Rear Deck Rattle

[pbw]

It sounds like a plastic on plastic rattle. More prominent on uneven surfaces.

[ManiacGT]

Minor update. Temps have dropped here in the UK from around 10c to 3c. The noise from the rear deck has gone until the car warms up. Its too dark to do any major checking at the moment but I did take time last night to put some felt into the roof catches as shown here:

http://www.bmwpassion.com/forum/show...hard-top/page5

While this hasn't resolved the ticking noise I'm getting when the car twists or hits rough tarmac, it has resolve a lot of the shuffling noise that I got when going over rough roads.

I did note that the marks on the rubber supports shown in the above thread had marks on them that indicated the roof was only partially touching the rubber supports. This makes me think that the roof is not sitting properly on these supports so part of my task this weekend, to avoid going back to the dealer again and again, will be to adjust these rubber supports to better support the rear roof shell. Hopefully this will further reduce any vibration and hence noise.

I believe that the rattles I had when this car was new were resolved badly by the dealer hence why I get other issues now.

I also intend to remove the rear roof shell interior as I noted a few clips in it last night when applying the felt that made a similar sound when pulled and pushed. Hopefully by the time I've spent a few hours felting everything I'll have a much quieter car and enjoy ownership a little more!

Seems I'm not alone: http://e89.zpost.com/forums/showthre...=290856&page=1

[Gunzaro]

If you do discover anything that stops a rattle do post it here with a photo of what you did pls!

[ManiacGT]

So quick update.. I've now tried everything ever listed in any forum I could find and it has not resolved the issue. Tonight I took off a part of rear trim that surrounds the roof mechanism on the rear deck as someone mentioned this previously, it was not that. I also masked the pin on the rear roof clamshell (that inserts into the slot on the rear deck) and this made no difference either. The more I drive and listen the more I think that its the mechanism itself on that side that clicks when the chassis twists and rattles when going over manholes etc. If this is the case it will likely be the dealer that has to sort it, but I've not quite given up yet...

[ManiacGT]

A further update... I believe I have possibly found the cause. While driving today I reached over to the passenger side where the noise is coming from. Our of curiosity I pressed the roof lining for the rear shell which halved the amount of noise. I then put pressure on the braided cable that is attached to the roof mechanism (the part you can see from the cabin, where the square of roof lining is missing) and this did the same. I then pushed heavily on the roof mechanism in this exposed section of roof mechanism and the sound stopped.

Now I've had the sound stop before so I'm not 100% on this but it appears that it may indeed be roof mechanism related. So, next I will contact BMW to locate what lubrication type is required, get some and apply it to every moving contact surface to see if this helps. If this does not, I'll explore the rubber roof supports and make minor alterations to see if this also helps.

I'll keep this thread updated with findings as I go...

[redhot]

The infamous "thud" while going over rough surfaces has returned :mad:. This will be the third or fourth time I will have to take the car in for the same repair w.r.t roof noise. What's peculiar is that it always seems to come from the left side of the car behind the drivers ear.

I have tried to locate the noise but can't seem to pinpoint where it is coming from.

[DrewKo]

I took my Z4 to complain about the rattle sound of plastic on plastic. Sometimes it sounded like it was coming from the passenger seat area, and at other times sounded like it was coming from somewhere in the area where the rear window rests, or from the speaker area behind the driver's seat. No matter where it originated, it ended up sounding right in my ear. It was a high tone "click, click, click" more pronounced on rough roads.

After two attempts, the dealership found the problem in "clips" and replaced them. They gave me the ones causing the problem, and they were broken in half (I think I threw them away, however). Replacing the "clips" fixed the click-rattle, which had been driving me crazy. P.S., the clips were small, not even filling the palm of your hand, and were solid black. The tech who discovered the problem said he had "heard" about these clips failing (perhaps due to the roof movement up and down).

[ManiacGT]

I'd love to know where they were from in the car so I can check mine...

[jannisa]

Do the rattles persist when you drive with the top up but with all 4 windows a little down (2-3cm)? If that's the case just clean the upper ''rail'' where the windows shut with a m-f towel wrapping a credit card or similar and then lube it with WD40.

I too had roof rattles, left it over at the dealership 4-5 times but with no permanent fix.
I now consider it a part to maintain, whenever various rattles pop up -once every 2-3 months - I gradually open the roof and practically lube everything with a sponge wet in WD40, every joint, plastic and elastic bit and seal that I see in front of me and additionally the seals on the doors, trunk and hood.

Hope this works for you too, guys.

[ManiacGT]

Originally Posted by jannisa

Do the rattles persist when you drive with the top up but with all 4 windows a little down (2-3cm)? If that's the case just clean the upper ''rail'' where the windows shut with a m-f towel wrapping a credit card or similar and then lube it with WD40.

I too had roof rattles, left it over at the dealership 4-5 times but with no permanent fix.
I now consider it a part to maintain, whenever various rattles pop up -once every 2-3 months - I gradually open the roof and practically lube everything with a sponge wet in WD40, every joint, plastic and elastic bit and seal that I see in front of me and additionally the seals on the doors, trunk and hood.

Hope this works for you too, guys.

Yes already done all this with success on some noise but not the creak from the rear deck... the car is pretty quiet.. which makes it worse as I'm waiting in the quiet for the creak to start I'm hoping its temp related and once things warm up it will go away...

[ManiacGT]

So I managed to find a road that made the noise repeatedly today and someone else drove while I tried to find where it was coming from.

Bad news is it looks like the roof mech. I really don't want to take it to a dealer and come away with many more rattles so I'm going to try and persist with lubricating the parts etc and hope I find the right joint that may be making the noise..

[tranquility]

Well, the rattles (very few and rare for me) only come during the cold months. I've come to terms that I have a convertible w/ moving parts, there is bound to be some very small noises when parts shrink and harden as the temperature drops.

[ManiacGT]

Originally Posted by tranquility

Well, the rattles (very few and rare for me) only come during the cold months. I've come to terms that I have a convertible w/ moving parts, there is bound to be some very small noises when parts shrink and harden as the temperature drops.

Yeah I'm quite happy to acknowledge small noises, but this is a loud click I'm trying to track down, its very annoying. Once I've sorted it I'll be happy...

[Asbjorn]

Originally Posted by jannisa

I now consider it a part to maintain, whenever various rattles pop up -once every 2-3 months - I gradually open the roof and practically lube everything with a sponge wet in WD40, every joint, plastic and elastic bit and seal that I see in front of me and additionally the seals on the doors, trunk and hood.

Hope this works for you too, guys.

Same here. Except I use plain silicone oil instead of wd40 oil.

Highly recommended!

[Asbjorn]

http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XNTA4ODc1Nzg4.html

I just found that one of my rear-deck noises can be heard if I press lightly on the lower part of the rear window. See attached video.

This explains why it helps to add oil to the rubber seals.

[ManiacGT]

That's an interesting noise but unfortunately not the one I have. I keep my seals gummi pfledged. I think mine is in the roof mechanism on that side. Rattles like hell now the temperatures are going back up. Out of warranty so time to play with adjustments and see what impact that has. At least if I have a go I can tell everyone what to try if I fix it... I could do with one of those car shaking machines you see on TV to help find rattles/squeaks...

[rezok]

Ive also got the rear deck rattle from the rear left side.

The dealer did something when it was under warranty (oil?) and it worked for a week...

More pronounced roof up, but it is what it is...by product of a convertible me thinks.

[ManiacGT]

So... I don't want to get too excited.. in case I'm wrong. But I think I found the noise!

After some remedial work, I still get it, very slightly, on very rough bumps, but there's definitely an improvement... I just don't want to get too excited about it in case I'm wrong and something else has caused it to go quiet, like temperature changes.

In any event, it appears that part no. 3 below may be the cause. After tightening all of the bolts on this part (there are many of them on the underside), the sound appears to have diminished a lot. I intend to take this part off at the weekend when the weather improves and both clean and lubricate any contact surfaces in the hope that I'm right and further work to it will remove any sound at all. Here's hoping. I believe the reason this part may be making noise is that it appears to be subject to outside water/dirt ingress. With the weight of the roof upon it, this is causing the loud cracking noises. Its my hope that cleaning and lubrication will not only silence it now but for a good while to come.

edit: I thought I'd look at this after reading that others had the entire buffer section (all parts below) replaced and this resolved their issues. So as a process of elimination, the first and easiest thing to try was to simply tighten any fixings.

[SchweiZ4]

I am following this thread with a lot of interest, thanks for it!
I have also the same noise: only noticeable with the roof closed and on very bumpy roads.

I didn't have time to take a look at it because I only hear it when I don't have music on on the bumpy section of my way to work, so not so often.

But I am very interested if you find anything for it, ManiacGT
(You would save me time and head banging!)

[ManiacGT]

Well I do like to share lol. Ill keep this thread updated with all possible noises in the hope its useful to others.

I've been to the office and back today, a rough road, not a single noise.. So I'm really hoping that I have indeed found the cause.. Don't be surprised if I'm back here saying otherwise in a few days though lol she's tricked me like this before!

[ManiacGT]

Day 3 of the rough road squeak trials... not a peep of noise since tightening up those nuts on the rear deck.

Still hesitant to hail 'Victory' just yet, but its looking good!

[Desmo85]

Originally Posted by ManiacGT

So... I don't want to get too excited.. in case I'm wrong. But I think I found the noise!

After some remedial work, I still get it, very slightly, on very rough bumps, but there's definitely an improvement... I just don't want to get too excited about it in case I'm wrong and something else has caused it to go quiet, like temperature changes.

In any event, it appears that part no. 3 below may be the cause. After tightening all of the bolts on this part (there are many of them on the underside), the sound appears to have diminished a lot. I intend to take this part off at the weekend when the weather improves and both clean and lubricate any contact surfaces in the hope that I'm right and further work to it will remove any sound at all. Here's hoping. I believe the reason this part may be making noise is that it appears to be subject to outside water/dirt ingress. With the weight of the roof upon it, this is causing the loud cracking noises. Its my hope that cleaning and lubrication will not only silence it now but for a good while to come.

edit: I thought I'd look at this after reading that others had the entire buffer section (all parts below) replaced and this resolved their issues. So as a process of elimination, the first and easiest thing to try was to simply tighten any fixings.

I had the complete Part-Group replaced, not a single noise since then! (almost 1 year)