Kwiksilver

I apologize in advance for this being really long, but I hope it might be of help to at least some of you.

I have a 2005 Silver Streak Mica Scion tC that I bought back in August of 2004. I haven’t posted much on this board but I have read many of the posts on here from time to time. Lots of good information, ideas, and insight, with the exception of some sad people who have nothing better to do than pick fights on the internet. But back on topic, I noticed that a noticeable amount of you guys and girls have been complaining about your tC hatch rattling, and, as far as I know, a solution doesn’t exist. Well, I just recently had the same rattling sound start coming from my hatch area starting about 4 days ago (Tuesday). The thing that appears different with my situation, however, is that my rattling started about a couple of days after my headliner on the passenger side popped loose out of nowhere while I was driving. It came loose right around the sunroof/moonroof (still don’t know which it is) and handle area. I just heard a loud “pop” over my music and then an uncontrollable rattling started. After a couple of seconds of disbelief, I gave the area a good slap and the rattling stopped temporarily but the headliner was still hanging loose. Then a day or so after that (probably Wednesday or Thursday), a rattling in my trunk/hatch area started. I was like “Oh no. Now I have this hatch rattling problem too? Crap!”

Today (Saturday) I took my tC to my dealer, told them the problems, and they kept the car for the day. I got a call an hour before service closed saying that my car was ready and everything was fixed. When I got there I was told that the headliner coming loose was a common problem and recently Toyota issued a “Service Bulletin” about the problem, meaning that many people have had this same problem and Toyota had to come up with an exact solution how to solve it. I was also told that the “hatch rattling” sound coming from the hatch area was actually the headliner that had come loose back there. However, it had come loose quietly over time and was not visually noticeable, and that was what was causing the rattle noise in the hatch area. It didn’t occur instantly with a loud pop like the passenger side did. They did a test drive before and after the fix to assess the problem and the solution and everything was now fixed. With that said, the headliner being loose in the rear of the car could possibly be the problem for at least some of you with the hatch rattling problem.

As for my tC, like I said, the headliner is back in place like normal and there are no rattling sounds coming from anywhere in the car. Well, except the radio cover, which I had replaced and it didn’t rattle for like half a day but then started up exactly the same again. But anyway, at least this headliner and rattling problem has been fixed. From what I understand from what they told me is that the headliner is stuck to the roof with adhesive and some kind of Velcro, which apparently has the potential to come loose. So the fix for me was a replacement of the Velcro and some new adhesive.

So, in short, you guys with rattles might want to get your headliners checked if you have rattling coming from somewhere in the car other than in the radio area. Apparently it can come loose and not even look like it is, like it did in my rear interior area near the hatch. Also, apparently Toyota has gotten many complaints about this problem from people who could actually see the problem and Toyota has found a solution to the problem, but has not informed tC owners of the problem. I don’t know if the headliner rattling and what people describe as the hatch rattling are the same kind of sound and I could be totally wrong being that some of you have temporarily stopped hatch rattles by stuffing stuff in places back there, but I guess it couldn’t hurt to have your headliners checked.

The End.

engifineer

Good info! I have found that even something rattling in the cup holder sounds like it is coming from all over the car. Partially due to all of the glass in the car. Maybe you are on to something!

Kwiksilver

i know what you mean engifineer. it's like sounds inside the car echo and project all over the car, making it hard to locate where the sounds are coming from. even by just turning my head to look for the sound makes it sound like it is then coming from somehwere else.

by the way, i think that the "Service Bulletin" is better known to us as a TSB. possibly standing for Toyota Service Bulletin?

engifineer

yep... i was hearing a rattle one day... just KNEW it was coming from the sunroof... even sounded louder with my head closer to the roof.... ended up being a quarter underneath a can of pop in the cupholder The interior is supposedly acoustically designed .. that plus all of the glass makes for some hard to find noises!

Frostwalrus

Did they charge you or was it a warranty thing? I have the same problem there is a rattle coming from the back of the car sounds like it is from above the rear passenger headrest area.

jmiller20874

I had a rattle on my hatch when it was really cold outside. Took it to the dealer and the lubed the latch a little and the rattle was gone and hasn't come back. At 6300, I'm still rattle-free :knocksonwood:

SassyScion

TSB stands for Technical Service Bulletin, just to clarify.

Kwiksilver

no charge. it is covered under the warranty. i'd go to the dealer and ask them to check it out.

Frostwalrus

thanks