to see the rotation parts of the car.
 
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