Help! My cordless drill driver making weird grinding noise and stalls under load

Hey everyone, hoping someone can help me out here. I've got a 20V cordless drill driver that's been acting up lately. When I'm driving screws into some 2x4s, it makes this weird grinding/whining noise and sometimes just stalls completely. Battery seems fine - shows full charge but maybe it's not holding? Anyone else had this issue? It's about 2 years old, used pretty regularly for DIY projects around the house.

OP, first thing I'd check is the chuck. Make sure it's tightened properly on your bit - a loose chuck can cause that grinding noise. Also, what brand/model? That matters for troubleshooting. If it's stalling under load, could be the motor brushes wearing out or the battery not delivering enough current even if it shows full charge. Try a different battery if you have one!

Wendy's on the right track. In my experience on job sites, 90% of the time that grinding noise is either the planetary gears going bad or the chuck mechanism failing. How many times have you dropped it? Impact damage can mess up the gear alignment. Also, are you using the right torque setting? Too high on soft wood with long screws will stall most consumer-grade drivers. What's the brand? Some have known issues after 2-3 years of regular use.

Dude I feel your pain! My Ryobi did the exact same thing last month. Turned out to be the battery contacts were corroded - cleaned them with some electrical contact cleaner and it's been fine since. Also, check if the bit is seated all the way in the chuck. My kids sometimes don't push it in all the way when they 'help' me lol. If it's the gears though... might be time for a new one. Home Depot has some decent deals right now!

This is exactly why I only buy Milwaukee. Their Fuel line has brushless motors that last forever. OP, if you're using one of those big box store brands, that's probably your issue right there. They're not built for regular use. That said, if you want to salvage it: 1) Clean all contacts (battery and tool) 2) Check for debris in the chuck 3) Listen closely - if the noise is coming from near the trigger, it's the motor. If it's near the chuck, it's the gears. Either way, probably not worth fixing unless it's a premium brand.