I challenge you to say this sound is normal.

[Camera-Cruiser]

Denver service center foreman says sound is normal. Pretty much end of discussion. Sigh.

No, I had same problem. It took three trips to Buena Park SC. No one said it was normal. I could create it at will by just pressing the brake while waiting for service. It works better than a bell. They all came out to see the Buzzer.

Search some of my posts for more info, but no sound file.

 

[trils0n]

That certainly isn't normal. Escalate the issue to the service center manager.

 

[tinm]

Service center foreman told me every Tesla makes that sound, then explained why, etc, etc. We all know the script.
I am on the road in a rental at the moment, but will try to escalate. I wish I had Jon McNeil's email address so I could accelerate/escalate (PM me if someone knows it).

By the way, I showed up at the Denver service center after staying in a hotel overnight and got there 1st thing in morning. After very long drive to hotel, I noticed driving around hotel parking lot that the drive unit was making a dentist-drill type sound from a stopped position and then gentle super low speed maneuvering in parking lot. NOT the milling/cicada sound, but a transmission-whining sound, and not the wonderful whirrrr that the drive unit always makes and is one of the nicest sounds of a Tesla. This is different. I reported it to the service center, was hard to reproduce in such a noisy environment; we drove to a quiet neighborhood, where I heard it more faintly, but not enough, I think, to convince the service foreman. I wonder if that gearbox dentist-drill sound is related to a very hot drive unit that's just done 400+ miles all day?

One more thing: man oh man is the nav system on the 17" screen messed up. Whole trip up to Denver, wrong blue lines here and there, or blue lines conflicting with the text in the directions. At Las Vegas, NM the blue lines showed me to get off at an exit, and so I did, only to notice the blue lines then said keep going across road, then on to the on-ramp and get back on the freeway, as if it were telling me, "ha ha! fooled you!" In Denver, when I pulled out of hotel to head to service center, blue lines showed that I should immediately get on I-225 North, but the text told me stay on current road and head straight for ~8 miles to Evans Ave and the service center. I really don't like having to mistrust the blue lines which are so handy. This bug has been around ever since 7.0... what, 8-9 months now? I reported all these issues, but hey it's software, what can a service center do about 'em. (I'm lookin' at you, Palo Alto Tesla Headquarters)

 

[Vip]

Just reading your thread for the first time. I have the exact same noise and it has been doing that for over a year now. Brought it up to the Columbus, OH SC and they said it was normal also. I was annoyed and concerned about it at first now I am not.
Not sure why other posters were giving you grief. The point of the forum is to discuss other people's experiences.

 

[mdevp]

That sound is perfectly normal. Wait, my bad, I was comparing it to my blender

 

[Jlwine]

Denver service center foreman says sound is normal. Pretty much end of discussion. Sigh.

So if it is "Normal" he should of been able to walk you over to any other Tesla at the SC and reproduce? Did he do that?

 

[jerry33]

I can't say I've heard that sound on my 2013. It sounds as if the brake pump is continually operating.

 

[tinm]

I had a so-so experience at the Denver Tesla Service Center.

They didn't do anything with regard to the brake vacuum pump sound; said it was normal. I cringe every time I hear it now. The car simply didn't make this loud sound back in 2013-2014. I wish I'd remembered to demand they walk the entire service center lot, and open any half-dozen of the 100+ Teslas there on the lot, and press the brake pedal and prove that loud sound is ubiquitous but I didn't think of it until today.

They had the car for a week; an hour before I arrived, while I was en-route from 10-hour drive from Omaha in the rental car, I got a call saying car was done, washed, ready. I get there, no car; 15 mins later, car arrives, soaking wet, soapy, streaked, smudged, dry spots where sun had instantly dried the water droplets, etc. I open the rear liftgate and blam, a waterfall of soapy water falls down and splatters all over the carpet in rear of car. And this, I was told, was a car that had "passed" what they call "QC" (as in "quality control"). Repeatedly during the week when they (very kindly, I might add, no complaints) called to give me updates, the odd message was the obsession with this "QC" thing, and that all bets were off if my car "failed QC" in terms of getting it on time. I've never heard of "QC" ever in 3 years of dealing with service centers all over the place many dozens of times.

I'd asked the rep to please charge the car to 90% the morning before I was arriving after the long week. He said sure no prob. He didn't charge the car.

Long long list of little things like that, which I can summarize in one word: Denver.

I seriously doubt I'm going to take the car back there. I'd kinda rather drive 9 hours to Scottsdale AZ before I go back to Denver.

 

[tinm]

Why is it my car's brake pump buzzes loudly every time I drive, yet when given a similarly-aged, close-VIN loaner at a service center, I find it utterly silent, no loud buzz?

How can the service center technicians say the buzzing in my car is completely NORMAL when a similar S makes no sound at all?!

Answer me THAT, Tesla.

 

[gavine]

I'm assuming yours is not an AutoPilot car? Autopilot cars have an electromechanical brake actuator, whereas, Non-AP car last use vacuum assist. The buzzing sound is the vacuum pump.

Is it possible the loaner cars you had were AP?

 

[tinm]

My car is a 2013 S85. The loaner was a 2013 P85. Both were long before AP became available.
I am painfully aware that the buzzing sound is vacuum assist in older S's. Point is, *my* S seems to have a much louder than normal buzz than other old S's. And as I just experienced with the loaner, it seems some old S's don't have any buzz that I can hear at all.

 

[SarahsDad]

No buzz here.

 

[tdjvfr]

My '12 P85 is silent.

 

[pilotSteve]

My '12 Signature S85 is silent too. Your car has something wrong.

 

[KIP1]

P85DL. Silent.

 

[tinm]

Arrrgh. Thanks everyone. As @gavine posted earlier, this issue is only relevant to older Model S's before autopilot (since then they switched to a different kind of technology).

But geez! I mean, why is the Denver Service Center so adamant about saying it's not a problem? Saying it's normal? Saying, basically in so many words, it's in my head?

I'm taking the car to California next month. I think I'm going to make an appointment at another service center while I'm out there.

 

[rgreen]

I had a so-so experience at the Denver Tesla Service Center.

They didn't do anything with regard to the brake vacuum pump sound; said it was normal. I cringe every time I hear it now. The car simply didn't make this loud sound back in 2013-2014. I wish I'd remembered to demand they walk the entire service center lot, and open any half-dozen of the 100+ Teslas there on the lot, and press the brake pedal and prove that loud sound is ubiquitous but I didn't think of it until today.

They had the car for a week; an hour before I arrived, while I was en-route from 10-hour drive from Omaha in the rental car, I got a call saying car was done, washed, ready. I get there, no car; 15 mins later, car arrives, soaking wet, soapy, streaked, smudged, dry spots where sun had instantly dried the water droplets, etc. I open the rear liftgate and blam, a waterfall of soapy water falls down and splatters all over the carpet in rear of car. And this, I was told, was a car that had "passed" what they call "QC" (as in "quality control"). Repeatedly during the week when they (very kindly, I might add, no complaints) called to give me updates, the odd message was the obsession with this "QC" thing, and that all bets were off if my car "failed QC" in terms of getting it on time. I've never heard of "QC" ever in 3 years of dealing with service centers all over the place many dozens of times.

I'd asked the rep to please charge the car to 90% the morning before I was arriving after the long week. He said sure no prob. He didn't charge the car.

Long long list of little things like that, which I can summarize in one word: Denver.

I seriously doubt I'm going to take the car back there. I'd kinda rather drive 9 hours to Scottsdale AZ before I go back to Denver.

With respect to the dentist drill whine at 20-50mph, I had the same noise develop after 1500 miles in my new, refreshed 90D, perhaps after a long road trip. Denver service center told me (after a 6 week wait for an appointment) that this was normal and would not benefit from a replacement drive unit. The whine was unacceptable to me and I returned the car after 90 days under the Happiness Guarantee provision of my lease. Will only consider a model S again after the Denver service center expands/improves/gets its act together AND Tesla vehicle quality improves. Doesn't make sense to commit to a $105k car under the current service situation in Colorado, even with all the pros associated with the model S.

 

[tinm]

Sitting at a very long traffic light tonight, my foot on the brake, the car buzzing nonstop for the whole duration of the light, 2 minutes at least.... I'm so sick of this brake pump buzz. When you become conscious of it, it's like this crazy noise that makes you wonder wtf is going on, Tesla, no way is this "normal." I feel like I have to drive all around other states looking for a Tesla service center until I find a crew that takes a listen and goes, "whoa, that ain't right" instead of the"that's normal" dismissal I always get from the busy, triage-everything Denver service center. I may be doing a 4000-mi road trip to points east in a month or two... gotta find a service center on the I-40 corridor that isn't too busy and has better service techs...

 

[Camera-Cruiser]

Sitting at a very long traffic light tonight, my foot on the brake, the car buzzing nonstop for the whole duration of the light, 2 minutes at least.... I'm so sick of this brake pump buzz. When you become conscious of it, it's like this crazy noise that makes you wonder wtf is going on, Tesla, no way is this "normal." I feel like I have to drive all around other states looking for a Tesla service center until I find a crew that takes a listen and goes, "whoa, that ain't right" instead of the"that's normal" dismissal I always get from the busy, triage-everything Denver service center. I may be doing a 4000-mi road trip to points east in a month or two... gotta find a service center on the I-40 corridor that isn't too busy and has better service techs...

Sorry to hear Denver is so bad at dealing with this. The Buena Park, CA service center told me once that mine was not so bad, then a month later as it had worsened, I just stopped in. Stopped 20 feet away from the sign in podium, held up my hand to the service rep to stay put, put car in park, stepped on brake 2x, then buzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

Proceeded to podium. Buzzzzzzzzzzz. "That's the problem."

They fixed it.

 

[ecobon]

Mine has the same sound and I was told today after a drive unit replacement that the noise was normal. It comes in pretty loudly at a stop light once in awhile, but not all the time. The sound is sometimes very-loud to mildly annoying at times. Most of the time, it's silent. I managed to go for a ride with the service advisor in... DENVER! And when he mentioned it to the technician there, we were both told that the sound is... NORMAL!

When it's very loud I get pretty upset listening to it. I just cannot seem to reproduce the very loud version of the noise and neither can the technician at my local service center. So far, Denver has been very good to me and very accommodating with both service and loaner vehicles. I will keep going until I can readily reproduce the sound and then take it back in.