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Two days ago I bought myself an e350e and about an hour into driving , I noticed an annoying, persistent high pitch sound originating from around the middle glove box. I’ve attached a recording of the sound... any idea what this is and how to rectify ?
Indeed an extremely irritating sound. It's likely being generated by a voltage regulator, inductor, or other power supply component that is switching at high frequencies. Magnetostriction or the piezoelectric effect can be responsible for this. However, this being an MB, it was likely designed to operate in a range or amplitude that is inaudible. The fact that you can hear it, and so strongly, means it's not operating normally. Definitely needs to be addressed.
They said it seems to originate from the wireless charging unit.
That was actually my guess. Wireless Qi uses high-frequency pulses of the charging coil to induce current flow in the daughter coil on the smart phone or device. It's possible there's a magnetoconstrictive effect going on because something's not perfectly secured, or due to a power regulator humming along. Let us know what you find. On my vehicle, it's completely silent, so it's well dampened and electrically buffered.
it seems he has a usb plug in the cigarette lighter .
that'd probably what's making the sound (though I hear nothing in the recording)
I had exact same situation with my previous W212
I know it is an old topic, but very annoying to me as I have the same problem. 2016 W213 220d.
There is no wireless charging and the cigarette lighter is an old fashioned version without anything in it.
The noise seems to start in couple of minutes after starting the engine and only audible when the car is running. Sound turns off when engine is off but the power is still on.
I tried to turn off AC with airflow, center display with radio and ambient lights, none of them had any effect.
I asked the dealer twice, neither of the times they could hear or reproduce it.
Is there anything I could try to narrow down the source?
I know it is an old topic, but very annoying to me as I have the same problem. 2016 W213 220d.
There is no wireless charging and the cigarette lighter is an old fashioned version without anything in it.
The noise seems to start in couple of minutes after starting the engine and only audible when the car is running. Sound turns off when engine is off but the power is still on.
I tried to turn off AC with airflow, center display with radio and ambient lights, none of them had any effect.
I asked the dealer twice, neither of the times they could hear or reproduce it.
Is there anything I could try to narrow down the source?
Sorry to hear that you are facing this issue, I wonder if it has to do with the internal hard drive? I am listening to op's recording and it sounds somewhat similar to an HDD during certain read and write procedures or just docking. Did you get a chance to record the sound as well?
I have attached the sound from my car. The sound is like this the whole time.
Hmmm sound different to the sound op had but it might be my speaker ill listen to it again on my phone and see but I also hear a tapping noise, where did you put your recording device when recording this, was it in the cup holder?
You are correct, the sound does sound different than what OP had.
I had the phone near the windscreen, center of the cabin and over the mesh. The sound seems to come near the windscreen, but it is quite difficult to pinpoint.
This recording was recorded last summer and I did the recording because of the tapping sound, which never came back. This was the only time I managed to capture the high pitch noise with my phone.
Also I forgot to mention that I did try turning off the HUD, which made no difference.
You are correct, the sound does sound different than what OP had.
I had the phone near the windscreen, center of the cabin and over the mesh. The sound seems to come near the windscreen, but it is quite difficult to pinpoint.
This recording was recorded last summer and I did the recording because of the tapping sound, which never came back. This was the only time I managed to capture the high pitch noise with my phone.
Also I forgot to mention that I did try turning off the HUD, which made no difference.
How audible is the noise, does the frequency change when you are doing certain things? Like accelerating, playing music? You mentioned the sound is constant but does it ever turn off? I am trying to see if there are electrical components that are making the sound around the area where you recorded it and if so we can see what it might be.
Edit: when you mention the sound appears when engine is on, did you pop the hood and see if you can hear it there?
Last edited by W205C43PFL; Jul 21, 2021 at 02:34 PM.
I can mask the sound with music with moderate volume. The sound can be easily heard if the music is in a level for having a converstion with someone or listening to talk radio.
The sound and the frequency seems to stay the same and is not influenced by the RPM, speed or acceleration.
I tried to listen outside the car from different angles and with hood open and I couldn't hear the sound. The engine noise is so loud that it covers the "tinnitus".
Inside the cabin I tried to pinpoint the location and it still seems to come near the windscreen.
I can mask the sound with music with moderate volume. The sound can be easily heard if the music is in a level for having a converstion with someone or listening to talk radio.
The sound and the frequency seems to stay the same and is not influenced by the RPM, speed or acceleration.
I tried to listen outside the car from different angles and with hood open and I couldn't hear the sound. The engine noise is so loud that it covers the "tinnitus".
Inside the cabin I tried to pinpoint the location and it still seems to come near the windscreen.
I see, does your car come equipped with Burmester or the standard speaker? I wonder if the noise is from the speaker (although it might not be), did you try setting the balancer all the way to the back and see if the noise from the front disappears or at least fades?
Two days ago I bought myself an e350e and about an hour into driving , I noticed an annoying, persistent high pitch sound originating from around the middle glove box. I’ve attached a recording of the sound... any idea what this is and how to rectify ?
Thanks folks
Did you ever figure out the issue? I have the exact same issue, it’s driving me crazy. Was it the charging pad?
did you ever find out what the problem was? I have the exact same thing on my w203…
Originally Posted by MB_Tim
I can mask the sound with music with moderate volume. The sound can be easily heard if the music is in a level for having a converstion with someone or listening to talk radio.
The sound and the frequency seems to stay the same and is not influenced by the RPM, speed or acceleration.
I tried to listen outside the car from different angles and with hood open and I couldn't hear the sound. The engine noise is so loud that it covers the "tinnitus".
Inside the cabin I tried to pinpoint the location and it still seems to come near the windscreen.
