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Holy Crap - Dealer Actually Fixed the Rattle!!!

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Old 04-02-2009, 03:07 PM
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So the 550 just got back from the dealer and they fixed (after brining the car back 3 times) the annoying rattle that was coming from the interior cabin. The rattle was coming from the front passenger side, and what was really weird is that I could actually feel something loose under the floor panel when going over bumpy roads.

First time I brought it in, they said it was the door seals so they replaced those. No luck.
Second time they said it was a few bolts that went out of torque in the under carriage, so they re-torqued those. No luck.
So this third time, the shop foreman kept my car for 4 days and systematically removed parts from the exterior (right front side skirt, right front wheel well, right front jack pad) and parts from the interior front passenger side (glove box, seat, b pillar cover, floor panel and seat belt).

And guess what was causing the rattle? The seat belt assembly and anchor. Seems that the bottom anchor plate underneath the seat had a few loose bolts and was causing the floor panel to vibrate. So they ordered me a new seat belt assembly and anchor and put everything back together properly.. thank god. And the 550 is now just as quiet as the first time I drove her home.

I asked them how this could have happened and they said that it probably wasn't torqued correctly at the factory and that over time the assembly just became loose. I also asked them that if I had gotten into an accident if the seatbelt would have failed.... scary... they said that under certain conditions there would be a high probability that the seatbelt would fail. Good thing they caught this issue when they did.

So for those of you that have a similar issue, have them check the seatbelt assembly and anchors first.

Hope this helps. Have a nice afternoon!

Trev
Old 04-02-2009, 03:12 PM
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Who would have guessed that? Glad they figured it out for you.
Old 04-02-2009, 03:32 PM
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It MUST have been an accident!! Congrats, enjoy the silence!!
Old 04-02-2009, 03:37 PM
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Originally Posted by flyingpuck' post='834541' date='Apr 2 2009, 06:32 PM
It MUST have been an accident!! Congrats, enjoy the silence!!
Nope, never been in an accident with the 550. I just asked them what would happen if I did get into an accident without getting it fixed. Anyway, I can now drive home without the radio blasting to cover up the rattling noise.
Old 04-02-2009, 04:00 PM
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Originally Posted by TrevX' post='834547' date='Apr 2 2009, 04:37 PM
Nope, never been in an accident with the 550. I just asked them what would happen if I did get into an accident without getting it fixed. Anyway, I can now drive home without the radio blasting to cover up the rattling noise.
I actually meant it was an accident that the dealer fixed the rattle!! No big whoop! Glad they did finally do what they said they would do!
Old 04-02-2009, 04:52 PM
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Originally Posted by TrevX' post='834508' date='Apr 2 2009, 07:07 PM
And guess what was causing the rattle? The seat belt assembly and anchor. Seems that the bottom anchor plate underneath the seat had a few loose bolts and was causing the floor panel to vibrate. So they ordered me a new seat belt assembly and anchor and put everything back together properly.. thank god. And the 550 is now just as quiet as the first time I drove her home.
Why would they order a whole new assembly when it was just some loose bolts?
Old 04-02-2009, 04:57 PM
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hmm, wow, didn't know they warrantied rattles......I've got one in the driver side door panel, maybe I'll try and have them check it out next time I take it in.
Old 04-02-2009, 05:22 PM
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Thats good you have your rattle fixed, i have taken my car to the dealership a few times for the front rattle. All the rattle has been fixed. The only rattling noise that is left is, the rattle that is in the front, the noise sounds like its from the front door panel or from the front left dash. I still can not figure out where its coming from and the dealer can not find out too, anybody with a guess?
Old 04-02-2009, 07:20 PM
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Originally Posted by TrevX' post='834508' date='Apr 2 2009, 07:07 PM
So the 550 just got back from the dealer and they fixed (after brining the car back 3 times) the annoying rattle that was coming from the interior cabin. The rattle was coming from the front passenger side, and what was really weird is that I could actually feel something loose under the floor panel when going over bumpy roads.

First time I brought it in, they said it was the door seals so they replaced those. No luck.
Second time they said it was a few bolts that went out of torque in the under carriage, so they re-torqued those. No luck.
So this third time, the shop foreman kept my car for 4 days and systematically removed parts from the exterior (right front side skirt, right front wheel well, right front jack pad) and parts from the interior front passenger side (glove box, seat, b pillar cover, floor panel and seat belt).

And guess what was causing the rattle? The seat belt assembly and anchor. Seems that the bottom anchor plate underneath the seat had a few loose bolts and was causing the floor panel to vibrate. So they ordered me a new seat belt assembly and anchor and put everything back together properly.. thank god. And the 550 is now just as quiet as the first time I drove her home.

I asked them how this could have happened and they said that it probably wasn't torqued correctly at the factory and that over time the assembly just became loose. I also asked them that if I had gotten into an accident if the seatbelt would have failed.... scary... they said that under certain conditions there would be a high probability that the seatbelt would fail. Good thing they caught this issue when they did.

So for those of you that have a similar issue, have them check the seatbelt assembly and anchors first.

Hope this helps. Have a nice afternoon!

Trev
I had a rattle once...but too young to remember it...I was a baby (LoL) No but on the serious side I did have an annoying rattle as well which sounded like metal banging together. It took me a few day s to figure out what it ended up being. It was my sunroof. One of the brackets of my sunroof needed to be replaced.
Old 04-02-2009, 08:21 PM
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thats awesome i hate noise in my cabin.


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