Whistling/humming noise

[Aryanenzo]

This is driving me insane.

My car has a weird humming/whistling noise that resonates in the cabin. It is very quiet but when it comes on, you can hear it over the music despite being very quiet.

It only seems to come on when you've been driving for a while, like about 15 minutes. I don't know if this is because my ears aren't picking it up or whats going on. It comes on slowly after 15 minutes of highway driving.
its a whistle/hum that's kinda cyclic, hummm humm humm hummm like so. The frequency doesn't change noticeably with speed, it doesn't change with road surface, it doesn't change when I take turns or change lanes. Its just there. I don't even have to be going a certain speed for it to come on and it does not get louder with speed.

I got an alignment a few months ago and I felt like that made it a bit better but it seems to be the same as before now. I've also thought maybe its the wind, I am using the window deflectors /door bump stops off amazon as well.


This noise is so intrusive, its absolutely destroying my enjoyment of the car. I am very sensitive to these kinds of sounds and it causes me anxiety. This is a big enough issue for me to sell the car.

Sponsored

 

[BG500]

hi, try turning the blower fan all the way up and down, does that change the intensity ?
I had a whisteling sound in the car and the dealer traced it to a faulty door seal which was letting the air out creating the sound. It only happened after a a 5-10 min drive when the engine got hot enough for the climate control to start pushing hot air into the car.
On my car the pitch changed when meeting another car on a single carriageway, due to the slight change in the air pressure/flow around the car. So the cyclic you are hearing maybe caused by the lane divideres on the highway or something similar?

 

[Aryanenzo]

hi, try turning the blower fan all the way up and down, does that change the intensity ?
I had a whisteling sound in the car and the dealer traced it to a faulty door seal which was letting the air out creating the sound. It only happened after a a 5-10 min drive when the engine got hot enough for the climate control to start pushing hot air into the car.

Did your sound only happen when you were driving or stationary? Mine only happens when driving, but only after the car has warmed up after a 10-15min drive. Did your sound go away with climate control off?

 

[BG500]

it was probably there when stationary but to faint to hear, but it was really noticeable at speed (I have the same kind of OCD when it comes to sounds in the car )
Yes it diapered when I turned the fan off, So I was thinking it was the fan itself but it turned out it wasn't

 

[BG500]

just remembered it also diapered when I opened a window.

 

[Aryanenzo]

just remembered it also diapered when I opened a window.

I can definitely still hear the sound when the window is open. Its even worse. I tried blocking the triangle area/deflector with my hand to see if that changes the sound and it does not. But your theory makes sense especially given how it only comes on after 5-15min of driving.

 

[BG500]

could be the fan then, does it go away when you turn it off ?

 

[Aryanenzo]

could be the fan then, does it go away when you turn it off ?

I've never thought to check the fan but mine is always on and set to auto. I don't really touch my climate controls apart from changing the temp. I will check this tomorrow and report back.

 

[BG500]

same here, mine is also on auto, but I did adjust the "intensity" during the really cold months and discovered that the sound changed. hope that's the issue so you can claim it at the dealer

 

[Aryanenzo]

supra noise - YouTube

I've uploaded a video of the noise. its a high pitched whirring/humming sound. Turning off the HVAC did nothing. I tried putting my hand over the window corner and all over to see if its wind noise and it did not change it. The noise comes on after 5-10min of driving, and it comes on at 10kph and up. It does not get louder with speed, or change frequency. This is my last plea for help before selling the car. I've been dealing with this for a year and I really shouldn't be.

I'm on the original tires with 10k miles on them but it was doing it even at 3k miles.

 

[Vroomin350]

Try getting a better video of the sound, some one will help. I couldn’t hear anything.

 

[BG500]

the sound didn't come across in the video, but you turned the fan completely off right, not just the AC unit?
hmmm... since it's not speed dependent it can't be the wheels or gearbox or the rest of the drive train, I'm assuming it's rpm independent as well? or does it increase with engine rpm?
if it's independent of the rpm as well then there are only a few moving "parts" left on the car, radiator fan, hvac fan, ac compressor, and the airflow around the car, I can't think of anything else to be honest.
did you check the radiator fan for obstructions? maybe you have a piece of paper or plastic stuck to the radiator/fan ?

 

[Aryanenzo]

Try getting a better video of the sound, some one will help. I couldn’t hear anything.

You can definitely hear it 9-11s in. Its a high freq humm humm humm. Its not obvious in the video, but you can 100% hear it. I can hear it in the video.

 

[Aryanenzo]

the sound didn't come across in the video, but you turned the fan completely off right, not just the AC unit?
hmmm... since it's not speed dependent it can't be the wheels or gearbox or the rest of the drive train, I'm assuming it's rpm independent as well? or does it increase with engine rpm?
if it's independent of the rpm as well then there are only a few moving "parts" left on the car, radiator fan, hvac fan, ac compressor, and the airflow around the car, I can't think of anything else to be honest.
did you check the radiator fan for obstructions? maybe you have a piece of paper or plastic stuck to the radiator/fan ?

Yes I turned the HVAC system completely off. No difference.

Its not dependent on RPM, but it does come on at about 10-15kph of speed and more or less its consistent until 120kph which is what ive tested. I'm not really sure if it gets louder or not, but the frequency doesn't change. It does not change with braking either, or changing lanes.

You cannot hear it when the car is stationary. Its completely silent. Its definitely only when the car moves.

I am personally suspecting the tires. Even though it doesn't change with speed. I really feel like the alignment i got a few months ago significantly reduced the volume of the sound but now its back, which could mean my alignment is off again, though I don't feel that its off. I don't really know where to go from here apart from selling the car or gambling 1.5k on new tires to see if the noise goes away.

I forgot to mention. Driving beside another car, or by a wall, makes the sound louder. Its definitely a sound being produced by the car and heard externally because its being projected outwards.

 

[BG500]

if you have buddy who owns a newer bmw or are close to some of the guys in here you could try swapping the wheels and going for a test drive, if it's the tires you should notice a change in 2 minutes

Sponsored