Fixing the odd interior rattles

[jj6string]

So I've been getting intermittent rattles coming from all over the passenger side of the car. It has just turned over 25K miles. About to crack into the panels and do some "insulation" with 3M tape.

Can anyone who's done this before offer any tips on getting panels off easily or what's causing these rattles? The most annoying one sounds like it's coming from the passenger side B-pillar. Almost as if it's between the passenger door and the quarter window.

 

[Tuffnuts23]

Those panels aren't too bad to pull. I recommend a set of plastic panel tools. You can find them pretty much anywhere that sells car audio stuff. If you look at the very bottom of that panel, where it meets the carpet near the rear floorboard, you will see one plastic fastener. Use one of the pry tools to get behind it and pop it loose. From there, get your fingers behind the panel from the bottom of the quarter window and pull straight back. The panel should pop right off. This is all from memory, so take your time and look at what you are doing, shouldn't be a problem.

 

[Jabooh1]

In order to track them down (because taking panels off can sometimes cause more rattles) I would wad up paper and wedge it in places to find the panel with the issue first.

 

[Tuffnuts23]

In order to track them down (because taking panels off can sometimes cause more rattles) I would wad up paper and wedge it in places to find the panel with the issue first.

solid advice!

 

[Zandura99]

has anyone fixed the rear view mirror rattle? That is driving me nuts..... Michigan roads are not forgiving.

 

[nissenc1337]

i've got a rattle that i THINK is coming from the dash air vent. i hit a bump on the highway (Arkansas has plenty) and i get this dumb, short, crappy rattle.

 

[jj6string]

Thanks for the tips guys. Just got a set of panel removal tools and will definitely try the waded up paper trick to find out where all the noise is coming from.

 

[BlueCoyote]

I had an odd rattle the other day that drove me crazy but it went away the next day and has never returned yet. It was in the front half of the passenger door panel at about the middle. Sounded horrible. Glad it went away.

 

[nissenc1337]

Wife and I went corner carving this weekend and she helped me locate a rattle. the a pillar covers of the interior have a lot of movement in them. when we kept them from moving, no more rattle. i'm not sure what i'll do to eliminate the rattle but at least i located it.

 

[01svtL]

I believe I have a rattle coming from the chrome surround of the far left driver side ac vent. When I press down on it, that rattle stops. However, I dont feel any give or movement when I press on it, so I'm not even sure how to address it.

 

[Angry50]

I believe I have a rattle coming from the chrome surround of the far left driver side ac vent. When I press down on it, that rattle stops. However, I dont feel any give or movement when I press on it, so I'm not even sure how to address it.

is aw a write up of someone removing the snap in cover then from the back removing the chrome rings and putting 3m tape on them

 

[Rct851]

is aw a write up of someone removing the snap in cover then from the back removing the chrome rings and putting 3m tape on them

I'd like to see this

 

[jj6string]

Bit of an update for anyone who's interested. I had 3 main sources of noise from the car: 1 passenger door, 2 passenger rear quarter panel, and 3 rear seats.

The rear seats was the easiest to fix, the noise comes from the interior trim smacking against the metal frame of the car right in the middle. Fold both seats down and you can get some insulating material in there. There is a small rectangle that is raised from the frame and this is the point of contact. I recommend using something soft to absorb the sound. I went with the felt side of a Velcro strip.

The passenger quarter panel noise turned out to be the seat belt mechanism jiggling around. Taped it down and the noise went away. I also discovered there was noise coming from where the A pillar trim meets the rear quarter panel. Some felt in between the two panels and that was taken care of.

The hardest one to fix was by far the door panel. After taking the door apart and testing various sections I found the noise was coming from the clips on the inside of the door that holds the electrical cables to the door frame. In order to stop them from moving (there's 2 of them) you have to remove the door speaker to provide an access point under the plastic shield. Taped them down in an X pattern with 3M tape from the outside, and placed some felt on the bottom of each clip from the inside. As a side note if you have this noise it will be very obvious. I initially thought that I had blown one of my speakers but it turned out to just be these clips.

Hope this helps any of you who attempt to do the same :beer: