[SA13355]

Where oh where is that rattle? FOUND IT!

My 2004 with 2400 miles on it has a rattle.
It came on at about a 1000 miles.
Sounds like a coffee can full of coins being shaken.
Comes from the passenger side.
Is activated by bumps, like a patch in blacktop, or switching from concrete to blacktop, anything that puts the suspension to work.

I thought it was the wheel center caps.
Took all four off, still rattled.
Thought it was the engine cover.
Took it off, still rattled.
Thought it was the backing plates on the brakes.
Put sound pads on them, still rattled.
Thought it was wiring in fender.
Isolated it, still rattled.
Thought it was three pair of sunglasses in glove box.
Took everything out of cab and back, still rattled.
Checked running boards, exhaust and shields, all suspension bolts and mounts.
Doesn't matter top up or down, same with windows.
Anyone know what I'm missing.
It is getting embarrassing in city traffic as the rattle gets louder, bouncing off the cars next to me.

Skip

 

[Watch Six]

Rattle,

SA13355,
Being the trained investigator that I was, the first thing I would look for is a can full of change located on the passenger side, under the seat. :lol :lol :lol :lol
Mike :cool
Semper Fi

 

[Speed2acer]

Rattles

I went crazy about a week after I brought my SSR home. The rattle I was hearing was......................


...The passanger side seatbelt latch, which tends to flip over and hits the edge of the seat.
MAybe that would be the same for you.



The Driver side filps too, but we normaly rotate it to latch.

Hope it helps,
Speed2acer
04 Sligshot
FNDURLN :thumbs

 

[cruzned]

I agree...my passenger belt latch often comes loose but is easily pushed back into place and when loose, makes that very sound you described. Easy fix., no worries. :thumbs

 

[dingbat]

passenger seatbelt buckle does that on mine.

Is something loose inside the door?

 

[3Rods]

rattle

Grab the hood on the passenger side by the wiper, push it away and then pull back rapidly. If it rattles check the hood stop by the hinge. Mine is painted red and when the body twist the hood rubs the top. This drove me nuts. I even pulled the dash apart thinking the rattle was inside the truck.
Put silcone grease or white grease on the hood stop. Hope you find the rattle!

 

[crazyrtr53]

Could be

Could also be where the roof locks into the top of the windshield. Hitting dips or pots in the road sometimes causes that rattle on either side :confused

 

[SA13355]

Seat belt-hood-top

Have a passenger using the seat belt usually. Checked it this afternoon and the buckle had flipped. Turned it over, still rattled. Pulled the buckle down and clicked it in, still rattled.

Tried the hood-shake, it made a noise. Put a pad on the adjustment bolt heads. It still rattled.

Did a time out with the top up and compartment open. Touched everything, nothing loose. Don't think it is the locks as passenger said it sounds like the running board is loose, coming from lower area.

Okay, what's next?

Thanks

Skip

 

[Guest]

Silicone grease

Put the silicone gease on the seals where the roof and wind sheid meets. My 03 had that kind of noise. that fixed it. put the silicone grease sparingly on all the seals on the top and doors. that could fix the rattle. I know the sound does not sound like rubber to rubber, but it fixed the 03 I had. as the rubber gets drier, the sound gets louder till I could not stand it any more. I get my 05 detailed once every 3 mo. now. the silicone is part of that detail job. Hope this works for you. :flag :ssr :seeya

 

[SA13355]

Silicone

I do silicone seals anyway, plus it doesn't matter if top and windows are up or down.

Tonight I noticed my rear Ground Force springs are stacked for the top 3 coils, so I put some bearing grease between the coils and took it out for a 'rattle-run'. It still rattles.

I took some crummy city streets for the test. I noticed that the rattle sound comes back to me very clear if I'm next to the curbs. That continues to tell me it is coming from the passenger side and down low. I'd say it sounds more like a kid's plastic rattle than metal. 2 or 3 quick shakes each time I hear it.

 

[Guest]

How about the body mounts. I had a truck a few years back. that done the squakin also. that would be down low on one side or the other.

 

[SA13355]

I'll check all the mounts tonight, but it isn't a squeak, it is a rattle.

Skip

 

[SA13355]

coil bind

In my quest to find this baby-rattle noise, I'm looking under the SSR and I'm looking at my Ground Force springs. The rear springs are stacked tight together for the top four coils.

It seemed to me they should be engineered to have space between them.

I e-mailed Ground Force and asked about their spring kit #9934 for our SSRs, if they shouldn't have space between them.

They said, and I quote "The coils are not the issue they are made that way."

:skep So, how about that people? There are a lot of Ground Force kits out there, are your rear coils setting on each other for the first 3 or 4 top coils? Or do I have coil bind?

 

[SA13355]

Using the palm of my hand going around the SSR trying to make the rattle show up I found my front fenders make a lot of noise. The plastic wiring loom is a lot of it. I isolated the contact points with foam tubing.

The plastic fender liners are really noisy. I pulled them out thinking I'd find something loose behind them. Nothing loose. It's just the liners bumping around. I put foam pads between the liner and body contact points.

Wiring running across the front of SSR makes a lot of noise as well so I insulated that to.

Test drove it afterwards, still same rattle. I tried putting the windows up about 1/2" to support the glass. Didn't make any difference.

??
Skip

 

[beer100]

Using the palm of my hand going around the SSR trying to make the rattle show up I found my front fenders make a lot of noise. The plastic wiring loom is a lot of it. I isolated the contact points with foam tubing.

The plastic fender liners are really noisy. I pulled them out thinking I'd find something loose behind them. Nothing loose. It's just the liners bumping around. I put foam pads between the liner and body contact points.

Wiring running across the front of SSR makes a lot of noise as well so I insulated that to.

Test drove it afterwards, still same rattle. I tried putting the windows up about 1/2" to support the glass. Didn't make any difference.

??
Skip

While it didn't solve the problem you are after, did any of that make an overall difference.

 

[SA13355]

No difference.

I am surprised that I can go around and make all these different parts "make" noise.
Then do some adjustment to that area, but still be surrounded by this rattle.

A rattle which I'm pretty sure is outside as I can barely hear it with the top and windows up.

I haven't taken the door apart yet, I guess that is next. :leaving

 

[mikepowell]

mabie some gravel is trapped in the frame rail or something from the factory :confused
2 stupid rattle stories for you:
when I worked at a car lot, a customer complained of a rattle in the trunk of his car. I found his 'personalized' golf ball under the trunk carpeting :lol
this is urban legend-long ago an assembly line worker supposedly liked to drop his orange crush bottles in the door before he installed the interior panel instead of taking the time to chuck them. :cuss
didja check the running boards? :flag

 

[SA13355]

Mike

Running boards were the first place I looked, being dealer installed and all.
Tight as a dumb.

I was in the Army with a man that worked in a GM plant who's story was about a piece of chain in door posts.

One good thing is, out of over 2000 members here, I seem to be the only one.

Skip

 

[SA13355]

I found that the plastic threshold in the door jam makes a noise when touched, while the door is open.

I would like to remove it and go for a test drive. There aren't any screws holding it in. Any advice on removal?

Thanks
Skip

 

[Guest]

mystery plastic rattle

I know this may be obvious, but if echoing off curbs, do you have access to a jack or better yet a frame lift where you can lift and spin the wheels, particularly in gear and possibly isolate the noise with a second person? Does not sound like an interior component. Tell dealer all you did and to call you when fixed or GM if needed, if your still warrantied.