Pilgrim

I have a problem with this "violates your rights" protestation. What it really means is "I'm pissed at not getting my way, so I'll claim my rights are being violated." All rights have limits under certain circumstances; these include such basics as life and liberty. Prison removes liberty and capital punishment cancels life. Slander laws limit freedom of speech, as does the famous example of legal action after yelling "fire" in a crowded theater. Firearms can't be carried in certain settings or circumstances. At least one state has recognized the Governor's right to enact and enforce a mask order. I do not intend to make this a political argument, but to note that any of our rights are to some degree circumstantial and can be temporarily changed. In my personal opinion a worldwide pandemic qualifies as such a circumstance. Also, it is sometimes possible to insist on your rights to the point where it is roughly equivalent to committing suicide.

Just for grins, I measured sound levels in my 2008 BMW 3-series wagon today. A-weighted sound level is around 66 dB on the highway, peaking at 71 dB. I'm going to go back through the service manual and check to see where those front control arm bushings are, as I thought the tension/compression rod bushings were them. I must have missed them while looking underneath. And I have ordered some Noico sound deadening material to install under the carpets and on the rear deck. If I have enough I'll also pop off the door panels and apply some in the doors.

Thanks. Yes, those are the biggest bushings that went in. They may not be hard to replace. It really looks like an hour or two would suffice to replace the bushings, but I'm not sure if they're really the source of that much noise. I had the car on blocks or actively working on it for four-plus years, so my memory of the noise level before that isn't trustworthy any more. The rubber ones don't cost much, so I suppose if I change them and it makes no difference, I could swap them back.

Most of the poly kits out there include sway bar bushings. Steering shaft wasn't part of it. Not sure what "TC" rods are....? Abbreviation unfamiliar. True enough, I can loosen the sway bar mounts to the body, and they're quite accessible. I think they're going back to rubber in any case. I also think that it wouldn't be a bad idea to plan on pulling the seats and doing a layer of sound absorbent under the passenger area carpet as well as the rear deck.

Thanks for the comment. The rear sub-frame bushings are still rubber - only changed out the front. However, I have long known that on the car's interior there's really no sound treatment under the back hatch, just that foam filler under the carpet that gives you a level floor. I think adding some sound treatment on the rear floor would definitely help lower the noise level, because occasionally I can hear a bit of differential sound from there. I had a shop do the bushing changes for me. They put poly in the front control arms, front sway bar main mounts, the bushings at the end of the front sway bar, and the bushings on the rear sway bar that mount it to the sub-frame. They didn't do the bushings on the ends of the rear sway bar. So most of the changes were made up front, and none of the bushings are very hard to get to. I'll check the manual to see how hard the bushings on the forward end of the control arms are. I agree, the road surface makes a huge difference! I can tell that. Also, every crack or bump in the pavement creates a big low-frequency thump inside the car, which is the reason the sound meter jumps 10 dB when I contact cracks or expansion joints. Tires are OEM size, 60-series profile Sumitomos from Tire Rack. The rims are the stock "swastika" turbo rims that came with the car. I'm running the tires about 38 PSI.

pilgrim Super Moderator This week I pulled out my faithful old Radio Shack sound level meter and went for a drive. A couple of years ago I switched from rubber suspension bushings to poly, and I was convinced that my 83 ZXT is perceptibly louder inside as a consequence. The meter measures the noise level either of two ways, but (EDIT) I will just quote the relevant one. A-weighted, 500-10,000 Hz, which is the primary human hearing range and is the most used rating for workplaces and general sound levels. The human ear doesn't hear low frequency sounds as well as higher frequencies. C-weighted, 32-10,000 Hz on this meter, a wider sample but not as representative of human hearing. The results? At in-town speeds of 30-40 MPH, a pretty steady A-weighted reading is about 72-78 dB and every crack or expansion joint boots it to over 80dB. Highway sound levels are similar, but slightly higher and any time I go over pavement with expansion joints or cracks it jumps up another 10 dB at 76-86 dB. But anything over 80 is concerning. No wonder I think the **** thing is loud inside. Even at the A-weighted readings, the sound level is close to 80dB, the accepted level where hearing damage can begin with 2 hours of exposure. The difference in scale measurement is all low end frequency, and I think that's the result of the poly bushings - every bit of rumble and low end road noise is transmitted into the passenger compartment. I have a bluetooth radio in the car that links to my cell phone, but I can't answer a phone call traveling above 50 MPH because I can't hear the caller and they can't hear me on mic over the noise level. The carpet and sound deadening in the car are original, as the car is very well preserved from new. I expected a harsher ride, but it never occurred to me that the noise level would increase so much from the bushings. I'm thinking of going back to rubber bushings, as I don't really autocross this car and I honestly don't need them. Has anyone else installed poly bushings and noticed a noise problem?

My guess is that it's just one of many exposures there.

Yes to the comments above. Speedometer in your car is a cable drive and electronics do not affect it. Slide the cable out at the transmission end and lubricate with graphite, NOT GREASE OR OIL. I hope the OP responds.

What car, what year?

Unfortunately facts don't matter to those who are convinced that they are being persecuted. They may wear seat belts and motorcycle or bike helmets, but a face mask is an abhorrent thing that trespasses on their 'Murrican liberty.

Is it right in front of the fuel pump on the passenger side? That would explain a protective panel...

I just heard a news story that added some perspective. Many people like to argue that CO-19 isn't worse than flu, which kills a certain number of people every year. I heard yesterday that in my state (Colorado) only about 50% of the population gets a flu shot annually. My bet is that Colorado probably has a higher flu vaccination rate then many other states (although we have a pretty depressing number of anti-vaxers in K-12). It's pretty obvious to me that we'd have fewer flu fatalities if more people got vaccinated. Taking preventive measures helps you stay healthy; doesn't matter if it's masks, separation or vaccination. Ditto for the need to take advantage to fight CO-19 when vaccinations become available.

Yup, all you have to do is suppress all the testing reports and the numbers plunge....on paper.

Highly editorial comment: I think the GOP in the Senate is starting to smell the outcome, but they're still unwilling to take on Cadet Bone Spurs in public. That's another way in which they're betraying their constituents.

It shocks me, but you're right - it's like Kent State. I was in college from 1968-73; I lived through the 60's and all the unrest about the VietNam war. I'm Mark's age. And regardless, that's one of the scariest things I've ever written. To think that something like Kent State could happen again disgusts me more than anything I have ever written about this administration. They MUST go.

You make an interesting point. This kind of governmental action is much too close to the kind of governmental "secret police" actions which conspiracy theorists use as their justification for being in "militias" and stockpiling firearms. But if those firearms came to the streets, it would be a bloody and brief conflict that the feds would not lose. This situation has the potential for terrible things to happen.

I confess that the temptation to compare this group with Lemmings marching over a cliff is strong. And I am EXTREMELY concerned about what's going on in Portland, and by reports, Washington DC. This is too much like third world dictatorships where the black maria pulls up, the secret police jump out and grab people off the street, throw them in the van and...they disappear. The only difference so far is that people are being released after being held and questioned with no legal process at all. This is not acceptable.

I have relatives in Yakima county. What others may not see in the charts above is that there are two factors impacting the increase in Washington state cases. The first is population density, and the second is conservative political tendencies. Yakima county is a very "right" county and so are many of the others with increased CO-19 rates. The apt student will reach his or her own conclusions about this. And BTW, Go COUGS!

If there's a 2-week quarantine for people coming to the state of NY this fall, you can kiss NFL football and NCAA football from out of state teams goodbye.

My normal assumption is that the closer your car is to factory stock, the easier it is to diagnose problems. I'd return the vacuum configuration to stock.

At this point, I'm just waiting for colleges to give up on most fall sports, including football. I know they need the money, but the upsurge is just too much for a prudent person to plan fall sports.

Many people don't know that you can, but it's not easy to find it. In fact, there are a small number of installers who are licensed to use R12 and if you find one, you can get the system recharged. It costs at least twice as much as using R134. I found such an installer locally last year and paid $200 for the fill. It was well worth it to avoid changing components in the AC system, although I would do that if needed.

Be careful with that. There have been many different substances substituted for R12 and R134, many of which are flammable or potentially explosive. I've converted three cars from R12 to R134 and all i did was change drier, screen (orifice valve) in the AC tubing, and install a compressor with seals set up for 134. In the case of a Z or ZX, that would probably mean having a compressor rebuilt to your specs. In each case where I did a conversion, the AC worked fine, it just took a bit longer for full cooling to build up.

A word to my online friends - ALWAYS wear safety glasses for eye protection while using a wire wheel. I have seen some very sharp wires get thrown off those wheels. I can easily picture one headed right for my eye. Glad this one didn't come out worse.

OUCH!! Keep the fingers!! And watch the wire brushing technique a bit more carefully. Glad that isn't worse.