Have you ever wondered if car engines talk? We didn’t want to believe it at first, but this viral video making the rounds on social media is making us rethink what we’ve always know.

Dutch trance legend DJ Armin van Buuren recently shared a curious observation: 

“I was watching the Formula 1 racing yesterday and recorded some of these sounds…and I swear I heard something,” the top DJ and record producer shared. As one of the most popular DJs in the world, headlining top festivals, he’s known as a music geek, and is all in when it comes to music. That’s why it’s interesting when he mentioned:  “All the engines say - STINGGG, STINGGG, STINGGG! I can’t unhear it.”

Yes, you heard that right. It’s not a remix, and it’s definitely not a prank. Armin swears there’s a distinct sound buried in the roar of the engine. His reaction? Total shock. And the internet is backing him up—fans are replaying the clip, analyzing every second, and swearing they hear it too.

“Been a fan of F1 for over 15 years, and somehow never heard it like this. Once you hear it… You can’t unhear it 👀” Armin’s caption read (Tiktok).

Some of Armin’s followers started asking if a new track was dropping, others noted: 

“That’s a wild discovery! Once you hear it, you can’t unhear it – so true!”

“Wait… did that just say something?” some ask.

A growing number of users also swear it sounds like “STINGGGG!”

At first, it just sounds like the usual roar—loud engines doing their thing. But then you listen again, and wait a second… is that something else in there? A tone, a rhythm, maybe even a note? It sneaks up on you. One second it's just noise, the next it's stuck in your head. And once you hear it, there's no unhearing it.

DJ Armin isn’t alone. British racing driver Jenson Button and local Formula 1 fans and personalities also reported hearing that the viral sound: 

“C’mon, I’ve been driving these cars all my life and I’ve never heard it…Maybe he’s (Armin) right, I think I heard it too,” Jenson said on an Instagram post. “Now I can’t stop hearing it…I’m going to have to check on my old races."

“I really thought Armin was kidding…but I’m hearing Sting in F1 cars live…this is crazy!!” stated Jenson on Instagram.

“There’s this trending audio circulating right now, a hidden sound in an F1 engine? I’m curious, I’ve never heard it before,” says racing enthusiast Marti Pecache. 

Marti says: “STINGG. STINGG. STINGG. And now this is all I hear when I see F1”

Content creator Lyka Gabrielle also got curious about the video making rounds on social media. “Did you hear it? I watched this video online and it’s really intriguing, that’s why I wanna hear the sound again,” she shared.

“Who doesn’t love the sound of F1 cars flying by. But if you listen to them closely you can hear STINGGG,” Lyka’s caption read.

“Sting, sting, sting! How to unhear it?” said Lyka Gabrielle. 

Even Filipino F4 racer Inigo Anton couldn’t resist: 

“The closer you go the more you hear it. Stinggg,” shares Inigo.

“Wait, was that a stinggg? You can’t unhear it!, said Inigo. “That’s crazy!”

And now everyone is asking: can you hear “STINGGG” too or are we  just hearing things? 

What are you waiting for? 

Go listen now—you just might catch the wildest, most unexpected “Stiiiiiiing” of the year!