Small motor/whirring noise at stops when engine is off - possible transmission issue?

[rjw250]

2025 LC, about 9K miles. Starting around 8K I began noticing a new noise when I'm stopped in D and the gas engine has shut off. It sounds like a small electric motor running.

• Only happens when stopped with the ICE off
• The sound changes when I shift through N/R/D. Sometimes it keeps going, sometimes it stops after I put it in Park then back to D
• Intermittent, not every stop
• I don’t get any screeching; just a noticeable motorized whir that wasn't there before

My understanding is this is the electric transmission oil pump (and based off a comment I got from someone else on an FB group). My concern is that it showed up suddenly around 8K miles rather than being there from new and I've read the threads about the e-pump failures that end in full transmission replacements.

For those of you who've been through the pump failure: did it start as a quiet whir like this before it got loud? And for everyone else, do you hear this on your truck at stops, and how loud is it? Trying to figure out if mine is just normal operation I never noticed before, or the early stages of the known issue.

 

[basicxj]

I would guess "normal." If you search through the forum, there are a few transmission posts with video clips complete with sound that would tell you what "abnormal" sounds like.

Horrible noise when vehicle is stopped

TL;DR - Horrible noise when the vehicle is in gear and at a complete stop. About 14,000 mi on the odometer. No prior warning. Other posts on this forum suggest this is likely the electric pump inside the transmission. Dealer confirmed this is the problem. Took 6 weeks for the pump to come...

www.landcruiserforum.com

Failed transmission with only 25k miles on 2024 First Edition.

Well, I have had to drop my truck off at the dealer to see what the God awful noise was that just recently started happening. Turns out the electric pump in the transmission failed and they evidently do not sell the part separately so I will be waiting for the arrival of a backordered...

www.landcruiserforum.com

Quiet whir = "good." Loud whine or horn type noise = "bad." Due to the hybrid nature of the Land Cruiser, you will get some noises from the transmission and traction motors as you put it through its paces.

 

[rjw250]

Thank you! I did see the other posts, and I am definitely not getting the whine/siren noises - thankfully. I do get the hard downshift when coming to a stop that one of them mentioned. It's a just a little weird (in my opinion) that I only just started hearing this motor noise... I appreciate the reply!

 

[DubDub]

Thank you! I did see the other posts, and I am definitely not getting the whine/siren noises - thankfully. I do get the hard downshift when coming to a stop that one of them mentioned. It's a just a little weird (in my opinion) that I only just started hearing this motor noise... I appreciate the reply!

Keep in mind that there can be a reverse placebo effect as your ownership of a specific vehicle matures, as well as hyper vigilance for symptoms related to the worst case reports.

I myself, just this morning, came out of my back procedure to ride passenger prince with my wife driving for like the 3rd time in 25k miles. I was hearing this loud pop and rattle all the way home, commenting on it throughout. Once my wife figured out what I meant, because she had normalized and learned to ignore the sound, she informed me that has been coming from my passenger mirror since day 1. I took it a quick errand an hour ago and sure enough, from the driver’s seat and for the first time in 25k miles, I hear it clear as day. There’s always a possibility you just noticed now?

Also, FWIW, my 25 1958 makes high freq/low amplitude electronic whirring noises at idle all the time. I just attribute it to the tech.

 

[rjw250]

Keep in mind that there can be a reverse placebo effect as your ownership of a specific vehicle matures, as well as hyper vigilance for symptoms related to the worst case reports.

I myself, just this morning, came out of my back procedure to ride passenger prince with my wife driving for like the 3rd time in 25k miles. I was hearing this loud pop and rattle all the way home, commenting on it throughout. Once my wife figured out what I meant, because she had normalized and learned to ignore the sound, she informed me that has been coming from my passenger mirror since day 1. I took it a quick errand an hour ago and sure enough, from the driver’s seat and for the first time in 25k miles, I hear it clear as day. There’s always a possibility you just noticed now?

Also, FWIW, my 25 1958 makes high freq/low amplitude electronic whirring noises at idle all the time. I just attribute it to the tech.

I appreciate this, thank you.

I am highly open to this being normal! I have not had great experiences with the dealerships in my area, so when a potential issue arises I never have full confidence it will be resolved. The fact that you experience noises at idle is reassuring!

 

[GR8Santini]

Might be the battery circulation system. Air intakes are behind the 2nd row doors below the side windows. Can’t miss them - one on each side made into the front of cup holder area for the 3rd row. Next time you hear it roll one of the 2nd row seats forward & see if that intake area is what you’re hearing.

 

[TakaraLC]

Can you tell where the noise is coming from?

 

[rjw250]

Can you tell where the noise is coming from?

Sounds like it's coming from underneath the front seat area. Much louder/easier to hear when windows are down - though it's not at all difficult to hear when the windows are up.

 

[rjw250]

Might be the battery circulation system. Air intakes are behind the 2nd row doors below the side windows. Can’t miss them - one on each side made into the front of cup holder area for the 3rd row. Next time you hear it roll one of the 2nd row seats forward & see if that intake area is what you’re hearing.

Thanks for this! I do know where those vents are and am 100% positive it is something else. I appreciate the help, though!

 

[TakaraLC]

Sounds like it's coming from underneath the front seat area. Much louder/easier to hear when windows are down - though it's not at all difficult to hear when the windows are up.

That seems to be further back than the transmission. Does it get launder in reverse?

 

[GR8Santini]

Spitballing - Not the seat air circulation system, or when the climate control’s (S-Flow) rear duct is cutoff (controlled on dash)?

 

[rjw250]

That seems to be further back than the transmission. Does it get launder in reverse?

It doesn't get louder, but it changes to a different frequency in reverse.

 

[rjw250]

Spitballing - Not the seat air circulation system, or when the climate control’s (S-Flow) rear duct is cutoff (controlled on dash)?

I keep all that off for the most part

 

[rjw250]

I am going to get some video today and post it here. Thanks a ton for the input!

 

[TakaraLC]

It doesn't get louder, but it changes to a different frequency in reverse.

Are you sure it is not the pedestrian warning sound?

 

[rjw250]

Are you sure it is not the pedestrian warning sound?

Yeah - you can hear it here. It doesn't come off as too loud when inside the cabin (in this video) but I put the phone out the window and it's a lot louder. I could be a total idiot and this could be normal, which I hope is the case.

 

[DubDub]

Yeah - you can hear it here. It doesn't come off as too loud when inside the cabin (in this video) but I put the phone out the window and it's a lot louder. I could be a total idiot and this could be normal, which I hope is the case.

Here’s mine on a warm start and gear cycle. Had to seriously compress the media file, and hopefully the audio remains intact

 

[rjw250]

Here’s mine on a warm start and gear cycle. Had to seriously compress the media file, and hopefully the audio remains intact
View attachment 72373

Sounds the same! So the gas engine is off here and just cycling through the gears?

 

[DubDub]

Sounds the same! So the gas engine is off here and just cycling through the gears?

Yes,. The ICE was on initially.

 

[ultane]

Are you sure it is not the pedestrian warning sound?

That’s what I thought.