Ear pain/Pressure help

[scott_mccool]

For my particular Y it definitely makes a difference with the ear pain I described in a previous post. I put the cover back on to verify and the ear pain returned. It is totally unrelated to the other problems like booming or buffeting and will not make any difference. I did not have any ear pain in the Y that I test drove with the cover on, so it could just be a handful of them have this ear pain issue and I happened to get one of them.

Thanks for the idea. My Y doesn't have the tow hitch, but I took the cover off anyways and it doesn't make a difference with the ear pain.

I have adjusted the hatch bumpers (the envelope trick) multiple times and that helps a little, but the ear pressure is still there and is still bad.

I have felt the ear pressure with the door open and the car sitting in the garage. I'm out of ideas on what might be causing it or how to fix it.

 

[busyatwork]

Thanks for the idea. My Y doesn't have the tow hitch, but I took the cover off anyways and it doesn't make a difference with the ear pain.

I have adjusted the hatch bumpers (the envelope trick) multiple times and that helps a little, but the ear pressure is still there and is still bad.

I have felt the ear pressure with the door open and the car sitting in the garage. I'm out of ideas on what might be causing it or how to fix it.

So any progress on getting a resolution? It bothers me still and I've tried the incremental adjustment, removing the hitch cover, and different combinations of circulating air. Surprisingly we also have another model y (later model per the VIN), and it doesn't have as significant as an issue. Don't know if this is related to car differences (additional weight due to 3rd row, trailer hitch, etc.) or variations in build quality.

At this point I don't know what my options are due to repairs, returning the vehicle, exchanging, or even citing the lemon law. However, I shouldn't get a headache from driving a car for 15 minutes.

 

[scott_mccool]

So any progress on getting a resolution? It bothers me still and I've tried the incremental adjustment, removing the hitch cover, and different combinations of circulating air. Surprisingly we also have another model y (later model per the VIN), and it doesn't have as significant as an issue. Don't know if this is related to car differences (additional weight due to 3rd row, trailer hitch, etc.) or variations in build quality.

At this point I don't know what my options are due to repairs, returning the vehicle, exchanging, or even citing the lemon law. However, I shouldn't get a headache from driving a car for 15 minutes.

Nope. I have taken it in 3 times with no luck. I asked Tesla to buy it back and they said no. Like you, I think I have tried everything: adjusted the hatch bumpers, removed the hitch cover, every combination on the AC. I have used 2 barometers and an EMF sensor to try to track it down. Neither of those show anything.

Your other Y doesn't have it as bad or doesn't have it at all?

I don't know that I can do the lemon law. I can't prove to anybody that my wife and I feel ear pressure. They could say I was making it up.

My plan is to trade it in. The KBB trade in value is almost what I paid for it. It's a shame because this really was my dream car. I hate to get rid of it, but I don't know what else to do.

 

[BreatheEasier]

Nope. I have taken it in 3 times with no luck. I asked Tesla to buy it back and they said no. Like you, I think I have tried everything: adjusted the hatch bumpers, removed the hitch cover, every combination on the AC. I have used 2 barometers and an EMF sensor to try to track it down. Neither of those show anything.

Your other Y doesn't have it as bad or doesn't have it at all?

I don't know that I can do the lemon law. I can't prove to anybody that my wife and I feel ear pressure. They could say I was making it up.

My plan is to trade it in. The KBB trade in value is almost what I paid for it. It's a shame because this really was my dream car. I hate to get rid of it, but I don't know what else to do.

Unfortunately, I'd be wary of the KBB trade in value listed on the internet. I would assume black book value (wholesale) for your MY.

 

[Rshephorse]

While I was able to fix hatch buffeting by adjusting stoppers- find the sweet point between buffeting vs leak/latch malfunction.

Found an easier fix though- leverage the great stereo:

play this loud while driving!

 

[RickCRNA]

Can someone explain how to adjust the rear hatch stoppers on the MY in detail? I would like to try this as well
to see if this reduces some road noise.

 

[MyEarHurts]

I just wanted to chime in sand say that I did what the person did on page 15. I ordered the sound deadener from Amazon but I used more and covered more than he did with poor results. I removed the trunk quarter panel liners and put the deadener and foam on top for both sides, trunk bucket, felt trunk bucket cover. I even ordered a privacy cover and that did not work. I even put deadener on the plastic tray below the trunk bucket where the wind would pass on the car, behind the tow hitch. I removed the hitch cover to try to increase air flow, I made two square cuts in the quarter panel felt to try to have air move through into the rear bumper vents. I went as far as putting rubber bushings in between all the bolts for the trunk bucket as well. I have adjusted all the stops to no avail. The next step is to adjust the latch.

I notice the boom when going over mild uneven road so in 15k miles if I can make it that long without selling the car, I will switch tires. However reading the forums, someone switched tires and UPP coilovers still notice it. I think it's due tot he all glass roof, stiff suspension (mainly) and no active noise cancellation.

Any suggestions are welcome.

 

[yesman686]

Hello,

Since i have a noise issue on my MY 7-seats with 20" as well picked up at Mar 2021 Canada, i did a lot of research and find out a lot of ppl in china having the same issue. 32.4Hz noise at >60db impacting human ear which some people will feel hurt on the ear. it happen >50km/h like you seating in aircraft and climb up from the ground. I'm not sure does anyone have this issue. it really happened to me and my wife. here is the video from Dr. Zheng at NVH lab
sorry mandarin with chinese sub. seems Tesla have no idea yet or no solution yet.

https://weibo.com/7579715268/K7MAxyf0Z?ssl_rnd=1618885644.9257&type=comment

follow up:
https://weibo.com/7579715268/K8H4FikCj?filter=hot&root_comment_id=0&ssl_rnd=1618888601.5666&type=comment#_loginLayer_1618889297540

 

[yesman686]

Here is an official temporary solution from tesla Chinese service center, which will reduce 5~10db sound at 30hz

View attachment 649878

View attachment 649879
View attachment 649880

Thanks @jasonshi i just found the post. did it works for you, I'm not sure can you get the part number that i need it here in canada too. my wife and I ears feel hurt >50km/h , i went 4 times to service center and it seems they have no idea.

 

[PhotonMiles]

Hello,

Since i have a noise issue on my MY 7-seats with 20" as well picked up at Mar 2021 Canada, i did a lot of research and find out a lot of ppl in china having the same issue. 32.4Hz noise at >60db impacting human ear which some people will feel hurt on the ear. it happen >50km/h like you seating in aircraft and climb up from the ground. I'm not sure does anyone have this issue. it really happened to me and my wife. here is the video from Dr. Zheng at NVH lab
sorry mandarin with chinese sub. seems Tesla have no idea yet or no solution yet.

Yes this exactly.

Set your dB meter to the dBC scale or unweighted scale instead of the dBA scale and the level will astound you.

Here's a short video I recorded earlier today showing my decibel meter set to dBC while I drive only 20 MPH on an average neighborhood road (a bit bumpy). Levels average 95-97dB and go as high as 105dB! Yikes!!

Tesla, this is a BIG problem. Tweaking rubber stoppers on the rear hatch is not a fix. This issue may very well be fundamental to the design of the car.

 

[MY-Y]

Overall noise was dropped a lot with the sound deadening material in my MY. The boominess is mostly addressed with the hatch adjustment. If the hatch is moving and giving that headache-inducing very low frequency thumping, sound deadening won't help much.

Screw the bumpers in, lower the hatch catch enough so the hatch won't close in its own 1/2 of the time (the gasket will set in a week or so and it'll latch every time), and adjust the bumpers so all four are hitting enough that it is very hard to pull an envelope out. For my rear two bumpers, they had to be screwed out so far that they weren't that rigid. I put a round stick on hard clear rubber pad where they hit so they weren't unscrewed so far when adjusted correctly.

With these adjustments, I had to push on the hatch a little to get it to latch for a week, but it solved the issue for me.

Before adjusting the hatch - I cannot keep this car.
After adjusting the hatch - I like this car.
After sound deadening, including the RPM Tesla wind and road noise kit - the MY is the best car I've had in my life.

 

[DanDi58]

Can someone explain how to adjust the rear hatch stoppers on the MY in detail? I would like to try this as well
to see if this reduces some road noise.

There are plenty of posts in this thread that discuss how to do that.

 

[PecuniaNonOlet]

This, for me, is the "canonical" hatch stopper adjustment post:

Ear pain/Pressure help

We have had our Model Y for just over a week, and we are experiencing the same things that others are here. Mainly (1) an irritating repetitive ear pressure when traveling at high speed, much like when one window is open and (2) a subsonic booming with some ear pressure when going over bumps...

teslamotorsclub.com

 

[yesman686]

Overall noise was dropped a lot with the sound deadening material in my MY. The boominess is mostly addressed with the hatch adjustment. If the hatch is moving and giving that headache-inducing very low frequency thumping, sound deadening won't help much.

Screw the bumpers in, lower the hatch catch enough so the hatch won't close in its own 1/2 of the time (the gasket will set in a week or so and it'll latch every time), and adjust the bumpers so all four are hitting enough that it is very hard to pull an envelope out. For my rear two bumpers, they had to be screwed out so far that they weren't that rigid. I put a round stick on hard clear rubber pad where they hit so they weren't unscrewed so far when adjusted correctly.

With these adjustments, I had to push on the hatch a little to get it to latch for a week, but it solved the issue for me.

Before adjusting the hatch - I cannot keep this car.
After adjusting the hatch - I like this car.
After sound deadening, including the RPM Tesla wind and road noise kit - the MY is the best car I've had in my life.

I did and i tried with envelope which I cant pull out easy. however, it still there

 

[PhotonMiles]

What are the chances that all this boominess and rumble is due to the new unibody rear frame?

Tesla Model Y gets one-piece rear frame + News from Tesla China - electrive.com

Is the subframe bolted directly to this without any isolation?

If so, no amount of sound dampening material would make any difference right? The road bumps are just going to shoot straight into this rear frame and get is resonating like a giant drum that you're sitting in the middle of. Thoughts?

 

[polyphonic54]

One of the most bothersome issues is the reliance on A-weighting for loudness testing.

A-weighting adjusts a 30Hz sound by 40 decibels! That is outrageous for car noise testing. You could have a subwoofer blaring and it would have almost no effect on the result. As we all know, those low frequencies are in fact extremely annoying to human ears.

A-weighting - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

 

[polyphonic54]

At the risk of bothering everyone here, I am going to again share one of three technical papers relating to Body Boom on the Audi e-tron. As far as I know, these are the only technical papers on the subject of Body Boom in electric vehicles.

“Commonly, also applied with the Audi e-tron, the rear engine is mounted on a subframe, which again is connected to the body structure. This concept leads to a better insulation in the high frequency range, yet it bears some problems in designing the mounts for ride comfort (up to 20Hz) or body boom (up to 70Hz).

Simulating and Optimizing the Dynamic Chassis Forces of the Audi E-Tron

With battery electric vehicles (BEV), due to the absence of the combustion process, the rolling noise comes even more into play. The BEV technology also leads to different concepts of how to mount the electric engine in the car. Commonly, also applied with the Audi e-tron, the rear engine is mounted

www.sae.org

Personally, I find it to be an incredible oversight that leads to ear pain. I can’t help but notice, however, that most people are unaffected, or do not consciously notice it.

 

[scott_mccool]

Thanks @jasonshi i just found the post. did it works for you, I'm not sure can you get the part number that i need it here in canada too. my wife and I ears feel hurt >50km/h , i went 4 times to service center and it seems they have no idea.

If you look back in this thread, you will see that the service center in Florida did the same thing for me. It didn't help.

 

[PhotonMiles]

I think it's safe to say that a lot of this issue is caused by the road noise from the tires coming through the shocks. Looks like Honda has come up with an interesting fix for this issue by placing special resonators around the wheel:

Honda Global | Noise-reducing Wheels - Picture Book

Anyone know if there are aftermarket wheels available that include this kind of resonator thing that can be put on a Model Y?

 

[MyEarHurts]

If you look back in this thread, you will see that the service center in Florida did the same thing for me. It didn't help.

Agreed, I had extra weather strips for the doors and put them in the spot he mentioned and no difference. I've spent hundreds on Noico sound deadening and foam on top of it with no difference, even in the quarter panels, trunk box, behind the quarter panel felt and even the wheel wells.

What the person mentioned above this post is correct. The shock is the issue along with the tires but I'm not sure I want to dump $5k ($3k shocks, install, tires, mount/balance) but may consider it or even trading the car in and taking a loss before I dump more money into it.

Now to update what I found somewhat helped was removing the top lid for the trunk as it would be enclosed with resonance (even though I lined the back of it with deadener and foam). I also raised the lid behind the second row seat. The bumps are still there but the "boom" or "thump" is not as echoed. Hope others will continue to post what works. I can tell you adjusting the stops did not work for me and I did it over a week. If the car is going 10 mph, it's not enough wind/buffer to cause it, I feel it as soon as the tire hits something uneven, then the shock and the whole rear end echo the boom.