Touring subwoofer rattles.

andy_kiawah

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Can you verify that you have the problem even after the car sits in direct sunlight for an hour or two? Thats literally the only thing that I can think of. I will test again in the morning when the car interior is still cold. I'm thinking the factory foam under the deck and the plastic has had a chance to soften and expand a bit, and its working as intended. But maybe when it's cold and the foam/plastic is hard and shrunk a bit, there is more room for a rattle to develop.

I hope the rattle doesn't come back but I won't hold my breath.
I cannot confirm a correlation between the weather/temperature and how bad the rattle is as I've never noticed. I can say that I live in a fairly warm climate and the issue is there most of the time... it's just not as bad all the time. I am thinking it has more to do with some pieces that vibrate against each other and have read somewhere on here that the middle seatbelt latch (I'm assuming it's behind the seat) could be culprit that needs to also be padded. After reading my last sentence I guess we are thinking along similar lines... but no, it's regularly high 70's and sunny here this time of year so I don't think it's that. I wouldn't hold my breath either if I were you :) The weird thing is I asked the salesman if he heard that "rattle" when I was test driving it. I wrote it off as a once off oddity...
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andy_kiawah

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Update: I had my amp replaced over the weekend. This was to fix the random no audio issue, but seems to have completely resolved the rattle as well. It is definitely a different amp, yet I do not know in what ways. You can hear the difference. I had to increase my bass by 1 or 2 notches and increase my amp by 1 notch in audio settings to get back the same punch as the original amp, but it is a much more quality sound in my opinion and I cannot hear one single bit of rattle. So, while honda may not realize this also fixes the rattle, it did for me. I think they may have gone with a higher quality amp.
 

2hot2handle

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Unless the amp was located near the source of the rattle, I don't think its permanently fixed (but hoping for ya). And like most amps, aftermarket or not, they'll get a little louder after a few hours of break-in/usage.
 

touring420

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Well finally had enough of the rattle, so here's what I did. Went and found some foam 1 1/4 x 1 1/4 by 4ft, used as an air-conditioning seal. Then proceeded to stuff it carefully between the rear window and deck. The 4 ft length fit perfectly! Then cut the other length into 4in pieces and stuffed them into the 3rd brake light housing. Did some sound checks and voila! No more rattles..
 


andy_kiawah

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Unless the amp was located near the source of the rattle, I don't think its permanently fixed (but hoping for ya). And like most amps, aftermarket or not, they'll get a little louder after a few hours of break-in/usage.
What does the amp look like? Also, I asked my service rep about the replacement amp they put in and told him my theory of the different specs since the rattle has been completely eliminated and because I had to increase my audio settings slightly. He said it's the same amp, so specs are the same. While I'm very happy it sounds perfect now, I would really like to know what explains the differences.
 

nhlducks35

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I lowered the subwoofer in the settings 4 notches from the middle and now the rattle is gone and the subwoofer sounds better than when it didn't rattle
 

axios77

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Only 250 miles and heard the dreaded sub woofer rattle on my way to work this morning. Will be buying the foam and fixing it myself.
 


inv4zn

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I am being a little smug, and agreeably a bit of an ass, but 4000 new threads asking for regurgitation of already existing information -- and you didn't bother looking into any of the issues??

So you heavily "researched" by asking numerous, repeated questions, then ignored everything, and still dropped 30K on a car that's known to have a rattling subwoofer, and then are complaining about the rattling subwoofer...? Great plan of attack and execution.

/being an ass.

To be a little more helpful, you can also stuff thin black foam between the rear deck and rear windshield, from the rear seat side of the car. It'll also help.

And yes, I agree that this is poor design.
 

t3hub3rk1tten

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I am being a little smug, and agreeably a bit of an ass, but 4000 new threads asking for regurgitation of already existing information -- and you didn't bother looking into any of the issues??

So you heavily "researched" by asking numerous, repeated questions, then ignored everything, and still dropped 30K on a car that's known to have a rattling subwoofer, and then are complaining about the rattling subwoofer...? Great plan of attack and execution.

/being an ass.

To be a little more helpful, you can also stuff thin black foam between the rear deck and rear windshield, from the rear seat side of the car. It'll also help.

And yes, I agree that this is poor design.
Plus it was such an easy fix. Buy the right foam off Amazon from this very thread, less than 15 minutes to cut up a few pieces and stuff them around the brake light. No rattle. The people opening up the deck lid and putting dynamat are just going the extra mile.
 

DX2000

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I am being a little smug, and agreeably a bit of an ass, but 4000 new threads asking for regurgitation of already existing information -- and you didn't bother looking into any of the issues??

So you heavily "researched" by asking numerous, repeated questions, then ignored everything, and still dropped 30K on a car that's known to have a rattling subwoofer, and then are complaining about the rattling subwoofer...? Great plan of attack and execution.

/being an ass.

To be a little more helpful, you can also stuff thin black foam between the rear deck and rear windshield, from the rear seat side of the car. It'll also help.

And yes, I agree that this is poor design.
Oh no, I've done tons of research.

Why wouldn't I complain about a rattling subwoofer? Does anyone buy a car and say "oh it's fine I knew it would have this issue?"
 

t3hub3rk1tten

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Oh no, I've done tons of research.

Why wouldn't I complain about a rattling subwoofer? Does anyone buy a car and say "oh it's fine I knew it would have this issue?"
There are multiple pictures in this thread of where to stuff some foam, as well as DIY threads about how to fix it to a very good level. 15 minutes and a few bucks, it's really just not worth it to complain. Here's the foam I used, I highly recommend a thick neoprene over the squishy insulation some use: http://www.amazon.com/Sponge-Neoprene-Thick-54-Wide/dp/B003IDDV70 I used less than a square foot of it, so try and find a smaller roll.

Car buying is always a tradeoff. I bought mine in December knowing full well the infotainment wasn't perfect and that there would be rattle. I fixed both, and am very happy.
 

DX2000

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There are multiple pictures in this thread of where to stuff some foam, as well as DIY threads about how to fix it to a very good level. 15 minutes and a few bucks, it's really just not worth it to complain. Here's the foam I used, I highly recommend a thick neoprene over the squishy insulation some use: http://www.amazon.com/Sponge-Neoprene-Thick-54-Wide/dp/B003IDDV70

Car buying is always a tradeoff. I bought mine in December knowing full well the infotainment wasn't perfect and that there would be rattle. I fixed both, and am very happy.
Yes I agree but venting mitigates some of the grief. I figure I'll let the dealer work on it, hopefully they don't damage anything, then if not I'll try and fix it. I'm not sure how dynamat will help though, the rattle only seems to go away when I stick my hand or something above the brake light housing inside the rear passenger area.
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