ALL POSTS Charging Sounds, Buzzing when Charging, Noises

[Khaihon]

My Rav4ev is at Santa Monica Toyota for my 5000 maintenance. I asked them to check out the noises, especially the one I deemed the WTF sound but they said they had to keep it overnight since I brought it in with only 20 miles left so they have me a Prius C loaner. Not a big deal if I feel confident that they will identify the problem and fix it but they simply said they'll have to run some diagnostics on it. I wouldn't be surprised if they gave me an excuse like "Oh! It's a normal sound for an EV". I asked them to check my heater, which takes like 10 minutes to heat up to a not-so-hot temperature in the cabin and that's what I was told; it's normal because these EV's heater aren't regular ones.

I know there's an Etune update that we can do ourselves, a map update (which is still pretty old) and an ECU update which the dealer may do. Are there any others? What system needs to updated that will affect the Bluetooth stack? Is there a separate update for the telematics system or is it all part of Entune? Toyota August Entune compatibility shows Verizon iPhone compatibility, which was listed as partially compatible before, but service tech claims I have the latest update.

I'm not sure what else I can really tell them. I HAVEN'T seen any EV malfunction shutoffs so that's somewhat of a mixed bag.

Ampster, I'm usually free on the weekends. I can also grab lunch this Wednesday if you're free. Tony, I will find out my schedule more after Wednesday if I can make it down. We can have a recording session of all the different sounds and create a track on GarageBand in your garage.

 

[Damchi]

I did take my Rav4 EV into Manhattan Beach toyota last Monday. Before I went Toyota customer called them to set up time so they could work with the tech at Manhattan beach to run some test. After having the car for most of the day I was called and told the noise in the rear of the battery is a Moisture control pump and or HV battery cooling fans. I was told that this is an abnormal noise that can be made by the pumps sometimes and everything is operating normally. I figure as long as its on recorded that I had it checked out, than if anything stops working they will fix and replace with out a fight. For the record my car makes this noise on my Leviton 40a at home as will as on several different chargers that I have tested around the south bay. Chargers on and off of Toyota's charger list.

 

[DMev]

I purchased my car at San Juan Capistrano Toyota. I had a light clicking noise from the engine bay, which I describe as chattering valve springs from an ICE motor. It progressively increased as more miles racked up on the car (2,500 miles). You could hear it at low speeds, and it drowned out as you got over 40 mph. I stopped by Toyota of Carson to test drive one of their RAV4 EV's, and there was no "clicking" in theirs.

I took it back to San Juan Capistrano, and w/respect, they were useless. On August 5th 2013, I took it to Toyota of Santa Monica. They (Gary B./Jeff R./Eddie S.) recorded the sound & sent the clip to Toyota Japan. Japan identified the noise as the "Transaxle" - final gear drive. They told me it could be 2 weeks or more before I get the car back because Tesla is putting the part on the assembly line. Toyota SM placed me into their RAV4 EV loaner car. The last update I got from Gary B. was that the are sending the complete motor to me - he said it's all one unit (transaxle/motor)....It's now going on (3) weeks (August 23, 2013), but at least I'm in their RAV4 EV.

Unfortunately, I have no sound clip to share, but I will be at the August 24th event.

 

[occ]

Khaihon, those are very good clear recording. What did you use to record and where did you place the mic and/or device?

The first two noises, Brake Assist Vacuum Pump and Spaceship VPNS is normal. While the WTF noise I think is part of the motor/inverter, but in mine (which had the whole assembly replaced - and occurs before and after), is very subdued and barely heard over road/tire noise. Also my version of WTF noise (intermittent during cruising - like your recording) is heard only while I coast without power, since I would only hear it when it's very quite.

THe high pitch sounds like the normal inverter operation.

Buzzing sound (driving)
Buzzing sound (parked)
Brake Assist Vacuum Pump
When you open the driver door (sometimes), when you brake (sometimes)
Normal


Spaceship-like sound
Vehicle Proximity Notification System (VPNS)
Low speed driving (<18mph)
Normal

High pitched whistle that changes frequency with speed
Inverter sound?
Medium-High speed (40-65mph)
Normal or abnormal?

More recently, I've been noticing this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dIOWNmd8F-o
Grinding/Rattling-like sound that changes frequency with speed. Not sure what it is. At first, I thought it was the VPNS, but I still hear it all the way up to 40mph.
Happens at >10mph when I apply any sort of pressure on the pedal
Normal or abnormal?

I call this the WTF noise. Anyone else hear this? Would someone have a clearer way to describe this sound when I take it into the service shop?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HJZEkPhwSf0
Assorted noises of driving from 0-50mph, including VPNS, WTF noise, brake & assist. I will attempt a freeway recording some time soon to get the higher speed inverter noises.

..snip..

 

[occ]

I did take my Rav4 EV into Manhattan Beach toyota last Monday. Before I went Toyota customer called them to set up time so they could work with the tech at Manhattan beach to run some test. After having the car for most of the day I was called and told the noise in the rear of the battery is a Moisture control pump and or HV battery cooling fans. I was told that this is an abnormal noise that can be made by the pumps sometimes and everything is operating normally. I figure as long as its on recorded that I had it checked out, than if anything stops working they will fix and replace with out a fight. For the record my car makes this noise on my Leviton 40a at home as will as on several different chargers that I have tested around the south bay. Chargers on and off of Toyota's charger list.

That regular clicking on top of the buzzing charging noise does sound pretty abnormal...mine makes the constant buzzing while charging, but no clicking...or rather since mine does not click like that, that the Moisture control pump is not working at all ? I guess I'm hoping there's no moisture to control in my car.

 

[evsinav]

@Damchi
Thanks for the update. Seems they reached the same conclusion: No error codes and a possible explanation about the moisture or humidity pump means all is normal. I've only seen 2-3 other reports on this forum that indicate a similar sound is heard when charging, so I'm still concerned something is not completely right with our vehicles.

@occ
Thanks for listening and confirming that you don't hear the pump cycling/clicking sounds.

 

[Khaihon]

Khaihon, those are very good clear recording. What did you use to record and where did you place the mic and/or device?

The first two noises, Brake Assist Vacuum Pump and Spaceship VPNS is normal. While the WTF noise I think is part of the motor/inverter, but in mine (which had the whole assembly replaced - and occurs before and after), is very subdued and barely heard over road/tire noise. Also my version of WTF noise (intermittent during cruising - like your recording) is heard only while I coast without power, since I would only hear it when it's very quite.

THe high pitch sounds like the normal inverter operation.

@occ, I'm not too concerned with any of the sounds except the wtf sound, but I'm starting to think it is a NORMAL sound. Hope to compare notes today at the meetup at TonyWIlliams place and see if I can observe any varying degrees of that sound. I haven't sat in any other moving RAV4EV since I bought mine.

I used small flash-based digital recorder you can get at Staples. I wrapped it up with some foam to muffle road noise and strapped it with rubber bands between the driver side fuse box and the coolant reservoirs. I'll post a pic up in a bit. Thanks for listening.

 

[Incredulocious]

New RAV4 EV owner here and I was going to post about how I am also experiencing this obnoxious pulsing buzzing sound during charging and I was going to provide a sample recording but now, after a couple of days, the noise has disappeared entirely and hasn't come back again.

For the first couple of days, the RAV4 would make this loud buzzing sound that would pulse regularly every 1/2 second or so while I was charging on the provided 120V charge cord. No clicking as others have reported, just the loud pulsing buzz. I'd come out to the garage at times to check on its progress and sometimes opening the door would temporarily change the pattern of the pulse (slower or faster) or it would change on its own while I was out there — which I tried to avoid — it's a pretty aggravating sound to be around. A couple of times I disconnected it and took the vehicle out to run an errand. When I came back and plugged in, the buzzing and pulsing would continue. I was a bit discouraged by this and by how several others were describing this issue on this forum.

But then on the third day, the noise was gone. When I plugged in the 120V charge cord, there was a slight bit of noise of relays or whatever but nothing significant, not even the quiet hum of a fan. In fact, I was concerned that it wasn’t charging at all as it became completely silent. Quieter than my LEAF. But the charge lights were blinking appropriately and the dashboard showed that it agreed that charging was active. I came out to check on it later and it was still running completely silently and it was indeed making normal, slow charging progress at 120V.

Days later, it remains completely quiet during the charge process! So, what happened, what changed? The only vehicle-related things I can think of between noise-making and silence during charging was that 1) my Entune Safety Connect service kicked in and I was then able to control/monitor the vehicle remotely; 2) I used a public charger for an hour (outdoor noisy environment, didn't notice if the vehicle was buzzing or not); 3) I took it for a long enough drive to get down to VLB a second time (first time was bringing it home for the first time). That's it. Weather has been consistently mild and sunny, highs in 60's, lows in 40's. (I’m not saying any of this is related, just providing a record.)

Regarding this talk of “moisture control” pumps, perhaps the moisture has been removed?? This vehicle was sitting in the dealer’s overflow lot for a bit, with just twenty miles on the odometer. (I chose it over another because it hadn’t been kept charged in extended range mode and in fact was sitting there with a half charge — perfect.)

So what is the experience of others? Still getting buzzing? Only happens occasionally? Always been silent? Never been silent?

 

[Incredulocious]

New RAV4 EV owner here and I was going to post about how I am also experiencing this obnoxious pulsing buzzing sound during charging and I was going to provide a sample recording but now, after a couple of days, the noise has disappeared entirely and hasn't come back again.

So what is the experience of others? Still getting buzzing? Only happens occasionally? Always been silent? Never been silent?

Well, it's been a couple of weeks of silent charging, including when I plugged in last night. But when I came out this morning, it was still charging (yeah, I'm still on 120V, awaiting modified Tesla UMC) and it was buzzing/pulsing again. Took the vehicle out to run a short errand and when I came back home and plugged back in, the buzzing started up again. Over the next 30 minutes or so, it slowly started up the pulsing aspect of this buzzing as well.

So, it would seem that this is an occasional conditioning thing — "moisture control" someone said? And at most other times it charges quietly?

Again, anybody else want to confirm the presence or absence of buzzing or pulsing while charging?

 

[climber]

New RAV4 EV owner here and I was going to post about how I am also experiencing this obnoxious pulsing buzzing sound during charging and I was going to provide a sample recording but now, after a couple of days, the noise has disappeared entirely and hasn't come back again.

So what is the experience of others? Still getting buzzing? Only happens occasionally? Always been silent? Never been silent?

Well, it's been a couple of weeks of silent charging, including when I plugged in last night. But when I came out this morning, it was still charging (yeah, I'm still on 120V, awaiting modified Tesla UMC) and it was buzzing/pulsing again. Took the vehicle out to run a short errand and when I came back home and plugged back in, the buzzing started up again. Over the next 30 minutes or so, it slowly started up the pulsing aspect of this buzzing as well.

So, it would seem that this is an occasional conditioning thing — "moisture control" someone said? And at most other times it charges quietly?

Again, anybody else want to confirm the presence or absence of buzzing or pulsing while charging?

The pulsing buzz on my RAV4 was very significant during the first charge on 110 up from almost completely empty. Scared the cat significantly! Once it got near a full charge, the buzzing stopped and I have not heard it since, but have not run it to very low again.

 

[occ]

New RAV4 EV owner here and I was going to post about how I am also experiencing this obnoxious pulsing buzzing sound during charging and I was going to provide a sample recording but now, after a couple of days, the noise has disappeared entirely and hasn't come back again.

So what is the experience of others? Still getting buzzing? Only happens occasionally? Always been silent? Never been silent?

Well, it's been a couple of weeks of silent charging, including when I plugged in last night. But when I came out this morning, it was still charging (yeah, I'm still on 120V, awaiting modified Tesla UMC) and it was buzzing/pulsing again. Took the vehicle out to run a short errand and when I came back home and plugged back in, the buzzing started up again. Over the next 30 minutes or so, it slowly started up the pulsing aspect of this buzzing as well.

So, it would seem that this is an occasional conditioning thing — "moisture control" someone said? And at most other times it charges quietly?

Again, anybody else want to confirm the presence or absence of buzzing or pulsing while charging?

Yes, I would occasionally hear the pretty loud buzzing at the start of a charging session. I would say 90% of the time I start charging this loud buzzing sound would also start. I don't usually stick around, but I know that i stops eventually, and then maybe starts up again intermittently and less often as well.

However, if the buzzing keeps stopping and starting, say at a rate of more than 1 hz, ie pretty rapidly, and accompanied by clicking, then that is prob abnormal. Here's Damchi's issue, and has a good recording of it in the link. If it does that, then bring it in and get it fix like Damchi did:

My car has been making the Rapid pulsing noise when charging ever since I bought it in September. I took it to Toyota with in the first week and since there was only a couple of Rav4 EVs out there at the time the mechanics did not really know anything about the car. We connected it to a charger at the dealer to see if it made the same noise. It is normally to loud in the shop to really here it, I could hear it, but I knew the sound and both the mechanic and the serve supervisor said they could kind of here something. They contacted Toyota which had to contact Tesla to see if they knew anything, Tesla said it is normal to make different noises when charging, This I already knew from driving the roadster a couple of times. So I did not look into it anymore, I figured if they had it on the books that they looked at it and said it was normal and I am under warranty, that if anything broke it would be fixed. I have recently been talking to the customer service people at Toyota corp about something different and I decided to bring the charging noise thing up again. I was asked to make a video that I could send them https://vimeo.com/71665641. I now have an appointment to take it in so the mechanic can work with the tech guys at toyota to figure out what is making the noise. Does not sound like its a fix right away thing (It has been happening for 10 months), but at least they know more about the car and are willing to look into it.

 

[718bklynboy]

Hi,

New to the forum here and totally new to electronic vehicles. Just picked up my 2014 rav ev last week and absolutely love it. I am a 20 plus year internal combustion engine mechanic. I grew up around hot rods, motorcycles, welding and engines. Family of racers and mechanics and I guess it just rubbed off. I recently traded my 2003 chevy silverado SS all wheel drive hot rod for this EV. I guess it was just time to evolve.

Anywho, the car is making a noise when i plug in and charge. Im running the clipper creek CS-60 charger. Tonight is actually the first time I have ever plugged in to charge. Wondering if this is a normal noise? Sounds like perhaps fans are running or some type of system related to the charging system that is running during charging? {Please advise.

Thanks in advance for your replies.

Thomas

 

[eschatfische]

While some electric cars are silent, the RAV4 EV makes a variety of interesting noises during normal operation and charging.

The RAV4 EV does have active cooling for the batteries while charging. When plugging in, it's common to hear the whirr of the fans for active cooling spin up (and remain running), as well as a pulsing "charge noise" buzz that may pulse at various speeds depending on the type of EVSE you have and how much power is connected (for me, this sound is made around once every two seconds or so, but is variable). This may even happen for a short time after you plug in when the RAV4 EV is set to charge via the timer.

When starting the RAV4 EV, it's common to hear a clunk as the electrics engage and a brief, loud whirr from the front of the cabin (which is occasionally heard on the road as well after coming to a stop) which is the electric brake assist/vacuum pump.

Enjoy your new RAV4 EV!

 

[AvLegends]

Welcome to the group!

I have the CS-60 as well installed outside and have never noticed any noises when it is plugged in, probably due to other outside noise at the local airport. I charge every night at home with the 120V supplied EVSE and, like you say, makes all sorts of whirring and buzzing noises (I'm sure I hear much more when in the garage). It seems to make more noise when it is warmer and quiet when its cooler outside, maybe due to not needing as much cooling with cold weather. Who knows...

 

[v_traveller]

Yup, mine makes noise using the supplied Level 1 EVSE as well as during L2 charging. From what I've seen, the buzzing never stops throughout the whole charge cycle. I figured it's normal. Glad to hear others confirm that.

The Volt seems to do the same thing. The Focus, on the other hand, is completely silent, unless it's really hot outside... if it's really hot it starts making a ton of racket as if it's going to drive itself to a cooler place on its own.

 

[banshee08]

The buzzing noise is the battery cooling/heating system at work keeping the battery happy. The click/clack when the charge process starts and stops are relays connecting the charger to the battery. These are both normal.

 

[lofreco]

Third day of ownership, still loud noises and pulsations while charging on leviton level 2 40 amp charger. Dealer says this is due to humidity from transport, and the noises will go away in two days. Do the noises really stop, or can I expect this noise every time I charge?

 

[ufojoe]

I have the same exact setup and the noises are still around after 11k+ miles. I think the latest software update fixes this from what i've read; I have yet to get the update. Humidity? Now i've heard it all.

 

[4EVEREV]

Noises from where?

 

[ufojoe]

The onboard charger....