A nightmare in the making - 2025 Land Cruiser sort of update

[melvincat]

So... I don't know how much more of this I can take. My car is with Toyota for a full diagnostic, but there's no timeline on when we'll get the car back or if they'll even be able to diagnose my issue. The car has been making this high pitched ringing noise for a couple of weeks and I don't know what to do. It's been to multiple service appointments and they all have said "it's normal hybrid noise." (yeah, it's not. My hybrid corolla rental doesn't make such a noise.) If they "can't find" the issue then there is nothing to declare in need of fixing. I am only able to be in my car with noise cancelling headphones, otherwise the noise is extremely distressing, distracting, and causes pain. Does that sound safe to you? It certainly doesn't seem so to me. Every single technician and mechanic from Toyota has blown me off and told me to deal with it. They said don't get your hopes up for anything out of this full diag. Now, I am paying $45/day for a rental and there's no update on when we get the car back. I even looked into legal routes and it doesn't even qualify as a lemon if other LC's are making the same noises. We'd literally have to sue under consumer protection laws and that could be months. And obviously that's an extreme route.

What would y'all do at this point? I've called corporate once and that is what got me scheduled for a full diagnostic. Should I call again? I just don't think this is right. If anyone wants a sound clip of the ringing I can post it and compare to a sound clip of the corolla hybrid without the ringing noise.

 

[katekebo]

Was the noise present when you bought the car? During pre-purchase test drive? Or did it start recently, after owning the vehicle for some time?

 

[melvincat]

Was the noise present when you bought the car? During pre-purchase test drive? Or did it start recently, after owning the vehicle for some time?

No, it was not present when I bought the car. It started up about 2 weeks after getting it. I'm a super noise-sensitive person so I'm confident I would have passed on the car after hearing something like that.

 

[dubel]

Could it be an issue with the vehicle audio's active noise cancellation - a problem with a microphone or cross wired speaker in the vehicle? If you can get the dealer to disable the ANC to test if that goes away, may help narrow it down. I haven't had it happen in any vehicle yet, but I have had the ringing happen in a few ANC headphones in the right conditions.

 

[Doggman1525]

You could try to science the $h*t out of this by running a frequency analyzer (rent one or download an app to your phone) in your vehicle to identify the specific tone causing the problem to your ears (you can cross check using a tone generator at the same Hz to confirm its what you are hearing) and then take test ride in a dealer model to see if it is absent (both to your ears and to the analyzer). Might give you some concrete proof that there is something not right with your truck whether you want to pursue repairs or a lemon law solution. Not sure that using the Corolla as your baseline will be useful (in court or otherwise) given it is a different car with a different drivetrain unless you know for a fact that the noise is coming from some component identical to both models. My LC doesn't sound anything like my X5 hybrid and I'm pretty sure neither Toyota nor BMW gives a . Comparing to another LC without the ringing sound might give you standing to argue it's not normal hybrid noise.

 

[melvincat]

You could try to science the $h*t out of this by running a frequency analyzer (rent one or download an app to your phone) in your vehicle to identify the specific tone causing the problem to your ears (you can cross check using a tone generator at the same Hz to confirm its what you are hearing) and then take test ride in a dealer model to see if it is absent (both to your ears and to the analyzer). Might give you some concrete proof that there is something not right with your truck whether you want to pursue repairs or a lemon law solution. Not sure that using the Corolla as your baseline will be useful (in court or otherwise) given it is a different car with a different drivetrain unless you know for a fact that the noise is coming from some component identical to both models. My LC doesn't sound anything like my X5 hybrid and I'm pretty sure neither Toyota nor BMW gives a . Comparing to another LC without the ringing sound might give you standing to argue it's not normal hybrid noise.

Appreciate your insight! What I am afraid of is if it's an issue with ALL LC's and that some people just can't hear it. There's another person on this forum that posted what I think is the same issue as mine, where it's clearly different from a regular engine noise, and it sounds super electronic and disruptive. I will definitely run a frequency analyzer when I get the car back. I wish whoever ok'ed this car had better hearing because my god this is such a deal breaker for me. I'm not exactly sure why it only manifested 2 weeks after buying it. I can't even look back and regret anything, I checked for all the right things, as a noise-sensitive person

 

[TheMightyGoose]

Have to tried taking a service tech for a ride with you so you can direct them to the exact noise?

 

[melvincat]

Have to tried taking a service tech for a ride with you so you can direct them to the exact noise?

Sure have! Most of them don’t hear it apparently. The ones that do keep saying there might not be a way to fix it. Which is kind of a crazy response? Like, it’s an issue with the car so… I’m starting to wonder if I am better off killing the warranty and taking it back to the car audio guy? He was so certain the noise was a problem. I know I have to wait until we get it back and see the full diagnostic report but just trying to think ahead.

 

[uraniumrich]

So... I don't know how much more of this I can take. My car is with Toyota for a full diagnostic, but there's no timeline on when we'll get the car back or if they'll even be able to diagnose my issue. The car has been making this high pitched ringing noise for a couple of weeks and I don't know what to do. It's been to multiple service appointments and they all have said "it's normal hybrid noise." (yeah, it's not. My hybrid corolla rental doesn't make such a noise.) If they "can't find" the issue then there is nothing to declare in need of fixing. I am only able to be in my car with noise cancelling headphones, otherwise the noise is extremely distressing, distracting, and causes pain. Does that sound safe to you? It certainly doesn't seem so to me. Every single technician and mechanic from Toyota has blown me off and told me to deal with it. They said don't get your hopes up for anything out of this full diag. Now, I am paying $45/day for a rental and there's no update on when we get the car back. I even looked into legal routes and it doesn't even qualify as a lemon if other LC's are making the same noises. We'd literally have to sue under consumer protection laws and that could be months. And obviously that's an extreme route.

What would y'all do at this point? I've called corporate once and that is what got me scheduled for a full diagnostic. Should I call again? I just don't think this is right. If anyone wants a sound clip of the ringing I can post it and compare to a sound clip of the corolla hybrid without the ringing noise.

You should file a report with Recalls | NHTSA as part of this process.

 

[D-mac]

Sure have! Most of them don’t hear it apparently. The ones that do keep saying there might not be a way to fix it. Which is kind of a crazy response? Like, it’s an issue with the car so… I’m starting to wonder if I am better off killing the warranty and taking it back to the car audio guy? He was so certain the noise was a problem. I know I have to wait until we get it back and see the full diagnostic report but just trying to think ahead.

As you noted, a car audio specialist should be able to accurately measure the noise and install enough sound deadening material to make your Land Cruiser as quiet as a church. From what I've read, LC250s only come with a little bit of dampening material in the rear door and on the hood. I installed Dynamat Xtreme on all 5 doors of a previous SUV, and really liked the difference. Since you won't be permanently removing any Toyota parts for this installation, there should be no factory warranty to void.

 

[NoMe cruiser]

I noticed an annoying ringing one day when I exited the vehicle while it was in neutral without parking brake, it was high pitched. Take it to a different dealer that has another lc to compare it. Warranty work can be done by any Toyota dealer.

 

[Markarian421]

So... I don't know how much more of this I can take. My car is with Toyota for a full diagnostic, but there's no timeline on when we'll get the car back or if they'll even be able to diagnose my issue. The car has been making this high pitched ringing noise for a couple of weeks and I don't know what to do. It's been to multiple service appointments and they all have said "it's normal hybrid noise." (yeah, it's not. My hybrid corolla rental doesn't make such a noise.) If they "can't find" the issue then there is nothing to declare in need of fixing. I am only able to be in my car with noise cancelling headphones, otherwise the noise is extremely distressing, distracting, and causes pain. Does that sound safe to you? It certainly doesn't seem so to me. Every single technician and mechanic from Toyota has blown me off and told me to deal with it. They said don't get your hopes up for anything out of this full diag. Now, I am paying $45/day for a rental and there's no update on when we get the car back. I even looked into legal routes and it doesn't even qualify as a lemon if other LC's are making the same noises. We'd literally have to sue under consumer protection laws and that could be months. And obviously that's an extreme route.

What would y'all do at this point? I've called corporate once and that is what got me scheduled for a full diagnostic. Should I call again? I just don't think this is right. If anyone wants a sound clip of the ringing I can post it and compare to a sound clip of the corolla hybrid without the ringing noise.

You could get a spectrum analyzer app for your phone and try to figure out what the frequency is, that might give you some clues. When I was a kid, the high frequency whine from cheap monochrome CRTs in some McDonalds and some other places made me nauseous. Fortunately(?) with age and hearing loss and no one using CRTs anymore, it's no longer an issue for me. So I can understand how a noise like this that most people can't hear could be really annoying! I don't hear anything in my Land Cruiser, but again, age and hearing loss . . .

 

[Doggman1525]

Appreciate your insight! What I am afraid of is if it's an issue with ALL LC's and that some people just can't hear it. There's another person on this forum that posted what I think is the same issue as mine, where it's clearly different from a regular engine noise, and it sounds super electronic and disruptive. I will definitely run a frequency analyzer when I get the car back. I wish whoever ok'ed this car had better hearing because my god this is such a deal breaker for me. I'm not exactly sure why it only manifested 2 weeks after buying it. I can't even look back and regret anything, I checked for all the right things, as a noise-sensitive person

It would be a serious drag and inexcusable for Toyota to have missed something systemic like this given they pioneered hybrids 20 years ago. I do notice that a lot of people here have mentioned how it seems like the contribution of the electrical motor doesn't really kick in until the power train has broken in for a while, maybe that's why it's not something that's noticed during a test drive.

I'm lucky, so far, that either my truck doesn't have this problem, or more likely I just can't hear it. Not that my ears are geriatric quite yet but 20 year of grinding away at my cochleas with an AC30 and a six string has definitely put a cap on the upper frequencies for me. Starts right around the pitch of my wife's voice when I've done something she finds annoying and goes up from there - so win win.

 

[KyLandcruiser]

Try unplugging the hybrid pedestrian alert speaker. It is behind the grill. I would just rule that out to make sure it’s not a faulty device.

 

[dog]

Have you had your hearing checked recently? Noise causing pain can't be normal, especially if there have been techs that have heard it but said it was not a big deal.

Have you had any friends or family that can also hear it? Have you tried recording it?

 

[Roots]

Could it be an issue with the vehicle audio's active noise cancellation - a problem with a microphone or cross wired speaker in the vehicle? If you can get the dealer to disable the ANC to test if that goes away, may help narrow it down. I haven't had it happen in any vehicle yet, but I have had the ringing happen in a few ANC headphones in the right conditions.

First thing: Honestly had no idea the car had ANC. BUT I have worked with stuff that HAS ANC and it absolutely CAN get out of wack and cause some weird noises and vibrations. This is a good idea to trace.

 

[Roots]

It would be a serious drag and inexcusable for Toyota to have missed something systemic like this given they pioneered hybrids 20 years ago. I do notice that a lot of people here have mentioned how it seems like the contribution of the electrical motor doesn't really kick in until the power train has broken in for a while, maybe that's why it's not something that's noticed during a test drive.

I'm lucky, so far, that either my truck doesn't have this problem, or more likely I just can't hear it. Not that my ears are geriatric quite yet but 20 year of grinding away at my cochleas with an AC30 and a six string has definitely put a cap on the upper frequencies for me. Starts right around the pitch of my wife's voice when I've done something she finds annoying and goes up from there - so win win.

Read this as 'an AC130' and my eyes got big... must admit....

 

[Doomed]

Have you been in another Land Cruiser to see if it’s there too?

 

[jumpin]

Unless the techs are analyzing the noise, you might be better off getting the truck back so you can gather your own noise data (as suggested above) to prove your case and have a baseline for comparison against any changes from work done. You'd probably want before and after noise data for your own LC plus noise data from a similar LC for comparison.

My guess is this is a new one for most techs and you might get the run around without something concrete to refer to.

 

[PDPete]

Appreciate your insight! What I am afraid of is if it's an issue with ALL LC's and that some people just can't hear it. There's another person on this forum that posted what I think is the same issue as mine, where it's clearly different from a regular engine noise, and it sounds super electronic and disruptive. I will definitely run a frequency analyzer when I get the car back. I wish whoever ok'ed this car had better hearing because my god this is such a deal breaker for me. I'm not exactly sure why it only manifested 2 weeks after buying it. I can't even look back and regret anything, I checked for all the right things, as a noise-sensitive person

If it's the other thread I'm thinking of, it sounds like the noise is 14,000Hz, which is definitely high-pitched, but is within what is considered to be the normal range of hearing.

Having said that, when I go here: Online Tone Generator
and play a 14,000Hz tone, I have to put the volume up pretty high to hear it myself (48, male)

So...I suppose it's possible that if it's not very loud, a tone at 14,000 may be barely detectable by older individuals, but annoying to younger ears