Tesla Model Y - Whilsting Noise Unresolved - Regret ever buying the car

[Adz1]

Essentially, i bought a Tesla Model Y in Perth in June 2023 and boy was I excited. After collecting the vehicle, within a week I began to hear a whistling noise coming from the driver's side window. Obviously, took it back to Tesla, they said they resolved the issue, drove it out of the service center and it presented itself again. Turn the vehicle around, the service agent agreed the noise was present, and kept the vehicle again.

Examples of the sound:
New video by Adam (turn up your sound / audio and you'll hear exactly what I mean)

My vehicle was subsequently returned to Tesla 8 times for the same problem, each time they acknowledged the problem, except for the final instance when I demanded a replacement vehicle and they dropped the "this noise is within spec for the vehicle" and we cant hear what you're describing (convenient right?).

They attempted firstly to replace the speaker grill, mirror replacement, went onto door realignment, window realignment, sealing something in the front trunk area believing air was getting up into the pillar, to then finally taking apart the car roof, resealing everything and replacing the roof (only because I'm a valued customer and they didn't believe the noise was present). Yet the noise still persists. Particularly on windy days, it is ever-present.

Has anyone had any luck solving this issue? My only avenue now for remedy is taking Tesla to court, which could end up costing more than the car is worth for no guaranteed outcome. I just want it fixed!

Sorry for the rant but this is a painful experience and honestly would not recommend anyone ever buying a Tesla. I saw all the horror stories about build quality in the forums and I should have listened!

 

[TSLA Pilot]

Worth a try?

No personal experience, but it may make a difference:

Model 3 & Y Road Noise Reduction Kit - Gen. 2 (10 Pieces)

Gen. 2 - 10 Piece Kit, Now Includes Seals for the Trunk & Frunk If you are tired of hearing the road noise in your Model 3 or Model Y, this will really help. This Gen. 2 - 10 piece kit is completely self installing and it actually works to make your car quieter, up to 5 dB quieter. We all know...

www.rpmtesla.com

 

[doggy1]

The build quality was a valid complaint for earlier Teslas coming out of Fremont. However, people have been very happy with the build and assembly quality out of Shanghai.

I must be too old because I listened to your audio and could not hear the whistle! It'll be interesting to see if other Y owners have a whistle problem. Seems they have tried quite hard to fix it albeit unsuccessfully. I have a 3LR so not relevant to your experience (noise level low even with Tesla Roof bars)..

 

[SO16]

Essentially, i bought a Tesla Model Y in Perth in June 2023 and boy was I excited. After collecting the vehicle, within a week I began to hear a whistling noise coming from the driver's side window. Obviously, took it back to Tesla, they said they resolved the issue, drove it out of the service center and it presented itself again. Turn the vehicle around, the service agent agreed the noise was present, and kept the vehicle again.

Examples of the sound:
New video by Adam (turn up your sound / audio and you'll hear exactly what I mean)

My vehicle was subsequently returned to Tesla 8 times for the same problem, each time they acknowledged the problem, except for the final instance when I demanded a replacement vehicle and they dropped the "this noise is within spec for the vehicle" and we cant hear what you're describing (convenient right?).

They attempted firstly to replace the speaker grill, mirror replacement, went onto door realignment, window realignment, sealing something in the front trunk area believing air was getting up into the pillar, to then finally taking apart the car roof, resealing everything and replacing the roof (only because I'm a valued customer and they didn't believe the noise was present). Yet the noise still persists. Particularly on windy days, it is ever-present.

Has anyone had any luck solving this issue? My only avenue now for remedy is taking Tesla to court, which could end up costing more than the car is worth for no guaranteed outcome. I just want it fixed!

Sorry for the rant but this is a painful experience and honestly would not recommend anyone ever buying a Tesla. I saw all the horror stories about build quality in the forums and I should have listened!

Whistling noise from wind?

Try taping off the areas and see if gone. Then slowly remove sections of tape. Maybe a bad seal.

I couldn’t hear it either.

 

[sammody]

Sounded like birds to me.

I have a 22 build model y and don't have any issues. But try the above solutions to see if they help.

 

[LoudMusic]

I had a smashed windshield replaced on a jeep and it sounded like this (until it got smashed again).

Is there any circumstance while driving that you don't hear it? If it's cold out? If it's hot? If it's raining? If you're driving over a certain speed? If you're turning left, or turning right? During acceleration or deceleration? What if you push on the window, the armrest, pull on the grab handle, etc etc etc.

You spend more time in the vehicle than anyone else. Can you provide any troubleshooting information?

 

[zarbs]

Model 3's had a problem with some cars whistling from the gaps in the roof glass and windscreen area. You can buy a sealing rubber for 3's that seal the gaps to solve that whistle. Try putting tape over the gaps between the windscreen and roof glass, the two roof glass panes and along the side rail gaps temporarily to see if this solves the issue. If so, look for the seal kit on eBay or Aliexpress.

 

[Onshore]

Do other occupants hear it?

I couldn't hear anything unusual in the video.

 

[paulp]

Essentially, i bought a Tesla Model Y in Perth in June 2023 and boy was I excited. After collecting the vehicle, within a week I began to hear a whistling noise coming from the driver's side window. Obviously, took it back to Tesla, they said they resolved the issue, drove it out of the service center and it presented itself again. Turn the vehicle around, the service agent agreed the noise was present, and kept the vehicle again.

Examples of the sound:
New video by Adam (turn up your sound / audio and you'll hear exactly what I mean)

My vehicle was subsequently returned to Tesla 8 times for the same problem, each time they acknowledged the problem, except for the final instance when I demanded a replacement vehicle and they dropped the "this noise is within spec for the vehicle" and we cant hear what you're describing (convenient right?).

They attempted firstly to replace the speaker grill, mirror replacement, went onto door realignment, window realignment, sealing something in the front trunk area believing air was getting up into the pillar, to then finally taking apart the car roof, resealing everything and replacing the roof (only because I'm a valued customer and they didn't believe the noise was present). Yet the noise still persists. Particularly on windy days, it is ever-present.

Has anyone had any luck solving this issue? My only avenue now for remedy is taking Tesla to court, which could end up costing more than the car is worth for no guaranteed outcome. I just want it fixed!

Sorry for the rant but this is a painful experience and honestly would not recommend anyone ever buying a Tesla. I saw all the horror stories about build quality in the forums and I should have listened!

I feel your pain having also been subject to the “within spec” claim. Not sure why Tesla think an undisclosed spec makes everything ok. I asked for a copy of the said spec. It was not available/did not really exist. This forced them to find the problem.

 

[ICUDoc]

Sounded like birds to me.

Agreed. like a cranky flock in a tree. Not a single consistent tone.,

 

[DonSi]

I have a 23 MY and I get some whistling occasionally, but only on very windy days and when it's blowing in certain directions relative to the vehicle. I do have roof bars, so I put it down to that. I don't hear it once I have my music on.

 

[Chuq]

Are you a TOCA member? They have an escalations process with Tesla:

Seeking Assistance from the Tesla Owners Club of Australia

Tesla Owners Club of Australia

www.teslaowners.org.au

 

[Adz1]

Whistling noise from wind?

Try taping off the areas and see if gone. Then slowly remove sections of tape. Maybe a bad seal.

I couldn’t hear it either.

The reality is the noise comes from ear height on the drives side door which is present when you sit there driving but very hard to capture on recording (due to the surround noises) but if you have headphones handy and turn up the volume slightly, im sure you will hear it.

 

[Adz1]

I have a 23 MY and I get some whistling occasionally, but only on very windy days and when it's blowing in certain directions relative to the vehicle. I do have roof bars, so I put it down to that. I don't hear it once I have my music on.

Similar to mine, it the noise is much louder on windy days and more present when driving.

 

[Adz1]

Do other occupants hear it?

I couldn't hear anything unusual in the video.

The reality is the noise comes from ear height on the drives side door which is present when you sit there driving but very hard to capture on recording (due to the surround noises) but if you have headphones handy and turn up the volume slightly, im sure you will hear it.

Yes, particularly the passenger seat directly behind the driver.

I wish i had the skill to isolate sound in videos because its like a dead pixel in your tv, no one else immediately picks up on it but when they do, you can never not see / hear it.

 

[Adz1]

The build quality was a valid complaint for earlier Teslas coming out of Fremont. However, people have been very happy with the build and assembly quality out of Shanghai.

I must be too old because I listened to your audio and could not hear the whistle! It'll be interesting to see if other Y owners have a whistle problem. Seems they have tried quite hard to fix it albeit unsuccessfully. I have a 3LR so not relevant to your experience (noise level low even with Tesla Roof bars)..

The reality is the noise comes from ear height on the drives side door which is present when you sit there driving but very hard to capture on recording (due to the surround noises) but if you have headphones handy and turn up the volume slightly, im sure you will hear it.

To be honest, the service team was great, every time i went back they did their best to fix it, said it was fixed and then when we would go on our drives together the sound would reappear. Imagine, a good couple months of your life going back and fourth to an out of the way service center to only have the problem remain. Its brutal!

 

[Adz1]

Apologies about the audio everyone, headphones if you can and you should be able to hear it! regardless, im not dreaming it all as Tesla has tried remedying the situation to no avail! really interested to see if anyone else has had this persistent problem. thanks for the responses so far!

 

[jq371]

Yeah I can hear the noise.
It sounds like a bee stuck in an air vent. That would be annoying after a while and would become all you could focus on once you know it’s there. It’s a shame they can’t fix it.

 

[paulp]

The reality is the noise comes from ear height on the drives side door which is present when you sit there driving but very hard to capture on recording (due to the surround noises) but if you have headphones handy and turn up the volume slightly, im sure you will hear it.

To be honest, the service team was great, every time i went back they did their best to fix it, said it was fixed and then when we would go on our drives together the sound would reappear. Imagine, a good couple months of your life going back and fourth to an out of the way service center to only have the problem remain. Its brutal!

I’ve done the brutal. Agree that it is.

 

[paulp]

I think the suggest further up to tape things up one at a time on the outside is a good way for you to narrow it down. Blue painters stape will stick and not leave a residue. The good quality 3m version not the knockoff version.