Advice on effective sound deadening on the Bronco

pcbc

Hey All,

I have a very new Bronco owner (2023 Black Diamond 4 door). I realize that it gets quite loud inside this car when I go on the freeway or when I pass around 70 mph. My bronco doesn't have a topliner and thought maybe getting a topliner can help with some of this noise.

One one hand, with my Ford Pass points, I can get the topliner installed at my Ford dealership:
https://accessories.ford.com/products/roof-liner-topliner-roof-kit-for-4-door-models

On the other hand, I can get sound deadening done at a car shop through the whole car like doors, flooring, etc. but obviously, much more expensive.

My question is, would a topliner be good enough for noise levels inside the car? or do I need to sound deaden the entire car?

Thinking it all depends on what you’re expecting from your Bronco. If you’re thinking you’re going to get modern sedan quiet inside, I think you‘ll be disappointed, as that’s not what the Bronco is…. It’s not aerodynamic, and the top is made to come off, the tires are generally more aggressive, and therefore you’re going to have more noise than other vehicles are going to offer…. I would try the Ford sound-deadening panels first.

Ford is no longer including the hard top liner? I have a 2022 2Dr Basesquatch. It came with the liner. I don't find the road noise intolerable. It's one of the qualities of the vehicle design that is just unavoidable. Of course, I wish it was quieter. I can't really say if adding the liner will make much of a difference. There are some folks with a youtube channel that completely gutted their 4dr and added sound deadening material under the trim panels. I don't know how much it changed the sound quality.
They used this product;
Seems like a waste of money and effort to use this on a soft top.

Welcome to the Nation. Congratulations the BD is a mighty fine vehicle.
I do not have the sound deadening headliner. But my Brother did have the SDH. there really isn't much of a difference.
a few questions: do you have a roof rack? are your windows indexing properly (rolling up when you shut the door) ? what is the sound? is it wind road noise? this will help figure out some remedies. its the cost of having a removable top.

Thanks everyone for your input - it's very helpful!
@Jakob1972 - Thanks! I absolutely love my Bronco bd! To answer your questions: I don't have a roof rack, my windows appear to be indexed properly, and it's definitely just the wind road noise that seems to be major culprit.

Also, I have a hard top on my Bronco

@RNC - yeah, I just saw a YouTube of someone completely gutting your 4dr and adding sound deadening. He showed that the impact was really minimal. Seems like a lot of work for such little pay off.

When I was working at Ford I had a 2021 Badlands with the base rubber floor and no headliner. Loved the sheer utilitarian nature of that truck, but it was NOISY (M/Ts didn't help)!

A couple months ago I bought a Squatched '22 Badlands off the dealer lot. It was ordered with luxe package, which includes headliner and carpet. Also ordered were the premium rubber logo mats. With that whole package the noise levels really dropped, esp. the tire/road noise (with the Bronco's square top hat I don't think you'll ever tamp down the windnoise all that much... 😖). Anyway, that combo helped a lot. Not sure how you would replicate that on your truck without a lot of cost unless you're really handy.

pcbc

Hey All,

I have a very new Bronco owner (2023 Black Diamond 4 door). I realize that it gets quite loud inside this car when I go on the freeway or when I pass around 70 mph. My bronco doesn't have a topliner and thought maybe getting a topliner can help with some of this noise.

One one hand, with my Ford Pass points, I can get the topliner installed at my Ford dealership:
https://accessories.ford.com/products/roof-liner-topliner-roof-kit-for-4-door-models

On the other hand, I can get sound deadening done at a car shop through the whole car like doors, flooring, etc. but obviously, much more expensive.

My question is, would a topliner be good enough for noise levels inside the car? or do I need to sound deaden the entire car?

I assume, by the link, that you have the hardtop. I have a 2 door hardtop with the liner. I haven't driven in one without so I can't compare. There is noise even with the liner but I honestly expected there to be more noise before I got the Bronco so I'm not mad at it. I found turning the stereo on I don't even notice the noise. The Factory headliner looks like a thin lower quality rug that's adhered to the top and it doesn't even go near the edges. I suspect that normal sound deadening fixed to the inner top would be more effective if you could make it look good.

I just purchased the *dirty dog headliner for my soft top and have been running it for a few days. While it really helps the wind noise above 60 miles per hour, the ground noise is still substantial.

Before the headliner, the volume of noise was coming in from all directions. With the headliner, I can tell the sound direction much better than before. It’s really coming from the doors and tires.

My next step is to use Kill Mat on the doors, and then eventually the floor.

improved sound insulation for the top is just one piece of a sound mitigation system the Bronco needs.

Edit to correct the name. Dirty Dog Headliner

pcbc

Hey All,

I have a very new Bronco owner (2023 Black Diamond 4 door). I realize that it gets quite loud inside this car when I go on the freeway or when I pass around 70 mph. My bronco doesn't have a topliner and thought maybe getting a topliner can help with some of this noise.

One one hand, with my Ford Pass points, I can get the topliner installed at my Ford dealership:
https://accessories.ford.com/products/roof-liner-topliner-roof-kit-for-4-door-models

On the other hand, I can get sound deadening done at a car shop through the whole car like doors, flooring, etc. but obviously, much more expensive.

My question is, would a topliner be good enough for noise levels inside the car? or do I need to sound deaden the entire car?

RNC

Ford is no longer including the hard top liner? I have a 2022 2Dr Basesquatch. It came with the liner. I don't find the road noise intolerable. It's one of the qualities of the vehicle design that is just unavoidable. Of course, I wish it was quieter. I can't really say if adding the liner will make much of a difference. There are some folks with a youtube channel that completely gutted their 4dr and added sound deadening material under the trim panels. I don't know how much it changed the sound quality.
They used this product; Seems like a waste of money and effort to use this on a soft top.

I have a 2023 2 Door and mine came with the headliner from front to back, doesn’t make sense why you wouldn’t have had one put into yours.
With the stocked headliner that comes with (what I thought) was all Broncos, it has very minimal amount of road noise, very tolerable for sure.
I do remember on some trim levels when you built and price, that the headliner was not checked off, however when I checked it off it did not change the price of the Bronco at all.
I would talk to your Dealership and find out why yours did not come with one, maybe a an Assembly plant issue.

Noise is an aggregate problem that takes a number of different improvements usually. The real effort is best spent on the biggest bang for the buck.

If your Bronco didn’t come with the headliner, you can order one - but first, you might think about installing some Dynamat or SoundSkin tiles on the hard top underneath where the headliner will go.

Think you’ll find that most of the Bronco’s noise problem is road noise. There are door and cargo kits that are easy to install and will probably help. But the biggest way to reduce road noise is to change the awful tires the Bronco comes with. If you’re running the Territory MT’s, they howl way louder than most comparable tires. You can find good quality AT or even MT tires that aren’t nearly as noisy. Look at Falken, they’ve gotten great reviews in both capability and road manners. To add insult to injury, the Territory MT isn’t even a mud terrain tire. Goodyear calls it an AT.

Before you go spending a ton of money though, you might want to dig up my wind noise thread and make sure none of those issues are a major problem.

It will never be sedan quiet, but you can get within about 20-30% of a quiet vehicle. I just recently started measuring sound with the NIOSH app, and noticed my Bronco is only 3db louder than my wife’s 23 Grand Cherokee L SR, which is super quiet. Thats one order of magnitude from what I read, or 23% louder (amplitude). Not bad. Most of that difference is still road noise. But I also spent a week tightening things down, replaced one door seal, and have different tires.

BroncOitis

I have a 2023 2 Door and mine came with the headliner from front to back, doesn’t make sense why you wouldn’t have had one put into yours.
With the stocked headliner that comes with (what I thought) was all Broncos, it has very minimal amount of road noise, very tolerable for sure.
I do remember on some trim levels when you built and price, that the headliner was not checked off, however when I checked it off it did not change the price of the Bronco at all.
I would talk to your Dealership and find out why yours did not come with one, maybe a an Assembly plant issue.

My 2023 Badlands did not come with the headliner - I didn't place the original order but the dealer told me that some of the 2023's were ordered before the headliner became a "no charge" option - they gave me a headliner at closing but I had to find someone to install it.

darinhouston

My 2023 Badlands did not come with the headliner - I didn't place the original order but the dealer told me that some of the 2023's were ordered before the headliner became a "no charge" option - they gave me a headliner at closing but I had to find someone to install it.

Well, you're dealer would be wrong. I know, hardly ever happens. 😂 The "no charge" option happened long before you could even think about ordering a '23. IIRC, even though it was a no charge option, it still had to be checked off when ordered. If it wasn't specified, it wouldn't be installed.

The headliner was automatically added to all trims EXCEPT Black Diamond an Badlands. (If you had Black Diamond or Badlands you could add it free of charge, but it wasn't automatically added.) The thought process is both Black Diamond and Badlands have the wash-out interior, and someone with a wash out interior may not want a roof that attracts dust/dirt/etc.

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Anyway, the vast majority of the noise you hear in the Bronco is because it's aerodynamics are that of a brick with wheels and because there is nothing to reduce road noise. The whole "brick with wheels" thing obviously can't be solved... but the road noise can to some degree. And the best way to reduce road noise is to install carpeted flooring with sound deadening and switch your tire over to a more road-friendly tire.

That, in my opinion, kind of ruins the entire point of the Black Diamond with the wash-out interior and the all-terrain tire. So... really it's about what your priorities are.

The sound-proofing on the hard top won't help with the road noise... BUT... it makes having conversations with passengers easier, and it helps the sound system out quite a bit since you don't have reflections bouncing all over the place. So I think it's worth it—particularly if you pay for it with FordPass points that you got with your Bronco—but just don't expect a dramatic reduction in noise if you install it.

RagnarKon

The headliner was automatically added to all trims EXCEPT Black Diamond an Badlands. (If you had Black Diamond or Badlands you could add it free of charge, but it wasn't automatically added.) The thought process is both Black Diamond and Badlands have the wash-out interior, and someone with a wash out interior may not want a roof that attracts dust/dirt/etc.

Yep it was any trim with the washout floors and MGV so the Everglades falls in there as well. that was the one thing I forgot to check the box for. But I don’t miss it really.

pcbc

@RNC - yeah, I just saw a YouTube of someone completely gutting your 4dr and adding sound deadening. He showed that the impact was really minimal. Seems like a lot of work for such little pay off.

Link to the video? I’m gearing up to do the same thing. 😳

TechnicalDisaster

Link to the video? I’m gearing up to do the same thing. 😳

I used this stuff to sound deaded the firewall and hood of my 04 F250 when I put the Cummins in there. it is quieter in the cab than the 6.0l that was in it.
https://www.homedepot.com/p/RESISTO-6-in-x-25-ft-Aluminum-Flashing-Tape-66876/313294560#overlay

Sulley

Think you’ll find that most of the Bronco’s noise problem is road noise. There are door and cargo kits that are easy to install and will probably help. But the biggest way to reduce road noise is to change the awful tires the Bronco comes with. If you’re running the Territory MT’s, they howl way louder than most comparable tires. You can find good quality AT or even MT tires that aren’t nearly as noisy. Look at Falken, they’ve gotten great reviews in both capability and road manners. To add insult to injury, the Territory MT isn’t even a mud terrain tire. Goodyear calls it an AT.

I don't think this statement applies universally. I have the two-door hardtop Badlands with Lux package. It came with additional, non-standard sound deadening beside the headliner which is available to all models. At below-freeway speeds, the vehicle is quiet. At higher speeds, road noise is not the issue. It's entirely wind noise. Soft top owners might experience more road noise through the top.

I think for hard top owners, tackling wind noise, however possible, is going to yield the best results.

timhood

I don't think this statement applies universally. I have the two-door hardtop Badlands with Lux package. It came with additional, non-standard sound deadening beside the headliner which is available to all models. At below-freeway speeds, the vehicle is quiet. At higher speeds, road noise is not the issue. It's entirely wind noise. Soft top owners might experience more road noise through the top.

I think for hard top owners, tackling wind noise, however possible, is going to yield the best results.

I agree, that’s why I also recommended running down this checklist https://thebronconation.com/general...-top-wind-noise-hacks-try-this-first-t.17290/

TechnicalDisaster

I just purchased the naughty dog headliner for my soft top and have been running it for a few days. While it really helps the wind noise above 60 miles per hour, the ground noise is still substantial.

Before the headliner, the volume of noise was coming in from all directions. With the headliner, I can tell the sound direction much better than before. It’s really coming from the doors and tires.

My next step is to use Kill Mat on the doors, and then eventually the floor.

improved sound insulation for the top is just one piece of a sound mitigation system the Bronco needs.

It really is amazing that every little thing from underneath sounds like an all out assault.

RagnarKon

The headliner was automatically added to all trims EXCEPT Black Diamond an Badlands. (If you had Black Diamond or Badlands you could add it free of charge, but it wasn't automatically added.) The thought process is both Black Diamond and Badlands have the wash-out interior, and someone with a wash out interior may not want a roof that attracts dust/dirt/etc.

---

Anyway, the vast majority of the noise you hear in the Bronco is because it's aerodynamics are that of a brick with wheels and because there is nothing to reduce road noise. The whole "brick with wheels" thing obviously can't be solved... but the road noise can to some degree. And the best way to reduce road noise is to install carpeted flooring with sound deadening and switch your tire over to a more road-friendly tire.

That, in my opinion, kind of ruins the entire point of the Black Diamond with the wash-out interior and the all-terrain tire. So... really it's about what your priorities are.

The sound-proofing on the hard top won't help with the road noise... BUT... it makes having conversations with passengers easier, and it helps the sound system out quite a bit since you don't have reflections bouncing all over the place. So I think it's worth it—particularly if you pay for it with FordPass points that you got with your Bronco—but just don't expect a dramatic reduction in noise if you install it.

You COULD solve the brick with wheels aero but nobody will sell me a rocket engine. 🚀