High Pitch Whine

[Gerynant24]

I have just been to my local Ford dealer for the big SW update and recall. They gave me a loaner MachE4 AWD. It has the same noise, but noticeably much less than mine, so clearly some cars have this whine louder than others. The loaner has done 11k, compared to my 4.5k so maybe it changes over time?
Now I know it is build dependant this means that it can be fixed, or at least improved. I'll push my dealer about it and post the response.

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[Mach1E]

I have just been to my local Ford dealer for the big SW update and recall. They gave me a loaner MachE4 AWD. It has the same noise, but noticeably much less than mine, so clearly some cars have this whine louder than others. The loaner has done 11k, compared to my 4.5k so maybe it changes over time?
Now I know it is build dependant this means that it can be fixed, or at least improved. I'll push my dealer about it and post the response.

This makes things difficult for you.

If both cars have the noise, that just means the noise is “normal.”

This car is so quiet, so any noises are definitely more noticeable. If it had a gas engine, you may never hear it.

Now here is where the problem comes in. “Noises” aren’t necessarily covered by the warranty. If nothing is mechanically broken, there’s nothing to fix.

Sometimes noises do mean something is broken (wheel bearing for example). But sometimes it’a just the noise your car makes.

Good luck though!

 

[Gerynant24]

Thanks for the well wishes, just back from the dealer now. Needless to say they have suggested the car is "normal". I asked if I could have the loaner instead then and they just smiled... ?
I am not going to let this go and I hope Ford are monitoring this forum...
Other cars in this price bracket are perfectly silent, even my wife's Honda E is dead silent. Continuous motor noise should not be audible on an EV or at least should only be transitory.
It is especially galling that this noise was not audible on the demonstrator that I test drove last year before placing my order. Had it been, I may have looked elsewhere, but this was still the best car in my price range. There has to be something that can be done about this.

Ford, please hear my plea and look into this with some urgency, if not for me, then for any future purchasers.

 

[Goodtohave]

I just picked up my AWD select last night…

It whines and is pretty bad. Had 2 Leafs, first had a slight whine, my 22 has none.

Had 2 model 3’s that had none.

Unfortunately I have tinnitus and the whine exasperates it. Not sure if I can live with it.

Time will tell, I have not driven-on the highway yet hopefully can’t hear it at higher speeds

 

[Ford Motor Company]

I just picked up my AWD select last night…

It whines and is pretty bad. Had 2 Leafs, first had a slight whine, my 22 has none.

Had 2 model 3’s that had none.

Unfortunately I have tinnitus and the whine exasperates it. Not sure if I can live with it.

Time will tell, I have not driven-on the highway yet hopefully can’t hear it at higher speeds

Hi there! Would you send us a private message with your VIN and dealership name and location? I’d like to look into this concern on my end.

 

[christophyoung]

Yep. Just picked up my 2022 Premium AWD ER two weeks ago and it high-pitch whines starting at 30 mph and slowly lessens until about 40 mph. It doesn’t matter if I’m accelerating or slowing down. I can’t tell if the whining stops at 40 mph or if the wind/road noise just overtakes the sound. Super disappointed that it does this. We’ll see how long I can handle it.

 

[Gerynant24]

If anyone on this thread has a positive response on this problem, please can you post? Here in the UK it is considered normal as Ford say they all make this noise.
Thankfully the sound system covers most of it, but…

 

[Av8tor]

I'm not sure what all the fuss is about, all electric motors make noise. You should hear the wine in the Model Y.. I like the noise!! If you want silence, then you will need an active noise cancelling sound system. Like the Model S and Lyric.

I was behind an electric bus, and It was cool to hear the electric motors whine as it accelerated

Note: I'm not talking about the synthetic propulsion sounds here. The actual noise of the electric motors.

 

[Ford Motor Company]

Yep. Just picked up my 2022 Premium AWD ER two weeks ago and it high-pitch whines starting at 30 mph and slowly lessens until about 40 mph. It doesn’t matter if I’m accelerating or slowing down. I can’t tell if the whining stops at 40 mph or if the wind/road noise just overtakes the sound. Super disappointed that it does this. We’ll see how long I can handle it.

Hi Chris, I'd be happy to look into your Mach-E concerns on my end. Will you send us a message with your VIN and dealership info? I can look into things on my end.

 

[Shawnybs]

I'm not sure what all the fuss is about, all electric motors make noise. You should hear the wine in the Model Y.. I like the noise!! If you want silence, then you will need an active noise cancelling sound system. Like the Model S and Lyric.

I was behind an electric bus, and It was cool to hear the electric motors whine as it accelerated

Note: I'm not talking about the synthetic propulsion sounds here. The actual noise of the electric motors.

I'm willing to bet everyone has a different level of this "problem". In my case the car sounds entirely different than the first 15 months of ownership and the "whine" is loud and getting louder and longer as time goes on. The stock (or whatever we want to call it) motor whine was there and I agree, it was futuristic and cool. Currently, though, sounds like a dying transmission and can be heard from 0 to 50 mph now.

I have a dealer appointment for the end of November and I'll come back and update with the results!

 

[bshaw]

I'm willing to bet everyone has a different level of this "problem". In my case the car sounds entirely different than the first 15 months of ownership and the "whine" is loud and getting louder and longer as time goes on. The stock (or whatever we want to call it) motor whine was there and I agree, it was futuristic and cool. Currently, though, sounds like a dying transmission and can be heard from 0 to 50 mph now.

I have a dealer appointment for the end of November and I'll come back and update with the results!

How many miles do you have on your MME?

 

[Shawnybs]

How many miles do you have on your MME?

A little over 26,000 miles.

 

[bshaw]

A little over 26,000 miles.

Yea, that seems not right. Interested in hearing what the dealer says.
I run my radio about an 8, and can't hear any noise on main roads or the highways. I'm at about 11k miles in 18-months though, so much less usage.

 

[kltye]

I just started to notice this as well in the last couple of weeks, with about 17.6k on the odometer. Both my gf and I think it's coming from the rear right of the car. We did several tests and here are our observations:
1) As noted above, it's noticeable in the high 20s mph. (I have larger tires now, so the speedo under reports the speed).
2) It only appears to happen when power is going through the inverter/motor - so either when the go-pedal is depressed, or regen is activated. We've driven in Whisper, 1PD off, and the sound (almost) entirely disappears when just coasting, even at said speed. It immediately returned when lightly depressing the brake pedal.
3) The whine disappears after 30 ish mph, but returns around 47 mph. It goes away again after that over 50+ mph.
4) This whine is VERY different than the regular inverter/motor whine. It's much higher pitched, quieter, and sometimes alternates between two frequencies.

If I have time, I'll try to get a high quality recording of the whine to post here in the next few days.

 

[Shawnybs]

I just started to notice this as well in the last couple of weeks, with about 17.6k on the odometer. Both my gf and I think it's coming from the rear right of the car. We did several tests and here are our observations:
1) As noted above, it's noticeable in the high 20s mph. (I have larger tires now, so the speedo under reports the speed).
2) It only appears to happen when power is going through the inverter/motor - so either when the go-pedal is depressed, or regen is activated. We've driven in Whisper, 1PD off, and the sound (almost) entirely disappears when just coasting, even at said speed. It immediately returned when lightly depressing the brake pedal.
3) The whine disappears after 30 ish mph, but returns around 47 mph. It goes away again after that over 50+ mph.
4) This whine is VERY different than the regular inverter/motor whine. It's much higher pitched, quieter, and sometimes alternates between two frequencies.

If I have time, I'll try to get a high quality recording of the whine to post here in the next few days.

Yeah ours has gotten even louder since I last posted, and like you're describing it only happens when power is applied. It sort of goes away when coasting. Appointment is November 28th, so we're living with it for now. 0 to like 50 mph is when we hear it and it's obnoxious.

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