Tapping or Creaking Noise when coasting at low speed

  • Thread starter Thread starter wizziwig
  • Start date Start date
  • Replies Replies 560
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Do you hear the same noise?

  • Yes, I hear the same noise

    Votes: 60 69.8%

  • No, I don't hear the noise

    Votes: 26 30.2%
  • Total voters
    86
Andre Laurence said:
If you have wondered what the differences are for the 2020 model year of the Kia Niro EV (e-Niro) versus the 2019 model, I made this comparison video that shows things in detail. If you have any questions, please let me know.
FYI: I forgot to include a picture I took of the motor model, this 2020 was delivered on May 18th 2020 and has the 710 motor.
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Decided to reply in this thread to stay on topic. Thanks for checking the motor revision. That matches what I personally saw on a 2020 a few weeks back and what all 2020 owners I questioned found on their cars. In case anyone is wondering, these are not old inventory motors. They were manufactured very recently as can be seen from the date code on the motors. I assume the 2020 motor you saw was also recently built? (I posted decoder diagram previously and attached again below).

niro_motor_number.webp

I forgot to post my 2020 sighting in this thread so here is a repost from a couple weeks ago:

Just a quick FYI. This week I saw a 2020 model year Niro EV for the first time here in the USA. Car was just delivered to my dealer and I only observed it from the outside. Didn't want to risk test drive with the current virus situation. I took some pictures of the motor and can confirm what other owners reported above - MY20 Niros still come with the original E710 motor. The manufacture date code on this motor was from 3rd week of March, 2020. Car VIN was 36xxx range. As a reminder, my replacement E711 motor was manufactured in first week of November, 2019.
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These repairs come up enough (and cost them enough money) to take notice, and Kia still uses the same part number. This means Kia does not believe the motor design is the problem. It might a motor production problem or it might be an assembly problem or design problem in some other part that is the root of this issue.
 
wizziwig said:
Decided to reply in this thread to stay on topic. Thanks for checking the motor revision. That matches what I personally saw on a 2020 a few weeks back and what all 2020 owners I questioned found on their cars. In case anyone is wondering, these are not old inventory motors. They were manufactured very recently as can be seen from the date code on the motors. I assume the 2020 motor you saw was also recently built? (I posted decoder diagram previously and attached again below).

View attachment 8508

I forgot to post my 2020 sighting in this thread so here is a repost from a couple weeks ago:
Click to expand...
Thank you for the information. When I first saw your reply I thought I had posted my video in this thread by mistake!!!
 
Kia hasn't handled it that well as they have provided no indication as to the reason for the failure and no assurance the it won't happen again, even with the new PN it is unclear if a change is specific to this issue. The unfortunate thing about it is that replacing a motor is not a trivial shop activity, even in an electric car. A factory line assembly is much higher quality/reliability than Ex-Factory shop rework. They have to drain all the coolant and disconnect a bunch of lines from the heat pump, discharge the AirCond and disconnect, etc.
 
That's fair; however, I have not heard of anyone with the newer motor complaining about the noises. I heard these noises basically from km 100 - 30,000.

I also agree re: the work to install a motor is not simple and more fail-safes are probably implemented at the factory-level. The only peace of mind I have is that the Techs at my dealership have both done at least one replacement of a Niro EV motor.
 
At this point KIA must be very familiar with this problem so I would expect new cases to be handled quicker.

I've seen at least two reports of people with a replacement motors developing the noise problem again on their Niro or Kona. Unfortunately, these cars are mostly sold in non-english-speaking countries so it's difficult to get any details from the owners regarding motor revisions.

Replacing the motor is probably the most difficult and most expensive (following tracking battery) component of the car. You need to disconnect the gearbox, inverter, drain oil, drain coolant, disconnect a bunch of hoses and cables, etc. Precise alignment of motor and gearbox is also critical and may be the root cause of the problem appearing on some cars. The labor costs half as much as the actual $6K part. Gearbox could be another $3K + labor.

I agree with mf989 and don't think KIA and Hyundai have handled this well at all. Many owners waited months for repairs. All details are kept quiet and they are not telling anyone what's really going on. In some cases they are not even bothering to repair and just offering refunds. Very strange. For an issue this common (easily in the hundreds of cars across the globe) there needs to be an official TSB or recall. Without those, you will be screwed once warranty runs out. At this point I would only recommend leasing. Depreciation on EVs is too high to sell before warranty runs out and it's not worth the risk to keep out-of-warranty with the current track record of unreliable drivetrains. Resale values will also drop if this problem continues to spread.
 
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bubzki said:
Just got my new 2019 Niro EV shipped to me in MN (very far from nearest state that officially sells them). Clicking sound on regen braking started getting loud before 600 miles on ODO(!). Looks like I might have some fun times in my future here. I specially bought a BEV because my older gas cars were starting to break down.
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Moving discussion to the correct thread.
With such low mileage, was your 2019 Niro recently produced or just sat around not being used for a long time? You can find out the date motor was produced from a diagram I linked a few posts back. There is also a date code for entire car on label inside door frame (driver's side in USA).

bubzki said:
Discovered ex post facto, sadly. BEVs from my experience are simple and reliable. This is quite jarring and should probably get more press.
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Unfortunately, I also found out about this issue too late because I was one of the first USA owners. All the complaints were piling up for months on international non-English-speaking Kona/Niro forums where they were released much earlier. Had I seen those posts, I never would have purchased and leased instead. Or maybe looked for something else that isn't a science experiment. Does any EV satisfy that requirement at this early stage of development? At least Tesla warns you right in their UI that you're driving a beta car.
 
Add me to the pile of people with the noise. 2019 Niro EV with about 700 miles. Will ask for 711 motor straightaway. Pretty disappointing as I bought this precisely to have a reliable, don't-think-about-it daily driver.

Edit: I will investigate the production date. Yes, this car apparently had sat for quite a while as it was a new 2019 sold in mid 2020.
 
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My Niro is in the shop and was supposed to have its new motor in by now but apparently a bolt broke and they don't have any in-stock and they have to put a special order to get it in. FML
 
Got my 711 installed today. Noise is gone. Although now I hear noises that I never heard before on the highway, but I suspect that they are just noises that were previously overshadowed by the high-frequency clicking!

In any event, I'm content with my replacement and I hope I don't have to go back for another warranty repair! Really impressed with how quickly my dealer was able to sort me out (Abbotsford, BC).
 
wizziwig said:
Had I seen those posts, I never would have purchased and leased instead.
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I saw posts about this issue before buying the car. I decided to take a gamble that the car would not have the issue, or that the issue would be fixable under warranty. Since the drive train warranty lasts for 10 years, it feels like a reasonable gamble.

BTW, not sure how leasing would have helped in your situation given that you began experiencing issues prior to the time when a 3 year lease would have expired.
 
Kia Guy said:
So, I took my Niro into the Dealer yesterday. In 30 seconds, the Tech told me I needed a new motor. A new motor is ordered and I will have it installed once it arrives. Very pleased with Kia's handling of this.
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I'm going to West Coast Kia on Tuesday, my Kia has been making this noise the whole time. What do you tell them or is there anything I should say?
 
@Lektrons quite honestly, I scheduled an appointment because I heard an odd noise from my motor compartment. I got in a car with a Tech, said I was quite concerned about a noise. Before we got out of the parking lot, he said I needed a motor replacement.

The noise was subtle and I was doubtful that he would even hear it. I think quite a lot of Kia/Hyundai Technicians are becoming aware of this issue.
 
ITown said:
I saw posts about this issue before buying the car. I decided to take a gamble that the car would not have the issue, or that the issue would be fixable under warranty. Since the drive train warranty lasts for 10 years, it feels like a reasonable gamble.

BTW, not sure how leasing would have helped in your situation given that you began experiencing issues prior to the time when a 3 year lease would have expired.
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At least with a lease you're not stuck eating the depreciation which will be even worse than other EVs if this becomes a common "known issue" with these cars. You can walk away after 3 years and let it become someone else's headache if the problem keeps coming back.

What do you plan on doing once your 10 year (or 100,000 miles) warranty runs out?
 
wizziwig said:
At least with a lease you're not stuck eating the depreciation which will be even worse than other EVs if this becomes a common "known issue" with these cars. You can walk away after 3 years and let it become someone else's headache if the problem keeps coming back.
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I appreciate your point that if Niro/Kona EVs have a bad reliability reputation we as owners will financially suffer but I think its a little overstated. Generally lease payments are projected around depreciation(which is exponentially worse during the typically term, commonly based around a 40-50% residual after 3 year) and the interest on that depreciation amount over whatever term you decide. If you are referring to as I suspect the continued financial loss related to depreciation on residual value after a typical lease term sure it will significant but honestly based on percentage depreciation the best ICE car will be similar, i.e. they are all terrible after 5 years For example here in Canada the projected 5 year residual value on a new Honda Civic is around 32% and Kona EV is projected at 26%, neither are anything to be proud of. Basically if you bought your EV you ate around 75% of your purchase price in depreciation over 5 years , if you leased your in your second 36 month term and have equally eaten the same amount(likely more) in depreciation built into your lease.

Essentially after 5 years you really don't have that much more residual value to loose with any vehicle, so if the Kona EV is worth a few thousand less than a similar used and spec out Model 3 then, whatever. No matter what Elon says there is no way a mechanically and electronically clapped out Model 3 is go be an appreciating asset even with the addition of level 5 self driving autonomy.
 
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Dropped the Niro off today. Tech told me it won't be an easy process and it's ultimately up to Kia. I said the fact that they've developed an updated motor is pretty compelling evidence Kia knows this is a real thing. Hopefully parts availability won't keep me out of my car for too long. Also, seemed like motor was making noise at all RPMs and all situations today so might be getting worse. Actually noticed it while cruising and not changing speeds. Will update.
 
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