Road/tire noise.

[Royalstorm]

I agree that previous versions of the Bridgestone Potenzas were terrible tires. Had them on an Infiniti FX and have nothing good to say about them. But in my GR1 I do not notice excess road noise nor balance problems. Although I hate the soft sidewalks and poor handling in dry or wet. Won’t have them on to find out how bad they may be in light snow. Had BFGoodrich g-force comp a/s on my S4 based on reviews and thought they were great. I’m considering switching out before winter. Press the dealership to get the wheels and tires right. You shouldn’t have to pay for new tires unless you want to upgrade. Good luck.

Thanks for your comments. It’s intetesting. The road noise seems most prominent at lower speeds, and especially very low speeds when turning sharply to park. It’s also most noticeable when the car decelerates to below 15 mph. I was concerned that it may be a brake pad/caliper issue but notice the sound to a degree even without applying the brake. I still think it’s the tread, which produces louder sounds with sharp turning, though I cannot exclude some other defect in the brake/caliper setup. Thoughts?

 

[Grayt 8]

Thanks for your comments. It’s intetesting. The road noise seems most prominent at lower speeds, and especially very low speeds when turning sharply to park. It’s also most noticeable when the car decelerates to below 15 mph. I was concerned that it may be a brake pad/caliper issue but notice the sound to a degree even without applying the brake. I still think it’s the tread, which produces louder sounds with sharp turning, though I cannot exclude some other defect in the brake/caliper setup. Thoughts?

I'm pretty sure it's the tires. I hear the same thing with the 18 inch tires.

 

[Bob Carter]

Thanks Royalstorm and 4wheelpilot....I'll definitely press the dealer. Only 352 miles on car.

 

[Royalstorm]

Thanks Royalstorm and 4wheelpilot....I'll definitely press the dealer. Only 352 miles on car.

Sounds good. Please let me know if you discover anything else!

 

[jrhodes87]

Just my 2 cents here, but I've seen several videos of owners saying this road noise/feel is something they experience on even higher end sports cars, porsche 911's, ferraris, etc.. It's part of being a sports car with sport suspension. Now i'm not saying this is justification, the stinger is NOT a 911 or a ferrari, but I went in to this experience with my Stinger knowing that it is also NOT a "luxury" car, it wasn't going to ride and feel like a luxury car. If I wanted that luxury car feel on the road I would have kept my genesis G80. This car feels raw, I feel one with the road and car. Now like I said just my opinion, it may very well be a tire issue with some.

 

[4wheelpilot]

I have been fortunate enough to drive a few higher end sports/sporty cars. None have had the specific problems the OP is experiencing. Even amongst owners on this forum, only some (?) percentage might. So the OP’s problems are not normal and he is entitled to a solution from Kia.

 

[4wheelpilot]

It’s all relative...compared to my S4, my GT1 is quieter, rides softer and is less sharp. I enjoy it for what it is-more Grand Tourer than sport. OP, I hope you accept nothing less than a satisfactory fix from Kia. Don’t accept any excuses about the Stinger being a sporty car to explain away your problems.

 

[Waynerm002]

Curious to hear what the dealer says about it.

 

[SOCAL2.0]

Yes I have been noticing road noise too. My premium stinger is not quite 2 months old. I suspect tire noise is what I am hearing and even though I am running 39 psi in back and 38 up front the noise is constant although some roads are annoying. Thought it was the price I have to pay for crisp handling. My old car was a very quiet Chrysler 300S with Firestone Indy 500 summer tires. Would going with the right summer tires get rid of the tire noise?

 

[Royalstorm]

Yes I have been noticing road noise too. My premium stinger is not quite 2 months old. I suspect tire noise is what I am hearing and even though I am running 39 psi in back and 38 up front the noise is constant although some roads are annoying. Thought it was the price I have to pay for crisp handling. My old car was a very quiet Chrysler 300S with Firestone Indy 500 summer tires. Would going with the right summer tires get rid of the tire noise?

One of the other members had mentioned that swapping the stock tires out for even a better all-season like the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3+ made a huge difference. So I would think a dedicated summer tire would be even better.

 

[Waynerm002]

All you folks with the Bridgestone tires should post up some reviews on tirerack.com or other tire sites so others get an idea how this tire performs. I know these are supposed to be an improved version but I had the first one years ago and got rid of it as fast as I could. These so far don't seem to be much better. I'm sure they chose them for a balance of economy, performance and comfort however, I think KIA should have chosen a different tire for the Stinger. They should have went with some Ultra High Performance All Season like the Michelin PS AS3+ mentioned above or the Pirelli PZero AS Plus or even the better Bridgestone 980 AS tires, instead of the Grand Touring Bridgestones. They use Bridgestone, COntinental and Michelins on their top end vehicles, I would think the Michelin PS AS 3+ would be a better choice here. Let's hope they read these threads and ditch the Bridgestones.

I know Hyundai/KIA listens to their customers and make running changes. This would be a perfect thing for them to make an adjustment on for 2019. I would prefer better grip on my sporty ride (well, I want that on all my cars) than better fuel economy.

 

[Hojae84]

I agree. I got the 18" on my awd gt2. This potenza tire is real noisy, I do notice it a lot when going kinda slow as well. It suks.
Have summer tires on the way can wait to get rid of these all seasons

 

[SEA Stinger]

One of the other members had mentioned that swapping the stock tires out for even a better all-season like the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3+ made a huge difference. So I would think a dedicated summer tire would be even better.

Yeah, that was me. I swapped out the crappy Bridgestones ASAP after I bought my Stinger in January, and never looked back. The Michelins are far superior.

 

[StingEm]

It’s threads like these when you realize how cheap you are. I know there are better tires out there than the factory Bridgestones, but there’s no way I will pay the $800 to replace them until 3-4 years from now when they’re totally dead. It probably helps that my previous daily driver was not a quiet car and the Stinger sounds pretty quiet relative to it (even with the meh Bridgestones).

Luckily the car has a nice stereo to drown it out.

 

[Onno P]

Japanese sporty cars I bought came out of the factory with Bridgestone Potenza’s.
Simply hated these tyres. Noisy and a (too) big a difference between dry and wet performance making driving in the rain more dangerous than needed..
Toyo and Michelin are doing a better job at that.

 

[SOCAL2.0]

It’s threads like these when you realize how cheap you are. I know there are better tires out there than the factory Bridgestones, but there’s no way I will pay the $800 to replace them until 3-4 years from now when they’re totally dead. It probably helps that my previous daily driver was not a quiet car and the Stinger sounds pretty quiet relative to it (even with the meh Bridgestones).

Luckily the car has a nice stereo to drown it out.

Yes just a little more volume on the stereo and I have no tire noise at all!! LOL

 

[Bob Carter]

Hey Bob,

Thanks for the message. Your description is almost identical to what I’ve experienced. Initially I was concerned about a bearing issue too because the sound was so harsh/grinding-like but I too noticed differences depending on pavement type. I’ve come to the conclusion that it is most likely the tires, as other members have suggested. In time, I’m hoping to swap the stock tires for some all-season Michelin’s and will update once that change is made. Congrats on your new car! Enjoy!

Hey Bob,

Thanks for the message. Your description is almost identical to what I’ve experienced. Initially I was concerned about a bearing issue too because the sound was so harsh/grinding-like but I too noticed differences depending on pavement type. I’ve come to the conclusion that it is most likely the tires, as other members have suggested. In time, I’m hoping to swap the stock tires for some all-season Michelin’s and will update once that change is made. Congrats on your new car! Enjoy!

Hey Bob,

Thanks for the message. Your description is almost identical to what I’ve experienced. Initially I was concerned about a bearing issue too because the sound was so harsh/grinding-like but I too noticed differences depending on pavement type. I’ve come to the conclusion that it is most likely the tires, as other members have suggested. In time, I’m hoping to swap the stock tires for some all-season Michelin’s and will update once that change is made. Congrats on your new car! Enjoy!

Hey Royal... I took my Stinger into the dealer to have them check the front end noise. The mechanic drove it with me and heard the noise and then came back to the dealership and we took out a brand new one off the lot so we could compare noises. I heard the same noise on the new car but not as loud as on mine. The service manager drove the car with the mechanic and they came to the conclusion that the tires have an “incompatible tread design”. They said that the Bridgestone tires when Kia tested at the factory were tested on a different road service (concrete) than what we find in the northeast (asphalt)...they said that the pavement up here is creating extra road noise. They encouraged me to drive it and see if it smooths out which I don’t think it will. I also noticed that my tire pressure was at 46 pounds when I got the car and reset to factory settings. I didn’t notice any improvement in front end noise. They said there were no mechanical issues with the car that could cause this noise. I now believe that the tires are the issue and either mine are defective or Kia specd the wrong tires for this car. I may write a letter to Kia and ask for assistance.
Bob

 

[Royalstorm]

Hey Royal... I took my Stinger into the dealer to have them check the front end noise. The mechanic drove it with me and heard the noise and then came back to the dealership and we took out a brand new one off the lot so we could compare noises. I heard the same noise on the new car but not as loud as on mine. The service manager drove the car with the mechanic and they came to the conclusion that the tires have an “incompatible tread design”. They said that the Bridgestone tires when Kia tested at the factory were tested on a different road service (concrete) than what we find in the northeast (asphalt)...they said that the pavement up here is creating extra road noise. They encouraged me to drive it and see if it smooths out which I don’t think it will. I also noticed that my tire pressure was at 46 pounds when I got the car and reset to factory settings. I didn’t notice any improvement in front end noise. They said there were no mechanical issues with the car that could cause this noise. I now believe that the tires are the issue and either mine are defective or Kia specd the wrong tires for this car. I may write a letter to Kia and ask for assistance.
Bob

Hey Bob,

Thanks for the update. After reading through this thread, I too am convinced that the tires are the problem. It’s interesting that some cars are louder than others. I’ve been in contact with Kia regarding a separate issue that already required a center muffler replacement so I’ll see what they have to say about this as well. Thanks again for the update!

 

[patriotsfan82]

Also find myself seriously considering jumping to the Michelin PS3+. At this point, of the 6 Potenzas on my Stinger (4 new, 2 ordered replacements) - 3 had significant out of round issues and 2 were completely unfixable. Combined with the road noise I'm not sure they are long for this world.

 

[4wheelpilot]

I feel for you patriotsfan82, but mainly for your team losing to the Philly Eagles!
About the Potenza, it’s outrageous and you shouldn’t have to switch out because Kia (and other car companies) chose a crappy tire. We should be given a choice of another tire brand replacement or cash.
Bridgestone developed a crap tire that screwed Kia and us.