Easy, inexpensive way to reduce interior noise
I recently acquired a 1989 Sidekick and love it. When first driving it, I found the interior noise to be unacceptable, especially at freeway speeds. This is no surprise as the carpet and padding are just a little more than a beach towel draped across the floor pan. For those of us that like a cool, quiet ride, the following will guide you through the procedure to make this so for less than $10.
My vehicle is an early two-door convertible with a clip-on hardtop. I am sure that the factory has addressed the noise issue, especially on 4-door and later models. Nonetheless, the technique cited here will help quiet the ride for all Suzuki Sidekicks & Geo Trackers.
To acquire the needed material, visit your local pick and pull wrecking yard. If none is around, ask around. Some lots still allow customers access into their yards. Look to find any Chrysler/Plymouth/Dodge rear wheel drive cars made from 1983-89. These include the Chrysler Fifth Avenue, Dodge Diplomat, and Plymouth Grand Fury. Remove the rear seat and look at the floor pan below. You will find a type of material around three-quarters inch thick that is a jute-type of padding with a black tar-like substance covered with thin plastic. This is laid as one section and lifts right out. Early models usually have a slightly different material that may be degraded. You want to find sections in which the tar material seems fresh and it all comes out of the vehicle cleanly. You can also remove the front bench seat and pull up the carpet. This sound deadening material continues up to the firewall, but the best section is in front of the rear seat. You will need four sections of this material for this project. I have found that the wrecking yards never charge more that $10 for all pieces. Usually I pay $4-7.Take the material home and lay it out flat. If it is wet, don't worry! It will dry out in a few days. Also, check you carpet. If it is worn through or ripped, order something new from an aftermarket source. J.C. Whitney is a good place to check. If the carpet is dirty or stained, you can clean it once it is remove from the vehicle. You can use a carpet machine or just wipe it by hand with a sponge or mit using first a cleaner and then just water. Hang it up to dry.
When you have 2-4 hours to spare for this project, let's get started!
First, unbolt the front seats. You will find four bolts, the rear two will be under plastic tabs. Also remove the jacking equipment that is stowed there. Next, unbolt and remove the shift console. It is retained by screws and then you unscrew the shift knob (manual transmission) by hand. I am not familiar with auto. trans. but it should be obvious. Also loosen the screw that holds the transfer case shift knob and remove it. Now, remove the screws for the parking brake lever plastic bezel and remove it as well. Finally, unbolt and remove the front seat belts. Now remove the four bolts retaining the rear seat and remove it. Also remove all the clips and brackets that are on the rear floor deck. You should be at the point where you just have carpet on the floor pan. If not, remove anything that is left.
To remove the carpet, pull up on the round fasteners that hold the carpet to the floor. They are just big snaps and pop right off. Lift up carefully on the front and rear carpets as they rip easily. Once you know the carpets are clear, remove them from the vehicle. Now is the time to clean and vacuum the floor pan. Once this is done, you are ready to install the material you got from the wrecking yard. For added sound deadening, you can remove the rear side panels and the rear door panel and stuff foam, fiberglass, or batting material in the cavities. Be careful with the panel fasteners and panel boards, they are brittle! Pry carefully with a screwdriver to remove them. Lay in the sound deadening material with the "tar" side up. Start from the rear and work forward. Be sure to note seat and other attachments on the floor pan. You will need to cut-out the material to allow an opening for these. A linoleum knife, box cutter, or especially tin snips or shears work the best. Be sure to lay the material fully across the floor pan from wall to wall. The fourth piece of material you can cut up to fill in the cut outs from the original car. You can cut up and mold the sections coming down from the rear seat and over the console. The key to a good installation is to lay all the material flat and fully across the pan. Again, watch for places where the Suzuki seats, carpet snaps, seat belts, console attach and cut them out. It will be hard to get through the material later if you miss any. After you have good coverage from the rear gate and up under the lower dash, reinstall the carpet. The plastic snaps will work even with the increased height. Reinstall the seats and the other hardware in reverse order of how you took them out.
Now go off for a nice drive. If you have off-road tires that were noisy on the freeway before, you'll find them almost silent. You'll be able to clearly hear the sound system at low volume and also have conversations without having to raise your voice.
