dunnojack

Check out my car noises. Click, and turn your speakers up.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...19013712569288

This was filmed while the car was parked. I took the car out for a short drive at noon. I took the car out again later at 2pm. This video clip is the startup at 2pm. Weather outside in the 60's. Is this considered a cold start?


This is the diesel noise from the outside of the car, hood down, no a/c, parked outside, with a warm-hot engine, right after i came home from the store and pulled up the driveway.
Filmed with sony camcorder, builtin microphone, standing 6 feet away

http://files.filefront.com//;6452365;;/ (original wmv file)

http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...39193180909440 (same video googled)


For those of you who say you don't hear the diesel, start up your car and go stand in front of it where i did.

don't tell me you don't hear that on your car.......

I know my car turns heads, cuz that noise is so loud on the street. They must wonder whose cheap old broken down 4-banger is driving up the street, and they turn and see.........a lexus

2thfixr

If you think that's loud, you obviously haven't heard the melodious direct injection sound that the GS350 makes.

ES350Bob

LOL 2th...with a GS owner there is at least a 50/50 chance they will take that direct injection explanation and run with it because the GS has actually has direct injection but when it is also one of several explanations offered and used to explain away the ES noise that is when it gets real interesting

dunno....have you tried opening the hood to find a spot to put recorder so that you can close it and start it up stone cold, after 4 or 5 hours of sitting or overnight?

Start it and drive with recorder fastened under hood and just record the first 4 minutes of driving around in stop and go neighborhood traffic. The sound made in stop and go drive from a cold start is worse.

There is a nice ledge under hood near passenger side wiper and a strong cross bar under hood between back of engine and firewall to attach recorder to.

mrshyvley

My V6 sounds about like that when the engine is first started, but when the engine is warmed up it's so quiet I can barely hear it.
Is that how yours is?

onsknht

Take that chit back to the dealer!

Holy cow, that noise is terrible, there has to be something chewing itself to pieces... For comparison sake, check out the first minute of my transmission flair video, the video upon cold start shows a similar noise, but in yours there's an added grinding or something. (BTW - cold start occurs when you're sure the engine is the same temperature as the surrounding air leaving it sit overnight should be sufficient)

To me it sounds as if you have the "normal" cold start piston slap (I'm beginning to think this phenom is more common nowadays that tooling is so precise with any manufacturer) But in addition to this you have what appears to be a shield rubbing on a belt or a belt getting ready to let go... The fans are electric and shouldn't be on but another thought would be a bearing in an accessory. By this I mean A/C compressor, power steering, alternator or water pump.

Try turning on and off the A/C and try turning the steering wheel back and forth while parked to see if the noise changes.

But that sounds horrible compared to this...

Tranny/Flair/Spike - - - 2GR-FE-and-U660E.2006.11.12.LQ.wmv

ES350Bob

ons...

It starts out where you hear the diesel knocking tapping noise inside the car when it is in drive which goes near silent when reaching hot, it is hard to hear at idle in the very beginning.

Later it progresses to similar to his recording at idle, I call it the clacking sound which sounds like the diesel sound plus a new sound, like a metal BB rattling/grinding around in there and it shows up at near 1,100 miles give or take and is present when hot and is part of first start cold engine diesel sound. At idle it is there all the time after about 1,100 miles if his is similar to mine was that is, though NOTE there are even variations of this depending on whether your diesel sound was at sewing machine level or cannery works level to begin with.

If he records under the hood, you'lll see-hear it is WORSE when in drive.

onsknht

So Bob, does he have a cannery and I have a sewing machine?

FWIW - I hear a grinding or something loose above what I hear on my car, maybe that is what you're referring to? We need to isolate these sounds. To me that ES is waaay unacceptable... Not saying my sounds are acceptable, instead I'm thinking the sounds I have are expected.

Sidenote: I found it interesting when I was shopping the ES amd Camry, the differences with the "engine compartment cosmetics." = Added weight, more stuff to break, more stuff to rattle, heat retention, etc... In the vid I now noticed even the gas struts are surrounded, I wonder now if I bought the ES whether I would have left all that stuff in there?

ES350Bob

I cannot say for certain because I do not know what sound level it is recorded at and I had to listen to it played into the phone, but my guess is approaching cannery works.

An underhood recording when in drive and I'll tell you for certain what level it is.

If dunno lets us know he could easily hear it in the car from the back seat passenger side it's approaching cannery works or worse. Otherwise, under hood in drive will tell it all.

The sad thing is that he likely will be or likely has been told, and more than once even over his objections, it is normal and represents the ES350. It depends on the dealer he has, though not one person on here with this sort of thing has reported their diesel sound has been addressed.

wanderer99

Many of these ES350 engines do sound different, which I've just come to accept now having driven a few vehicles. My engine was loud initially, but over time has quietened down somewhat. Its still clack-clack-clacky though and I don't like it. They should all sound similar, but we all know they don't. But hey, that's Lexus for you in 2007 - your dealer will tell you it's all OK as well.

These videos highlight things that aren't acceptable to us. Maybe a Kia Rio level of noise acceptable, but not Toyota and certainly not Lexus acceptable to us. Not the engine noise or the trans. We've been saying this for months anyway, but that's just how the car is now I guess. You then have to think that maybe our expectations are just too high - why can't we put up with engine diesel\clacking noises and trans issues? What's really wrong with that? Lexus and Toyota clearly thinks its 100% OK.

I know the 06 M35 I was driving recently, and the 07 Suburban I'm driving today are just quiet, smooth cars that have neither of these problems. I enjoy driving those cars quite a lot. Seeing the video makes me want to stay away from the ES350... then I remember I've got one downstairs!

The M35 trans is particularly cool. You can engage drive-reverse-drive-reverse and it never even moves the car. Its just liquid smooth engagement, and the engine in that car seems like its just made for that trans. Try that in the ES350 or Clamry. I was ROTFL when I read the thread title too - that's pretty funny.

Gojirra99

They must all sound different, I've had an ES350 as a loaner for a day when I took my Lexus in for regular maintainence, & it's as quiet as I expect it to be, didn't notice any rattles either.

ES350Bob

andrew, that's the one I asked you on Car Chat to get the VIN # of since you are in Canada, it's a keeper for sure, thinking of my forum mate Wanderer maybe could somehow get it to replace his.

Gojirra99

That was a couple months ago I got that loaner, I don't even know if they still have that car, & according to Wanderer's post above, I think he can find a quiet one himself since he personally drove a few different ES350's & they all sound different, that's why I responded to his post in the first place.
The one I drove does not deviate significantly from the level of quietness I would expect from all the ES300/330 loaners I have driven in my 4 years of Lexus ownership.

PaJaHa1

This is the "diesel" sound that you guys have been crying about??? That is the exact sound of both ES350's I've driven in regularly, that's just the way the car is- accept it or return it. I was expecting the thing to literally sound like an old diesel Benz. You guys are too much

ES350Bob

That is not the diesel sound we have all been talking about as far as what one hears inside the car, that's his at idle.

The in drive, adding gas sound is far worse than that and you can hear it in the car.

PaJaHa1

Oh, ok. If you put your ear to any cold engine you are going to hear tapping. I do wish my engine was a little more quiet for the first mile or so on a cold morning, but it's not terrible. I'm interested in seeing a video of one of the more prominent examples of engine knocking.