Cabin Noise

[iBMW]

Test drove the i3 today!
Nice car, i own a Leaf, but now i want the i3

There was an unpleasant noise that i heard most at 70-100km/t
The salesman told me it was the tires...

Here is a youtube clip where you can hear it in the background at 2min48sek-3min22sek, most at 3min11sek

Is this "noise" in every i3?

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=fmfb8Mt5qvE

 

[janner]

Is this "noise" in every i3?

No.

I can hear some background tyre noise, same as you get with every car but as the i3 has no engine noise it's a little more prominent.

 

[PhilH]

Which wheels were fitted: 19" or 20"?

 

[iBMW]

Which wheels were fitted: 19" or 20"?

Style 430 20" with bridgestone ecopia ep500

 

[PhilH]

There have been reports of tyre noise from owners with the 20" wheels. AFAIK there have been no similar reports from owners with 19" wheels: I've certainly never had a problem. You might like to discuss this with the dealer, and if you want to be certain, stay away from the 20" wheels.

 

[iBMW]

Found another video of the sound i heard, 16,00min, he is talking about it

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=GwmG2x5xSZg

 

[jadnashuanh]

The summer performance tires do make different sounds than the all-seasons supplied on the 19" wheels. Most people do not realize that the 20" tires/wheel combination is SUMMER only. If you live where it doesnt' get cold or snowy in the winter, that's fine...otherwise, you'll need to invest in a second set of tires and wheels. There are no all-season 20" tires that fit the i3, at least from the factory, that meet the size and rolling resistance requirements of BMW. At the current time, I do not think there is enough volume for them to find a backup vendor for the investment on both sides to justify it...maybe as things get a little older, so your choices are limited.

 

[WoodlandHills]

The 2014 models had defective Bridgestone tires that made a whooping noise when cornering (or even just driving) on smooth roads. If you are hearing this in a 2015, there is something wrong with the car. Or maybe they just swapped old noisy tires for another set of old noisy tires like my dealer did in an attempt to get me to go away. It was not an attempt to fix the problem since they knew that the replacement tires were defective just like the ones they were removing. Within 200 miles the noises were back: BMW service and dealers really suck!!

 

[jadnashuanh]

To some people, 20" wheels are a 'must have' option. That imposes certain limitations. Bridgestone tweaked the 20" tires, supposedly, it fixed the original noise issue. Not to say that another might have popped up. Does not appear to be a problem with the 19" all-season tire/wheel combination.