So i brought in my car today (08 TL-S) to the dealer for an oil change and requested to take a look at the speakers due to its constant rattle. Then 5 hrs later i get a call from the dealer stating that the tech hasn't found anything wrong with the speakers or the rattle. The tech claims its perfectly normal. I know when i hear rattles and i know for a fact that our TLs have rattle problems. They want me to come to the dealer tomorrow and point the problem to the tech. The rattle varies depending on what type of music i play.

 

There is a TSB out on this. They CAN'T refuse to fix the rattle. I believe that the rear deck rattle comes from one of the seat belt clips, and not the deck itself, believe it or not.

 

I successfully got both my rear deck speakers replaced a few months ago. They rattled from the first day I bought the car. The service advisor tried to tell me to turn down the bass, but I told him they didn't rattle with bass, they rattled with midrange!

My advice: find a song that brings the rattle out loud and clear. Then demo that to the service writer. The tech will most likely listen to that, then pop in some other test cd, and compare with a like vehicle. Get the service writer to acknowledge the rattle off the bat and you should be good for a fix (if it really is a warrantied item.)

 

Check the 3G garage. There are several threads about this. Also here is the tsb:

http://www.in.honda.com/Rjanisis/pubs/SB/B04-043.PDF

 

yeah i have a 07 and in the back it rattles sometimes escipally when Love lock down plays... Pisses me off that bass line makes it rattle and it doesnt even have to be loud.

 

That's the exact song that made me realize my rattle. The dealer told me that the TSB didn't apply to my '08, that the issue had already been fixed. My ass! I don't feel like going back there though, I'll just wait until a nice day, disassemble my rear deck, and get that whole thing locked down tight.

 

I had to make something to push down between the back window and the deck... I haven't heard a rattle since. It was better for me to do that so I didn't have to listen to the service guy tell me that there isn't any problem. GL

 

Godam these incompetent service techs. I just printed out the TSB. If i go show the tsb and the tech still refuses then i guess I would have to let him hear a demo. Now i have sit at the dealer in my car and try to find a song that would make the rattle sound.

 

The best thing is to insist on taking the tech for a ride. Most of the time when they go without you, they seem to say that they couldn't replicate the rattle. Good luck.

 

A friend and fellow AZ member here locally had the same problem. He has an 08 TL-S and had to return it twice to have the rattle fixed. I think they did fix it the 2nd time by installing some sort of insulation under the deck lid and around the speaker.

 

the title of your post is missleading, you said they wont fix it, when indeed they just want you to point out the rattle...they cant fix it if they cant hear it.....you need to be somewhat reasonable when dealing with stuff like this....can you fix something if you dont know whats broke??....they will fix it if they can hear it and they can figure out a way to fix it....trust me

 

Just came back from the dealer. They refused to fix the problem because they don't think any thing is wrong with rattle. They saids its only logical to have the rattle with subs in the rear deck. The tech turned on a song with less bass which obviously is going to create less rattle when comparing to a song with high bass. I was told that the tsb doesn't apply to 08 models. Now what. Whenever i put a high bass song, the rear rattles insanely. According to the tech, there is nothing they can do to fix the problem because to them its not considered a problem, its only natural to have the rattle with all sub in the back. Any suggestions?

 

The Acura dealer down the street from my house is crazy!!! I called to ask them how much would they charge for this TSB and they told me $415. Good thing I am handy with a screwdriver and I can do this myself. There is no way I am going to pay that to fix the rattle.

 

Listen, I've found that for most rattles you are better off doing it yourself because they will more then likely jerk you around, not fix it, or make it or other things worse!

DIY! That's what AZ is for!

 

^+1 I have an '08 type S and was told that the TSB that i printed off and showed the dealer only applied to 04-07 model years, and had been fixed for the '08. They used the "demo" cd and turned my bass all the way up, and could not reproduce the rattle, so they said they couldn't fix something that wasn't there. Love Lock Down makes mine rattle too, so I just bought some weatherstrip from Lowe's, looked at the TSB, and did it myself. I don't think my deck would rattle now if you had a party on it. Beat screwing around with the dealer!

 

dont blame the service techs, they arent the one you are talking to....

the service advisor is the one you have an issue with....he/she is the one you are dealing with one on one.....

the techs arent approving or dissaproving anything...they just work on the cars....

 

At least a few poeple still stick up for the techs...

Trust me, when I grab an RO (repair order), and all it says is "customer states rattle heard while listening to music", the first thing I do is check to see if the customer gave/left anymore info. And sadly, that never really happens.

Now you may sit there and say, but it's not my job to tell you how to fix it, but that's not the point. At least give us something. I.E. CD 6, tracks 1, 4, 7. Because otherwise I go get a CD out of my 07 TL-S that I know used to make my rear areas rattle and I start from there. You may think its easy, but it can actually take quite a while to chase down, identify, and attempt to fix the rattle.

Better yet, what sometimes ends up happening is I fix a rattle that I heard, but it's not the rattle you heard. Then we're back to square one.

I know some dealerships DO in fact suck at what they do, and I'm sorry about that. But not all of us are "Godam (these) incompetent service techs".

As others have suggested, you may want to try and fix it yourself. And for anyone else, if you have rattles that aren't always present, etc, PLEASE help the tech out by identifying a song or two that do it. Trust me, we appreciate it!

 

i actually pointed out which track the rear rattles to and the tech keeps on telling me the same thing "it is not fixable because there is no problem with it". I guess im stuck with the rattle.

 

Any tips on fixing it? I've tried cushioning the plastic piece that hits up against the window twice now and the speakers will sound great for 2 weeks before the sub sounds like crap again. When it warms up, I will take it apart again but sticking with that TSB to see if that cures it.

 

Listen, if i tighnted all my shit down, and put cloth against window and glass, and stuffed pretty much everything by my speakers. Thier are 2 problems, it's that crappy sub in the middle of both speakers, and the 3rd brake light rattles b/c it's shakes against the window, so put some superglue on that. You can't make the rattles go away if u have high bass song, it's just teh crappy sub. In most other cars, thier are 2 subs in the back, even crappy american cars have less rattles. But in our car we have only 1 sub producing all the bass, and it's small. I turned that sub off but put bass all the way, and thier is no bass in the car at all. So those 2 speakers by the back window are not subs. But when i turn the sub back on full, it starts rattling like crazy, and when u actaully sit int eh back u can hear it even more. Just take that sub out, and get 1 12in and put in your trunk.

 

To all -

The TSB helps, but it doesn't have all the answers. I myself have done multiple things to minimize the rattles in the rear (of both my car and customer's cars). Some things I have done are:

1) Remove the rear deck lid and install small foam padding/squares under the decklid where you can see it contacts the metal when installed.

2) Reline the speakers with a ring of foam. (Both under the speaker and above the speaker)

3) DOUBLE CHECK that the screws holding the speakers in are tight. Sounds dumb, but I've seen a few that have worked themselves loose.

4) With the deck lid reinstalled, cut 5 peices of foam roughly 3" x 1/4" or 1/2" and put them, evenly spaced (left to right) between the lid and rear window. Push them down far enough to prevent the lid from hitting the window. This will also hide them under the black at the bottom of the window so they aren't visible. Start with one peice in the middle (left to right), and install the other four (two on each side), evenly spaced out.

For those of you with 04s, I had a lot back in the day where the trunk springs contacted. Install a peice of foam, or even rubber, between where they rub. This will be easy to see, as the paint/coating on them will be missing. It's usually within 6" to the left or right of the center point (I forget which, it's been a while. I think left).

Of course there is always dynomat, etc. And I know there a bunch of other suggestions on here from others, in different threads. These are just some of my suggestions. The newer the TL, the more precautions they have already taken. It's actually pretty obvious through the years, once the decklid is removed.

And to the OP. I guess I didn't understand in your thread that you pointed out to them the problem and source (song). Sorry they are denying you a fix. I would suggest talking to the service manager and explaining that you don't think a car like this should have rattles, especially when you can duplicate for them.

 

I just got my rattling fixed under warranty.

 

Thank you acuratech239 -- I"m having this problem with my 08 TL-S and have to will first try to approach the dealer and then if unsuccessful I'll try your guide!

 

I read this thread like 3 days ago, called my dealer and asked them to get rid of the rattles...I showed him the factory recall...got my car back last night with no rattles and free of charge..warranty

i dont they even took a test drive to "duplicate the problem" they just did the job....i think...

 

I've taken my car in twice to have them fix the rattle. Still rattles the same. The second time I brought it in, they said they installed some foam around the speakers. Then the tech says they noticed that the bass was turned up all the way. Who cares, it still should rattle. I'm thinking of taking matters in to my own hands.

At least I got free car washes out of the deal.

 

I meant to say..."still SHOULDN"T rattle"

 

Excellent post! TY!

When I was putting my LEDs in yesterday I did a couple of things around the trunk lid area.

1. I took my license plate and the acura of columbus license holder thingie off. I then put felt circles (bottom of furniture type things) under the corner and middle of the license plate. I also put the smaller circles in between the plate and the holder. So no rattles from the license plate area.

2. While I have the trunk lid liner off for the license plate and reverse bulbs, I put felt on the metal where the harness runs through. There are several places there the wire bundles hits the metal.

^Between those two things the only thing I ever hear from the license plate / trunk lid is the nice "ding" in the springs when I close the trunk. It used to make all kinds of noises when closing the trunk.

If you do those two things as well as the tips you posted, you shouldn't have many rattles coming from the rear...

 

At first I thought it was my license plates that rattled but I told my little brother to crank that solja boy lol and it didn't rattle so I told him to open the trunk and I hopped in and told him to turn it up and it was the sub rattling