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P85D Front Motor Noise Levels

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In the P85D Delivery Tracking thread someone who had went on a P85D test drive mentioned the noise generated by the front motor. As everyone that ordered a P85D has done so pretty much sight unseen, can others share their experiences with this and note whether the noise levels are present during cruising, accelerating or both? Is it irritating to the point that all occupants would have concerns?
 
The noise I heard during my test "ride along" sound like fluttering warbling birds a little bit. But it's constant - cruising, under power etc. I didn't really get a sense of "louder birds" under the insane takeoffs. :) But the DS called it out to be aware of before we even started on our drive.
 
P85D Whine Mitigation

This thread is intended to discuss mitigating the "Whine" on P85D Model S.

Around 12/10, the Dallas store began allowing P85D test drives. Due to stupid Texas laws, call California to arrange. I did that, and got to drive the P85D. As a result I ordered one. Perl White, Pano Roof, Tech, Prem Interior, Sound, 19 wheels, basically everything not kid or cold related.

However... I almost did not order one. Because of the "whine" from the front motor. I did order one because I intend to pursue aftermarket mitigation of this issue. It may bother some people and not others; it did bother me. A lot. So please don't turn this into a "...the whine is not so bad..." thread. The purpose here is for those of us who want less whine to share ideas.



My first thought is to seek out a high-end stereo shop and have them install conventional soundproofing between the passenger cabin and the front motor area. However, conventional auto-stereo soundproofing materials are quite heavy. In fact, they sometimes advertise on this basis. It seems silly to spend a fortune on an aluminum car and then line it with lead! :rolleyes:

So, what are the other ideas? What are lightweight ways to increase the soundproofing, or otherwise mitigate the P85D whine?

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Oh, and to be clear, this is NOT the "Acceleration whine" that's been discussed in other threads. This is a clear whine from the front drivetrain on P85D only. I have no idea if it is motor, gear, etc. I can tell you it is always present, is not dependent on power (pedal position), and is frequency sensitive to speed. And annoying as hell.
 
Did you note what the VIN was on the car at the Dallas store?

Its possible that the pre-production P85Ds were a bit louder than the actual production ones,

I remember the days of using dynamat for sound deadening, but I don't know if thats gonna be useful in a situation like this.

Interested to see what you end up doing.

EDIT: Also I remember the "acoustic blanket" they were using to quieten the AC compressor. That may help
 
The first owner to actually take delivery said the front motor sound wasn't bad. Very possible they've since added soundproofing.

By the way, the best way to avoid P85D whining is to stay out of the P85D order and delivery thread :).
 
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I definitely heard the motor whine from up under the dash during hard acceleration during my test ride. It wasn't overly annoying, it was just different than the normal sound coming only from the rear, and I remember thinking "small price to pay for this quantum leap in acceleration".
 
I can hear my rear motor whine during hard accelerations and heard it during my S85 test drives as well. Nothing during normal driving. I'd suspect that with the D and the front motor closer to where the driver sits is likely what is being heard.

I bet Tesla adjusts insulation after initial VINs and complaints arise.
 
Oh, and to be clear, this is NOT the "Acceleration whine" that's been discussed in other threads. This is a clear whine from the front drivetrain on P85D only. I have no idea if it is motor, gear, etc. I can tell you it is always present, is not dependent on power (pedal position), and is frequency sensitive to speed. And annoying as hell.

I wrote about the whine I experienced in the P85D Test Drive thread here: P85D sighting / test drives - Page 28

I'm sure the car I drove was a relatively early build, even though it only arrived today, so perhaps the issue will be resolved in later builds. Also, what I wrote in my post in the thread above is that I thought the sound was associated with acceleration. I guess it is conceivable that it may have been associated with speed. There was lots of noise, talking, etc., and a lot going on at once, and I didn't drive the car all that long. Now I'm regretting not paying more attention to it. Sorry about that.
 
In this video, the sound seems very acceptable. Better than earlier ones - perhaps this is a later build. Very exciting, but still in purgatory order confirmed status....

 
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Good morning everyone.

As GG mentioned, I took delivery of my P85D yesterday morning. I've never owned a Model S before, so although I've test-driven a S85, P85, and P85+, it would be hard for me to compare the noise level between RWD and AWD models.

However I can confirm there is definitely a whine coming from the front under heavy acceleration. On the freeway, I really didn't notice much noise at all. I just drove from SF to San Rafael to get my center console installed, and specifically kept an ear out but couldn't hear any motor sound over road noise.

I'll keep driving till I leave on vacation next week (Tahoe day-trip tomorrow!) so will definitely keep you posted.
 
In this video, the sound seems very acceptable. Better than earlier ones - perhaps this is a later build. Very exciting, but still in purgatory order confirmed status....

yes, and recording video with phone amplifies even faint sounds unrealistically. That's exactly why whe need comments from someone who has driven previous models a lot.

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Good morning everyone.

As GG mentioned, I took delivery of my P85D yesterday morning. I've never owned a Model S before, so although I've test-driven a S85, P85, and P85+, it would be hard for me to compare the noise level between RWD and AWD models.

However I can confirm there is definitely a whine coming from the front under heavy acceleration. On the freeway, I really didn't notice much noise at all. I just drove from SF to San Rafael to get my center console installed, and specifically kept an ear out but couldn't hear any motor sound over road noise.

I'll keep driving till I leave on vacation next week (Tahoe day-trip tomorrow!) so will definitely keep you posted.

Thanks! Whine when accelerating (heavily) is totally normal - and fun, I'd say. My P85 starts making electric whine when power meter exceeds about 160kW - some cars have louder whine, some more silent.

But, some users who have test-driven P85Ds have reported a more static (annoying) high-pitch noise coming from the front motor, which can be heard always - when driving normally - not accelerating or braking.
If your production car does not have this issue, then it's probably fixed.

Some other users also noticed faint "clicking sound" which can be heard after speed exceeds about 25-30mph. If I understood correctly, it comes from brake system making some self-checks every 3-4 seconds. Can you hear that ? It
 
NigelM: Thanks for merging the two threads.

MarcG: Keep the reports coming! Very interested in the final production vehicles.

The whine I noticed was a "surface street" speeds, not "freeway speeds". I believe that freeway speed normal noise would conceal it. I did not drive on the freeway because of evening rush hour traffic in Dallas. The noise I heard was absolutely NOT associated with acceleration. It was constant at any given speed, whether strongly accelerating, mildly accelerating, coasting, re-gen, etc, etc. The sounds frequency did change with vehicle speed (i.e. wheel/driveshaft/gear/motor RPM). Given that this car only has one gear, it is impossible to state if the sound was motor, gear, drivetrain, etc. The store rep was in the starboard front seat. My wife was in the starboard rear seat and stated that she could hear the sound AFTER I pointed it out, but that it would not bother her. She is ever so slightly hard of hearing (not age related; she has always requested more volume than others around her since she was a teen).

For me, in my judgement alone, it was completely obnoxious. Somebody else might not even notice it. Perhaps I am sensitized by my current vehicle which has a slight whine in the audio system coming from engine ignition noise. Please don't turn this into a "how to mitigate audio whine" thread... experts have been hands on... you aren't going to solve this one over the internet. :) At any rate, that whine has been driving me crazy (short drive!) and it makes me sensitive to similar sounds. Which the P85D sound is.

Back to the specific vehicle: I can get the VIN. But for me, it won't be today. If anyone else happens to go to the Dallas store before I do: I drove the P85D parked in the Macy's parking building at NorthPark mall in Dallas, TX. It Black (or Dark Blue) and has California plates. It should be the only P85D. Please get the VIN, and please call California and drive it!! For one thing, it is FUN FUN FUN to drive. The other being, of course, let us all know what you think of the sounds from up front.

My delivery is verbally promised late December. Hopefully, this is a tempest in a teapot and as many have stated, the production vehicles will be a bit more refined in this area.
 
The whine I noticed was a "surface street" speeds, not "freeway speeds". I believe that freeway speed normal noise would conceal it. I did not drive on the freeway because of evening rush hour traffic in Dallas. The noise I heard was absolutely NOT associated with acceleration. It was constant at any given speed, whether strongly accelerating, mildly accelerating, coasting, re-gen, etc, etc. The sounds frequency did change with vehicle speed (i.e. wheel/driveshaft/gear/motor RPM). Given that this car only has one gear, it is impossible to state if the sound was motor, gear, drivetrain, etc. The store rep was in the starboard front seat. My wife was in the starboard rear seat and stated that she could hear the sound AFTER I pointed it out, but that it would not bother her. She is ever so slightly hard of hearing (not age related; she has always requested more volume than others around her since she was a teen).

For me, in my judgement alone, it was completely obnoxious. Somebody else might not even notice it. Perhaps I am sensitized by my current vehicle which has a slight whine in the audio system coming from engine ignition noise.

This may of course be an unique feature of the demo car you drove. If the sound frequency is related to speed only, it is probably not from inverter (switching from regen to acceleration changes the flow of power in inverter and other components so significantly that it should make some difference). Magnetic fields in the motor are also different during these situations, so I guess it is not from the motor (rotor, coils).

As you've experienced similar sounds from audio systems, I think the cause could be similar too (bad grounding, faulty capacitor in some circuit board etc..)

I am also really sensitive to all kinds of noises, especially this kind of - that's why I am interested (expecting to get my D early next year)

Let's hope MarcG can give us a little bit more info :)
 
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