-
Want to remove ads? Register an account and login to see fewer ads, and become a Supporting Member to remove almost all ads.
Acceleration Whine Caused by gears, not motor
- Thread starter aaronw
- Start date
-
- Tags
- Driving Dynamics Model S whine
MichaelS, please keep us posted. I have an appointment in two weeks to have this "baloon squeal" looked at and I expect it o be fixed. There is no way any of us should accept the "balloon squeal" sound as normal. It is an embarrassment. I can live with the subtle drone as well as the whine noise but not the squeal. When I spoke with ownership and service today, they acknowledged the issue and mentioned the inverter. FWIIW, I had mine in a few weeks ago for a delivery fix (the factory somehow installed a not tech package front end w/o the cornering light assembly and chrome trim strips so they replaced the entire front end bumper assembly with correct lighting and trim units). While there, I took the service manager for a ride to hear the drone. He said what I was hearing was no big deal and specifically asked if I had heard a balloon like squealing sound and if that was the sound I was listening for. At that time, it had not yet begun nor was I familiar with the issue. Point is, they are very aware of the issue. Unfortunately, I am now as well :-(
Hi,
Got my car back yesterday. Unfortunately, the squeal is not fixed. Here is the story I got.
When service wanted to give me the car, they said the squeal is normal. I hit the roof. I told them that was not an acceptable answer and i wanted to talk to someone technical that was familiar with the problem. Then I left to go to work.
About an hour later I received a call from Mike White, the service manager at Fremont. This is what he told me:
Yes, Tesla acknowledges there is a problem with the noise. But, at this time there is nothing they can do about it. It seems that they are unable to anything about it due to some issue with a patent. Tesla will have a fix for it, but it will take some time to get it implemented. It's not a very high priority for Tesla. He assured me that the cause of the noise was not putting undue stress on the drive system and I don't need to worry about a failure. I asked him about some of the inverter failures that they have had and he said that they were caused by moisture getting into the system.
Service did the service bulletin on the pano roof, said they finally had a permanent fix. They did the fix on Elon's car and he is happy. The noise in the seat belt is also gone. I had a flaky door handle this weekend that wouldn't open then started working. They replace the RR door handle. They installed a window regulator clip per service bulletin. And I got new carpets.
And finally, they did a fantastic job in cleaning my car inside and out. It was filthy from a weekend at the beach and from the dog. It looked like a brand new car when I picked it up.
So there you have it. I sure appreciate the fabulous car and great service!
Got my car back yesterday. Unfortunately, the squeal is not fixed. Here is the story I got.
When service wanted to give me the car, they said the squeal is normal. I hit the roof. I told them that was not an acceptable answer and i wanted to talk to someone technical that was familiar with the problem. Then I left to go to work.
About an hour later I received a call from Mike White, the service manager at Fremont. This is what he told me:
Yes, Tesla acknowledges there is a problem with the noise. But, at this time there is nothing they can do about it. It seems that they are unable to anything about it due to some issue with a patent. Tesla will have a fix for it, but it will take some time to get it implemented. It's not a very high priority for Tesla. He assured me that the cause of the noise was not putting undue stress on the drive system and I don't need to worry about a failure. I asked him about some of the inverter failures that they have had and he said that they were caused by moisture getting into the system.
Service did the service bulletin on the pano roof, said they finally had a permanent fix. They did the fix on Elon's car and he is happy. The noise in the seat belt is also gone. I had a flaky door handle this weekend that wouldn't open then started working. They replace the RR door handle. They installed a window regulator clip per service bulletin. And I got new carpets.
And finally, they did a fantastic job in cleaning my car inside and out. It was filthy from a weekend at the beach and from the dog. It looked like a brand new car when I picked it up.
So there you have it. I sure appreciate the fabulous car and great service!
Kipernicus
Model S Res#P1440
Does not compute. I stomp on it daily. The squeal is how I know I'm doing it right.
I am, however, noticing more of a droning noise at freeway speeds, which I think is gear related. Not sure if it was there all along and I never paid attention to it, but I get the feeling that the noise came with 4.5, which doesn't make any sense if it's mechanical! (Not the fan-behind-the-screen noise, I hear that too but only if the music is off).
irishstoutaz
Member
I notice the gear/motor noise more in the P85 loaner that we have but that might be due to the parcel shelf in our S85 which may cut down on it. I also notice the droning noise (low deep hum type noise) but that seems to begin at ~65mph and assume that is the gear box... would be nice if that didn't start until a higher speed given most people drive 65-75 on the highway but think the motor/gear setup might be optimized for 55mph as they are completely quiet then.
TonyWilliams
Active Member
My Rav4 EV Gen II also does the heavy acceleration squeal (which I don't mind) and it had the gear box noise. Tesla reps came over to the Toyota dealer, checked out the car, and Toyota techs put in a new motor (warranty charge $0.01). Now, that motor is starting the faint return of the previous gear noise, typically around 65mph, plus or minus 5 or 10mph.
My DC/DC converter was also replaced.
Different than Tesla Model S issues:
Heater 6kW Denso resistance heater failed (warrantee $2700)
Charge timer has never been adequately figured out
J1772 charge port melted ($thousands)
Gateway computer Toyota and Tesla replaced (warranty $2200)
Numerous other issues
30 days plus in the shop in 7 months
EarlyAdopter
Active Member
Tony,
Sounds like you might be able to Lemon it and get a new one. That said, you might also end up starting all over again with a new set of repairs!
Sounds like you might be able to Lemon it and get a new one. That said, you might also end up starting all over again with a new set of repairs!
@MichaelS
I suggest you sell your Tesla. I think your expectations are unrealistic. It may be because I'm an engineer, but the "balloon noise" -the high-pitched whine- was instantly recognizeable to me when I heard it on day2 of ownership. I have heard it on other electric vehicles, when getting a ride on them in the airport, or when driving golf carts around the course, or even on my grandmother's electric scooter. When you send max power through a DC->AC inverter, you often get an electrical whine. It's similar to the whine you hear on high-voltage transformers, but they are usually lower frequency, so more commonly described as a buzz. (before people get angry, the sizzling of power lines is something different, I know). Anyway, I've even heard this same whine on my Civic Hybrid when I'm regenerative braking.
Your complaint is like complaining that an ICE engine makes a revving sound when you floor the gas pedal. You may not like it, but this whine is the noise that electric vehicles make when they accellerate at max power. If you really can't stand the fact that your car doesn't meet your platonic ideal of an electric car, then I suggest you eliminate this stress from your life and sell it.
I suggest you sell your Tesla. I think your expectations are unrealistic. It may be because I'm an engineer, but the "balloon noise" -the high-pitched whine- was instantly recognizeable to me when I heard it on day2 of ownership. I have heard it on other electric vehicles, when getting a ride on them in the airport, or when driving golf carts around the course, or even on my grandmother's electric scooter. When you send max power through a DC->AC inverter, you often get an electrical whine. It's similar to the whine you hear on high-voltage transformers, but they are usually lower frequency, so more commonly described as a buzz. (before people get angry, the sizzling of power lines is something different, I know). Anyway, I've even heard this same whine on my Civic Hybrid when I'm regenerative braking.
Your complaint is like complaining that an ICE engine makes a revving sound when you floor the gas pedal. You may not like it, but this whine is the noise that electric vehicles make when they accellerate at max power. If you really can't stand the fact that your car doesn't meet your platonic ideal of an electric car, then I suggest you eliminate this stress from your life and sell it.
The only time I've heard a car make the noise my car made was the few days that my car was doing it.
I've never heard a golf cart do it nor an electric scooter.
The test drive cars didn't do it.
My car has only done it a half dozen times out of the many hundreds of times I've stomped on the go pedal, and those handful of times was in a span of about 3 days.
If my car were currently doing it, I'd expect Tesla to fix it.
Some distinguishing features about the bad noise my car made vs. the noises other vehicles (e.g., golf carts) make:
1) Sudden onset and cut out while moving. like a light switch. You're going 40 mph, and then wham, it's on, and then you get to 60 mph, and wham it's gone.
2) Pitch is independent of RPM/speed. The pitch started at one frequency and then within a half second dropped about a third to a sustained tone even while the speed of the car increased about 50%.
3) At times it was loud. well golf carts aren't super quiet, but I mean this sound was LOUD.
For what it's worth, my car started making the noise shortly after my parents left. My parents were in town for nearly a week, and during that time I don't think I ever exceeded 200 kW. Right after they left, I started using the car's power and the noise started. After a couple of days of reverting back to making use of the performance I paid for, the noise was gone.
I don't know if that's coincidence or not, but it's a data point.
I also wonder if trying different battery charge thresholds could help.
Derek
pilotSteve
Active Member
The balloon whine is hard to reproduce for me. In my car it often is annoying loud with mild acceleration (40-60kW). Two days ago it appeared with 30-40kW REGEN (first time I noticed that). Then yesterday it was NOT there in my morning drive (30-100kW) acceleration. Reappeared on the drive home that afternoon in the same power band.
Trying to correlate some possible variables: temperature, state of charge, slope of road (I have a lot of hills up/down).
Trying to correlate some possible variables: temperature, state of charge, slope of road (I have a lot of hills up/down).
The high pitched whine at high power output is normal - it isn't as if you hear it that often or for sustained periods of time. I don't know where people got the idea that their cars were going to be totally silent and perfect for the rest of their lives. It just doesn't work that way. In actual fact, the Model S isn't as soundproofed as many high end luxury sedans. But I still love my car, tire noise, wind noise, fan noise and all.
However, the 65 MPH low drone, that's more of an issue. Apparently some people have it pretty bad and I have heard that it is the motor itself causing it. Supposedly Tesla is still figuring out what to do about that. My drone started around 4,200 miles driven which is what a service tech told me was the time that the drone issue usually crops up. My drone isn't that bad, I can tolerate it. If it gets worse, then we'll see.
However, the 65 MPH low drone, that's more of an issue. Apparently some people have it pretty bad and I have heard that it is the motor itself causing it. Supposedly Tesla is still figuring out what to do about that. My drone started around 4,200 miles driven which is what a service tech told me was the time that the drone issue usually crops up. My drone isn't that bad, I can tolerate it. If it gets worse, then we'll see.
I've had the drone at high speeds since delivery, wasn't sure if it was normal since I don't have access to another MS to compare it to. However I do have a Chevy Volt and >50mph, sadly the MS is noticeably louder.
With all due respect, you’re way off base here. I (and others) have had months of ‘normal’ operation and noises with our Teslas only to have them suddenly start making a new, distinct, odd, balloon squeeze sound when accelerating under certain circumstances, the noise is distinct enough that I have had occasional passengers mention that they noticed it right away (without me prompting them) and how annoying that is. It is *not* the whine you are describing. It is different, and if you hear it .. you *know* it.
mknox
Well-Known Member
I don't have the acceleration sound, but I do agree with what you're saying about odd sounds. For some reason, my a/c compressor is very loud... embarrassingly so. It sounds like a 10 year old Corolla at high idle. I had someone ask me if that was the "engine" running, so now I keep it in Range mode which seems to quiet it down a bit. I hope the acceleration noise is addressed because it's not like complaining about an ICE making revving sounds when you floor the pedal, it would be like an ICE making clacking and banging sounds when you floor the pedal - - something that is not right.
I’ll repeat, the high-pitched whine is *not* what we’re talking about... it’s very distinct and noticeable. Imagine somebody letting air out of a balloon and holding the neck of the balloon so it makes a SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE sound... now imagine that sound x about 2 coming from under your back seat when you hit roughly 40-50mph on *hard* acceleration. For anybody who’s car makes that sound, you KNOW what I’m talking about.
Listen to the first two seconds of this video...
Last edited by a moderator:
I'm happy to report I just got my S85 back. Tesla engineers agreed the drone was from the motor so they replaced it. This car is now beautifully quiet at highway speeds(60-80mph). Very happy with both the results and the service experience.
For clarification, I'm referring to a drone and NOT the "balloon squeal" noise. Every S I've been in has the squeal at high energy draw. I like it. It's subtle. The drone is completely different.
Similar threads
