[Sheazie]

My car is making a whining/chirping noise only when I have the AC on. Tony posted a video on here with the exact sound it's making but he hasn't posted an update of what the problem is as of yet. Is anyone else having this problem? Thanks

 

[BruceP]

Are you hearing this 'chirping' under the hood? Most often, a chirping sound with AC on is the belt slipping a bit whilst under load.


To test this, with the AC on in 'park', rise the RPM a bit and listen if the chirping cadence increases.

 

[Sheazie]

Thanks, I haven't checked under the hood yet but it almost sounds more like an electronic sound rather than a belt or something like that.

 

[hagrid]

Thanks, I haven't checked under the hood yet but it almost sounds more like an electronic sound rather than a belt or something like that.

Hey,

I just wanted to stop in a share some info about this issue. I also saw Tony's post when I was trying to figure out this problem in my 2018 Impreza Premium (CVT) - built in November 2017. The noise as far as I can tell is coming from the A/C blower motor housing. I took off the glove compartment and played around with all of the A/C knobs and the sound was only correlated with the fan speed setting - A/C on/off, vent selection, and temperature did not change the noise in any way, but putting the fan speed on the bottom half of speed settings caused the noise and turning off the fan caused it to instantly stop (unclear if higher fan speed settings silenced the noise or just muffled it).

That all being said, for me the noise seems to happen on hotter/more humid days (it started in ~ early August). I brought it in to the dealer last week on what was the hottest/most humid day of the year here so far so that they could try and diagnose the problem while it was making noise, but for some reason it stopped making noise when I got to the dealer (of course!). Interestingly however, it has been completely noiseless since then (5 days now). The only reason I can think of for this is that I was running the fan on the highest setting all the way to the dealer on a very hot day (~ 100 F) - I typically run the fan at a lower speed setting since I do not like it too cold - and perhaps the continuous high fan speed usage caused something to finally seat properly or friction caused something that was slightly out of specification to heat up/rub down to be in specification.

Just wanted to share my experience with this problem - I will let you know if it starts again.

Cheers

 

[imp2018sport]

Whine From Blower Motor

You're supposed to replace your in cabin filter every 10k miles, replace it and it should go away.

I noticed on my 18' sport that it starts whining around 15k miles into the filter's life.

It's at 30k miles right now and started whining around 28k and I'm on my second filter.

But I also run my blower at all times in the car and just adjust the temp as needed, so my filter/blower has gotten a lot of use.

As the debris in their become damp from humidity, it reduces the flow through the filter putting extra stress on the blower. so you may notice it more on humid days or hotter days when the blower is on high for awhile.

 

[ILuvMySubaru2]

Man, you drive a lot of miles!

 

[Built2Drive]

I’ve had my blower motor replaced. Had a higher pitched metalic noise. Even the tech said it was annoying. I’m at 31k and just put my 3rd filter in.

My filters have been clean, I’m doubtful a dirty filter would cause an issue. Other models have charcoal filters that I’d assume would cause more restriction. I’ve seen some nasty filters with no noise.

They are cheap parts, my list of parts replaced is getting longer.

 

[Dannyag]

Subispeed made a product for this exact reason on the wrx. I have the same issue, still havent fixed it. http://www.subispeed.com/subaru-oem-fan-blower-sound-fix-pack-2015-wrx-2015-sti#.W7vjYBZlCaM

 

[hagrid]

I too thought that maybe it was a dirty filter when it started for me at about 13k miles (I bought the car in the late fall, and didn't notice the noise until mid-summer). I replaced the filter and it didn't change anything regarding the noise. Also, at least for the Premium (U.S.) model the 5th generation Impreza already comes with the plastic cover under the glove compartment for reducing fan noise in the cabin - I believe this problem is different than a generically loud fan; this sounds like a bad blower motor (or at least a bad electrical component with respect to the cabin blower).

 

[whichchris]

I've had the same issue; I get the high pitched whine when using the lower settings. I have found that if I run the fans at a higher setting for awhile.... it will tend to go away.

It is definitely annoying.

 

[andy1328]

Hi guys and girls! had the same problem with this noise. I find that the noise only comes on after 5 minutes of driving and will get lounder as time passes.

Had my Impreza for a year and 4 months now. I always use climate control all the time if that makes a difference. Didn't notice this noise until a week ago and it was driving me nuts!!

Anyways I brought my car to the dealer and took a video of the the inside of my car making the noise and showed it to the guy in the service department because I was afraid he was going to tell me he couldn't reproduce the noise.

He calls me back saying he ordered me a replacement part and would call me when it is in. He also told me I had a dirty air cabin filter but I'm guessing that's from always using climate control.

So far I've been having multiple problems with this car. (Dead cell in battery(changed new one) infotainment unit(replaced head unit after update) and now this high pitch noise in fan motor/blower. Even though it is covered by warranty it has become an unconvince to me. My last Impreza gave me no problems at all.

 

[slats_grobnik]

This is interesting. I definitely hear a whirring or whining noise coming from my dash when I have my vent/heat/AC set to a lower speed and assumed it was one of the fans just not working well. I haven't had a chance to look into it yet, good to have some suggestions here for where to check first.

 

[whichchris]

After getting my HU updated, I asked about this issue. Apparently Subaru NA knows about this but there isnt a fix yet...

 

[shinfo]

After getting my HU updated, I asked about this issue. Apparently Subaru NA knows about this but there isnt a fix yet...

I’ve had a really loud chirp from my blower motor and Subaru finally caved to fix it this week. Right as mine is getting fixed. My wife’s Impreza is starting to do it, granted not as loud...but still. I’m hoping they have fixed the component and this won’t start up again in a few months. I’ll provide an update.

 

[jamesbond006]

i still have this issue. its very noticeable on the second to lowest fan setting. i've had this blower motor replaced a couple times already and always comes back. i'm now out of warranty and haven't gone back to the dealer yet about this. it is annoying but the a/c system works...

 

[Dannyag]

I went to the dealer 3 times about this issue and every time the mechanic said he couldn’t hear it. I even recorded it a couple of times to prove it. I noticed its most noticable after a cold start so they wanted to keep my car over night. If anyone has a solution that would be great.

 

[jamesbond006]

heres a video of a reddit poster with the same issue.

https://www.reddit.com/r/subaruimpr..._the_car_hate_the_highpitch_fan_noise_anyone/

 

[andy1328]

Bad news. After 6 months of having a new blower fan the noise is slowly coming back!! Hope there is another solution to this common problem other than just switching the blower.

 

[Built2Drive]

Just had my 2nd blower motor replaced, almost 1 year after the first. I was told it was updated and also had a new part number.

 

[jamesbond006]

hello

what is the new part number? does anyone have a guide on how to replace?

thanks