[xDrive35i]

I\'ve had my car for a few days, and I notice a few things.

1. The sunroof makes little plasticky \"tik tik tik\" noises when closed going over steady bumps.
2. The premium hi-fi buzzes as if blown out (I couldn\'t have blown it out because I don\'t listen to music that loud and it\'s 5 days old

Any help?

[Powerrunner]

Not right, no noise with mine. I would take it back to the dealer.

[WAY]

Originally Posted by juddholland

I\'ve had my car for a few days, and I notice a few things.

1. The sunroof makes little plasticky \"tik tik tik\" noises when closed going over steady bumps.
2. The premium hi-fi buzzes as if blown out (I couldn\'t have blown it out because I don\'t listen to music that loud and it\'s 5 days old

Any help?

That's funny, it is the exact two noises I have on mine too. The sunroof noise on mine is more rattle like though, and I think it just needs a bit of greasing. The Hi-fi noise have dissapeared after two weeks. No idea what it is.

[Itchywasabi]

no noise on mine, most silent place on earth to be. unless my wife is inside then it turns into a war zone.

[Want the thrill]

No noise on mine except when going at speeds of 50mph and above, I am hearing a humming/buzzing sound that is either coming from the front tire or the engine bay and I can't tell which. It is making me crazy! The good thing/bad thing Judd, is we both have previous X's to compare things to.

[fedinand]

That doesn't sound right - I would ask the dealer to take a look.

[xDrive35i]

Update: the stereo noise was just because of the one song I was listening to. The loaner I have has the surround so I tried it with the culprit and then with the radio and an array of other songs, and the other songs did not produce the buzzing noise. If you're curious and want to try it out, the song is "Rescue Song (RAC Remix) -- Mr. Little Jeans; it's the song from the Honda CR-V commercial where it's driving through the weather forecast.

As for the sunroof, I am not sure what the story is.

I forgot to mention that I also experienced a whooshing noise from the air conditioning under hard acceleration (like 50-70). You hear the turbo spooling and then the A/C pushes out air at a higher speed as if the turbo is powering the A/C. I hope it had something to do with the drainage pump because I'd like not to have to bring the car back in after I pick it up on monday.

[Le Chef]

It's less likely to be the AC and more likely to be the waste gate on the turbo as you back off the throttle. It can sound like a sigh, or if you back off quickly almost like a chattering sound.

[xDrive35i]

Originally Posted by Le Chef

It's less likely to be the AC and more likely to be the waste gate on the turbo as you back off the throttle. It can sound like a sigh, or if you back off quickly almost like a chattering sound.

I am familiar with that noise and quite like it. My previous X3 did that quite nicely, as does this one. The noise I am describing, however, is something so unmistakably problematic, heard from the interior. I can hear the turbo spooling with all the windows up, and I can then feel and hear the air conditioning pumping more air into the cabin under said hard acceleration.

[xDrive35i]

Originally Posted by Le Chef

It's less likely to be the AC and more likely to be the waste gate on the turbo as you back off the throttle. It can sound like a sigh, or if you back off quickly almost like a chattering sound.

Speaking of the waste gate, could someone do a golf-tee mod on a 35i? I'd like to get more noise out of the exhaust.

[Santa69]

Originally Posted by juddholland

I\'ve had my car for a few days, and I notice the premium hi-fi buzzes as if blown out (I couldn\'t have blown it out because I don\'t listen to music that loud and it\'s 5 days old

Any help?

check the posts by radioactive on settings for premium sound system. I am also finding that the sound system improves the more you play it. Break in period?

[Marmik]

Originally Posted by Santa69

check the posts by radioactive on settings for premium sound system. I am also finding that the sound system improves the more you play it. Break in period?

I find the premium sound system to be mystifying. Normally the sound is OK, not great but fine on radio, ipod, bluetooth whatever. Then every so often it's amazing. Last time that happened it was a HD radio channel while I was traveling. Suddenly I had this full rich nuanced sound. My wife commented and she has a great ear. Then it's back to fine, ok, good enough. So now I know it's capable of really great sound, strange I rarely get to hear it.

[Radioactive]

Originally Posted by juddholland

I\'ve had my car for a few days, and I notice a few things.

1. The sunroof makes little plasticky \"tik tik tik\" noises when closed going over steady bumps.
2. The premium hi-fi buzzes as if blown out (I couldn\'t have blown it out because I don\'t listen to music that loud and it\'s 5 days old

Any help?

Fortunately diagnosing car audio problems are normally easier than diagnosing other car rattles and noises. Here are few general guide lines to help you if you are experiencing audio problems

Be aware that the more accurate and clear a system is able to reproduce sounds, the more you will be able to hear the "bad" sounds as well. Also changing the acoustical environment that the sound is reproduced in, can increase or decrease different frequencies.

If you are hearing a buzz such as the one above, change the track and listen for it. If it is still there, try different album.

A bad midrange or woofer will normally not play or sound very thin with a kind of weird flubby(?) sound (you'll know it when you hear it!). If the voice cone is bad, the speaker probably is not moving and will sometimes have a burnt smell. This normally occurs because the speaker was driven too hard. The latter sound described happens when the speaker is not dampened. If this happens in the car it is probably due to a rotten cone suspension. Because the X3 is so new this will not be a problem.

Tweeter are a little more difficult. Play something that you know has a high range and put your ear right up to the tweeter.

If you hear a buzzing that can be increased or decrease with volume change the iDrive/Headunit is probably bad or there is a bad ground.

If no sound is coming from the speakers the problem probably lies in the wiring or a bad amp. Check the amp fuse. If blown, it could mean a bad amp or wires were shorted at some point. A break in the wiring circuit for power, the HU and/or speakers could also be possible.

The car itself has many electrical noise generators. If your audio system buzz changes with a change in engine revs you are picking up noise from outside the audio system.

Originally Posted by Santa69

check the posts by radioactive on settings for premium sound system. I am also finding that the sound system improves the more you play it. Break in period?

Probably need about 100+hours. Mine became less forward (treble) after 20 hours.

[Lotus7]

Originally Posted by juddholland

...

I forgot to mention that I also experienced a whooshing noise from the air conditioning under hard acceleration (like 50-70). You hear the turbo spooling and then the A/C pushes out air at a higher speed as if the turbo is powering the A/C. I hope it had something to do with the drainage pump because I'd like not to have to bring the car back in after I pick it up on monday.

I believe the X3 disengages the alternator and A/C compressor under full throttle. I haven't noticed the blower speed increasing on mine (haven't tried checking for it), but it may just be the climate control system trying to maintain cooling by increasing the fan speed to compensate for the lack of coolant coming from the compressor when you floor it.

You might try it with the climate controls set to "auto" and then "manual" at the same initial blower speed to see if it's just the auto climate control trying to be "smart".

[Le Chef]

The other point on the music is GIGO. If you;re playing mp3's you're not going to get great sound however hard you try. Go back and transfer files into lossless format (WAV or MPEG-4ALS) and do an A:B monitor of the same track

[Radioactive]

Originally Posted by Le Chef

The other point on the music is GIGO. If you;re playing mp3's you're not going to get great sound however hard you try. Go back and transfer files into lossless format (WAV or MPEG-4ALS) and do an A:B monitor of the same track

Agreed. To critically listen you need to have a recording in a lossless format on an mp3 player hardwired or a cd. Use only music that you already know is recorded correctly. Unfortunately much of today's music is engineered from the bottom up, not the top down. The audio engineer is engineering the music, so it sounds loud to the kid with an ipod, skull candy earbuds that are pushed through his ear drums and his inner ear cilia are laid down like crop circles. Because they are pushing the limits this cause problems for those with accurate systems. If you get a chance find a copy of Dire Straits, on every street, #6 You and Your Friend.

[gareth12468]

Sometimes I have those click noise when I open or close the sunroof..... but not always....

[nonagon]

Originally Posted by Marmik

I find the premium sound system to be mystifying. Normally the sound is OK, not great but fine on radio, ipod, bluetooth whatever. Then every so often it's amazing. Last time that happened it was a HD radio channel while I was traveling. Suddenly I had this full rich nuanced sound. My wife commented and she has a great ear. Then it's back to fine, ok, good enough. So now I know it's capable of really great sound, strange I rarely get to hear it.

Premium hifi can present the real, unveiled sound of the source signal, warts and all. Poor recordings, low quality MP3s, over-compressed radio, etc. could sound bad. Well recorded, uncompressed material would sound good. No more 128Kbps MP3s...they are terrible!

[xDrive35i]

Okay I'm going crazy. There's some "tinking" and clicking over bumps from the front passenger door, the sunroof divider, and the right C-pillar. Help!

[Lotus7]

Originally Posted by juddholland

Okay I'm going crazy. There's some "tinking" and clicking over bumps from the front passenger door, the sunroof divider, and the right C-pillar. Help!

Judd, Here's your solution - guaranteed to help:
http://www.amazon.com/MSA-Safety-Wor.../dp/B0018MU2EI

[xDrive35i]

Originally Posted by Lotus7

Judd, Here's your solution - guaranteed to help:
http://www.amazon.com/MSA-Safety-Wor.../dp/B0018MU2EI

You have no idea how excited I was before I clicked...

[kozzi]

Originally Posted by Itchywasabi

no noise on mine, most silent place on earth to be. unless my wife is inside then it turns into a war zone.

All too often I find myself in that same zone.