Hardtop sound reduction

[65 Alpine]

My 1965 ST is quite noisy with the factory hardtop. It is bare steel without a headliner.
Does anyone have experience with applying sound deadening material?

 

[alpine_64]

The factory had a large square of a horse hair style matt glued to the tops under the headlining.

The issue osnt just sound rebound, its also resonance.

Modern materials are better than the old insulation.

Try using a product like dynamat and also one of the sound products with bitumen layers.
Yould apply in strips alternating the two types accross the top to deal with resonance and also echo.

 

[Acollin]

While I do not have a factory hardtop- I have an after market fiberglass one with no padding or insulation. For a good laugh, turn your windshield wipers on.

 

[Warren]

A leading seller of VW parts uses a roll of a roofing material for similar installs and insulation cuts it to size and retails it out. A big problem as well is the lack of the sound insulation or firewall through the boot and soft top bin/well. If any of you have a standard coupe with fold down seats to the trunk you get it. Modern cars also have vents that make it more tolerable when the doors are shut. The tops I have had like 5 of them had only a square of the roof like material approx 18" square. All I can add is whatever you use to apply an abundance of New Car Smell,I mean adhesive contact cement

 

[Green67Alpine]

On the hardtop we have I put a buytl/foil material and topped it with a laminate floor sound deadening ,(it thin foil and foam) works pretty well and also reduces the heat .
Tom j

 

[65 Alpine]

Thank you everyone for the positive recommendations.
Brad

 

[Jay Laifman]

Whatever you do, make sure you do all the right prep and adhesive work. And make sure whatever adhesive you get is good for all the heat it's going to get up there.