Noisy cabin in 2007 Tour

I bought a (new) '07 Tour last year and have been experiencing more noises in the drivers area that sometimes I can't hear the passenger. I took it to Forest City and they told me it was the wind from the drivers side mirror. I have taken many people for rides to see what they thought about the noise and they were not impressed with my new Winnie. Is anyone out there experiencing the same noise problem or did I buy the wrong motorhome.

Our cab area will be pretty quiet if we are traveling in light winds, or if the wind is behind us.  If it is windy (15+)  and if the wind on the nose, or quartering the nose, it will be relatively noisy.  As the wind speed increases, so does the noise (unless it is on the stern.)

If you are a member of a state WIT club, maybe you could find a club member with a similar unit and have them ride with you in yours, then go out in their unit and compare.

We have a terrific coach and we're well satisfied.

How fast are you going, what kind of road surface are you on, is it windy out? There are lot of factors to consider. Taske a gasser for a ride and climb a steep hill if you think yours is noisey. As suggested above take out a similar coach and compare. You are driving a big rectangular house on wheels that catches the wind at every angle, not very aerodynamic,  the faster you go the noisier it gets.

I bought one of these in a Radio Shack Store.

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2103667

Rated very high for 50 bucks. ;D Excellent results for my use. Extremely simple to use.

Parked, I measure the genny sound at the Euro Chair..56 dbs...dbs inside at rear queen bed 72... genny side outside of coach at 15 feet..72. 

Tomorrow, I'll measure sound level in driver area between seats at cruise 65 mph on smooth/seemless level asphalt Interstate...then 70..then back to 60. I already sound insulated my doghouse.

Charlie

what kind of noise?  does it vary with speed? does it vary with road conditions? does it vary with RPM, gear?


could be the window?  the screen? the windshield rubber gasket? maybe the rv mirror? internal squeak? leaky front panel?  unsecured front fuze panel? tire problem? bearing problem?

The meter mentioned above also measures the frequencies of the noise.

Find the points-driving conditions in coach of loudest dbs first...then try to ID frequency on meter.

Understanding prevalent frequency can assist isolation-identification of noise generation sources.

Thank you for all of the responses. Yes I do experience the worst noise heading into the wind and it doesn't seem to be coming from the side window but from above my head directly from the left front. There is also a issue from the rear of the TV above my head(squeak-squeak-squeak)    Yesterday I took someones advice from the forum here and did a comparison. Met this gentleman who owned a Country Star and it was plenty windy here in Minn. My wife and I drove his motorhome and he and his wife drove ours. No comparison- theirs was much quieter and my wife could not believe the difference. As for them they tried not to hurt our feelings with their comments about our MH but basically said it was very uncomfortable constant noise and glad they didn't choose a Winne when they bought theirs. Right now I'm sick to my stomach thinking about the difference between the two and feeling that I didn't make a very good choice. You should hear what my wife had to say.

I feel for you, but there must be a reason.  For that kind of noise there has to be someplace that the wind is getting in.  All of the rigs that us Winnie owners have have the same basic configuration if it is a DP.  The places I would start to check are as follows.  If the rubber seal around the window is not sealing properly it would catch the wind and make a howl.  If your rig has a front panel that drops down to expose the generator, open it up and look for light or airways into the passenger area from the outside.  Also crawl under the dash with the front hatch open and look for daylight from the inside.  Any openings need to be closed up with spray foam.  Even open the fuse box in the front and look for opening in there.  The mirror should not make so much noise that it is uncomfortable.  In the front of my Meridian there is not a lot of noise/thermal insulation in the front.  But there is a layer of spray insulation on the roof of the front cap.  If necessary open the TV cabinet and look for insulation in there.

If it comes from the left front over your head, go outside and check the marker lights that are over your head.  Pull the lens' off and look to see if they are sealed.  The squeak is most likely from the TV rubbing against the steel brace that secures it over your head.  The noise issue can be tracked down and found, but it will take some determination on your part.  The wind off of your mirrors should not be so loud that it is bothersome, unless your year has some unusual new mirror.  As a test, there is a plug on the  bottom side of the mirror that adjusts the mirror head.  Loosen the bolt and move the whole mirror closer to the side of the RV.  Make sure that you can still see, but position it as close to the side of the RV as you can and still see down the side.  The mirror head itself also rotates, so rotate the mirror head so the head is "square" with the front of the MH, and not angled.  Your power mirror adjustments will compensate for the tilt of the mirror head.  One of these adjustments should fix your problem. 

Today, cruising back to the factory, I used my decibel meter at 65 mph. I found the driver's side Velac Brand mirror and the turbulent air it creates behind it.. is a major source of noise..as the turbulent air whips back against the driver side window. Add the noise from the passenger side mirror...and there's noise big time from the poor aerodynamic designed mirror mount assembly and mirror body holder. At 40 mph..very little mirror wind turbulence noise...at 65-70 mph..sounds like beginning of Hurricane Katrina.

Additionally..as I pointed the meter back toward the inside trailing edge of the driver's door, the meter went to 100  dbs....very noisy!..

After I stopped here at Winnie Factory for the night, I took a closer look at the door latch area and the rubber weather stripping. A major wind noise entry point exists in the latch area due to poorly designed and applied weatherstrip application.

Fixable..yes..install more weatherstrip along the back side of the latch and along the inside edge of the door in front of the latch, and if possible tighten the door closing latch to tighten the door fit. I'll have the Factory readjust the door latch while I'm here.

Check your driver compartment door's for tight weather stripping and tight door closure..

As far as the Velac mirror system..dunno if it's possible to add a plastic wind deflector to smooth out the  airflow behind or before the mirror assembly to decrease the turbulent air noise it generates..

Charlie

Check the bottom of the window where the drains are, there should be little plastic covers about 2 1/2 inches long by a 1/4 inch high covering them.  If they are broken, cracked or missing you'll get wind noise.

Best Regards!

banjo5491 said:

I bought a (new) '07 Tour last year and have been experiencing more noises in the drivers area that sometimes I can't hear the passenger. I took it to Forest City and they told me it was the wind from the drivers side mirror. I have taken many people for rides to see what they thought about the noise and they were not impressed with my new Winnie. Is anyone out there experiencing the same noise problem or did I buy the wrong motorhome.

Click to expand...

The only noise we hear in our 2007 Tour (TD) is the rattle from the vent from the microwave ... we took it back for that and there was nothing that could be done ... it doesn't rattle all the time, it depends on crosswinds etc.  But in any event we don't have any of the noise you are talking about and it is quite easy to talk with the co-pilot at all times.

banjo5491 said:

There is also a issue from the rear of the TV above my head(squeak-squeak-squeak)   

Click to expand...

I had this problem;  in hindsight, after converting to a LCD TV, I could have fixed the original TV noise by removing the wooden trim from the TV area (there are 4 small screws inside the TV side of the component compartments that are the key to removing the trim) and tightening the steel bracket that pushes the TV against the baseplate.  Over time the foam/rubber cushion under the TV relaxes and the TV mount develops the squeaking noise.  You cannot fix it from the outside, In My Opinion.  As for the wind noise, there has to be an opening somewhere for the sound to enter the cabin.  Charlies sound meter would be a helpful device to locate the source if it is very directional or could be modified to be very directional instead of making a general measurement.  It would take at least 2 people to run the test and a remote hiway.  Good luck... it's a constant battle with a motorhome.

We have your sister ship, an 07 Itasca Ellipse and it's actually quite quiet up front.  Keep hunting for it.  You bought a good coach!

I have suggested this on several other forums, I too had a noise coming from the front of my old rig, couldn't see anything outside, topside that would cause it.  Drove back to our park lot and thought about what I could do to duplicate the condition,  then it hit me, why not use my leaf blower pointed at the rig
and have the wifey inside, yep it worked, moving the blower around I found the source of the noise,
it was between the hood and grill, I added some tape and wow noise gone.

Good luck,

Phelpo

Could you post a photo of where you put the tape?  I know it will depend on the specific coach but at least I will know the exact area you are using.  thx.

well the rig is a 2002 Kountry Star gasser, so the hood is in the front.  I put the tape between
the hood and the top of the engine opening.  Glued it to the underside of the front clip.  This is
where the dw told me the noise was coming from, and as always she was right.

We just traded this rig in for a 2004 Vectra and are starting to work thru the issues with this one.  It has some noise coming from the pass front, but that is not a worry at this time.

Phelpo

Hope and suspect you'll find the source(s) of the noise... have been very happy with the lack of noise with ours... can easily have conversation with co-pilot or persons on sofa and or lounge chair if they face front while driving normally .. Only have occassional annoying squeak from entry door area -apparently when road is slightly tilted or leaning to right a little .. small piece of cloth in latch area seems to stop that 99%... Have never noticed any noise from mirrors .. Obviously, the road surface and tire noise varies depending on quality of roadwork done... (may need ear plugs when we drive on the Stimulus and Recovery Act project roads if and when some sections ever get done ) ... 
Good luck... sure you'll find something causing it...