I'm looking for a car with low cabin noise. Can you tell me the three
most quiet cars for sale in the US in the 20-30K, 30-40k and 40-50k
range?

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Clarification of Question by joelr-ga on 18 Aug 2004 12:22 PDT

Limit to Sedan class vehicles from the following manufacturers:

Audi
BMW
Infiniti
Lexus
Mercedes

Change Price Range to 25-35K, 35-45K, 45-55K

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Clarification of Question by joelr-ga on 18 Aug 2004 22:40 PDT

more clarification
3 cars per class. Total of 9 cars.
Reason: Quiet driving environment for talking on cell phone,
conversing in cabin, listening to music.

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Clarification of Question by joelr-ga on 19 Aug 2004 09:26 PDT

Last try - Limit to 

BMW
Lexus
Mercedes

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Request for Question Clarification by markj-ga on 19 Aug 2004 10:47 PDT

joelr --

At least one line of sedans from all three of these manufacturers has
a base MSRP of more that $55,000.  May I assume that your price range
still ends there?  Do you want to know the quietest models of each
manufacturer within your price range?  Or would be happy with just one
"grand prize winner" if there seems to be a consensus (which I believe
there is)?

In other words, how do you want us to proceed to deal with your latest
list of manufacturers?

markj-ga

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Clarification of Question by joelr-ga on 19 Aug 2004 14:54 PDT

Good Question - Its forced me to rethink my question. For the answer
to be meaningful I need a comparison. My current car is an Audi A4 3.0
Quattro. Its waaaay to noisy. My dream answer would contain:
The ambient cabin noise of my current car in some unit of measure (decibels?)
The cabin noise in some unit of measure for the top three cars in each price range.

I would settle for 
1. ambient cabin noise of my current car and the top car in each price range.
2. ambient cabin noise of top two cars in each price range.

In either case, let's limit to 25-35K, 35-45K, 45-55K price range (not over 55)

Is this doable?

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Clarification of Question by joelr-ga on 20 Aug 2004 10:23 PDT

In response to markj's last comment:

Given the lack of data a relative ranking based on a subjective reviewer would work.

I wouldn't be surprised if they are all Lexus models, assuming you can
get one for under 30K, which is unlikely.

I'm not sure that providing comparable decibel levels of several
specific models is feasible with online resources alone, but would
require reviewing archived automobile magazines at a library at the
very least.  Almost all of the "quietness" comparisons I  have seen
online are based on the subjective judgments of experts and on the
reputations of certain models and makes.

I am releasing my lock on this question so that other researchers can weigh in.