Rattle in rear (Model 3)

[xav-]

Did anybody else experience this? There is a rattle in my car that seems to come from the backseat area. The rattle is triggered usually when going over bumps. This rattle appeared over time.

I took the car in last Monday and they didn’t fix it. I was actually not very impressed with what the service center did. First they told me that they resolved the issue by “adding soundproofing” (I was like wtf?), then they added some piece of foam somewhere... which didn’t resolve anything

I had a similar issue on my Scion FR-S and Toyota spent days investigating, using microphones to pinpoint to exact root cause and successfully fixed it.

I am going to bring it back on Monday and try to escalate this.. but any help that would help me pinpoint to what it actually is would be very appreciated.

My vin is 109XX. March build.

Thanks

 

[kbecks13]

I have this same thing and am fairly certain it comes from the metal mesh on the rear deck behind the back seats. I've been thinking about putting some silicone or something on the bottom of that (from inside the trunk) to perhaps hold it in place better.

Definitely very annoying. My vin is in the 2000's and i have about 5K miles on the car.

 

[EV-lutioin]

Yes indeed, it comes from play between the rear seat latch and bracket (in my 3 it's the double rear seat, not the single) I added some felt pads to prevent it from occurring. The felt pads push against the seat and eliminates the play between the seat and the bracket. I used two pads on top of each other, they are the same pads you put on chairs to prevent scratching wood floors. And I agree, it's a very annoying rattle!

 

[suwaneedad]

I've had this same problem. My first visit and the head of service said there's a svc bulletin for it. Has to do with two pieces of metal rubbing in some of the early builds...in other words it's not related to any interior trim pieces if you're having the same issue I had. Mine occurred in the right rear. It's accessed from the wheel area. Anyway, the first attempt did not resolve...it reduced it to a clicking sound (rather than a creaking sound) but within a week or so the original creaking was back in all its glory.

Return visit to the SC, and a different fix this time apparently involving a shim of some sort. That is three weeks ago and so far so good.

In short, keep pushing. It is fixable. And at least in my state, if Tesla fails to fix it after three attempts, there's a Lemon Law process that results in them taking back the car or replacing it, at their option.

 

[xav-]

I was so annoyed by this.. right after posting I went to my car and tried reproducing the issue.. not realizing you guys would fix my problem in a few minutes...

Here’s what I ended up doing (after driving back and forth in my drive way with back seat down then left back seat down and right back seat down and so forth, with ac off and Windows up (I am in sweat)

You guys were very spot on.

Obviously I will have to use something a little nicer than this later but that seems to do the trick.

Damn I love my car but some of this stuff look very, very cheap... and I am less than impressed by the service center.

 

[insaneoctane]

I was so annoyed by this.. right after posting I went to my car and tried reproducing the issue.. not realizing you guys would fix my problem in a few minutes...

Here’s what I ended up doing (after driving back and forth in my drive way with back seat down then left back seat down and right back seat down and so forth, with ac off and Windows up (I am in sweat)

You guys were very spot on.

View attachment 335263

Obviously I will have to use something a little nicer than this later but that seems to do the trick.

Damn I love my car but some of this stuff look very, very cheap... and I am less than impressed by the service center.

THE POWER OF THE FORUM!!

 

[Lancew]

I have a clicking and a creaking sound. Probably both the seat and the left rear wheel well. Vin 12,9XX. Taking it in in 2 weeks. Thanks.

 

[suwaneedad]

I have a clicking and a creaking sound. Probably both the seat and the left rear wheel well. Vin 12,9XX. Taking it in in 2 weeks. Thanks.

Good luck!

 

[xav-]

Yes indeed, it comes from play between the rear seat latch and bracket (in my 3 it's the double rear seat, not the single) I added some felt pads to prevent it from occurring. The felt pads push against the seat and eliminates the play between the seat and the bracket. I used two pads on top of each other, they are the same pads you put on chairs to prevent scratching wood floors. And I agree, it's a very annoying rattle!

View attachment 335254

Nothing more annoying than rattles. They can be intermittent and it’s very easy for technicians to downplay them, pretend that they fixed them (later to find out that they didn’t), and there are so many parts in a car that finding the root cause can be very difficult.

I remember on my Scion FR-S it was fairly complex and required actual Body Shop.

I should have done more troubleshooting like you did before wasting my time last week at the service center.

 

[yossi]

I have a clicking and a creaking sound. Probably both the seat and the left rear wheel well. Vin 12,9XX. Taking it in in 2 weeks. Thanks.

Please keep us posted has the same left rear noise just lazy to do something about it

 

[suwaneedad]

Please keep us posted has the same left rear noise just lazy to do something about it

Always easier to turn up the volume on the stereo!

 

[Eclipse3EB]

Yes indeed, it comes from play between the rear seat latch and bracket (in my 3 it's the double rear seat, not the single) I added some felt pads to prevent it from occurring. The felt pads push against the seat and eliminates the play between the seat and the bracket. I used two pads on top of each other, they are the same pads you put on chairs to prevent scratching wood floors. And I agree, it's a very annoying rattle!

I'm trying to debug if my rattle (from passenger side rear seat, almost sounds like it's coming from the seat belt tensioner) is due to this. Do you know if, prior to your fix, the seat would rattle even if someone was sitting in it and leaning against the back?

 

[thewishmaster]

I think I have this back seat rattle as well. Goes away with a backseat passenger. Will try fixing with some felt pads whenever I get around to it. Otherwise it's far less of a rattlecan than my last car...

 

[suwaneedad]

Otherwise it's far less of a rattlecan than my last car...

Did you have a 1989 Pontiac Grand Am too? ;-) I used to say that GM saved money by not using any screws on that vehicle; purely a snap-together like the simple plastic model airplanes built as a little kid. "Insert Tab A into Slot A."

 

[thewishmaster]

Did you have a 1989 Pontiac Grand Am too? ;-) I used to say that GM saved money by not using any screws on that vehicle; purely a snap-together like the simple plastic model airplanes built as a little kid. "Insert Tab A into Slot A."

Haha, wow. My last car was an M3 of the BMW variety, not that old either (last gen), but it definitely rattled/squeaked a fair amount after some years... hoping the model 3 holds up. I'm sure mine wasn't as bad as a snap-together Grand Am though

 

[WileyTheMan]

Good to see others have been hearing this rattle too. I'll have to try this patch. I'm too lazy to go in the SC for a small thing like this.

 

[Chanceofthat]

Mine did this and I took it in for service. They said they added more insulation, and I haven’t heard the sound since.

 

[xav-]

I think I have this back seat rattle as well. Goes away with a backseat passenger. Will try fixing with some felt pads whenever I get around to it. Otherwise it's far less of a rattlecan than my last car...

I was lazy I squeezed paper napkins in there.. does the trick and only visible when the seats are down anyway...

 

[T.Antony]

I found a way to isolate the location of all rattles in my Model 3. Use a tone generator to make them all light up like a Christmas tree. I’m gonna bring it with me to the service center to pinpoint them all to the service tech.

 

[brobinson]

I used this stuff all the time on my WRX when trying to eliminate rattles. Can probably apply in a few places on the Model 3:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B011CXIPO6/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&th=1

You can probably find it for around $3/roll at home depot or the like