Slight rattle on the right side? vRS

[newbie69]

Hi all,

I don't know if it's something that actually emerged recently, or it was there all the time I just couldn't hear it due to first weeks' enthusiasm. So, lately, when I go over some not very well made country roads, I do hear a slight rattle sounding like its coming from the passenger's storage compartment. As soon as I enter a smoother road however, it goes away. It only does it on roads like the one I mentioned.

It is not loud and it is not noticeable with music on but that's not enough for me. A 23K Euro new car should be rid off small noises like this I believe. So is it present on other vRS's as well? I've heard of rattles in the 1.2 TSI and Monte so I assume it may be of a similar nature?

[Bullyboy]

Got a slight rattle in the passenger door which sounds like something loose.

I think even in these cars quite a few people have had the odd rattle and squeek.

Just the way they are built unfortunately.

[newbie69]

Got a slight rattle in the passenger door which sounds like something loose.

I think even in these cars quite a few people have had the odd rattle and squeek.

Just the way they are built unfortunately.

Yours is also appearing only on bumpy roads?

[giandougl]

It's a SKODA not a Rolls Royce, you get what you pay for.

My old Fabia VRS has had various rattles and knocks over the years, nothing more than annoying. LOL

[Bullyboy]

Yours is also appearing only on bumpy roads?

No all the time it just depends on the surface, but I think its sounds like a small screw of piece of plastic seems to be moving in the door to me. Somethings nothing sometimes the rattle. I am hoping it will find a nice place to settle down and not move again !

[newbie69]

No all the time it just depends on the surface, but I think its sounds like a small screw of piece of plastic seems to be moving in the door to me. Somethings nothing sometimes the rattle. I am hoping it will find a nice place to settle down and not move again !

Hmmm, maybe it's not exactly the same then. I did over 100KMs on highway without it being heard once, but when I go over a bump, there it is. And even then, not on all types of bumps! On both cases, I think its something that the dealer should fix anyways, even though he may be bored to do a proper investigation. That's why he may say "nothing found" the first few times until you really put some pressure on him, and that's why most people prefer to live with it. I lived with rattles in my old car but not on this one, not untill some time goes by anyway...

[FROMAX]

Check the fuel and conditioner pipes. Left under the bonnet.

[greenfabiavrs]

It's a SKODA not a Rolls Royce, you get what you pay for.

I disagree, these cars are now made by a better company than they once were, if you bought the equivalent Audi or vw then I'm sure u wouldn't settle until they sorted it, regardless of price, at the end of the day they are selling a product that should be 'fit for purpose' not just 'it's to be expected as you bought a SKODA' if you bought a washing machine and it had a rattle that shouldn't be there you would take it back no matter who made it!!!

[Javerhammar]

On my passenger side (lefthand drive), under bonnet there is a hose/pipe that goes from top of the engine towards the right side and down 10cm behind the coolantexpansion container. This hose/pipe is aligned directly (or almost) to a wiring loom that goes from the engine bay to somewhere below my glovebox.

At low rpms or when idling this hose vibrated against the loom wich caused a rattling noise in the cabin (one of many)

[newbie69]

On my passenger side (lefthand drive), under bonnet there is a hose/pipe that goes from top of the engine towards the right side and down 10cm behind the coolantexpansion container. This hose/pipe is aligned directly (or almost) to a wiring loom that goes from the engine bay to somewhere below my glovebox.

At low rpms or when idling this hose vibrated against the loom wich caused a rattling noise in the cabin (one of many)

Yes, I've read this before on other 1.2 TSIs, but I figure it is not the same thing. What you describe seems to occur due to synchronisation of the hose's oscillation, thats why at higher rpms it disappears. Mine does not have to do with speed or rpm, I think. On the highway the car is perfectly quiet both at 0 and at 5000 rpm. It is only when I go over a bump that I hear it. Other than that I don't hear any other noises from the car. And even this one is very low and rare to actually annoy me, but it's just my curiosity if it present on other vRS's too.

Edited 14 September, 2011 by newbie69

[newbie69]

I have been trying to locate this so I came back with some new info...

It is not the A/C or the fuel pipes under the bonnet which has already been mentioned in other fabia II threads. They do touch the chassis but their noise is not heard from the inside of the car, at least I can not hear them. As a test, I put a hankerchief between the pipe and the chassis for some kilometres and nothing changed. I already didn't believe this would be the cause as its not a sound of something coming in contact with / hitting something else, but it's more like some "flap" which moves freely, being out of place.

That is why I suspected it could be the ventilation flaps on the passenger;s side that may have become loose. However, when I took out the entire ventilation part (its a small one, it just has the flaps on, and controls which direction the air comes out at) and shook it around, I did not make a single noise.

What I finally found to make a difference is the top glovebox on passengers side, not the AC-cooled one, but the one above it. The glovebox itself seems pretty solid, when I pull it or twist it doesn't make a signle noise and it also closes silently due to the two rubber stops that are there. The thing is that when the mysterious rattle starts, not a loud one as I said before, If I put my hand on it, and apply some pressure, the rattle stops. That's a little strange as it doesn't seem to be something wrong with the glovebox itself but with something else behind it.

So, off I was, I unscrewed the two Torx-screws that are there, and the glovebox started moving slightly. I was not sure if there was something else keeping it in place so I didn't pull it out. My question now is, can I just pull it out by applying some more force or there is something else I should detach first? It seemed there was something more like a glue keeping it there, rather than some "invisible" screw, but I am not sure so I thought about asking first...

[Leon-y-k]

It's a SKODA not a Rolls Royce, you get what you pay for.

My old Fabia VRS has had various rattles and knocks over the years, nothing more than annoying. LOL

But the mk1 Fabia never rattled a lot anyway!

as an improved product they should have improved on this!....with the VAG anal attention to build quality it should be.

I have the same problem of a few rattles coming from the passenger side, but when i apply pressure on the base of the stereo it goes away....

I think it will have to be a day of taking the car apart and putting it back together with bits of anti rattle tape everywhere!

[JenksVRS]

I sorted this on mine last week after fitting sound deadening and Closed cell foam in all 4 door cards boot floor , and floor.   The rattle comes from the plastic cover on the side of the dash near the air bag on/off switch.  This and the door card meet together and causing the rattle you mention .  To test, whist driving over rough road push the door card in at the end that meets the dash, Hey presto stops rattling.  Make sure your door cards are full pushed back with the clips as mine were slightly loose, they needed taking off , making wider and re-fitting making sure to hit the door cards as hard as you can to get the clips to pop in.

[JenksVRS]

I sorted this on mine last week after fitting sound deadening and Closed cell foam in all 4 door cards boot floor , and floor.   The rattle comes from the plastic cover on the side of the dash near the air bag on/off switch.  This and the door card meet together and causing the rattle you mention .  To test, whist driving over rough road push the door card in at the end that meets the dash, Hey presto stops rattling.  Make sure your door cards are full pushed back with the clips as mine were slightly loose, they needed taking off , making wider and re-fitting making sure to hit the door cards as hard as you can to get the clips to pop in.

[newbie69]

I sorted this on mine last week after fitting sound deadening and Closed cell foam in all 4 door cards boot floor , and floor.   The rattle comes from the plastic cover on the side of the dash near the air bag on/off switch.  This and the door card meet together and causing the rattle you mention .  To test, whist driving over rough road push the door card in at the end that meets the dash, Hey presto stops rattling.  Make sure your door cards are full pushed back with the clips as mine were slightly loose, they needed taking off , making wider and re-fitting making sure to hit the door cards as hard as you can to get the clips to pop in.

Thanks for the info, will check it out but this does not completely agree with my recent findings however, that the rattle stops when pressing the upper glovebox "inside". Maybe this is a different one? Because if it is the plastic cover of the ABS switch how can it stop when pressing the glovebox as mine does? these two dont come in contact.

Edited 16 October, 2011 by newbie69

[martinezricardos]

What I finally found to make a difference is the top glovebox on passengers side, not the AC-cooled one, but the one above it. The glovebox itself seems pretty solid, when I pull it or twist it doesn't make a signle noise and it also closes silently due to the two rubber stops that are there. The thing is that when the mysterious rattle starts, not a loud one as I said before, If I put my hand on it, and apply some pressure, the rattle stops. That's a little strange as it doesn't seem to be something wrong with the glovebox itself but with something else behind it.

So, off I was, I unscrewed the two Torx-screws that are there, and the glovebox started moving slightly. I was not sure if there was something else keeping it in place so I didn't pull it out. My question now is, can I just pull it out by applying some more force or there is something else I should detach first? It seemed there was something more like a glue keeping it there, rather than some "invisible" screw, but I am not sure so I thought about asking first...

Hi,

I have exactly the same problem in my Monte Carlo, I've also tried to take the top glove box off but I couldn't. I thought that there may be some additional screws on the side (between the door and dashboard) but after detaching the cover I can only see the air vent.

Any ideas how to remove the glove box?

Cheers!

[JenksVRS]

After curing my rattle a few days ago as mentions above I have now got the same rattle in the glove box sounds like something is catching top and bottom .

I will have this apart and sorted this weekend and update

[newbie69]

After curing my rattle a few days ago as mentions above I have now got the same rattle in the glove box sounds like something is catching top and bottom .

I will have this apart and sorted this weekend and update

If you do succeed to remove the glovebox and (hopefully) find the cause of the rattle, I would love to see some photos too...

[martinezricardos]

I've slightly loosen the 2 torx screws inside the glovebox few days ago and since then there is no rattling sound any more.

[Leon-y-k]

This little guy is what's cured my rattle by the air bag

[adamc260]

I disagree, these cars are now made by a better company than they once were, if you bought the equivalent Audi or vw then I'm sure u wouldn't settle until they sorted it, regardless of price, at the end of the day they are selling a product that should be 'fit for purpose' not just 'it's to be expected as you bought a SKODA' if you bought a washing machine and it had a rattle that shouldn't be there you would take it back no matter who made it!!!

+1

Especially when you can buy a used car on the market that doesn't rattle and can cost a damn sight less. My ownership experience of Skoda has been pretty poor at best

[Guest George512]

+1

Especially when you can buy a used car on the market that doesn't rattle and can cost a damn sight less. My ownership experience of Skoda has been pretty poor at best

+2. If you pay £16k + for a car you shouldn't have to put up with poor build quality.

fortunately, touch wood, I haven't had too many rattles with mine. I have one annoying one though when going over some of the worse roads... it sounds as though a bush has gone (a common noise on the Mk1 vRS), and sounds like it's coming from the back. At 5000 miles though, the car surely shouldn't have a duff rubber bush anywhere yet surely?!

Anyone come across this? It could be the parcel shelf even actually...

[mrgf]

Having owned my Greenie for near on 2 years now, I find both glove boxes and door pockets make "Rattles" very easiy, if poorly loaded! Rotate, remove and replace items to see if that helps.. Usually only until some smart alec moves them again! I think most of these rattles arise from Skoda's insistance on using hard blown plastic, rather than soft faced stuff like on the upper dash panel. If they used that through all the glovebox and door panels, I guess the rattles would be much less noticable. I have also got a slightly annoying rattly buzzy sound that seems to come from the drivers side seat belt bracket, next to the right ear... Seems worse when cold for some reason! Put my finger in the bracket, it stops so just vibration. Will took at taking off the plastic cover and seeing if its that. Perhaps it needs a bit of ble tack or a small spring behind it to add a small amount of tension to counteract the noise.

[newbie69]

I haven't been inside another Fabia MKII other than my vRS so I don't know what is the quality of their plastics. But I find the dashboard of the vRS quite good actually, with nice soft plastics on it which are maybe more than you'd expect for a car at this price range.

So it's a shame that they used hard ones on all other compartments such as gloveboxs, doors etc as they spoil the nice look and feel of the dashboard and they cancel the effort they've done on the dashboard.

Anyway, I think it needs to devote some time and make a visit either to a good-willing dealer, or a sound isolation specialist. 1st solution will be free but is harder to find! 2nd will most probably bear fruit but will cost more. There is always the personal DIY but you'd need to have the knowledge which I lack so I'm between 1 and 2.

PS. @Leon-Y-K

What exactly did this doll do? Is it placed between the windshield and the back of the plastic? I don't think I have an issue coming from that end but anyway I'm curious.

[Leon-y-k]

I haven't been inside another Fabia MKII other than my vRS so I don't know what is the quality of their plastics. But I find the dashboard of the vRS quite good actually, with nice soft plastics on it which are maybe more than you'd expect for a car at this price range.

So it's a shame that they used hard ones on all other compartments such as gloveboxs, doors etc as they spoil the nice look and feel of the dashboard and they cancel the effort they've done on the dashboard.

Anyway, I think it needs to devote some time and make a visit either to a good-willing dealer, or a sound isolation specialist. 1st solution will be free but is harder to find! 2nd will most probably bear fruit but will cost more. There is always the personal DIY but you'd need to have the knowledge which I lack so I'm between 1 and 2.

PS. @Leon-Y-K

What exactly did this doll do? Is it placed between the windshield and the back of the plastic? I don't think I have an issue coming from that end but anyway I'm curious.

Haha, thats my mascot! basically, I did have a rattle coming from that corner of my dash, and I also needed to replace the tax disc holder.

It wasn't until I set off one day after putting it there that it cured the rattle coming from my dash, I'm guessing its to do with pressure of the plastic parts? I'm yet to spend a day with some rattle tape and sound proofing where I can take the car apart and put it back together to make it better than new

Thanks,

Leon