My '03 MCS has developed a rattle that seem to be coming from the B-pillar or somewhere just back of that. I noticed on some previous posts that the culprit may be the seat belt height adjustment or the tensioner. It is only on the passenger side and on light bumpy roads. Has anyone found a cure? Everything else feels tight and smooth. Still amazed at how quick this car is?

 

As soon as I started reading your post (i.e., before I finished) I thought of the seat belt because I've had that issue as well. If you haven't already, I would definitely start with that. If that doesn't fix it, let us know - we'll put our collective heads together! :smile:

 

MINI2Go,

I'll try a couple of ideas tomorrow and let you know what I discover.

 

It is usually the seat belt mechanism. Sometimes, the trim piece around the b-pillar vibrates against the glass. If that's the case, you can remove it, place some strong double-sided tape on the backside and rplace it, pressing it into place.

Narrow it down by having your passenger press it against the pillar when it vibrates. If the noise stops, it's the trim; if it doesn't, it's the seatbelt mechanism.

Take it to the dealer, as they'll fix it under warranty.

Randy
randy@mini-motorsport.com

 

I'm waiting for ficcion to find this thread

In the meantime, I would follow RandyBMC's advice.

 

I have also noticed that my passenger side seatbelt clip rattles a bit too (against the side of the pillar and/or seat) when not in use...
I slid the passenger seat back a little further and it stopped.

Strangely, the rear seatbelt clips rattle against the side interior molding a little sometimes too.. I slid the 'adjuster' slides up a little (to hold them higher up) and that helped.

It is so weird that interior rattles are SO noticeable (to me & others) in the MINI ... I'm sure all of the cars that I have owned had various inside rattles, but now I can't seem to remember any specifically!
I had one rattle fixed under warranty already -- something became loose in the domelight and started rattling. They replaced it.

My sunroof wind deflectors are rattling now... I know this has been discussed quite a bit on MCO! I'm going to get my Service dept to try to fix tomorrow.

 

Thanks for the input. It is great having this forum. I tried to hold the loop that the seat belt runs thru in the B-pillar as well as holding the panel around the pillar. Neither of these worked. I'll take RandyBMC's advice after I've tinkered a little more. Have a good week.

 

Do you have the factory roof rack?null

 

I don't have the roof rack or sunroof. It seems to be lessened with someone sitting in the seat behind the driver. I need to pull the seat bottom cushion and check it, but I've been too busy. I'll let you know what I find.

 

Mine was the trailing edge of the door pocket that created a rattle. I stuck a business card in the gap and it's cured. If you push on the door pocket it should stop. That's how I figured out it was the door panel / pocket.