“Differential” wobble noise?

[chukiechz]

Not sure if this is a normal sound or not. I’ve been noticing this sound more and more lately. Sounds like a diff noise when giving the car some part throttle around 30-40 mph. The wobble is sort of that inconsistent sound that is rotational in nature. Seem to be more pronounced yesterday climbing up some inclines in Malibu yesterday in range mode. Definitely can hear it when decelerating at those speeds.

Has anyone else experienced this, or is it normal?

I have a ‘16 P90D with about 50k miles.

 

[DrComputer]

Have you ever had your front half-shafts replaced? It is a well-documented issue that the half-shafts will warp under hard acceleration on performance models. The usual symptoms are a shaking / shudder under hard acceleration, but if you don't regularly accelerate hard you might also notice warped half-shafts when the front drive unit is under strain (up hills, down hills, on cold mornings, etc). Most performance model X owners have had multiple sets of half-shafts over the years (I've had four and a replacement front drive unit). Unfortunately, if you've never complained about this issue before and you don't have the extended warranty it might be hard to get the service center to replace them without trying to charge you for them if your car is now out of warranty.

 

[chukiechz]

Have you ever had your front half-shafts replaced? It is a well-documented issue that the half-shafts will warp under hard acceleration on performance models. The usual symptoms are a shaking / shudder under hard acceleration, but if you don't regularly accelerate hard you might also notice warped half-shafts when the front drive unit is under strain (up hills, down hills, on cold mornings, etc). Most performance model X owners have had multiple sets of half-shafts over the years (I've had four and a replacement front drive unit). Unfortunately, if you've never complained about this issue before and you don't have the extended warranty it might be hard to get the service center to replace them without trying to charge you for them if your car is now out of warranty.

they were actually replaced in early February. Car is a used vehicle from Tesla, so warranty is still in play. Just wanted to see if there was something more specific I can tell them vs “wobble noise”, or if it’s a completely “normal” sound from the electric motor. It does sound like something slightly off balance somewhere

 

[DrComputer]

The other common issue in the front end of the Model X is that the air struts fail and make a "squeaking" noise when going over road imperfections or bumps. I've also had them replaced twice for this. Simple test is to put the car in "very high" and see if your "wobble noise" gets worse and see if it goes away when you put the car in "very low" mode.

 

[chukiechz]

Lol, Right strut was just replaced in June.

Thanks for helping me trouble shoot. It seems like the noise is not normal, so I’ll add it to the list of things to fix next time. It’s very inconvenient without loaner cars due to COVID (Costa Mesa), so I’m trying to wait until things pile up.

 

[chukiechz]

Made a quick video. Range mode and light throttle around 35mph. Is this normal?

 

[Yinn]

Have you ever had your front half-shafts replaced? It is a well-documented issue that the half-shafts will warp under hard acceleration on performance models. The usual symptoms are a shaking / shudder under hard acceleration, but if you don't regularly accelerate hard you might also notice warped half-shafts when the front drive unit is under strain (up hills, down hills, on cold mornings, etc). Most performance model X owners have had multiple sets of half-shafts over the years (I've had four and a replacement front drive unit). Unfortunately, if you've never complained about this issue before and you don't have the extended warranty it might be hard to get the service center to replace them without trying to charge you for them if your car is now out of warranty.

Happens on non performance models too. Especially to those who tow since they’re usually in Standard and under load/high torque situations.

 

[chukiechz]

Happens on non performance models too. Especially to those who tow since they’re usually in Standard and under load/high torque situations.

So the sound is normal? I keep the car in low and not towing.

 

[Yinn]

So the sound is normal? I keep the car in low and not towing.

That’s what the SC may tell you. It’s also normal if you mean it has the potential to happen to any Model X.

But it certainly isn’t supposed to happen. The fix is half shaft/axle replacement, and then it’ll come back again at a later date.

Edit: Just noticed you’re out of warranty. I’m curious to see if the SC will still deny it’s an issue or go straight to replacement since you’ll be paying for it.

 

[chukiechz]

Im actually in warranty since I purchased it last December from Tesla. I did just get the axles replaced in February, and it is vibrating again driving in low. I brought it up last time and this is what they told me:


Concern: Customer stated that the car vibrates under hard acceleration from a stand still
Technician perform road test and verified there is a normal little vibration during the hard acceleration when suspension on standard. The vibration is more noticeable when suspension is on high/very high, but there is no vibration on low. This is normal characteristic of model X. Per engineers recommendation, not to set the suspension on high or very high during the hard acceleration or sharp turn. Doing so can cause vibration and increase the possibility of damag

 

[Aljohn]

That is correct.... launch and hard acceleration should be done in low to align the half axles -- whether performance variant or long range.

 

[Yinn]

Im actually in warranty since I purchased it last December from Tesla. I did just get the axles replaced in February, and it is vibrating again driving in low. I brought it up last time and this is what they told me:


Concern: Customer stated that the car vibrates under hard acceleration from a stand still
Technician perform road test and verified there is a normal little vibration during the hard acceleration when suspension on standard. The vibration is more noticeable when suspension is on high/very high, but there is no vibration on low. This is normal characteristic of model X. Per engineers recommendation, not to set the suspension on high or very high during the hard acceleration or sharp turn. Doing so can cause vibration and increase the possibility of damag

So are you asking for confirmation if what the SC is telling you is right? Or are you asking about a different sound/feel than what you had in Feb?

 

[chukiechz]

So are you asking for confirmation if what the SC is telling you is right? Or are you asking about a different sound/feel than what you had in Feb?

I hadn’t really noticed the wobble noise before I posted this. I used range mode for the first time and it was quite pronounced. Since I bought the car used, I wasn’t sure if it’s how the car normally sounds, or if it’s something that should be addressed.

If it’s related to the shudder, then it appears the SC is going to blow it off since I brought it back in for vibration even after replacing the axles, and they gave me the above response.

If it’s something else, then I might press the issue more.

 

[Yinn]

I hadn’t really noticed the wobble noise before I posted this. I used range mode for the first time and it was quite pronounced. Since I bought the car used, I wasn’t sure if it’s how the car normally sounds, or if it’s something that should be addressed.

If it’s related to the shudder, then it appears the SC is going to blow it off since I brought it back in for vibration even after replacing the axles, and they gave me the above response.

If it’s something else, then I might press the issue more.

Ok so there was no "wobble" but there was a "vibration" that led to replacements in Feb. So then this "wobble" is different than what you experienced in Feb. Is that right?

This is important because if they are different you may have another problem. Especially since this last post says that range mode made it more pronounced. Range mode doesn't affect the axles/shudder problem that people are experiencing.

 

[chukiechz]

Ok so there was no "wobble" but there was a "vibration" that led to replacements in Feb. So then this "wobble" is different than what you experienced in Feb. Is that right?

This is important because if they are different you may have another problem. Especially since this last post says that range mode made it more pronounced. Range mode doesn't affect the axles/shudder problem that people are experiencing.

Correct. It’s a different sound and it’s something louder while going uphill at lower speeds, light throttle. Same noise while releasing the throttle and decelerating around the same speed.

It’s definitely an sound more than a noticeable physical vibration. I used the word wobble to describe the sound, but there is no physical wobble. It just sounds wobbly or off balance

I have a Chevy volt that has this high frequency noise when driving, so I was wondering if my wobble sound is something Tesla has as a weird quirk.

Thanks for all the input!!

 

[Yinn]

Correct. It’s a different sound and it’s something louder while going uphill at lower speeds, light throttle. Same noise while releasing the throttle and decelerating around the same speed.

It’s definitely an sound more than a noticeable physical vibration. I used the word wobble to describe the sound, but there is no physical wobble. It just sounds wobbly or off balance

I have a Chevy volt that has this high frequency noise when driving, so I was wondering if my wobble sound is something Tesla has as a weird quirk.

Thanks for all the input!!

Is it loud enough to take an audio recording of?

Bad wheel bearings would be a whirring noise (some say grinding). Brake pads worn down would be a squealing noise (some say whining). Point is, want to make sure we remove some of the interpretations.

I'd have a list of questions to see where I'd narrow it down.
- Does it increase with heavier acceleration?
- Is it only on hills?
- Does it increase/decrease with speed?
- Is there a corner it's coming from?
- Does it sound Inner/core of the car, or outer/perimeter of the car?

If it was me, I'd also try to coast down a hill in neutral to see if the wobble was drivetrain related or rolling related. I can't think of much that would make a wobble type of noise that I'd consider normal.

 

[chukiechz]

I posted a video earlier, is it not working anymore? I can try to re upload if it’s broken. I like the idea of neutral. I’ll give it a go next time around.

it does increase as speed increases. I think under heavy acceleration, it goes so fast that you don’t really notice. It is really in that 35mpg zone that it’s fairly noticeable. Definitely sounds from the front and inner core of car.

 

[Yinn]

I posted a video earlier, is it not working anymore? I can try to re upload if it’s broken. I like the idea of neutral. I’ll give it a go next time around.

it does increase as speed increases. I think under heavy acceleration, it goes so fast that you don’t really notice. It is really in that 35mpg zone that it’s fairly noticeable. Definitely sounds from the front and inner core of car.

I get a null from the video.

 

[Vitaman]

Don't mean to hijack this but would love insight on the noise in my 2019 High performance.
At 5,000 miles I got a light clicking sound under hard acceleration up hills. Now at 6K it happens all the time under even light acceleration on flat roads. Sounds a bit like an internal combustion high performance engine fed a steady diet of low octane gas.
There is no shudder involved just a strange unhealthy sound.
Ideas?

 

[chukiechz]

I get a null from the video.

Oops had it set to private.