Bad interior roof rattles fixed

[rossb]

My Sunroof and VES equipped Nitro R/T came from the factory with two bad rattles coming from above the headliner. I had one rattle in front of the sunroof and one rattle behind the sunroof. The rattles were not coming from the roof rails outside the car. The rattles have been driving me crazy for over a year so I finally decided to do something about it.

I dropped the headliner, but left it in the vehicle.


The bolt to the right of the sunroof motor was torqued, but it was far from seated and the washer on the bolt was free to bounce around. Extra material around the bolt hole in the plastic sunroof frame was rubbing the bolt, which must have caused a false torque reading when that part was assembled. I seated the bolt and tightened it up. I also stuck some soft, cushioning Velcro in between the sunroof motor and the plastic overhead console frame that sits directly under it.


I lowered the rear crossbar that supports the VES and I noticed that the rubber insulators in between the VES crossbar and the sunroof frame were showing signs of wear. I stuck soft, cushioning Velcro in between the VES crossbar and the sunroof frame all the way across the vehicle at all possible contact points.


My roof is now very quiet, which makes the vehicle much more pleasant to drive.

[rickaren]

Great pictures and info, but why was this issue not repaired under warranty for you?

[rossb]

The dealer probably would have attempted a repair under warranty, but I did not want to take the car in for this. The rattle was bugging the crap out of me and I wanted to see what it was for myself. The job was simple and I did not end up with any greasy handprints on my headliner. I've done a lot of interior A/V work on many vehicles (including some on this one).

[rickaren]

Originally Posted by rossb

The dealer probably would have attempted a repair under warranty, but I did not want to take the car in for this. The rattle was bugging the crap out of me and I wanted to see what it was for myself. The job was simple and I did not end up with any greasy handprints on my headliner. I've done a lot of interior A/V work on many vehicles (including some on this one).

In normal times I would say you have a back-up if you ever need a job, working at a Car Dealership. But now who knows! Don't think I would ever attempt a project like this and that is why I have all the extended warranty I could purchase. However if my Nitro was out of warranty I may, at the hourly rate Dealerships now charge. I would expect that might have been a $200 repair you made if it had been customer pay. Way to go. Good Luck and if my Nitro ever has a rattle I will contact you! Ha Ha