Unidentified motor noise coming from rear end while car is off

Kendalf

Kendalf

Active Member
I went out to our garage this evening to plug my Clarity PHEV in for the night. It was last driven at least 5 hours before this and everything was powered off. However, as soon as I opened the garage I heard this weird motor noise coming from the rear end of the vehicle. I did not have the key fob with me, so nothing should have gotten powered up.

Here's a short recording I took of the noise. You may need to turn the speakers up. It was louder when I peered underneath the car. After I opened the car door and popped open the charge panel, the noise stopped.

Anyone come across this before and can help me identify it? Never had a car spontaneously start up without the key, so to speak.
 
Kendalf said:
I went out to our garage this evening to plug my Clarity PHEV in for the night. It was last driven at least 5 hours before this and everything was powered off. However, as soon as I opened the garage I heard this weird motor noise coming from the rear end of the vehicle. I did not have the key fob with me, so nothing should have gotten powered up.

Here's a short recording I took of the noise. You may need to turn the speakers up. It was louder when I peered underneath the car. After I opened the car door and popped open the charge panel, the noise stopped.

Anyone come across this before and can help me identify it? Never had a car spontaneously start up without the key, so to speak.
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I can't answer your question specifically but I've also heard our Clarity making noises long after being shut off. Having owned two Prius cars that make a lot of clicking, buzzing, and motor noises I just ignored the Clarity.
 
Kendalf said:
I went out to our garage this evening to plug my Clarity PHEV in for the night. It was last driven at least 5 hours before this and everything was powered off. However, as soon as I opened the garage I heard this weird motor noise coming from the rear end of the vehicle. I did not have the key fob with me, so nothing should have gotten powered up.

Here's a short recording I took of the noise. You may need to turn the speakers up. It was louder when I peered underneath the car. After I opened the car door and popped open the charge panel, the noise stopped.

Anyone come across this before and can help me identify it? Never had a car spontaneously start up without the key, so to speak.
Click to expand...
That's nothing compared to the sounds a Tesla makes while just sitting there being charged. I've lost track of how many different noises it can make. ;)
 
Same with both Volts that made more sounds than a small content animal, just sitting there and plugged in.

I wish we could find evidence of any life at all after the Clarity fully charges and is still plugged in (still waiting to see if we get answer from Honda via the dealer).
 
I often hear the buzzes and clicks, but I also get chirped at when I open the trunk. Not sure what that's all about. I suspect it's some kind of alarm - but I don't know what it's for. However, at least twice now I've closed the trunk, but it didn't latch. No alarm then. Seems like if a door is ajar or a trunk isn't completely shut, the car shouldn't lock without an alarm - and that's what I thought the chirping was about whenever I go to get something out of the trunk after I've already shut off and parked the car. Anyone else have this happen? (not the absent-mindedness, lol, just the chirping after the car's turned off and you are emptying the trunk)
 
I have the car set to automatically lock when you walk away, but if you get out, close the driver's door then walk around and open the trunk the car will give three or four short chirps and then not lock anything when you close the trunk. I could be wrong about that last part but I'm pretty sure the auto lock doesn't auto lock after it chirps at you.
 
loomis2 said:
I have the car set to automatically lock when you walk away, but if you get out, close the driver's door then walk around and open the trunk the car will give three or four short chirps and then not lock anything when you close the trunk. I could be wrong about that last part but I'm pretty sure the auto lock doesn't auto lock after it chirps at you.
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Interesting. I bet that's exactly what's happening. I'll have to check next time and see if the car relocks itself. I have mine set to auto-lock as well.
 
bfd said:
I often hear the buzzes and clicks, but I also get chirped at when I open the trunk. Not sure what that's all about. I suspect it's some kind of alarm - but I don't know what it's for. However, at least twice now I've closed the trunk, but it didn't latch. No alarm then. Seems like if a door is ajar or a trunk isn't completely shut, the car shouldn't lock without an alarm - and that's what I thought the chirping was about whenever I go to get something out of the trunk after I've already shut off and parked the car. Anyone else have this happen? (not the absent-mindedness, lol, just the chirping after the car's turned off and you are emptying the trunk)
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Yes, I too have gotten that alarm when I’ve parked the car in the garage and began walking away. Each time I’ve checked that no doors were ajar. They weren’t and nor have I opened the trunk. It doesn’t happen all the time, but it’s happened more than a couple of times.
 
This explains what happened to me today. I locked the car using the button on the handle. As I walked away, it beeped a few times. I thought I had accidentally left the engine on because that's what my Lexus used to do when I walked away with the car still on. So I went back to check and the car was already off. I had forgotten that I just enabled the auto-lock feature.

Once I got home, I only recall one beep as I walked away. Has anyone figured out what causes the car to beep multiple times versus just once?
 
teedee said:
This explains what happened to me today. I locked the car using the button on the handle. As I walked away, it beeped a few times. I thought I had accidentally left the engine on because that's what my Lexus used to do when I walked away with the car still on. So I went back to check and the car was already off. I had forgotten that I just enabled the auto-lock feature.

Once I got home, I only recall one beep as I walked away. Has anyone figured out what causes the car to beep multiple times versus just once?
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I sure haven’t. It happened again yesterday, yet the doors were all closed and properly locked. Very strange.

Bringing the car in today for a rotational metallic sound that increases or decreases in frequency with speed. I suspect we picked up something that was rubbing against one wheel. I couldn’t see anything obvious, and the sound actually stopped late yesterday. We’ll still take it in to be safe.
 
Ken7 said:
That's nothing compared to the sounds a Tesla makes while just sitting there being charged. I've lost track of how many different noises it can make. ;)
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I think it's funny that these EVs seemingly make more sounds at rest than when they are in motion!
 
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Kendalf said:
I think it's funny that these EVs seemingly make more sounds at rest than when they are in motion!
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I never thought of it that way, but you’re right. Pretty ironic.

My rotational noise hasn’t returned and the dealer saw nothing wrong after having it on a lift and a test drive. :)
 
As a follow up to the auto lock beeping as I don't think the question was answered. I believe when the vehicle is in auto lock, it should beep once when you close the door and are within 5 feet and then again once you are beyond 5 feet, which is signaling that the door is locked. Today, I noticed a change as I walk away and hear one long beep. I checked to make sure vehicle was off and all the doors are closed. I can't find anything in the manual that provides assistance. I manually locked the vehicle with the remote key.
 
Ken7 said:
Yes, I too have gotten that alarm when I’ve parked the car in the garage and began walking away. Each time I’ve checked that no doors were ajar. They weren’t and nor have I opened the trunk. It doesn’t happen all the time, but it’s happened more than a couple of times.
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Yes, with no explanation sometimes the auto-lock will not work. If I get the regular "multiple chirps" (my Nissan Altima would make a similar sound if I left my keys in the car and tried to lock it), I now know that the car will NOT auto-lock and I have to lock it by hitting the button.

I have NO explanation for why it doesn't auto-lock occasionally. Strange.
 
Same issue here. I have auto locking set. About every 15-20 times I walk away from car, instead of one beep, I get beep-beep-beep-beep and doors do not auto lock. I open and close driver's door and then it works. (The driver's door was already closed tight.) Same thing happened once with passenger door, so I don't think it is the door sensor. On my list of things I hope a software upgrade will fix.
 
Rajiv Vaidyanathan said:
Yes, with no explanation sometimes the auto-lock will not work. If I get the regular "multiple chirps" (my Nissan Altima would make a similar sound if I left my keys in the car and tried to lock it), I now know that the car will NOT auto-lock and I have to lock it by hitting the button.

I have NO explanation for why it doesn't auto-lock occasionally. Strange.
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Close the door again and then it usually works



Sent from my iPhone using Inside EVs
 
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