Installing Dynamat - Cut Down The Buzz

Nothing ruins a sweet-sounding system more than a trunk that buzzes and doors that rattle. While most cars come with some sort of sound deadening from the factory, it's not up to par with the addition of high-quality audio gear. Along with that, the older the car, the lower the quality of materials used for sound deadening. With the heavy resurgence of muscle cars, this becomes a serious problem.

To solve this issue, Dynamat offers numerous products to fit practically every application. The trick is deciphering which product is best for which application. Each section of a car has its own types of noise and requires specific properties in sound deadening. Floors have different properties than doors, while firewalls need noise and thermal reduction. Before purchasing sound deadening, you need to break it down and choose which areas you are going to deaden and what properties each section requires.

With each section broken down, the choices become simpler. While searching dynamat.com, each type of material is listed with its own dampening characteristics. Some materials are suited for a wide range of applications, such as Dynamat Extreme, which is specifically formulated to reduce road noise and vibrations on virtually all sheet metal.

Other products have specialized properties for specific panels. Dynaliner is a specialized foam pad that blocks heat, reduces wind noise and isolates vibrations, making it the perfect solution for door panels and, when used in conjunction with Dynamat Extreme, floors and firewalls. Dynamat even has Hoodliner, which not only reduces noise, it reflects 97 percent of the radiant heat from the engine to protect the paint.

There are also a few materials to stay away from. Spray-on sound deadeners tend to cause rust as experienced on the 1971 Buick GS convertible project. For this article, the old OE mat and some rust-causing spray-on sound deadening is removed and replaced with Dynamat Extreme and 1/4" Dynaliner. The end result is a solid, noise free ride that will keep the music in and the rattles out.

DoorsWind noise, mechanical rattles and audio vibrationsFloorRoad noise, drivetrain and thermalFirewallThermal, road noise and engine noiseTrunkRoad noise, mechanical rattles and audio vibrationsRear DeckAudio vibrations, mechanical rattlesRoofWind noise and thermal

A few years back, the entire...        read full caption A few years back, the entire interior sheet metal was covered with a spray-on liquid sound deadener. While it made a slight difference, it wasn't worth the effort or the expense. Add to that the fact that it's water based and resulted in a lot of little rust patches, this stuff is not advisable.	Using a paint scraper, some...        read full caption Using a paint scraper, some MEK (Methyl Ethyl Ketone, similar to acetone but evaporates slower) and some good ol' elbow grease, the spray-on stuff came off in chunks. It took hours to get the car clean again.	With the back seat area clean,...        read full caption With the back seat area clean, the rusty areas need some attention. Using a chip brush and some Mar-Hyde One-Step, the rust was converted from body cancer to black oxide primer. On areas like this, the stuff really works and keeps the rust from spreading, which would eventually lead to a floor replacement.
The removal of the original...        read full caption The removal of the original mat is a messy proposition. Using a metal spatula, the old mat is scraped off the floor. Sometimes it comes off in small pieces, tearing the paper. In some areas, there isn't enough room to get the scraper under the mat. Cutting the mat down the center provides an easy solution.	This piece came off as a sheet,...        read full caption This piece came off as a sheet, showing the ineffectiveness of the OE mat.	The original firewall jute...        read full caption The original firewall jute padding had disintegrated to a mess that always covered the carpet with lint. The padding practically fell off in my hands.
The factory used a little...        read full caption The factory used a little spray adhesive to hold the jute pad under the dash. The scraper made quick work of removing it.	The entire floor pan gets...        read full caption The entire floor pan gets vacuumed so the new mat will stick to the floor and not the dirt and sand. The final step before applying the Dynamat is wiping everything down with MEK to clean the metal of old adhesive and grease so the new adhesive sticks.	The Dynamat is available in...        read full caption The Dynamat is available in project kits or bulk packs. Shown here are a door kit for two doors, a trunk kit and a bulk kit. The bulk kit is for the floor and contains nine pre-cut sheets totaling 36ft2 of mat.