Goldglv

I know there are already a few threads on this topic but none of them seemed to provide a fix. I know a couple people (LORE, Hukashi) took it to the dealer and they took care of the problem but is this something we can fix on our own? Do we have to remove the entire back seat to get at the rear deck? If so, does anyone know how to remove the back seat? I went in through the trunk and removed the felt/covering to get at the bottom part of the deck but it doesn't look like I can get in that way.

The vibrating/rattling noise happens when I drove over rough roads mostly, even with the radio off. If I tap/bang on the rear deck, I can duplicate the exact same noise. This is an extremely loud/annoying noise that I want to get fixed but at the same time I don't want the dealer ripping the back seat out of the car either.

Can anyone provide some step by step details and/or pics for this problem? Any help would be appreciated.

Lore

Yes, you're going to have to remove the entire back seat and c-pillar trim to get to the rear deck shelf. I bet there's a good chance it's the same third seat belt noise that I had. What does it sound like when you bang on it? I was also able to duplicate the noise by banging on it (Actually the dealer's tech decided to bang on it and see what noise would come out, and he heard it right away).

Anyway - you'll need to undo the bolts fastening the chair to the frame of the car. There's one on each side right by the door, one near the center seat belt buckle, and two underneath each head rest.

Then there's two latches underneath the right and left seats. Press them together and pull towards the front of the car. That should release the rear bench.

To remove the seat back you must lift up and away. Then you're left with the frame of the car and the rear deck removal. You have to remove each c-pillar trim by pulling out the "Side Curtain Airbag" thing and then pulling the trim until the pins pop out. After that, you can take the rear deck out.

MSF2

And then?

Novice

Is there any way you can remove the cover from the trunk to expose the seat belt brackets? There is no way I am going to let the dealer do the work Lore described above-I'd rather live with that stupid rattle.

Goldglv

It sounds like aluminum slightly banging up against another piece of alumninum creating an "echoing" effect. I just literally got back inside from trying to get at this rattle from the trunk. I located the REAR PASSENGER seat belt retractor assembly and banged on it and it sounded EXACTLY like the rattle I hear as I'm driving. I had a friend of mine grab a hold of the assembly and then I banged on the back deck. I could barely hear the sound at that point. I pulled the seatbelt taught and banged on the back deck again and the sound wasn't as loud but it was still there. If you lay down in the trunk and locate the assembly, you'll see a white plastic box attached to the assembly. I assume this is where the gears are located for the retractor. That seemed to be where the rattle was coming from as the assembly did not appear loose.

Was your assembly defective or something? What exactly did they do to remedy your problem?

Novice

Goldglv:

Did you have to remove any cover from the trunk to expose the seat belt assembly? Is it possible for you to take some pictures?

Goldglv

Just had to remove the top portion of the felt like covering inside the trunk. It looks like there are 3 pieces, one on the left, one on the right and one on the top. It's pretty easy to get off, just use a flathead screwdriver and pry the plastic tabs off. There are two that you have to unscrew, these two are used to hold the cargo net. Once you have it off, just climb into the trunk, you can't miss it, it's on the passenger side. There is a hole cut out in the metal where you can see the assembly. If you look very closely there is a bolt holding it on, that was nice and tight so it wasn't that. Just try banging on the assembly and I'll bet that you'll be able to duplicate the rattle.

Novice

Thanks. So this is something we cannot fix on our own.

Goldglv

That's what I'm trying to figure out. I'm not comfortable with the dealer ripping my rear seat out but this rattle/vibration is extremely loud, something I'm not going to be able to deal with. While I was in the trunk I did find a couple of things that I thought may be making that rattle, I put some foam tape in there. I want to drive it tomorrow and see if I hear that same rattle. I'll keep you guys updated.

Novice

Thanks. Keep us updated (possibly with some pictures if your remedy worked)!

Goldglv

Absolutely, doesn't seem like too many people have this rattle though, do they?

geminis2

I have it just play the music loud. But then I get the Rear Deck Rattle for bass what next????

livinglegend

In some TL's I heard that the white insulating material was actually fold over during installation. This material is under the rear deck between that and the body structure panel. It is a "job" getting it out. Let the dealer fix it!!!!! If you screw up any panels , you have to pay to replace it!!!! Acura will pay them to fix the rattle.

Lore

Yes, the aluminum-sounding rattle was exactly what mine sounded like. They didn't replace the rear seat belt assembly - all they did was put a bunch of foam tape (thicker than most) around the assembly - mostly the area that touches the metal of the rear deck. That seemed to do the trick.

HuKaShI

I agree with going to the dealer to have this fixed. The aluminum sound is probably the seat belt actuator. Get that replaced. Now I'm sure you will have a rattle left when playing music. Make sure they do something about the rear deck rattling against your rear window.

Lore

I actually tore apart my backseat in order to fix the rattles that came about when I played music - and at that time saw what they did to fix the seat belt noise. I bought some sound deadening material from circuit city and put it all over the rear deck. It seems to do a decent job with the vibrations (makes the sound tighter now) but certain frequencies can't be helped because it's the actual subwoofer making the funky noise.

Goldglv

Lore/Hukashi,
Is there any chance you guys can take some pics of what was done to fix this problem? I can get a look at the seat belt actuator from inside the trunk, I was just wondering if there was a way I could get some foam in there. I just wanted to know WHERE they inserted the foam so I could try doing the same.


Lore,
Thanks for the step by step instructions on how to get the back seat out. Did you figure this out on your own or did you have some kind of documentation in front of you to walk you through it?

Novice

Did your rattle go away?

Goldglv

Well, after a few days of driving the car, I really don't hear that rattle anymore. I heard something like it last night but I noticed the center seat belt in the back was a little loose, someone was using it and it didn't retract it all the way when they got out of the car. So I just pulled it and got it to retract all the way and then I didn't hear any noises.

So it looks like the foam padding I put in worked(so far anyway). Still though, if I bang on the rear deck I still hear some vibration but it's not too loud, not loud enough where I hear it over large bumps in the road. In my car I noticed a lot of rattling coming from the plastic cover that goes on the inside of the trunk. I'm talking about the cover that's actually on the trunk itself, if you pop open the trunk and open the trunk all the way, you'll be staring at the plastic cover. It's held on by those little black tabs that you can pop out with a flathead screwdriver. Once I got it off, I put foam in every place where the plastic cover meets the metal of the inside of the trunk. Try tapping that plastic cover in certain places, it makes a lot of noise.

Now, I'm not sure what these "rods" are called but if you remove the center "felt" fabric from inside the trunk, you'll get a look at the metal part of the rear deck, like where the speakers would be. There are these black rods going from one side of the car to the other. I noticed a few spots where these rods were touching up against the metal of the area under the rear deck. If you tap these rods into the metal you'll hear some rattling. So I put some foam there as well.

Sorry this was such a long post but I wanted to be as descriptive as possible. This rear deck rattle has been driving me crazy so I know what some of you guys are dealing with. I hope this post helps some of you out, let me know if you guys have any questions.

Lore

Someone, a long time ago, posted step by step instructions on what to do to remove it. I also have some scans from the service manual somewhere. It was a pain in the royal behind, I'll tell you that. When I pulled it out it was to put some sound deadening material in the car.

Novice

Thanks, guys. I plan to take the trunk area apart and try what you guys did.

Novice

Well, I did what Goldglv and Lore suggested. I still have this annoying noise. I cannot figure it out what is hitting what!!! I seriously doubt that it is the center seatbelt retractor and those metal rods.

There is no way those mechanics at the dealer could figure this out. Everything appears to be held pretty tight in the trunk!

I guess I will just have to live with it.

Novice

Goldglv and Lore:

Have you guys removed the black foamy pannel right underneath the trunk lid? I banged that area a couple of times and I did hear a similar noise. I believe that's where the trunk opener assembly is located.

MartyB

I had posted this on another thread ---
I had a simular metal tapping noise near the right rear speaker/rear shelf area when driveing on a rough rd. I finally took it to my Dealer to have them find and fixed it. They said the problem was a bad right rear strut (shock aborber) maybe at the mount. It took them a week but they replace it. The upper strut mount, I'm told, is just behind the back set near the rear shelf. Good news - That seems to have fixed the problem.

Bad News -When they where putting the seat back in they put a deep scratch in the leather and had to replace the entire bottom seat panel, broke all the seat retaining clips(on order for two weeks), put a dent and deep scratch on the metal door jam plate (Also on order as for two weeks now). I hate to think what they damage they'll do when I take it in for regular maint. service. I would not recommend this dealer's service dept.

parinpmehta

Surprisingly enough, I took my car into the dealership to have them look at a "rear deck rattle".

It took them all day and more then 1 person to find it, but my problem was the left rear STRUT that was making the clicking, constantly rattling sound.

It sounds like its coming directly from the speaker deck or from the seat belt actuator (as people have mentioned), but in my case it was the strut. It's under warranty of course, and they are replacing it as we speak.

So, keep that in mind with your rattling sagas.

riored3

I had a thread on the rear deck rattle. On my TL it was the plastic vent piece rattling against the rear glass. I did a quick fix myself by folding a small piece of cardboard and wedging it between the rear panel and the glass in the middle. Rattle gone. Last week I took my car back to the dealer . They have a service bulletin on this problem and repaired the problem by adding additional felt padding and new clips. Unfortunately they damaged my rear C pillar cover in the process. I was thankful the service manager told me about it. Now I have to bring the car back again when the part comes in.

PeterUbers

iTrader: (1)

LOL... i have this exact same rattle... I spent two hours in the trunk trying to get to the rear deck, only to dismantle the entire trunk to reveal that i cannot access the rear deck from underneath. What a waste of time.

I'm gunna try doing this new strategy (as mentioned in the above posts) next weekend, I'll take plenty of pics (as I always do) .. i promise.

I am soooooooo sick of that rattle... it's a loud, metal on metal rat-a-tat-tat-tat-tat that I hear over rough bumps and I can definitely replicate it by hitting the right side of the rear deck hard w/ my fist.

Thanks for the awesome informative posts.... another reason to love this forum