I sit in my car with the engine running and nothing else turned on. No radio. No heat. No air conditioning. However, I still hear a noise that sounds like air flow but I can't seem to find where it is coming from or what it is.

Any ideas?

 

I had that too. Came from the vented seats turned on blowing into your ear if you turn a certain way... at least that's what it turned out to be for mine - not sure if it's the same noise you're hearing.

 

Now that is a good one! Not sure if the recirculate button actually blows the air or not.

 

If I lean forward in the seat with the seat fans on high, it does make enough noise to hear, even though there's not much of a breeze. It was very much a "why am I hearing air moving when there is no air coming from the vents?" thing the first couple of times it happened.

 

It's happened to me as well, turns out my gf turned on the ventilated seat air for the passenger seat and I never turned it off.

 

Ventilated seats have a blower that blows the air outwards to cool them off.

I am not saying that this is what you hear, but make sure its turned off as well.

When you lean forward you allow air to come out, when lean against the back of the seat, you prevent the air to come out there for you hear less of the noise.

 

My new to me 2013 GS 350 Fsport has a very annoying high pitched two-tone oscillating noise - like a faint alarm - that can only be heard with my head in the driving position, sitting in the seat. Lean my head forward a foot and noise goes away. Lean my head to the right a foot and the noise goes away. Does not change with engine speed or road speed. Drove me nuts for a few days, until I was parked with engine running (and annoying noise going strong), and I chanced to turn off the seat heater. Noise stopped. Heater on highest level, noise resumed. Turned heater down one level, nose quieted a little.

Conclusion: there's a fan in the seat back that runs when the seat heater is on (it's winter, haven't tried the seat cooling, but suspect it's the same fan), and it's developed a slight bearing noise. Remedy will be to disassemble seat back to access the fan, try to lube the fan bearing. If that doesn't quiet it, then new fan.

If anyone has had the seat apart to access the fan, please post. I'll do some more searching for that....

Thanks

 

I presume you've turned On the ventilated front seats (at least the driver's seat) on Hi and heard the rush of air it makes (really only noticeable when you lean your head forward toward the steering wheel). Is this rushing air sound what you are hearing? Or, is it more of a mechanical sound like a fan motor bearing which you mentioned?

You probably should have started a new thread instead of posting to a thread that is 5½ years old.

 

I had no idea a fan ran with the heat. I can't feel air coming out. Does it prevent the element itself from getting too hot? Perhaps my model is too primitive to have such feature

 

Yeah, I agree. I don't think the seat heaters are connected in any way with the seat ventilation fans. I would think using the seat ventilation may even reduce the effectiveness of the seat heaters...especially so before the cabin warmed up - otherwise the seat ventilation would freeze you to death.

 

It's not the sound of rushing air. It the soundyou hear when an alternator bearing is starting to get dry and worn, but it doesn't change with engine speed.
Good suggestion to start a new thread. I'll do that. Thanks.

 

You might as well continue on here now...