I've wondered if it might be a bad part, but right now the engineers are telling me it's an issue that is fixed in the next firmware update. Since that is due "soon", I'm going to wait for the update and see what happens.
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Model S Technical / Mechanical Issues
- Thread starter DrComputer
- Start date
When I first got the car the bluetooth calling was very clear. To the people hearing me on the other end I sounded loud and clear. After my last update, people are telling me it is extremely hard to hear me. When I am not talking they hear no background noise. When I am speaking, they are telling me I sound muffled and there is a great deal of background noise. Has anyone else experienced this? Also, I do get the occasional drop or stutter in bluetooth when listen to music, a book, or a podcast. I am far more concerned that people cannot hear me clearly on the phone. One thing I have not tried is re-pairing the phone. I could certainly do it. I also wondered if I had a bad microphone, although it did work in the beginning. Thoughts? Anyone with similar experiences?
The low rumble issue has been a personal quest of mine as it really bothers me (A big hobby of mine is related to sound engineering and AV stuff). I believe the low rumble (beyond the normal tire and suspension noise over road surfaces and less than perfect road surfaces) actually is emanating from two primary sources:
1) The rear hatch lid
2) The rear seats (not the kid seats) themselves
I know exactly what sound you are describing with the HVAC system. The best way to describe it is it's like tapping the head of a bass drum lightly, you kind of get a 'whump, whump' type sound. If you tap the rear seats from the back (so stand behind the car with the rear hatch open and tap the back of the seats) you can duplicate the sound. Also you can do it from the inside of the car as well by tapping the back seats while reaching back from the driver or passenger front seats.
I found it strange that the sound would still resonate from the rear seats in relation to the HVAC issue even when the windows were open ands the sunroof was open, but what might be happening is the defrost vent pushes the airflow in just the right way to resonate the rear seat covering just enough to act like a bass drum head. It doesn't take much movement of a resonate surface to cause a low frequency rumble.
The temporary solutions I've found fairly effective at mitigating the problem:
1) Adjust the rear hatch rubber shims (extend them to the point where the rear deck almost won't close) to tighten the pressure on the rear hatch between the car and the hatch. The shims are on either side of the rear lift gate that raises (in the left and right corners by the tail lights).
2) Adjust the round flat plastic knobs that the rubber shims sit up (extend those out)
The above two fixes will primarily take care of the whump, whump sound when you are driving, but they really don't seem to help the HVAC issue that much.
I think the HVAC issue may have to be addressed by:
1) Putting additional padding material in the rear seat with the goal of preventing the resonate surfaces in the seat from vibrating
2) Improving the tightness of the latching mechanism so there is absolutely no flex in the rear seats.
3) Use a different material for the rear seat that has improved low frequency sound absorptive characteristics.
4) Change the airflow of the front windshield vent (This particular issue is being looked at by Tesla closely in regards to the fogging issues on the front windshield)
5) Install the rear parcel shelf - That would have the effect of making the speaker cabinet (rear hatch space) smaller, and potentially change the frequency of the resonance to something in the higher frequency range which might be less annoying
Another potential measure that owners could take would be to look at using some bass traps (from the audiophile world) in strategic locations in the car. Basically address the problem like you are having unwanted bass resonances in your listening room (in this case the car cockpit would be your listening room). It does seem a bit extreme, but it would be a way to reduce or eliminate the low frequency issue.
Also upon reflection, I think part of the issue is that the rear hatch is acting like a bass cabinet. The clearance between the top of the rear headrests and the top of the roof/hatch is relatively small, which essentially creates a massive speaker cabinet in the rear hatch with the rear seats acting like the bass drum head. Any movement of airflow in that space will act like a speaker. So if the hatch moves, the airflow movement will resonate the rear seats and if the rear seats move because of the airflow in the cabin (with the defrost vent moving airflow around the top of the car and into the back hatch) it will act like a speaker cabinet and resonate.
Hope that helps your quest to get a quiet cabin!
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I don't think this is normal, and had it fixed on my car. I had this happen with the driver's side passenger door. I flagged this as an item when I was last in for service. Apparently there was a fix, though I am not sure if it was hardware or software. No problems with accidental release over the past three weeks.
How did you manage this? I couldn't get either to budge with just my hands, and I don't want to damage them with the improper tool.
My right one was stuck as well. I put some gloves on which helped me get a good grip on the screw and that helped me get it unstuck. Left (counterclockwise) will loosen them (lefty - loosey, righty - tighty).
If my gloves didn't do the trick, I would have used a cloth hand towel and then use a wrench to get a grip on the plastic screw (it has some flat points along the perimeter) and then turn it clockwise very carefully.
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lolachampcar
Well-Known Member
has anyone tried putting the rear seats down to see if this changes the amplitude or frequency of the issue?
So, this is the fix for the "pressure buffeting" issues posted in another thread: Pressure Buffeting - Has anyone experienced it?
Is this the same "rumble" people are hearing, just being characterized differently?
I hear a rumble when the climate control is active (on heat, for sure, not sure about A/C), even if the car is at a dead stop. The sound stops instantly if I turn the climate control off. So, it's not the rear hatch issue.
efxjim
Member
I have the same super low frequency rumble when the car first comes on. I think it might be the AC compressor running very slowly. It goes away in less than a min.
Somewhere I read, perhaps the manual, that the compressor runs for the air suspension for a bit when the car first comes on.
Fedderman
Original: 2012 Model S (85); Current: 2024 Model S
I had a problem getting the parking brake to disengage today. After washing the car yesterday, I drove it the 15 feet into the garage where it sat overnight, and I am sure the brakes were wet. Today When attempting to back the car out of the garage, it wouldn't budge, and I could feel the car struggling against the brakes. I had to alternate between forward and reverse a few times, applying a light throttle each time, until the brakes finally released. Has anone else experienced this? Next time I wash the car, I'll plan to drive it around the block and apply the brakes enough to dry them off.
pilotSteve
Active Member
I have this noise as well. Seems more noticeable in my now cold garage so perhaps it's the heat pump. Also sounds like a fan out of balance. I have only noticed this the past week when temperatures in my garage are below 40F. If it continues I will ask service if something is out of balance. Something new going on.
Zapped
Model S - PURE EV
Yes, I hadn't used the brakes much initially because the regen works so good.
I think any developing rust is like glue with the park brake applied and the occasional "harder" braking has solved the problem for me.
As I noted above, it only happens when the climate control is on, and it stops instantly when your turn the climate control off. I'm pretty confident it's related to the climate control.
As I noted above, it only happens when the climate control is on, and it stops instantly when your turn the climate control off. I'm pretty confident it's related to the climate control.
Yeah, I've been noticing a faint deep rumbling sound on start up for the last couple of days. It's unusually "warm" here right now (i.e. well above freezing) so maybe that is the A/C compressor.
JakeP
S P4996 ==> P02547
I have experienced that same rumbling, very noticeable, which stops instantly when you turn climate off. I was wondering if that was normal, as my car is only three days new. Running version .31.
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