tarheels1

that a car that looks this nice, has lines this clean, has such a beautiful interior and instrument cluster has as many rattles as mine does. I have had two accords before this TL and they had nowhere near as many rattles as this much more expensive Honda. A quite car is very important to me and these rattles really take away from the enjoyment of driving this car. I'm really thinking about going by the BMW dealership and seeing what they have to offer.

I have never owned a BMW before and would like some input as to their quality and how they drive.

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

^drive one.

there are only so many words a reviewer can say about a particular car.
in which each experience is different.

if you're so concerned, test drive a bmw!


Would love to hear your experience.

VanyDotK

iTrader: (6)

I love bmws but they're expensive to maintain. If I could afford to buy/maintain one I would love an M3.

pohljm

You will absolutely love the way they drive. The ownership experience is another story!

The Machine

iTrader: (8)

I never had a BMW either, but I've heard a lot of complaints about them. I'm sure they drive decent but their Xdrive awd system doesn't compare to the quality or comfort of an Audi. Also looking at a BMW your taking on more expense if parts break and you have to replace them as their maintenance costs are pretty high.

Fastfwd

All cars can have rattles. My Audi has some and it was so unreliable that I would not consider putting a 5 years old Audi vs a 10 years old Acura in a reliability test; it would just not be fair to Audi.

From what I have read the best cars for people who hate rattles are Lexus. But they are expensive and not a fun to drive as Honda's and BMWs

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

OP, you might love the BMW's....they are very "man-ly" and you will love those UNTIL

you have to take it in for a service....the holes in your pocket will start growing bigger than your pockets themselves....

I do agree the TL has some rattles but if you check the 3G garage there are some very very cheap fixes which you can do to get rid of the rattles....

vietxquangstah

iTrader: (7)

A lot of people on here complain of rattles, but I have a 2008 that's salvaged title and I have no rattles...

Maybe I do, but I just don't realize it? Can you guys explain what rattling you hear? Is it while the music is turned up past 15? Is it while driving with no music? Is it while at idle? What exactly are you doing when you experience the "rattle" and what part/area of the car is it coming from? Outside the car? Inside the cabin? Front drivers / passenger area? Back passenger seat / rear window area?

I'm going to be driving my car later today and I want to know so I can see if my car has these "rattles" that you guys experience or not.

Redlantrn

You will miss the TL's rattles the first time you have to replace a window regulator or timing chain tensioner on a Bimmer....

Healingduck

I've read some stories about some TL's having rattle after rattle. Rattles in ANY car are hard to find, so having more than one would definitely be annoying. I've been lucky enough to only have a rattle from the subwoofer, but that was easily fixed. It is a fairly expensive car, but that is just one of the problems these cars sometimes have.

As far as a BMW..... keep in mind the cost of owning one. If you have the money to buy one new, then I would say go for it. They have great warranties and they are pretty reliable to a certain point. But I would say definitely don't go for them if it's used. They are expensive to maintain and like with any car, more problems go wrong with it the older they get. And a little problem on a BMW can cost quite a bit.

I agree though, a quiet ride is something that is pretty important to me. By searching the forum you may find a solution to a few different rattles. But besides that I don't know what to tell you....

tarheels1

Thanks for the responses. I want to keep this car because other than the rattles, i love it. I have worried about the expense to maintain and reliability of the BMW and don't want to be jumping out of the frying pan and into the fire.

pohljm

Oh yeah! I may as well also respond that I have an 06 with +80K and I really dont have any rattles and never did? The only rattle I ever get is when I close the door when the window is down partially.

The Machine

iTrader: (8)

+1 to that, except mine is an 08 with about 50k.

3gstealth

iTrader: (2)

Well said It seems like we have had a similar experience owning Audi's. My S4 was a constant PITA.

vietxquangstah

iTrader: (7)

No one answered my question I want to see if my car has these rattles too

ez12a

Go test drive one and find out for yourself. What would be a more fair comparison is driving a used BMW. That'll reveal where the rattles are if any.

i would not recommend it, but it's your money. $400+ in parts, DIY all 4 window regulators in my dad's e46, and a cooling system that has to be checked and/or overhauled every 60k (e46s) as preventative maintenance (plastic expansion tanks, plastic rad ends that leak...). My dad's 2001 325i 5MT has under 60k miles mind you.

they also did away with oil dip sticks after the E46 (E90+) and now rely on more sensors! because we know how reliable sensors are, especially BMW ones!

TLtrigirl

iTrader: (1)

rattles:
-rear deck, subwoofer and middle seat belt all in and around the rear deck (THere is a TSB for this).
-front driver's side vent (TSB for this)
-mirror/a pillar (TSB)
-door panel tick or rattle (TSB)
-glove box (TSB)

these are some of the bigger ones...and known, hence the TSBs

i have a tick of sorts coming from my center console/e-brake area...i have the subwoofer rattle with certain songs (lots of bass)...i settled the rear deck rattle, i can on occasion hear the vent...and the door panel tick has semmingly gone away for now.

does this help? not all TLs have the rattles and ticks...but there have been enough to have TSBs.

Warrior 6

What type of rattles do you have and where? Have a 07 TL-S with 34k miles and only rattle was in the glovebox area, repaired by the dealer. Several friends have BMW's and the majority wish they did not, expensive to maintain, and one the newness wears off, the troubles come. Good Luck in getting your rattles identified and then create a action plan with the help of those on this forum to get them fixed...

turbo_oxide

Used to own a X5... It was a tank, until it started breaking down (it was well maintained). BMW's go from nice to junk in a blink of an eye, BUT it also just depends on your luck... Some may never have any issues.

wall e

just turn up the volume and rattles are gone. the only BMW that looks descent is the current 5 series. im prolly gonna get one in 15 years when its in a USED parking lot

ABP_04TL

iTrader: (2)

<---- Dont care about rattles... Its a car it will be bound to happen sooner or later

TheChamp531

iTrader: (3)

How about you try to fix all of them? 3G garage has some DIYs to fix most, if not all, rattles.

Side note: Why do people spell quiet, quite? So many people do that :/

tarheels1

I usually do spell quiet correctly but this was a typo lol. One of my pet peeves is when people say they COULD care less when it is supposed to be COULDN'T unless that are trying to say that in fact they do care. Anyway, does anyone know the specific rattle TSBs that pertain to th 08 TL.

TLtrigirl

iTrader: (1)

you gotta go to the 3G garage and look them up. follow the directions to access the TSBs.

SpenceTLMonster

Rattles? what rattles? If I hear any rattle I just crank up the music haha.

My partner has a 330XI and while it's fun...they're not all that. I like my TL more, and even with his having some more luxury features than my TL he still says every time "This car is amazing" so...TL > BMW anyyy time

1black_seven

iTrader: (2)

Im ignorant to any rattles since I drive with windows down and pandora streamin. I could care less honestly.
As for beamers, I turned down the 3-series because I wasnt impressed with the aesthetic quality.
My family has gone through 2 Z3's and a Z4 and it registers about a 'meh' on my scale. Decent 2-seater but being a honda guy I'd look for an S2k before I went to a beamer.

vietxquangstah

iTrader: (7)

The BMW Z has got to be the ugliest beemers ever made that still exist.... That and the 1-series.

I'm diggin the 2012 3, 5, and 7 series though. I love the way they refreshed the tail lights on those models. Looks baller.

Fastfwd

Also it may be that rattles seem worse on luxury cars. In my 2007 pontiac sunfire I could not hear any rattles. The fast is that the sound insulation was so lacking that most of what I heard was engine, wind and tires. A rattle in that car would have to get pretty loud before it was noticeable.

In my Audi A4 they were VERY noticeable and in the too(no real rattle yet but my kid left something in the door pocket the other day). I notice some rattles in the MDX but not as much since it moves more wind so it gets noisier on the inside vs the TL.

Dan000

iTrader: (1)

I hate the rattles in my tl so much I won't buy acura again.

NavS

I just bought an off lease tl-s and there are no rattles whatsoever. However since I've put in my iPod cable yesterday I'm kinda scared that they'll show up.

ttribe

I went from '06 TL to '07 BMW M5. I didn't really have a lot of significant rattles in the Acura; I was pretty fortunate with mine (bought it new in '06).

Comparing to a BMW? Well, that's tough. Fit and finish on the BMW is far and away better. No question about it. However, it is not cheap to maintain; you have to be prepared for that. My BMW has not left me stranded, but there's no such thing as a cheap repair. If you go the used BMW route, I highly recommend an extended warranty.

erdoc48

I have one that sounds like it's on the passenger side- I'll check the TSBs and see if I can localize it. Thanks for the idea TLTrigirl.

Tehvine

If you can hear the rattles, you need more exhaust note.

Slayer-33

iTrader: (1)

lololol

J-ProX

WOW...Exactly the rattles I have been hearing in mine. It's not that bad though. The worst is the rear deck rattle but any of these doesn't make me dislike this car one bit.

AMSMiTH

Before I bought my TL I was looking all over the country for a 335 that had all three packages (Sport, Cold, Premium) and still had lots of life left on both warranties (CO, Maintenance) I couldn't find one close enough or in a color I wanted. BMW in my opinion is a better driving machine but I would only ever own one if I had both warranties.

vshengr

iTrader: (2)

Some rattles have been easily fixed by member, though not all. I've still got one in the steering column/dash that the dealership cannot diagnose.

As far as BMW - it's definitely a different drive. I've driven 328i's on numerous occasions and it is a much smaller and tighter wound car, it's power is surprising when you compare the cars on paper. Makes the TL feel slightly large and boat-ish. But the TL offers a better overall package when comparing price/reliability. I was in the market about a year ago between a 328 or a Type S and the Type S won me over easily. If the 335 had been in the same price range, might be a different story.

Homemade

I owned one for 3 months (328XI) and got rid of it for my TL-S... Love the TL so much better plus i can do my own maintenace..

JD TL-S

iTrader: (1)

Strange ???

The 3 3rd gen TL's I owned didnt rattle.

I test drove a manual 07 Type-S about a month ago that had 72k miles and had 0 rattles. As solid as a new car.

You must have bought one that was made by people that ALL had hangovers I guess ?

TWiSDiT

iTrader: (4)

I just got used to my rattles.. its an 8 year old car.. cant expect any better. Just turn up the volume!