Cheap, Permanent Touring Rattle Fix - Insulation Foam

[inv4zn]

^Glad it worked! Mine's been in since I made the post and has been rattle free. If ever it does come back slightly, just push it in further.

Also, we Canadians don't like Drake as much as you think we do...

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[bhead9318]

^Glad it worked! Mine's been in since I made the post and has been rattle free. If ever it does come back slightly, just push it in further.

Also, we Canadians don't like Drake as much as you think we do...

Okay so then I can admit it was just a coincidence that song played and then I realized you were from Canada hahah. Would Celine have been a better choice? Maybe Carly Rae?

 

[RedTouringMA]

A few weeks back while I was getting the infotainment replaced, the dealer tore apart the rear decking and put all kinds of sound dampening, as well as the 2 front doors. Apparently Honda USA does finally admit there is a problem and will allow dealerships to put in sound dampening to get rid of the rattles from the stereo under warranty. No clue about Canada tho. Knock on wood, I can finally listen to Hotel California at volume 22 without sounding like the rear deck or front doors are going to fall apart!

 

[elykoj]

I am trying this route, I bought the foam at home depot but you state the thickness should be 30mm? this foam is only about 25mm, so did you have to glue 2 pieces together and then shave down a bit? and what did you use exactly to shave the wedge into this shape before you taped it up?? looking for some help tonight. thanks

 

[elykoj]

OK , I just glued together the pieces and measured out and taped together. it looks professional..lol

 

[Captain]

I wanted to post a photo but have no idea how to do that as far as using a URL? I have it on my computer as a jpeg file

thats very simple just click the upload a file choose the picture thats all.

 

[bhead9318]

I am trying this route, I bought the foam at home depot but you state the thickness should be 30mm? this foam is only about 25mm, so did you have to glue 2 pieces together and then shave down a bit? and what did you use exactly to shave the wedge into this shape before you taped it up?? looking for some help tonight. thanks

Shoot I wish I would have seen this earlier, I didn't glue mine together and mine goes from about 25mm to 10mm in thickness. The piece of foam from home depot is indeed only about 25mm thick, but that's just thick enough that we can still shove the wedge in 80% or so and still have a little sticking out. Sorry you went to all that trouble, but I hope your rattle is fixed!

 

[Rowen]

I know there are a few of these around, but I think this is the best method in terms of materials and longevity.

Total cost of materials used is probably about $0.50 lol.

Essentially, this (or something similar) is what you want to buy: http://www.homedepot.com/p/Project-...x-2-ft-R-5-Insulation-Sheathing-PP1/203553730

I tried this with a few different materials, but a lot of foams will compress over time and the rattle will just come back. If the material is too rigid it'll either transmit the vibrations to the entire deck, or just fall out. This stuff is dense enough to not deform, but still foam-y enough to absorb vibrations and stay put once in.

Materials needed:
- Knife
- Electrical Tape
- Foam Insulation Board

Cut out a wedge from the foam; dimensions are shown in picture. I trust the American friends can use Google to convert:

Wrap the whole thing in electrical tape. This is so you don't get purple shit all over your trunk when you wedge it in, and also it looks far better in black than purple lol. It's important to have the tape in the orientation shown below so it doesn't pull/rip when you wedge it in:

Wedge the wedge in the space between trunk chassis and 3rd brake light:

Here it is, not yet fully in. Play some loud obnoxious music at volumes you wouldn't normally listen to. Keep pushing the wedge in until there's no more. At final position mine is about 75% inside:

Done!

Just did mine! way better!!! Rattle was annoying.

 

[chuck12]

Just did mine. Amazing. Thanks inv4zn! Cranked up a tone generator I have on my phone and pushed it in till vibration gone. It was a tight fit, maybe only needed 15%. I'll report back after a few weeks in the summer 90F (30C) heat here.

 

[elykoj]

wow that vibration is bad... I originally the wedge only fit in about an inch, it was good for 2 days but started rattling again. had to squeeze the wedge together to push it in further, gone again for now.. how does this get through Honda quality control with this vibration?? its really bad

 

[Brandons2697]

Does this get rid of the rear deck rattle? I'm looking to get rid of rear deck and trunk rattle. Sub drives those two nuts

 

[elykoj]

The wedge worked to a point, I had the car in the dealer and mentioned this vibration to them. When I picked up they said they took the rear deck out and insulated everything back there. I got in the car and turned on a bass heavy song only have way and it sounded worse. Brought service manager out and had him sit in it. I said thanks for wasting your time doing all that. He asked how loud I listen to music? I said really man? Part of reason I bought this car was for sound system and a $27,000 car should not sound like that. And volume was only half way. He brought a top tech out to show him and they all acknowledged its an issue. Want me to drop it off again on Tuesday. Bad thing is they put so much insulation around the third brake light I can't even get my wedge back in there and it sounds horrible. Telling him to remove everything they put in and if they can't fix it I can at least get my wedge back in there. It sounds 85% better with the wedge.

 

[bobbyboogie]

I fixed my sub rattle permanently. I used sorbothane vibration isolator domes as mentioned in this thread:
http://www.civicx.com/threads/diy-using-sorbothane-to-fix-touring-subwoofer-rattle.3590/
And used a pair of socks to insulate the vibration around the brake light from under the trunk lid.
First you need to stick a few of the sorbothane domes between the brake light surround and the back window. The further down towards the trunk you can get those things, the better as the domes need to be under a bit of pressure to work effectively.
Next, I took a pair of socks and stuffed them all around the brake light from under the trunk lid. The socks have to be stuffed in there tightly.
That is the fix that I used and it has been working for 2 weeks so far. I can now listen my bass infested music with the sub volume maxed and the music volume at 20. No vibrations at all.
The key is to insulate both from the bottom and top of the brake light.

 

[fancy19]

Has anyone seen if the dealer would fix this common issue under warranty? My buddy who has an Acura who had same problem took it to Acura and they fixed it for him under warranty.

 

[bobbyboogie]

Has anyone seen if the dealer would fix this common issue under warranty? My buddy who has an Acura who had same problem took it to Acura and they fixed it for him under warranty.

Your dealer should be fixing this under warranty, but the problem is the dealers don't know how to fix it PROPERLY.
I too brought my civic for warranty work on the subwoofer rattle. They just tucked some adhesive backed foam under the 3rd brake light. Worked good for a couple days, then it came back. I decided to fix it myself properly and not waste my time running to the dealership. Still holding strong.

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