rear rattles

[skaysbs]

Thursday Morning I got on a plane in Atlanta Ga and flew to sunny Buffalo NY to pick up my new 03 Shadow Mountain Gray T-Bird. I was picked up at the airport by my friendly Buffalo Ford dealer and driven to his dealership and my new Bird. I signed the papers, handed him my money and headed south. Other than the weather the trip was great. The car ran flawlessly and I checked back and swung by the office Friday afternoon. Then I heard the Rattling in the trunk at the low speed anround town driving. I checked the trunk and could not find anything to cause the noise...so Sunday I left it at my local Ford dealer to fix it.. then I found you Web site and obviously I am not the only one to have thei problem...I'lllet you know what they find and How I make out. Thanks for letting me vent and I'll do an update as soon as I have some info....Thanks again...Lenny

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[smc]

I would very much like to hear the cause of your problem.
I had what sounds like the same problem fixed a few months
ago. But, now it sometimes comes back if the road is not
completely smooth. I suspect something was loose , was
tightened, and may becoming loose again. Don't ride it very
much this time of the year and was going to wait until the spring
to see if the problem occured without the top.

Looking forward to reading your posting.

-steve

 

[George]

I think you need to do a search on this site and review the saqme issues others had. Or send me an email

 

[smc]

Thanks for the advice. I reread the "noise" postings from last month and that does sound like the problem.

 

[skaysbs]

I picked the car up at the dealer and got very limited info on their cure however, It does seem to be fixed. All they would tell me is that they removed the hard top and adjusted and lubricated the conv. top and then put the hard top back on. It seems to have worked so I am ok with it. If it happens again I'll hopefully find out more. Thanks for listening...Lenny

 

[George]

Lenny: Thanks for keeping us updated. Maybe that info will help someone else.

 

[Larry]

George & Others,
Since George started this hard top subject, I wanted to reply to him and others that have contributed. My dealer got my 03 T-Bird fixed, I think. My wife picked it up a couple a days ago and I just drove it tonight for the first time since back. My rattle was a missing part on the left side. They replaced the drivers side link where the roof actually latches to the body. The part number is 1W6Z-7650611-AA. Also was advised that most complaints are a simple sqeak rather than the rattle as mine was. The dealer actually brought in a Ford Regional Quality Control person who came to the dealership. They rode in the car initially. To eliminate the squeak, they say to clean the rubber seal on the bottom of the hard top with alcohol before installing each season. Be sure and use a brand new tape kit each time. It's important not to leave the tape kit on any more than 90 days or so. Hard to do with those of us that have long winters. Not sure their advice on that one is realistic. Anyway my Bird is much quieter and with only 1,000 miles on it that is the way it should be. I'm much happier and it's more fun to drive now with the hard top on. Good luck to the rest of you and I will let you know if the rattle returns.

 

[George]

Update

Larry: Thanks for your new input. I understand that the "New Ford strips" (replacements for those 3 monthers) are now to be out by the end of January.
I'll keep you all informed as I get more data.

 

[Brad]

I think this is a very interesting topic that I don't think enough people know enough about. The piece I find the most interesting is the rattle from the left, since I have also noticed it worse on the left.

My current understanding is that the "rattle" issue of the hardtop is part of the design, and will never be totally eliminated. The top was not designed to be bolted down tight, so there will always be a certain amount of movement (which explains the scuffing and scratching).

Some of the noises you hear are made worse with the plastic strips when they come in contact with the rubber from the top.

Once suggestion that I've heard is to put a small amount of the liquid silicon (spray stuff in the can) on the rubber weatherstripping to eliminate the noise. The danger of this is keeping it away from the paint. (Does anyone know if the silicon would be bad for the rubber too?

You will notice that the amount of squeeks, creeks, groans, pops, and burps you have will be directly proportional to the outside temperature.

 

[Sophia]

When I got my T-Bird, there was also an awful noise that sounded like it was coming from the trunk. It rattled as though I was going over a bumpy road. The dealership told me it was coming from the hardtop. I think all they did was take it off and put it back on.

 

[loochie]

I also have a "rattle" or "squeeking" on the left side only. It seems to come from where the hardtop fits into the hole on that side. Haven't taken the top off to check it out, since the car is not driven much now in the winter months, and soon the top will come off.

 

[Larry]

With all of the snow and nasty weather we've been having in the Kansas City area, I've not had my T-Bird on the road for nearly 6 weeks or maybe longer. Ford did fix my rattle which you can read about in previous threads, just have not been able to really put it through the test. However, my drive home from the dealership I noticed was much quieter in the cabin. You do need to be careful with the tape. I'm in the printing business and certain adhesives can cause problems to the paint. I suspect that Ford is aware of this and uses removable, less permanent adhesives. You also have to be careful with the "plastisols" that can migrate into the paint for certain vinyls, mylars, and polyester substrates. I made my own tape which I mentioned to Geoge from "static cling" mylar which contains no adhesive. You still need to be concerned with the migration of the plastisol however, so I am anxious to remove my hardtop as early in the season as possible. I love my Bird and although it would be nice to have it perfectly quiet, I'll give up some of the quietness for the fun of topdown driving. Good luck to all of you fixing the noise.

 

[loochie]

Larry, is this a problem with the tape just sitting on the paint, or is it more about the hardtop rubbing the "plastisols" into the paint by vibrations when driving?

 

[Larry]

The plastisol issue I mentioned is simply related to contact. It is a chemical reaction that can take place after time. That is why even Ford reccomends to not leave the tape on the car body for any long periods of time. Seems like they mentioned 90 days or so. However our cold weather is much longer than that so my hardtop will be on from around Nov. to March or so. I've had several convertibles but this is my first hardtop so not really certain when I will take off for the topdown season.

 

[George]

Loochie:
You said you had a rattle coming from where the hardtop fits into the hole on the body. I believe there's a plastic sleave in that hole. If it came out when the hardtop was last removed and no one spotted it, it's missing and that could be your noise.
I believe that I read, somewhere, that this is what happened to someone else and it was fixed.

 

[George]

For all

I researched the history and found some data and copied it below for those who have a Hardtop rattle.

Copied and pasted:
When I first bought our Bird (one year ago this week!), we removed the top when we got home. It was then that I noticed there was a plastic "washer" on each side, sitting on top of the sleeve that the back pin went into...the plastic washer on the driver's side was bent and out of place, causing the driver's side to slightly rattle.

I pulled the washer off, rebent it into its proper shape and reinstalled it. That seemed to take care of the problem, however the washer was damaged enough that it needed replacing (which I've yet to do...good reminder for me).

Sometimes, when the dealer installs/removes the tops, they are not aware that these plastic washers are subject to damage if the pin pushes the washer out of the way when inserting the pin into the sleeve.

Service bulletin as written, Quote

16155 2002 Thunderbird built before 08/02/2002 - Rattle from Removable Roof Latches
Some 2002 Thunderbird built before 08/02/2002 may exhibit a rattle noise near the removable roof (hardtop) retaining latches. Verify the T40 screws at the A-Pillars are torqued to a 9 NM (80 lb-in) and that both latch levers are positioned fully forward. If rattle noise is still present, replace both latches with revised parts, 1W6Z-76506A20-AB right, and 1W6Z76506A21-AB left. Install the new latches with the roof removed, securing the latch fasteners only finger tight. Clean any dirt and debris from the roof seals and seal contact area on the vehicle. Carefully set roof on vehicle and engage the latches (levers postioned fully forward). Lift the latches upward to the limit of the adjustment slots and torque fasteners to 12NM (9 lb-ft). Refer to workshop manual, section 501-14 for additonal details.


I hope the above data will help someone

 

[loochie]

Wow George,
That was good detective work. Thanks for the information. If I decide to trust the dealer to remove and then replace my hardtop without scratching the car or the top, I'll mention this bulletin to them. 😀

 

[Quickdraw]

Thank you George!
Mine is in the affected date range... I only had my top on for the first 200 miles & never noticed a rattle but this makes me want to put it on this summer to check this out.

 

[Sophia]

Any mention of the 2003's having that problem?

 

[George]

I haven't heard of any '03 issues, but if I do I'll post it here as soon as I know. Good question