I just got back from a test drive and I have to say the one thing I'm the most surprised by is the road noise. I wouldn't have been surprised if I was driving something sportier, but the JX is obviously intended to be comfort-tuned all around.
Around town it actually was actually reasonably quiet, but on the highway both wind and tire noise were unquestionably louder than both my friend's 2011 Ford Explorer (which we drove to the dealership, making back to back comparisons easy) and my sister in law's 2010 Buick Enclave. I noticed I had to raise my voice a good bit to have a comfortably clear conversation with anyone in the middle seat when doing 70 on the interstate.
I guess I just expected a premium priced and premium branded vehicle... especially one that's comfort-tuned and 'all new for 2013' to put more emphasis on noise reduction.
Per the sales person the JX does not use active noise cancelation, and per my own observation none of the side glass is acoustic laminated... not sure about the windshield. I'm surprised they don't bother with ANC - especially since Infiniti apparently already has and uses the technology in some other models. Seems like it'd be a relative inexpensive add on from the factory.
FWIW I drove an AWD with 19" wheels... I suspect the 20" model would be the same if not worse in terms of noise.
Around town it actually was actually reasonably quiet, but on the highway both wind and tire noise were unquestionably louder than both my friend's 2011 Ford Explorer (which we drove to the dealership, making back to back comparisons easy) and my sister in law's 2010 Buick Enclave. I noticed I had to raise my voice a good bit to have a comfortably clear conversation with anyone in the middle seat when doing 70 on the interstate.
I guess I just expected a premium priced and premium branded vehicle... especially one that's comfort-tuned and 'all new for 2013' to put more emphasis on noise reduction.
Per the sales person the JX does not use active noise cancelation, and per my own observation none of the side glass is acoustic laminated... not sure about the windshield. I'm surprised they don't bother with ANC - especially since Infiniti apparently already has and uses the technology in some other models. Seems like it'd be a relative inexpensive add on from the factory.
FWIW I drove an AWD with 19" wheels... I suspect the 20" model would be the same if not worse in terms of noise.