Gearbox whining, chirping sound?

[Defiant]

I’ve driven teslas for 6+ years and am accustom to the motor sounds, but there is something different here. We initially called it our gearbox cricket and hoped it would decrease as we put more miles on the truck. 2000+ miles later and the noise is still present. It is only audible when the drivetrain is under load, acceleration or regen.
I wanted to see if anyone else here is experiencing anything similar?

My first Tesla was a very early model S Vin number in the 6000s. We purchased it used from Tesla with under 40,000 miles and it had several warranty issues that were not taken care of before the previous owner turned it in.
I didn’t understand at the time why somebody wouldn’t get the warranty work done but now I think I do. I’m not really excited about taking the truck in for service until the service centers have had more experience working on the trucks and also availability of parts. My model S was in the shop for three months after we bought it to clear up all the warranty issues. I’m not about to do that with the truck right before summer. This is why I have not scheduled the service visit yet.

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[Engi_Nerd]

Not sure if this is what you're talking about but Tesla's 3/y front drive units seem like they started making all kinds of unpleasant "cricket" noises some time between 2022 and 2023. There is a large thread about it here:
https://teslamotorsclub.com/tmc/thr...ricket-like-noise.253698/page-39#post-8112407

If this is the same thing, Tesla will not fix it, even if it gets crazy loud. Ask me how I know.

 

[CyberJet]

I’ve driven teslas for 6+ years and am accustom to the motor sounds, but there is something different here. We initially called it our gearbox cricket and hoped it would decrease as we put more miles on the truck. 2000+ miles later and the noise is still present. It is only audible when the drivetrain is under load, acceleration or regen.
I wanted to see if anyone else here is experiencing anything similar?

My first Tesla was a very early model S Vin number in the 6000s. We purchased it used from Tesla with under 40,000 miles and it had several warranty issues that were not taken care of before the previous owner turned it in.
I didn’t understand at the time why somebody wouldn’t get the warranty work done but now I think I do. I’m not really excited about taking the truck in for service until the service centers have had more experience working on the trucks and also availability of parts. My model S was in the shop for three months after we bought it to clear up all the warranty issues. I’m not about to do that with the truck right before summer. This is why I have not scheduled the service visit yet.

I have noticed something with the powertrain noise in the videos I've watched. I love the normal sound of the motor/powertrain that is normal, really cool, and one of my favorite things about the cybertruck. But there is also this “hmm” sound which happens at approximately 40-60 (most likely 50) mph while accelerating and decelerating too I think and at higher speeds kind of like a grinding sound which is weird and might be a drivetrain issue or due to lack of sound dampening. Most of the cybertrucks make this weird sound and some of them do it louder than the others like Kyle Conner from out of specs cyberbeast. I think there’s one cyberbeast owner though whose cybertruck only has the typical motor noise and not that weird sound. It is more present and audible while towing which was apparent by JerryRigEverything's video. Hopefully Tesla can fix it in the future, and it'll sound much better. Is the"hmm" sound I'm referring to the one you are referring to too?

 

[Defiant]

If this is the same thing, Tesla will not fix it, even if it gets crazy loud. Ask me how I know.

Thanks for the link. From what I listen to this is a little bit different. I’ve attached an audio clipped to the original post.

 

[Defiant]

I have noticed something with the powertrain noise in the videos I've watched. I love the normal sound of the motor/powertrain that is normal, really cool, and one of my favorite things about the cybertruck. But there is also this “hmm” sound which happens at approximately 40-60 (most likely 50) mph while accelerating and decelerating too I think and at higher speeds kind of like a grinding sound which is weird and might be a drivetrain issue or due to lack of sound dampening. Most of the cybertrucks make this weird sound and some of them do it louder than the others like Kyle Conner from out of specs cyberbeast. I think there’s one cyberbeast owner though whose cybertruck only has the typical motor noise and not that weird sound. It is more present and audible while towing which was apparent by JerryRigEverything's video. Hopefully Tesla can fix it in the future, and it'll sound much better. Is the"hmm" sound I'm referring to the one you are referring to too?

I too really enjoy the motor sounds on the cyber truck. But this one seems a little different. I have attached an audio clip to the original post.

 

[Crissa]

I think you're hearing pulse oscillation of motor power. I'm not sure, since there are other things that can make noises like that.

There's a weird physics function that adding power and coasting is more efficient than constant power for many types of motors. So the most efficient motor power curves is for it to apply power in short, single spin bursts based on the requirements of the driving conditions. If it's oscillating this in a frequency of human hearing (20-10,000 times a second), you'll hear it as a repeating tone.

-Crissa

 

[Kroton]

I posted in a similar thread on here where someone else had the same sound. I also do and had the SC check. Per the tech, the sound is normal.

 

[CyberJet]

Thanks for the link. From what I listen to this is a little bit different. I’ve attached an audio clipped to the original post.

I listened to the clip and I think its normal from what people have said. It happens on my model 3 too.

 

[CyberGus]

There should be an option to pipe V8 engine noise through the stereo for ICE refugees

 

[ituner-HF]

I also owned Teslas for 12 years and I am accustomed with different motor sounds but this one is different. Please search this forum for the word "modulated", that's my post, it includes a recording...

With my Cybertruck, I noticed that the repetitive sound is 'in sync' with each wheel revolution, the faster I go, the faster the 'sound beats' I hear. If my accelerator is in 'neutral', meaning no regen or acceleration, the sound dissapears.

I placed a service call as this sound is really annoys to me, I am the OCD type.

Having said that, it could be just some sort of off-balance tire or something missaligned drive shaft. It is def not related with revolution of the motor, those are spinning much faster than what I hear. My sound is audible from 30-50mph (2-3 whines per second) and then it gets drowned by wind speed, etc.

I also noticed that one of my rear tires has excessive brown brake dust, the other 3 wheels are pristine (I rarely use brakes!).

Ask Tesla to perform an alignment and if they refuse, try to rotate your tires. I also read that these tires have some sort of anti-noise foam and that sometimes gets loose, creating a balance issue (my speculation). I will post my visit outcome in this forum.

Other than this annoying sound, I simply love this truck!

 

[CyberTruckeeTheOne]

Any of your neighbours looking for a missing cat?

 

[Tanquen]

I hear an odd sound at 30-35MPH oscillating sound. The AC fan also makes noises at the lower settings, amongst other issues.

 

[Defiant]

I also owned Teslas for 12 years and I am accustomed with different motor sounds but this one is different. Please search this forum for the word "modulated", that's my post, it includes a recording...

With my Cybertruck, I noticed that the repetitive sound is 'in sync' with each wheel revolution, the faster I go, the faster the 'sound beats' I hear. If my accelerator is in 'neutral', meaning no regen or acceleration, the sound dissapears.

I placed a service call as this sound is really annoys to me, I am the OCD type.

Having said that, it could be just some sort of off-balance tire or something missaligned drive shaft. It is def not related with revolution of the motor, those are spinning much faster than what I hear. My sound is audible from 30-50mph (2-3 whines per second) and then it gets drowned by wind speed, etc.

I also noticed that one of my rear tires has excessive brown brake dust, the other 3 wheels are pristine (I rarely use brakes!).

Ask Tesla to perform an alignment and if they refuse, try to rotate your tires. I also read that these tires have some sort of anti-noise foam and that sometimes gets loose, creating a balance issue (my speculation). I will post my visit outcome in this forum.

Other than this annoying sound, I simply love this truck!

It appears to be the same sound. I notice it at all speeds until it is drowned out by Road and wind noise. The wind and road noise is still very low as the truck is very quite even at Highway speeds. It is much more evident at speeds lower than 30mph in mine.

 

[HaulingAss]

It is def not related with revolution of the motor, those are spinning much faster than what I hear. My sound is audible from 30-50mph (2-3 whines per second) and then it gets drowned by wind speed, etc.

The Cybertruck is geared lower than other Teslas. The faces of the gears are bigger and hardened to a high degree to handle heavier use cases. There may be other differences to handle the heavier duty nature of the Cybertruck like the angle of gear cut, and the clearance between the gear faces (to allow for more oil cooling where the gear faces meet). I believe what you are hearing is the "singing" of the gear faces against each other through the lightweight cast gear housings.

I'm not worried that it indicates a problem, it sounds like an inherent characteristic of the design of the gearbox. I've heard the same thing in the manual gearboxes of heavy-duty ICE trucks although all the other noises tends to mask it more.

I also noticed that one of my rear tires has excessive brown brake dust, the other 3 wheels are pristine (I rarely use brakes!).

If it is brake dust it means that brake is lightly dragging (the pads are supposed to pull back from the discs slightly when not applied). This will have a noticeable impact on efficiency if it's enough to be leaving brake dust on the wheels. The normal cure is to clean/polish and put some high-temperature brake grease on the pins that locate the brake pads. It shouldn't be happening on a new vehicle unless it's been driven through corrosive salts or other strong chemicals so I would let Tesla Service inspect it and find the problem. It might be one of the brake pads is jambed cock-eyed for some reason (maybe a tiny rock sliver got caught in there). Since you say you don't brake much, it might fix itself if you do several hard braking events, both in forward and reverse, alternately.

Other than this annoying sound, I simply love this truck!

Me too! It's amazing in so many ways!

 

[Defiant]

The Cybertruck is geared lower than other Teslas. The faces of the gears are bigger and hardened to a high degree to handle heavier use cases. There may be other differences to handle the heavier duty nature of the Cybertruck like the angle of gear cut, and the clearance between the gear faces (to allow for more oil cooling where the gear faces meet). I believe what you are hearing is the "singing" of the gear faces against each other through the lightweight cast gear housings.

I'm not worried that it indicates a problem, it sounds like an inherent characteristic of the design of the gearbox. I've heard the same thing in the manual gearboxes of heavy-duty ICE trucks although all the other noises tends to mask it more.



If it is brake dust it means that brake is lightly dragging (the pads are supposed to pull back from the discs slightly when not applied). This will have a noticeable impact on efficiency if it's enough to be leaving brake dust on the wheels. The normal cure is to clean/polish and put some high-temperature brake grease on the pins that locate the brake pads. It shouldn't be happening on a new vehicle unless it's been driven through corrosive salts or other strong chemicals so I would let Tesla Service inspect it and find the problem. It might be one of the brake pads is jambed cock-eyed for some reason (maybe a tiny rock sliver got caught in there). Since you say you don't brake much, it might fix itself if you do several hard braking events, both in forward and reverse, alternately.



Me too! It's amazing in so many ways!

It does sound more like a gearbox wine to me as well.
You know, it’s funny how the mind works sometimes, if it’s unfamiliar, then it can be annoying or troubling, but once it’s accepted as a normal characteristic, it can be let go of or even enjoyed.
The truck is absolutely amazing!

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