Here's an irony for you--I spent all kinds of time asking/demanding/cajoling for the secret compartment to be retrofitted on the early cars, and now what? I've got a rattle. It's really only a buzz, but I read somewhere on NAM that there was a service bulletin or something about a cure. I can't find it using the search function. Anyone remember? As I recall, it involves "installing" some round pads in various locations on the door.

 

Anyone? Bueller?

 

Bumpity Bump bump! Please!

 

Somewhere on NAM I read that there were little pads the dealer could put on the door to make it fit tighter. Can't find the reference now.

 

I take it if you drive with it open, you don't get any buzzing?

 

dealer has info on installing small bumper pads to help buzz/rattle..ask em

 

I had my car delivered with working secret compartment, but when I took it in for a buzzing type rattle they replace everything anyway, said it had a design change or something. The mechanism was stronger and definitely looked different. As I was driving away I thought I heard the same rattle that I had when I left. Actually more of a buzz. With all new parts it was worse than when i went in. I turned around and went back.

It wasn't the bumpers for the door to fit tighter that was buzzing. In my case I had an oak dash and the oak is bonded to a black plastic backing which then attaches to the mechanism. (I assume all the different surfaces are that way.) Well they took the car back in and drove it around. It turned out the buzzing was between the oak surface and the black plastic backing. They used a material that sounded like gortex and worked a bead of it between the oak and plastic backing, and buzz gone!!

 

As I drive along with it closed, it buzzes. A soft touch of my finger on the door is enough to stop the noise.

 

I'm hoping you're right, but when I made the appointment my SA didn't know what I meant when I mentioned them. That's why I'd like a bulletin number, or something to refer to.

Of course, she is the same SA who professes that she's "never heard of this problem" for everything complaint that comes her way. My friends ask me how to handle this because they know I've already come in for the same thing. This has gone on since I bought the car. I could understand this in the first couple of months (mine is a week 3 car), but not now.

 

I had the same problem and used a couple of those sticky pads that you put under table lamps etc, so that they don't scratch the furniture.

 

Sounds like the same thing I had.

 

I recently had my secret compartment installed (mine came without it) and I now have an intermittent buzzing. Apparently the service bulletin wasnt out at the time or they didnt look into it, either way I guess Ill have to take it back in AGAIN Youre right Deb, this does get old doesnt it?

 

Even older when the SA said today she doesn't know what I'm talking about (what, AGAIN?). She said there's no service bulletin on it. Of course it didn't buzz when the mech drove with me. You older ones will know what I mean when I say the tv won't malfunction when the repairman sees it...

Emtrey, where did they put the pads?

BritBoy, I guess I'll have to do this. Where did you put YOURS?

 

There is not a service bulletin for the problem I had, the My SA was just diligent in finding the root cause. The root cause is not in the mechanism or the door, its between the outer surface of the secret compartment door (in my case oak) and the plastic part of the door the decorative surface is bonded to.

 

There are several sources of buzzing in the compartment. I took mine in when it was only a week old and wound up taking it back 2 more times before the problem was solved. The problem is the dealer will pull the whole think out and tighten all of the hinges etc.... but in all honesty I don't think any of that was the issue. There were two sources of rattles in mine (I have the built in iPod adapter which is a different insert). In my case one issue was the foam pad that comes with the ipod adapter and is meant for the ipod to sit on. For some reason instead of just using adhesive to place foam on the bottom of the compartment BMW/MINI saw fit to have an elaborate design where the foam backing is stuck to a separate piece of plastic which long story short vibrates against the plastic of the actual inner box in the compartment.

The other problem was exactly what glangford is describing. I have a feeling that a lot of the people with the rattle may have an issue with this part of the secret compartment's door. In my case the outer surface was brushed aluminum, but the sound was coming from the same place. My dealer "fixed" it by sticking rubber pads between the door and compartment, similar to what many others have described. I think this fixes the problem only because it puts presure on the door from behind and elminates the vibration between the inner layer and the outer surface. Since this made the noise go away in my case, I've basically left it alone since, but I'm sure that injecting some effective insulation between the inner plastic and outer surface of the door should have the same effect. I find it interesting that they've managed to apparently make the rest of the elaborate hinge mechanism rattle free (that was never a source of noise in my case), but because no one thought to stick some insulation inside of the compartment door everyone still has to go through all of this trouble.

I should add though that since then a couple of other rattles have popped up here or there (sunroof, dash, etc). Interestingly they don't really bother me anymore (actually I rarely notice them now). One reason is that in my case they aren't too annoying during normal driving (only if I hit a rather rough piece of road will I hear anything). The other is that I think I've just gotten used to it. The Mini is not a quiet car (coming from a Japanese luxury sedan), it makes some rather weird idiosyncratic noises, at first they were a bit unusual to me, but frankly I'm finding it such a blast to drive every day that I really don't mind them any more. They've grown on me I guess. What I'm finding interesting is that I seem to be having more fun driving it now than I was at first when I picked it up late november, usually with most cars it seems to be the other way

 

+1

 

i talked to my SA yesterday, the material they worked between the oak front and the plastic backing it bonds to is the same material they use to set a windshield.

 

Has anyone noticed the door of the compartment scrapping against the left air vent when closing?
I don't think mine did that before, but after they took my dash apart to get rid of my dash rattle...im going in again soon anyway so I'll have them look at that too