kmk786

Hi all - picked up my 2017 A8L this January and couldn't be happier. There is a weird, Friday the 13th sound the car makes. No rhyme or reason. Happens when driving at all speeds and while stationary.
Took it to the dealership and we could recreate it, but no root cause or remedy identified. Going to take it back next week and wanted to check here if this is something you have experienced. Appreciate the feedback.

Jack88

My suspicion is something to do with the climate control, there are a bunch of motor controlled flaps that control the distribution of air in the cabin. Do any of the vents seem not to work?

In any case, the dealer will figure it out eventually. I'm sure some part was faulty from the factory, with the tolerances in these things it wouldn't take much.

kmk786

Thanks, Jack88. All vents appear to be in working order, but I will double check today. I thought it might be something with suspension or air-shocks, but your logic makes sense.

Any and all ideas are welcomed.

A 8

Not sure what sound is giving you concern but the chirp like sound is most likely the harddrive working.

Jack88

The chirp reminded me of the door lock chirp actually. Thought it might be some kind of gear slipping or something rubbing as well. Or it's the hard drive, which could imply something with the CD changer, maybe?

kmk786

No issue with the chirp - agreed, its the door locking. Towards the end of the video are a sequence (four) distinct sounds, which reminds me of old school horror movies before the psycho jumps out from behind the door. Surely, that can't be normal. Unless you guys tell me it is.

dwboston

It's the hard drive and it's "normal". Apparently it's common across the A8's. My 2015 A8 does it. I never noticed it during my two test drives of the car before buying. I only notice it when the car's quiet (i.e. not listening to music). It probably happens once or twice during my 40 minute drive to/from work.

theanimala

Same with my 2013, totally normal.

tgomezS8

The sound toward the end, which sounds like someone pressing a small squeaky spring is, as other users have noted, normal. I just got a 2017 S8+ about two months ago and my car does the same thing. It first does it about 1 minute after starting the car up, and then does it periodically after that, maybe every 30 minutes of continuous driving, or something like that.

Jack88

Okay, now that everyone has agreed that the chirp bit was normal, can we discuss the other sound? I've never heard it before.