Loud drive unit in new dual motor R1S

[ThinAir]

It may have. It was hard to tell from your recording. We returned the car and went for a drive with the service tech who agreed with our assessment. He then took out another vehicle to confirm that our car was noisier than the others. If he hadn't I would have insisted on a refund.

Go try another car and take the tech with you.

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[freejack]

It may have. It was hard to tell from your recording. We returned the car and went for a drive with the service tech who agreed with our assessment. He then took out another vehicle to confirm that our car was noisier than the others. If he hadn't I would have insisted on a refund.

Go try another car and take the tech with you.

Fingers crossed. Thanks for sharing your experience.

 

[jambaman84]

This is a bit concerning. From what everyone said, the dual motor is supposed to be much quieter than the quad. I am picking up my dual motor R1T this Saturday, so I will definitely keep an ear out for this noise. I really hope they don't say this is "within specs" noise wise.. cuz that's not cool at all.

 

[ThinAir]

I have news, it might be good or it might be bad. It all depends on your perspective.

This morning I drove a quad motor R1S, and new dual motor R1T, my R1T and my first edition I-pace. During those drives I measured the decibel level in each car at speeds ranging from. 10kmh to 80kmh
(For those of you in the USA that's approximately 6mph to 50mph)

What I discovered is that the actual sound level is similiar across all vehicles with the noise levels maxing out around 52 to 55 dB. So from a noise level the cars are very similiar. I guess that is good new in some ways.

That said the R1S sounds different and to me distinctly better at low speeds (sub 60km/h). I suspect that this is because of the difference in the frequency of the sounds generated from the motors.

The current dual motors sound like they emit a much higher frequency sound. In my case I find it really annoying. I suspect that other people may not find it annoying.

I'm still deciding if I am going to keep my truck or return it and get a Quad motor. I'll have to take a smaller battery but believe I'll enjoy the ride more. It's tough to tell.

So I am going to drive my current vehicle for another day or two then make a final decision.

FYI I used an app called Decibel X to record the different sound levels. I recommend using it or a similiar app to check the noise level in your vehicle if you think it is loud.

 

[freejack]

What I discovered is that the actual sound level is similiar across all vehicles with the noise levels maxing out around 52 to 55 dB. So from a noise level the cars are very similiar. I guess that is good new in some ways.

I think it might be the road and wind noise that's responsible for most of the sound being picked up by the app. Our ears are probably more attuned to the unusual sounds produced by the motor. My quad motor's noise was far quieter than the dual which concurs with your experience.

Also, based on your description we may be hearing different offending frequencies. It's not really a high-pitched sound with mine but more like a leaf blower.

I took my original video and boosted the frequency of the offending noise. It wasn't reproduced well previously but this is what it actually sounds like in the car. Annoying as heck. I've been driving my model y more often because of it.

Let me know if this is what you're hearing.

 

[Billyt1963]

I think it might be the road and wind noise that's responsible for most of the sound being picked up by the app. Our ears are probably more attuned to the unusual sounds produced by the motor. My quad motor's noise was far quieter than the dual which concurs with your experience.

Also, based on your description we may be hearing different offending frequencies. It's not really a high-pitched sound with mine but more like a leaf blower.

I took my original video and boosted the frequency of the offending noise. It wasn't reproduced well previously but this is what it actually sounds like in the car. Annoying as heck. I've been driving my model y more often because of it.

Let me know if this is what you're hearing.

Thanks for doing this. I hopefully and picking my truck on Thursday (PDM) and I will make sure to listen.

 

[Jimbydude]

I have the R1T and the motor sound is def. pronounced (my Tesla is silent) but only at low speed, as I approach 20+ it begins to go away and by 30 can't hear it at all really. This was same as the demo drive I did year before so I assume normal.

Just adding for comparison.

 

[ThinAir]

You may right when you say that we are hearing different things. Good luck with the service center.

 

[Frisbee]

Just a factor to consider and hardly a scientific test. My first R1T was a QM with 20” AT’s. It was at the SC a lot and during that time I was provided loaner vehicles, some R1T’s and some R1S’s, some with 20”AT’s and some with 21” tires. Generally, there was more tire hum from the AT’s which you would expect from the type of tread. I found the R1S’s to always have more noise in the cab. My only explanation for this is that with the R1T the noises from the rear drive unit and suspension are reflected up and out of the bed. With the R1S that noise is captured by the roof and stays in the cab. I now have a DM R1T and it is much quieter than my previous QM vehicle but it still has very low miles. We will see what the future brings.

 

[R1Tom]

My thought is there is alot of varience in the gear reduction units on both the QM and DM. My QM has 38k and basically exactly as I would expect. Slightest of inverter harmonic noise. I assume my reduction units are near silent.

With the observations noted....it seems some of each are noisy and some of each very quiet.

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