If you like to rock out in your car, listen to podcasts, or chat with the fam on your way home from work, then you know how annoying a noisy car can be. When your ride rattles and shakes (and not in a good way), it’s time to think about adding some sound deadening material to dampen the distractions. But don’t cheap out on your sound deadener, or you could end up even more annoyed.

If you like to rock out in your car, listen to podcasts, or chat with the fam on your way home from work, then you know how annoying a noisy car can be. When your ride rattles and shakes (and not in a good way), it’s time to think about adding some sound deadening material to dampen the distractions. But don’t cheap out on your sound deadener, or you could end up even more annoyed.

Are you someone who likes to drive with the volume on your stereo turned up, but would rather hear the music instead of your car? Are you restoring an old vehicle and are concerned about driving at highway speeds in a box of metal? If so, one of the things you're going to want to consider is soundproofing your car.

However, when doing so, you’ll find that there are numerous methods available. The first key step is to stop the metal panels from vibrating and rattling. If you’ve been researching how to do this, you’ve likely come across what looks like several different methods. Some methods deaden, while others damp or dampen. What’s the difference between these methods? We’re here to provide you with a complete breakdown of how to go about soundproofing your vehicle.

First, let’s talk about why sound deadeners rock.

Adding quality sound deadening to your car will improve your overall acoustics, so you can enjoy your drive without car or road noise. And make the most of your music and conversation. Car insulation also makes your drive safer, making it easier to hear traffic sounds and car trouble. One of the craziest stories we ever heard was about a customer who completely totaled his vehicle and was told that all that extra Second Skin insulation likely saved his life by preventing the cabin from crushing him. We can't guarantee those types of results, but we figured that was a check mark in the "safer" category.

You don’t need to be an auto pro to apply sound deadeners to your vehicle. Sure, it might take a few hours to do a DIY job. But if you love cars like we do, an afternoon taking care of your baby is time well spent. Ready for some SIY? Soundproofing It Yourself. Then keep reading to find out why you shouldn’t waste your time with cheap sound deadening material.

#1: When the cheap stuff doesn’t work, you’ll spend more money on new materials and have to go through the installation process all over again. Which can be a huge mess. We’ll explain more about the mess in a minute. But for now, imagine scraping goopy gobs of adhesive for hours and hours and hours. Not a fun way to spend a Saturday.

#2: Some of the cheaper sound deadening materials are made with asphalt. Take a minute to think about how it smells when you drive by a DOT crew paving the road. Now imagine that INSIDE your car. Gross.

It’s a well-known fact that asphalt-based sound deadeners can create really unpleasant odors. And they’re not great for your health, because asphalt outgases chemicals when it gets hot and has been established as a Group 2B carcinogen by the WHO. If you don’t live in a warm climate, it may not be a big deal, but why take the risk? We wouldn’t.

Your best bet is to go with a sound deadening product made with butyl rubber. Butyl doesn’t have a nasty odor, it has excellent heat resistance, and it’s great at deadening noise. We recommend checking out Damplifier and Damplifier Pro.

Try our product recommendation tool and find exactly what you need.

Step 1: skip the Heat Gun

Any time you put something in your vehicle, there's some level of risk to have an issue. That risk is much greater if what you're adding is cheap or low quality. With sound deadening, the cheaper asphalt products sometimes have consistency issues where they literally melt and become a huge mess of tar. Sometimes the melting is due to heat, but sometimes these cheap materials will just dissolve in front of your eyes. You'll be stunned, and then when you call to ask they'll tell you it was a bad batch. OH REALLY?!

We decided to write this guide after getting this picture from a customer. He wanted some advice on how to remove the cheap deadener that had become one of those tarry messes. The poor guy was in the middle of trying melt the cheap soundproofing material with a heat gun so that he could scrape it off. Save yourself the hassle and don't try to do it this way. You'll do a lot of work and still end up with a big stinking pile of asphalt. Not pretty.

We get it. You don’t want to go overboard on your car upgrades. The good news is that you can actually get more bang for your buck when you buy quality sound deadening products, if you follow these tips. Psst...it’s all about using good materials and starting with a smart application strategy. Check out our guide on the cost of soundproofing a car for more information on the topic.

Save yourself the trouble of having to remove cheap sound deadeners later down the road. Shop smart from the get-go and make sure you’re buying the best (and safest) materials for the results you want.

Remember, time is money. So, read the application instructions carefully and take it slow. Make sure you’ve identified your key problem areas and focus on the 25-50% of the cabin that will have the biggest noise reduction impact.

When you’re ready to buy a high quality sound deadening mat or liquid sound deadener that fits into your budget, see what Second Skin Audio has to offer. And if you’ve already installed cheap sound deadeners, we’ll help you get unstuck.

Call us at 1.800.679.8511