Well at least it worked for me, cost me $2.50 from home depot. I just cut it to length of the rear window vent and with a butter knife, I wedged it between the rear window and rear deck. Now I don't get anymore subwoofer rattle.


I'll try to get another picture of how the weatherstrip looks in the car a bit later.

 

well done.

I think i ultimately removed the entire rear deck to isolate my sub rattle and stuffed some padding in there.. and it never worked.

THEN... while still under warranty, i blew my subwoofer, they replaced it and applied a few TSB rattle fixes to the sub prior to re-installing the rear deck and it works like a charm. no rattles.

 

Easiest thing to do is to remove the trunk light. Look up thru the hole and there is a plastic hook. This hook is attached to the underside of the rear deck and goes thru the metal frame of the car. When bass hits, this hook rattles. I stuffed a folded piece of cardboard from a box of soap in between that hook and the frame. Put the light cover back on. Zero rattle.

 

Wow, I bet that took some digging and experimenting to find. Great work

 

^^ That is a great find. Going to have to try that and see if it gets rid of my rattle before going through the rest of the "fixes". Only problem is that a lot of my sub rattle is actually happening with the stereo off/low, especially when it's cold out.

 

Its not that my reardeck rattles cuz i stuffed it with a sponge stuff like that between the rear window, but its the sub that rattle itself, just not good.

 

After 1 trip to the dealer where they said they "fixed" it and the rattle returned 2 days later, I went on a scavenger hunt. I think I got lucky.

Mine was the same. Volume low and cold temp = rattle. Try my fix and see what you get out of it.

 

I juust took out the sub :p

 

Great find about that hook under the light. I'm going to try it this weekend and see if it fixes my problem.

I second that on the rattles when its cold outside and the radio volume is low.

 

Good to know. Definitely going to give this a try.

 

All you guys need to do is use a flathead screwdriver on either side of the light. I had to pry mine out forcefully so don't be afraid if you have to put a little grunt into it.

Once you get the light assembly out (the lens, housing, and bulb are all 1 part) take a flashlight and point it up thru the hole. You'll definitely be able to easily see the clip. I would describe it as the letter J in shape because it comes down thru the frame and curls back up. You'll see what I mean.

Post back and let me know how it goes. If you guys are half as annoyed as me with the rattle you are ready to drive your car into the Grand Canyon.

 

thanks alot for that tip it fixed my rattle

 

How the hell do you get the trunk light off without breaking the thing. I tried to pry it off with a flathead, but I was scared I was going to crack the thing in half. Try not to laugh too hard, when it comes to fixing shit, I'm freaking hopeless...that's why I went to law school! ha

 

^ Pry from the passenger side. That's the side the clip is on. It's tight and you'll need some force to get it out but the clip is relatively sturdy for a plastic piece. I actually got mine off pretty easily when installing my led's. Hope it's as easy when I try this fix.

 

mine wasnt too tight i jus used a small flat head on the left or right side are the clips that hold it in place soo i pushed the flathead up a little and it came out real easy then i jus pushed a peice of cardboard inbetween the clip and the metal n put the light back on

 

Thanks man, it helped, came out real easy actually. I put a piece of cardboard up there and it seems to have helped.

 

Glad it worked out. Supposed to be nice here this weekend so thinking I'll give this fix a shot.

 

^ Good luck. From what I have read the rear deck can rattle in several places. So If this doesn't fix it at least you will have eliminated a potential problem spot.

 

This definitely works...at least for the most obnoxious rattle for me.
Once you pop off the trunk light, if you simply push against the white plastic "hook", you can already tell the rattle disappears. I stuffed a piece of cardboard as well and all good.

Thanks!

 

the cover to my sub rattles!!! can you just remove the cover?

 

I had that rattle too, I stuffed choped up sponges in the gaps and it worked well...then the cover of the sub started rattling!! GRRR

When the weather gets nice, I'll just take out the rear deck and rattle proof everything.

 

Thanks for your help. I opened mine up yesterday and saw the hook. I was thinking "That can't be the source of the rattling." I put my test song on and sure enough, that little plastic piece was making a lot of noise. I stuffed some duct tape in between it and the frame since it was all I had and now most of the rattle is gone. Now it sounds like something else is loose back there. When I get a free weekend, I am going to take everything apart, add some weather stripping and tighten everything down.

 

Nice! I don't know if you tried to move that piece or not, but mine had just enough slop to it that I could tell it was the source of my rear deck rattle. How thick of a piece of duct tape did you use? I would imagine a couple pieces folded a couple times would do the trick.

You might want to check the sticky on the main 3g TL forum about Acura Service Bulletins. One of them talks about other sources for the rear deck rattle like the seat belt mechanisms and a couple other things. Good luck.

 

how do u go about taking out the sub?

 

Just popped the trunk light cover off and found the "hook". Definitely didn't look like what I was expecting. I could see how it could rattle though, there seems to be just a little bit of vertical play, otherwise that clip is pretty stout. I cut out a section of a cigarette box, folded it in half and wedged it between the plastic and the metal trunk panel. Covered it with a piece of duct tape to make sure it doesn't go anywhere.

Now just have to see what kind of effect it has on the rattles. I doubt it gets rid of all of them since it sounds like there are a few but eliminating one would be a step in the right direction. I'll post back the results once I've had a chance to test it out for a few days. Thanks again Orange.

 

^ Glad you saw what I did. That hook has just enough slop to it that it rattles when the bass hits. It's kind of odd how the rear deck can potentially have several rattle areas or none at all. Mine only rattled from that hook. Others have had rattles from other various parts in the rear deck. You would think since it is a mass-produced, assembly line made product each one would exhibit the same symptoms but not so.

Good luck and I hope it works out for you jweb.

 

Sidenote: I couldn't find anything similar to this in the 3G Garage. Is there any way we can get this added in??

 

Dude ur coming over and fixing this for me because out of all the things ive done to the car, im dreading trying to fix this rattle the most. lol

 

Been driving with this "fix" for a few days now and so far I very happy. I am a little cautious to get too excited yet since it's been a little warmer here this past week and most of my rattling occurs when it’s cold out. I will say that this fix has at least gotten rid of a lot of my rattle and distortion when playing music at higher volume. Just hoping that this holds true for the cold weather rattle too.

Anyway, for how simple this fix is, I would recommend everybody do this. Thanks again Orange….

 

^ funny how you say that. Mine also occur mostly in the cold. This recent 60 degree weather has helped (temporarily). lol.

 

Edit - By "fix" I'm talking about the one 95orangecrush suggested.

I think this "fix" works, for me at least. I have tried listening to some cd's at high volume that used to give me some distortion/rattle and so far nothing. I haven't noticed any real rattle since doing this fix. Of couse, it hasn't been really cold and probably won't be anymore this year so I can't say for sure my low temperature rattle is gone but the results so far can't be beat for how simple this fix is. For anybody trying to isolate a rear deck or sub rattle, your best bet is to start with this and go from there. Sure as hell beats taking the rear deck apart.

Only problem is, now that the rear rattle is gone, I am more focused on my steering wheel and center speaker rattles......

 

I was wondering what fixes were listed in the Sevice Bullitens (see sticky thread in this section) and found that Orange's fix is in fact included. See Repair Pocedure 3 in the link below.

http://www.in.honda.com/Rjanisis/pubs/SB/b04-043.PDF

 

Ok this is exactly what mine is doing. I'm going to the dealership tomorrow to see what they can do but i may can still fix it on my own. ANy ideas? I tried putting a silicon adhesive around the cover but didn't help any. PLEASE ADVISE

 

is there any way to get rid of the rattle without removing the light?
it seems to only come from the subwoofer grille?

 

I wedged a piece of cardboard between the white clip and the metal and it worked quite well, eliminating much of the rattle. I still have some rattle and would like to insulate the reardeck. Can anyone explain to me how to remove the back seats so I can access this area?

 

So I was able to remove the seat bottom and I was also able to remove all the bolts to the seat back. I am having some trouble lifting out the seat back though. It won't seem to unhook at the top of the seat back. Anyone have some advice?

 

Acuras biggest mistake was to put a sub in the rear deck. Dumbest idea ever. Ironically its the only problem ive had with the car to date....knock on wood

 

read the shocks/springs DIY's in the Garage. they tell you how to take the seat out.

having taken it out a couple times, here's my tips: you don't have to remove seat cushions, only 4 bolts held my seat back in - 1 deep in each headrest (through the little hole behind the headrest) and one at the base on either side between the lower cushion and the inner trim. If you grab seat cushion where it meets the inner plastic and pull inward you'll see an L-shaped metal brace coming out of the back rest with a bolt through it.

After all bolts are out you have to fold the backrest inward like closing a book to squeeze it by the C-pillars. It truly is a pain in the ass.

FOLDING REAR SEATS, ACURA!

 

Just wanted to bump this post and give thanks to 95orangecrush because my rattle DISAPPEARED after sticking a little piece of cardboard under that hook.

Now I can turn the sub back up and enjoy music, LOUD.

 

I would like to thank orangecrush as well!!! It fixed a good portion of the rattle and it does take a lil umph to get that trunk light out!! O well it'll be easier next time when I want to install my led light