Welcome to Tesla Motors Club
Discuss Tesla's Model S, Model 3, Model X, Model Y, Cybertruck, Roadster and More.
Register

Panoramic roof creaking noise.

This site may earn commission on affiliate links.
My "creaking/tapping" noise from my pano roof is finally fixed. The cause of the problem was the metal part that is in the very front of the pano roof. It was making contact with the metal plate inside the roof when closed and was the cause of the noise. The previous felt they had put in was already worn out, so they received a thicker felt that they installed that did the job. No more annoying/rattling/taping noise. Finally! It took 3 visits to the SC, application of all the TSB to fix the issue, but glad its over.
 
My "creaking/tapping" noise from my pano roof is finally fixed. The cause of the problem was the metal part that is in the very front of the pano roof. It was making contact with the metal plate inside the roof when closed and was the cause of the noise. The previous felt they had put in was already worn out, so they received a thicker felt that they installed that did the job. No more annoying/rattling/taping noise. Finally! It took 3 visits to the SC, application of all the TSB to fix the issue, but glad its over.

Mine just started creaking today when closed. Annoying as all hell. Time to make an appointment.
 
Wow! This worked perfectly for me. Thanks! This will save me from going to the SC till another problem pops up, if ever.....

I had the creak start after about 2w. I put a little bit of black electrical tap on the top of the metal tab at the leading edge of the roof. Trimmed it with a utility knife. All creaking gone in the two weeks since I made the fix. Saved me a trip to the SC.
 
I just had a whistling noise taken care of, source was the fascia panel in front of the pano roof. It's the black rectangular plastic section of roof that sits between the front opening of the pano and the top of the windshield. Tesla has a factory approved fix which involves installing brackets underneath the panel to pull it downwards, creating a better seal. This is an area that allows air leakage, so if you feel like you are hearing strange air noises, this would be the place to look.
 
Kind of funny ... My pano was silent .. after the first couple of fixes at the SC. Took it in for annual and they did more TSBs for the pano .. noise came back.

I spent some time and lots of tape, but finally found an acceptable fix. I bought some black gorilla tape 1" and placed it in various locations. Those locations are: The glass roof has 3 tabs in the rear and one in the front that slip into a track when closing. On the front, I wrapped that tab with the gorilla tape making sure to cover both sides. The rear, kind of the opposite. I noted where the tabs lined up in the track and placed 4-5" long strips into and around the track the tabs fit in to making sure to push the tape into the track to make sure it does not impede closing of the pano as well as making sure the tape went well over the track top to create a snugger fit. The final thing I did was place a few strips of tape over various areas where the metal frame on the roof was exposed just to make sure body flex would not "tap" the glass or its under frame. It seems to be happy.
 
Kind of funny ... My pano was silent .. after the first couple of fixes at the SC. Took it in for annual and they did more TSBs for the pano .. noise came back.

I spent some time and lots of tape, but finally found an acceptable fix. I bought some black gorilla tape 1" and placed it in various locations. Those locations are: The glass roof has 3 tabs in the rear and one in the front that slip into a track when closing. On the front, I wrapped that tab with the gorilla tape making sure to cover both sides. The rear, kind of the opposite. I noted where the tabs lined up in the track and placed 4-5" long strips into and around the track the tabs fit in to making sure to push the tape into the track to make sure it does not impede closing of the pano as well as making sure the tape went well over the track top to create a snugger fit. The final thing I did was place a few strips of tape over various areas where the metal frame on the roof was exposed just to make sure body flex would not "tap" the glass or its under frame. It seems to be happy.

Having a bit of trouble visualizing it all but sounds great. Any pics you could post for those do it yourself'ers who haven't yet had their SC get it perfectly right? (Mine has been fixed now since September but it's good to have the knowledge just in case.)
 
Ok ... here are the details as requested...

Start with some strips of Gorilla tape (mostly cuz it really sticks well) ... 1"

tape.jpg


Front tab of pano roof .... I put some tape across this to add a more solid fit when closing. NOTE the factory TSB added felt just behind.

fronttab.jpg


Now if you open the pano roof to "vent" you will be able to see the the rear tabs that fit into a track on the roof of the car. Second pic shows a larger view of the tabs (there are 3).

reartab.jpg
reartabs.jpg


If you look from the top of the pano from outside the car, you will see the track these tabs slide in to.

bevels.jpg


You will see this track goes completely across the car. It is my (latest) presumption, this is the source of the tapping sound when traveling over non flat surfaces. Strategically place about 5 - 4" sections of tape across this track paying particular attention to making sure the tape overlaps the highest part of the the track. You should also be very careful to make sure you place the tape in a fashion to be able to push in to the track on areas where the tabs are located. I used a plastic trim tool to push the tape in to the track. You will see the taped areas in the pic. I did use some electrical tape (which would be preferred) but found it didn't stick as well.

CLEAN THE AREAS FIRST!!

Give it test drive. Make sure you dont create an air leak - if you do, just remove areas of tape. Make sure no sticky part of the tape is exposed to impede opening of the pano. And do NOT place any tape on the left or right side of the pano.
 
Service center completely removed and replaced the entire panel glass as well as the corresponding brackets. As soon as I opened the sunroof the creaking noise is back. I am about to give up and about to email Tesla asking for a new car since they cannot fix this issue. This is the 4th failed attempt. Very frustrated. Vin 13xxx.