TQ HPR50 Grinding Noise

volts said:
i got my motor replaced at around december 2023. Grinding noice stopped. Frame ticking is still there and no noticeable difference in power or any other miracle revalations.
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Is that frame ticking? That ticking was driving me nuts and i sold the bike. Tick tick tick......i hate that
 
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Well my 9.5 Fuel Exe started making the clicking noise after 1100 kms (purchased in fall 2022).
I had just taken it to the LBS for an annual tune up and firmware update.

First ride out the ticking/clicking from the motor area started. Especially noticeable when going uphill.
I do not ride real hard nor fast and do not work the motor really hard - most of my rides are in the first 2 assist levels.

The chain ring does not feel tight. There is a bit of wiggle there so I am hoping that is the problem. The shop may have taken it off and failed to tighten it properly.

I read somewhere on this forum that loose chain rings were causing some problems and that it was recommended to tighten them more than specified in the set up guides. (60nm vs 50nm?) Is that true and did it help anyone get rid of the ticking noise?
 
AMbmb2168 said:
Well my 9.5 Fuel Exe started making the clicking noise after 1100 kms (purchased in fall 2022).
I had just taken it to the LBS for an annual tune up and firmware update.

First ride out the ticking/clicking from the motor area started. Especially noticeable when going uphill.
I do not ride real hard nor fast and do not work the motor really hard - most of my rides are in the first 2 assist levels.

The chain ring does not feel tight. There is a bit of wiggle there so I am hoping that is the problem. The shop may have taken it off and failed to tighten it properly.

I read somewhere on this forum that loose chain rings were causing some problems and that it was recommended to tighten them more than specified in the set up guides. (60nm vs 50nm?) Is that true and did it help anyone get rid of the ticking noise?
Click to expand...
Hi.
The EXe chainring locking rings were originally stamped with "30Nm" as the tightening torque spec. But Trek found it was insufficient so they changed the spec to be 50Nm. I asked my Trek store to send me a new locking ring with the 50Nm marking, which they did.

Regarding a VERY quiet ticking noise I had when pedalling when I first received the bike in Sept 2022 - it was hard for my Trek shop to hear or replicate in their noisy location ... - so I removed the motor completely, greased all the bolts and made sure the Compensation screws were adjusted properly, and of course checked the chainring and crank arms were tightened to spec. The noise was then gone and has not reappeared after 1600km.
Hope this helps!
 
AMbmb2168 said:
Well my 9.5 Fuel Exe started making the clicking noise after 1100 kms (purchased in fall 2022).
I had just taken it to the LBS for an annual tune up and firmware update.

First ride out the ticking/clicking from the motor area started. Especially noticeable when going uphill.
I do not ride real hard nor fast and do not work the motor really hard - most of my rides are in the first 2 assist levels.

The chain ring does not feel tight. There is a bit of wiggle there so I am hoping that is the problem. The shop may have taken it off and failed to tighten it properly.

I read somewhere on this forum that loose chain rings were causing some problems and that it was recommended to tighten them more than specified in the set up guides. (60nm vs 50nm?) Is that true and did it help anyone get rid of the ticking noise?
Click to expand...
I have a 2022 9.8 XT and have had the lock ring come lose on me over time. I can replicate the clicking noise at a standstill just by pushing down on the cranks. Tightening them back to 50nm has always resolved the issue when I had it.
 
My clicking isn't chain ring or compensation screws. I have no idea what it can be. Very annoying.
 
Borut said:
Is that frame ticking? That ticking was driving me nuts and i sold the bike. Tick tick tick......i hate that
Click to expand...
It's either the chain ring or main pivot on.my particular bike. I am on the verge of selling too
 
chnapka said:
Unfortunately same issue here on Scott Solace Gravel(MY23), motor was produced on 22'.
After warranty claim waiting for new motor.
Grinding rattling sound
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Good news, motor changed, no grinding noise, no ticking and is little bit quieter.
New motor was produced on 24' and has S/N 116 xxx. The previous one was 10 xxx.
 
Hi. My Trek Fuel exe 9.8 has started to make the grinding/growling noise after 50km. Like others have said, it happens at low watts, less than 20 and a fairly high cadence usually when I'm in the wrong gear.
Is anyone just living with the grinding noise? I was wondering how long the motor will last.
 
Johnny Javelin said:
Hi. My Trek Fuel exe 9.8 has started to make the grinding/growling noise after 50km. Like others have said, it happens at low watts, less than 20 and a fairly high cadence usually when I'm in the wrong gear.
Is anyone just living with the grinding noise? I was wondering how long the motor will last.
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I am living with it. Got my first bike in Oct 22 and i asked Trek to replace the motor before the warranty ran out. Since the frame had a warranty issue, they gave me a new bike which they had in stock and was built a year earlier with my original bike. The second motor also has the same grinding noise but otherwise runs fine so I just kept it for now. It seems to not get worse or impact the performance.
 
DBSwiss said:
I am living with it. Got my first bike in Oct 22 and i asked Trek to replace the motor before the warranty ran out. Since the frame had a warranty issue, they gave me a new bike which they had in stock and was built a year earlier with my original bike. The second motor also has the same grinding noise but otherwise runs fine so I just kept it for now. It seems to not get worse or impact the performance.
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Thanks for the reply, good to know that it doesn't affect performance and hopefully won't cause premature failure.
 
DBSwiss said:
I am living with it. Got my first bike in Oct 22 and i asked Trek to replace the motor before the warranty ran out. Since the frame had a warranty issue, they gave me a new bike which they had in stock and was built a year earlier with my original bike. The second motor also has the same grinding noise but otherwise runs fine so I just kept it for now. It seems to not get worse or impact the performance.
Click to expand...
 
My experience is pretty much the same as DB Swiss. I was one of the original reporters and did most of the writing and probably was the first one to figure out that it was grinding with low power output and spray gears not meshing properly. My second, swapped, motor started producing the grind at about 30 km but at much quieter and lower level and less frequently and you kind of subconsciously learn never to apply only 10 to 20 W, so that I rarely notice it. It is not getting worse than the last 1000 miles. Overall, the motor is so perfect now I'm afraid to get a firmware or software update. Originally TQ said they were working on some kind of software fix, but I never saw that that came out, at least nobody said so. DOES ANYONE KNOW IF THE NEWER MOTORS STILL HAVE THE GRIND?.
 
prolix2 said:
My experience is pretty much the same as DB Swiss. I was one of the original reporters and did most of the writing and probably was the first one to figure out that it was grinding with low power output and spray gears not meshing properly. My second, swapped, motor started producing the grind at about 30 km but at much quieter and lower level and less frequently and you kind of subconsciously learn never to apply only 10 to 20 W, so that I rarely notice it. It is not getting worse than the last 1000 miles. Overall, the motor is so perfect now I'm afraid to get a firmware or software update. Originally TQ said they were working on some kind of software fix, but I never saw that that came out, at least nobody said so. DOES ANYONE KNOW IF THE NEWER MOTORS STILL HAVE THE GRIND?.
Click to expand...
I just bought one that's 1 year old with 1000 km, 250 hrs on it. I experience exactly this: TREK FUEL EXE motor noise, and sometimes motor drag. I'm thinking of getting the motor replaced. Does anyone know if Trek's second owner warranty covers the motor?
 
I've got an answer from TQ support to my email regarding reoccurring grinding sound.

Thanks for your message. Sorry for the late reply. We do get a lot of requests at the moment.

The grinding sound tends to occur when I reach the speed limit, and the motor is producing around 10-40 watts or pedalling slowly

Thank you for sending the youtube video. We are aware of that specific noise. This is not a reason for a warranty replacement at the moment. It is a clutch engagement issue that shows up when you have the conditions you describe. The clutch is neither fully engaged nor completely free. It does not have a negative effect on the functionality or durability of the HPR50 Drive Unit.
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Hi 👋🏻
I bought the new Canyon Spectral:ON Fly and I have the same grinding noise at low cadence, especially when pedaling slowly on flat terrain. I will upload a video.
 
Pierfrancesco said:
Hi 👋🏻
I bought the new Canyon Spectral:ON Fly and I have the same grinding noise at low cadence, especially when pedaling slowly on flat terrain. I will upload a video.
Click to expand...
If it has the TQ motor, it's a long-standing well-known problem that TQ has acknowledged.. When the writer is only asking for 10 or 15% power of the motor then the Sprague gears don't fully engage and it makes that clattering grinding sound. More than a year ago TQ said they were going to maybe work on it or fix it and do a firmware change but I can't find it that's ever been done. Apparently this problem varies from motor to motor and some people more or less fixed it by asking for a change in the motors. When I got my dealer, trek dealer, to swap motors it improved it so what but I can still make that sound to occur carefully moderating my torque and cadence. TQ said that it's not really a problem and doesn't create any long-term wear or anything like that, so just knowing that fact lessons my concern about it or attention to it. If you search YouTube for "DQ grinding noise "you'll see whether your sound is similar to others.
 
prolix2 said:
If it has the TQ motor, it's a long-standing well-known problem that TQ has acknowledged.. When the writer is only asking for 10 or 15% power of the motor then the Sprague gears don't fully engage and it makes that clattering grinding sound. More than a year ago TQ said they were going to maybe work on it or fix it and do a firmware change but I can't find it that's ever been done. Apparently this problem varies from motor to motor and some people more or less fixed it by asking for a change in the motors. When I got my dealer, trek dealer, to swap motors it improved it so what but I can still make that sound to occur carefully moderating my torque and cadence. TQ said that it's not really a problem and doesn't create any long-term wear or anything like that, so just knowing that fact lessons my concern about it or attention to it. If you search YouTube for "DQ grinding noise "you'll see whether your sound is similar to others.
Click to expand...
I have a friend who got a new bike with a TQ motor and I was able to reproduce the sound noise on his bike I didn't tell him about it and he's never noticed it
 
prolix2 said:
I have a friend who got a new bike with a TQ motor and I was able to reproduce the sound noise on his bike I didn't tell him about it and he's never noticed it
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My final assessment is that if you can ignore it enough, and quit trying to see if it's still there by peddling at Light located cadence and minimal applied to torque, it will stop being irritating plus you subconsciously learn to apply enough torque that it won't do it. What do y'all think about this?
 
prolix2 said:
My final assessment is that if you can ignore it enough, and quit trying to see if it's still there by peddling at Light located cadence and minimal applied to torque, it will stop being irritating plus you subconsciously learn to apply enough torque that it won't do it. What do y'all think about this?
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...., in other words, if you will subconsciously apply a little more torque on your part the motor will think it needs to put out more than 10% power and will apply more torque on its part and will fully engage the sprag clutch
 
prolix2 said:
...., in other words, if you will subconsciously apply a little more torque on your part the motor will think it needs to put out more than 10% power and will apply more torque on its part and will fully engage the sprag clutch
Click to expand...
prolix2 said:
My final assessment is that if you can ignore it enough, and quit trying to see if it's still there by peddling at Light located cadence and minimal applied to torque, it will stop being irritating plus you subconsciously learn to apply enough torque that it won't do it. What do y'all think about this?
Click to expand...
ok everything, but it is not acceptable that there is a problem on a €7500 bike. I am in contact with Tq assistance, let’s see what they say.
 
My TQ's grinding noise is getting louder and louder. I've now complained and am waiting for a response from TQ. Do the newer TQ HPR50 motors still make the grinding noise?
 
subdiver said:
My TQ's grinding noise is getting louder and louder. I've now complained and am waiting for a response from TQ. Do the newer TQ HPR50 motors still make the grinding noise?
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Is the noise that is getting louder the same noise? In other words is it the clutch noise under minimal load that is getting louder or is the motor getting louder on higher loads? I have the latter happening. My bike has a first gen (very early) motor. It made the grinding noise under minimal load but now developed a much louder engine noise under higher loads. sounds like Trek shop told me they cannot do any maintenance on the motor.
 
DBSwiss said:
Is the noise that is getting louder the same noise? In other words is it the clutch noise under minimal load that is getting louder or is the motor getting louder on higher loads? I have the latter happening. My bike has a first gen (very early) motor. It made the grinding noise under minimal load but now developed a much louder engine noise under higher loads.
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It’s the grinding noise from the clutch. The engine noise is ok.
My bike is a Scott Lumen from 2023, bought in 2024.
 
subdiver said:
It’s the grinding noise from the clutch. The engine noise is ok.
My bike is a Scott Lumen from 2023, bought in 2024.
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Not sure. My original grinding noise did not change much in the last 2 years. I am sure you are not having this issue, but once I had a rock stuck in the chain guard on my fuel EXE and it made a very nasty grinding noise. I first thought it came from the motor but was just a rock luckily. Good luck!
 
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