I've seen other threads on this forum discussing various rattles, but every thread seems to vary in the causes and solutions.

My driver's door has this annoying, correction, very annoying, rattle that seems to come from the top/side left portion of the door. That said, it has the old "cricket effect" where it occasionally sounds like its coming from somewhere else, but more often than not its that top left, side left area. It sounds like plastic on metal vibration, and I know the panel is held in with plastic clips.

My Question is, what are the remedies for this issue? I honestly would rather not go to the dealership and lose my car for a while (last time they had it for a week). Is the door panel itself easy to remove (I've seen videos)?

I would like to fix this buzz/rattle, but I don't want to start removing trim (and possibly break those plastic clips) if I don't know exactly what I should be looking to "fix".

Thanks!

 

I have a rattle on the passenger side somewhere. Thought it was the door but now it sounds more like around the rear passenger speaker. I'm ignoring for now because I don't want to be removing trim nor do I want to visit the dealership. At some point I will ask my better half to help isolate the location when in motion.

I've got it on my "someday" list to have it checked next time I go to the dealership for something more major.

I am pretty sure there are some threads on how to remove the door panel on NAM. Someone mentioned to me to check all trim clips behind the panel as something may be loose.

 

yeah, I was in the same boat for a while. Since every MINI has to go in anyways to get the AUX water pump, or whatever piece it is, replaced I figured I'd have it addressed then. Thing is, in about a month I'm embarking on a 400 mile trip, and quite frankly, the idea of enduring that buzz/rattle for hours upon hours might make me crazy enough to drive off a cliff. It's just loud enough to really get on your nerves.

I searched the forums, some people say its the plastic clips, some say its the speaker wire, and some say its related to the window mechanism.

I'm confident I can remove the door trim, but I'd like to hear from someone who has on any advice. I know you have to be a little aggressive with it, but that's not a very inspiring term.

I've also seen threads on putting felt tape a foam in spots; problem is, most of those posts are so old all the images in the post have been deleted so the How-To is lacking.

 

Mine is definitely not that annoying. I would reluctantly take it in for the day. I can't imagine they would need it longer than 1 day during business hours.

Looking at the bentley manual you have to remove the door puddle light, remove a retaining pin under the door handle (door not remove door handle trim) and then pry about 30 retaining clips. The book mentions buying extra clips as they break easily. I would go to the dealership :-P

Dealership will do the same thing... if something is not obviously broken and rattling around, they will apply sticky felt tape in spots.

I had a dash rattle for a while that went away. Then later I started getting kind of a rubbing sound - it was my damn Pro Clip dash mount. I need that mount so I am going to live with it for now.

 

I have found that my door lock/unluck indicators tend to rattle a lot when unlocked . See if it does away or gets less noticeable when you lock the doors.

 

see, that's what I'm nervous about, those pesky plastic clips. I just know if I'm the one removing the panel they might break. They're probably pretty cheap, but it seems odd (if I'm going to be the one replacing the panel) to drive to and from the dealership to get the plastic clips. I should just leave it at the dealership and have them do it. Problem is, last time I had them look at something I waiting four hours in the lobby for them to tell me the problem. My issue, I already knew the problem, and could have shown them said problem in under five minutes. I just don't want to spend my afternoon waiting around.

I tried that yesterday, didn't seem to help. Seems like everyone's MINI is different. Then again, there could be multiple rattle points, and the door lock might just me one of them.

 

That is why I always drop off the car in the morning and take the shuttle to a client site for the day and pick it up on my way home. Otherwise I end up waiting for it in the queue to be looked at (been there done that!). But obviously that doesn't work for everyone. If you do end up waiting, take the very first appointment in the morning to help guarantee your car gets looked at first.

 

On the earlier models (2007-2010), the door handle causes rattles as it touches the speaker housing. I bought a can of black silicone glue and filled the small gap between them and it helped stop the sound. I also sprayed grease in the other gaps on the handle, as it would squeak when touched: that fixed it.

I also prayed silicone lubricant on the rubber seals around the windows as they started squeaking when going over bumps. This stopped it as well.

The dash also squeaks a lot. Its cause are the embedded defrost fins and the plastic trim around the speedo. Sprayed some silicone lubricant there and now it is silent.

 

Only S models from 2007-2011. The Justas don't have that aux water pump, and supposedly the 2012s do not have the problem with the pump any more.

 

That seems like a lot of work (that or I'm just being lazy). I guess I should get an afternoon set aside. Was it challenging removing the panel.