Jetta VI Rattle Fix Thread

[Verebs1]

I'm about to undertake a fairly intensive Dynamat project on my 8V. Hood, trunk, doors, floor, just about everywhere. I'll post a thread once I get the materials.

I would like to participate with you. I am really tired of all the rattles, cracking, and road noise when you are going to start let me know and I'll so out with you.

[nicolas.gagnon]

Be sure to take lots of pictures !!!!


---
I am here: http://tapatalk.com/map.php?lsthxu
-Nicolas

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[MrChomps]

I'm about to undertake a fairly intensive Dynamat project on my 8V. Hood, trunk, doors, floor, just about everywhere. I'll post a thread once I get the materials.

Awesome - can't wait to hear how this goes... please do keep us posted!

[Jags86]

I got off the phone with VW corporate today. I basically trashed the quality of the vehicle on the email survey and I received a phone call from customer support. I made it clear that it's not the dealership who is the problem, it's the build quality of the car. THey said to call them a few days before my courtesy check up and they would contact the regional manager to oversee the dealership going through the car. There are so many crackles and rattles that I'm going nuts. Ridiculous.

[jettsy]

I got off the phone with VW corporate today. I basically trashed the quality of the vehicle on the email survey and I received a phone call from customer support. I made it clear that it's not the dealership who is the problem, it's the build quality of the car. THey said to call them a few days before my courtesy check up and they would contact the regional manager to oversee the dealership going through the car. There are so many crackles and rattles that I'm going nuts. Ridiculous.

Be sure to update on what happens

[JettaVR6mk]

Thread re-sticky-fied. Too much valuable info not to be.

I'll review the latest posts tomorrow and update the index with any new info.

[junky]

I had the crackling noise as well,I was sure it was comeing from the vents or the head unit or the environment controls.
I removed the vent panel and drove the car,no change,removed the head unit,no change,,,I put felt pads under the heads of screws,drove the car for two weeks with the trim panel that goes around the head unit off so I could try different things,ie put finger pressure on differnet items as I went over bumps and it didnt work.
I finally figured it out,,,there is a joint between where the dash meets the center console on each side of the storage compartment under the environment controls.
When you go over your favourite bumpy roads that make the noise,put your thumb at the top of the seam,your forefinger at the bottom inside the storage compartment and put a good twist or side loads on the joint,,,the noise dissapears.
Go buy some Super Lube Dri-Film lubricant and spray the seam/joint from both sides,,,,do it a couple of times per side,,,dont worry about getting any on the visible surfaces,it wipes away with no damage.
I did this a month ago,,,its all quiet now.
As a side note,when I was looking for felt tape and couldnt find any,,I used the soft side of velcro tape instead,works great!

hi, your description is pretty close to mind. is it possible to snap a picture on the spot where you put the Velcro tape and lubricant on? thanks.

[JettaVR6mk]

I've got a few new ones since the weather has gotten warmer. The worst are right near my left ear (b pillar?) and somewhere from passenger door. A few near the HU and climate controls possibly the rear shelf.

I bought some boom mat, felt tape, padding, and other sound deadeners. As soon as I get a free, warm weekend I'm going to take it all apart, take a ton of pics, and update this thread with DIYs.

I would be absolutely in love with this car if it wasn't for the rattling. If the 2013 models turn out to be much improved, I'm trading up.

Thanks for the sticky flynn!

[Lustinator]

hi, your description is pretty close to mind. is it possible to snap a picture on the spot where you put the Velcro tape and lubricant on? thanks.

I tried to take some pics for another person,,,they didnt turn out good enough to post.
The seam is visable from the side,,it starts at the storage compartment and angles down towards the gas pedal.
As far as the tape is concerned,I applied it over the "posts" that are on the backside of the trim piece that has the vents mounted in it,,,goes from the center of the dash past the instruments cluster to the left side.
The posts pass through metal retainers/recievers that I thought might be a source of metal on plastic noise.
Hope this helps.

[JettaVR6mk]

Here are the current list of issues I'm trying to track down.

The worst is somewhere near the passenger door or A pillar or dash/vent area; I really can't track it down. It's a constant ticking rattle, not a creaking or popping. It sounds like something real thin or small is totally loose and rattles around inside something. It's constant, just general vibrations cause it, not only bumps.

The second is somewhere near my left ear, I guess the B pillar. It's very faint, but constant.

The third is the driver side mirror. It sounds like loose plastic, most noticeable when I accelerate, the engine/trans vibration causes it. Sometime road bumps also cause it. I'm really hesitant to try to address this one myself, I don't want to screw any exterior up.

Anyone else having rattles from the side mirrors?

[ciroth]

Here are the current list of issues I'm trying to track down.

The worst is somewhere near the passenger door or A pillar or dash/vent area; I really can't track it down. It's a constant ticking rattle, not a creaking or popping. It sounds like something real thin or small is totally loose and rattles around inside something. It's constant, just general vibrations cause it, not only bumps.

The second is somewhere near my left ear, I guess the B pillar. It's very faint, but constant.

The third is the driver side mirror. It sounds like loose plastic, most noticeable when I accelerate, the engine/trans vibration causes it. Sometime road bumps also cause it. I'm really hesitant to try to address this one myself, I don't want to screw any exterior up.

Anyone else having rattles from the side mirrors?

The first two you listed I had/have. The one above your left ear might be what I had - a poorly installed headliner with broken clips. I brought it to my dealer, and they replaced the whole thing. Said that when they took it off some of the clips were broken, some not clipped into place properly. I blame Puebla. Anyway, they replaced it and padded some of the clips in there, and its fine now.

I have the passenger door one too, had the dealer try to fix it twice (also had them do dampening for the buzzing when playing loud music). Its better, but theres still that annoying faint rattle, like you said, sounds like it comes from something small in the door. It comes and goes. I bought some trim removal tools, and took the silver trim piece off - theres a loose part where one clip fits into that I plan on securing somehow and coating with dry lubricant. See if that helps...

[vwgeorge2]

Can you add the fix for the front windows making wind noise?

my 2011tdi is awful above 30mph, and the dealer says its within limits

thanks

[bmain0407]

Take some adhesive foam tape jut small pieces and stuff hem behind he splashguard up by thebwindows thats solves that wind noise from that

[designpunk]

2012 gli autobahn
passenger side wiper making a funky and loud clacking noise when it reaches the bottom.
seems and sounds as if it is hitting the plastic tray.....and not just a little bit upon inspection.

anyone have this occur ?
quick fix ?
or have the dealer fix it ?

thanks, jim

[NekoSaur]

Took my 2011 Jetta SEL in today for my 10,000 mile checkup.

I did an early morning drop-off and FILLED the "problem" form up! I genuinely felt bad for the tech that got that form - he probably swore to himself about all the stuff that I wanted fixed. Ha.

I bought this car with 6,000 miles on it - it was a Dealership Service Loaner - so I have driven it for only 4,000 miles. All of these issues popped up within the last two weeks as the weather changed to above 50 degrees.

Here's what I asked them to address:

- Standard 10,000 mile checkup items
- Snapping / Cracking noise coming from behind the Navigation unit when going over bumps (LOUD)
- Plastic inserts in front doors rattle and vibrate constantly when going over rough road / playing bass-heavy music
- Loud wind noise coming from Driver's side door at normal driving speeds
- Recall on adjusting the chrome tailpipe attachments to be shorter.
- Loud rubbery squeak sound when turning the steering wheel
- Back passenger door plastic came unhooked - it was impossible to close this door yesterday as the door would hit the protruding plastic piece at the bottom of the door sill - that was awesome to see.

The tech manager called me to apologize that there were so many issues with this new car. I was surprised that he was so honest. He verified every one of my claims and told me that he fixed almot all of them quickly.

The only issues that he could not fix today were the snapping noise coming from behind the Nav unit - it was actually a bad Climate Control module that had broken somehow and was no longer connected to the rest of the Navigation harness - explains the noise. He had to order this part.

- They also had to order a "spring" for the steering column - he said that it had broken and that was what was making the rubber squeak noise when turning (huh?... ok..)

I won't get my Jetta back for a day or so to address all of this - what a mess!
In the meantime they paid for a rental car - the only thing the rental car company had available was a Dodge RAM 1500 - WTF! That thing is ridiculous!

I just want my Jetta back

[Verebs1]

Took my 2011 Jetta SEL in today for my 10,000 mile checkup.

I did an early morning drop-off and FILLED the "problem" form up! I genuinely felt bad for the tech that got that form - he probably swore to himself about all the stuff that I wanted fixed. Ha.

I bought this car with 6,000 miles on it - it was a Dealership Service Loaner - so I have driven it for only 4,000 miles. All of these issues popped up within the last two weeks as the weather changed to above 50 degrees.

Here's what I asked them to address:

- Standard 10,000 mile checkup items
- Snapping / Cracking noise coming from behind the Navigation unit when going over bumps (LOUD)
- Plastic inserts in front doors rattle and vibrate constantly when going over rough road / playing bass-heavy music
- Loud wind noise coming from Driver's side door at normal driving speeds
- Recall on adjusting the chrome tailpipe attachments to be shorter.
- Loud rubbery squeak sound when turning the steering wheel
- Back passenger door plastic came unhooked - it was impossible to close this door yesterday as the door would hit the protruding plastic piece at the bottom of the door sill - that was awesome to see.

The tech manager called me to apologize that there were so many issues with this new car. I was surprised that he was so honest. He verified every one of my claims and told me that he fixed almot all of them quickly.

The only issues that he could not fix today were the snapping noise coming from behind the Nav unit - it was actually a bad Climate Control module that had broken somehow and was no longer connected to the rest of the Navigation harness - explains the noise. He had to order this part.

- They also had to order a "spring" for the steering column - he said that it had broken and that was what was making the rubber squeak noise when turning (huh?... ok..)

I won't get my Jetta back for a day or so to address all of this - what a mess!
In the meantime they paid for a rental car - the only thing the rental car company had available was a Dodge RAM 1500 - WTF! That thing is ridiculous!

I just want my Jetta back

I had them fix my steering wheel noise and it's doing it again! It had been about 8-10 months since they fixed it. It's like a eurt-eurt

[pinkertonfloyd]

2012 gli autobahn
passenger side wiper making a funky and loud clacking noise when it reaches the bottom.
seems and sounds as if it is hitting the plastic tray.....and not just a little bit upon inspection.

anyone have this occur ?
quick fix ?
or have the dealer fix it ?

thanks, jim

Yes... it's a common problem. They have to do a procedure to set the limits of the wiper (My work order says "followed ELSA procedure to reset to factory specs".

[NekoSaur]

Took my 2011 Jetta SEL in today for my 10,000 mile checkup.

I did an early morning drop-off and FILLED the "problem" form up! I genuinely felt bad for the tech that got that form - he probably swore to himself about all the stuff that I wanted fixed. Ha.

I bought this car with 6,000 miles on it - it was a Dealership Service Loaner - so I have driven it for only 4,000 miles. All of these issues popped up within the last two weeks as the weather changed to above 50 degrees.

Here's what I asked them to address:

- Standard 10,000 mile checkup items
- Snapping / Cracking noise coming from behind the Navigation unit when going over bumps (LOUD)
- Plastic inserts in front doors rattle and vibrate constantly when going over rough road / playing bass-heavy music
- Loud wind noise coming from Driver's side door at normal driving speeds
- Recall on adjusting the chrome tailpipe attachments to be shorter.
- Loud rubbery squeak sound when turning the steering wheel
- Back passenger door plastic came unhooked - it was impossible to close this door yesterday as the door would hit the protruding plastic piece at the bottom of the door sill - that was awesome to see.

Still waiting to get my Jetta back from this 10,000 mile checkup!

They ordered two parts to fix some of the rattles mentioned above and seem to have royally messed up the install/repair.

I was called yesterday to tell me that they need it for another day because they broke some of the interior dash molding trying to reinstall the climate control module. They also needed to order an airbag harness (?) since they forgot to order it the first time when disassembling my steering wheel column.

I'm glad that they are fixing all of the issues that I asked them to - I can't really complain about that - but seriously, three days? If they call me today and tell me that they need it for another night I might get a little pissy on the phone. If the rattles are still there when I pick the car up... well, let's just hope that doesn't happen

[JettaVR6mk]

Still waiting to get my Jetta back from this 10,000 mile checkup!

They ordered two parts to fix some of the rattles mentioned above and seem to have royally messed up the install/repair.

I was called yesterday to tell me that they need it for another day because they broke some of the interior dash molding trying to reinstall the climate control module. They also needed to order an airbag harness (?) since they forgot to order it the first time when disassembling my steering wheel column.

I'm glad that they are fixing all of the issues that I asked them to - I can't really complain about that - but seriously, three days? If they call me today and tell me that they need it for another night I might get a little pissy on the phone. If the rattles are still there when I pick the car up... well, let's just hope that doesn't happen

This is why I'm attempting to fix the rattles myself. I won't be without my car for days, and I can take long drives to test my fixes.

I understand that the car is under warranty and shouldn't have the rattles to begin with, but dealers just can't practically fix most rattles; the reward is not worth the effort.

[NekoSaur]

This is why I'm attempting to fix the rattles myself. I won't be without my car for days, and I can take long drives to test my fixes.

I understand that the car is under warranty and shouldn't have the rattles to begin with, but dealers just can't practically fix most rattles; the reward is not worth the effort.

Got the car back yesterday -

ALL of the issues have been resolved - I honestly couldn't be happier.
Seriously, I urge you to take it in. It's like a whole new car now - it feels way, way more solid when there are no constant rattles. The only thing I can hear now is the engine and road noise from the tires.

FINALLY - this feels like the car I paid for.

Good job, VW - shame that they had to be fixed at the dealership and that this couldn't have just come from the factory. Had a FIVE page report on what they did and it took 3 days. Worth it though!

[Verebs1]

Got the car back yesterday -

ALL of the issues have been resolved - I honestly couldn't be happier.
Seriously, I urge you to take it in. It's like a whole new car now - it feels way, way more solid when there are no constant rattles. The only thing I can hear now is the engine and road noise from the tires.

FINALLY - this feels like the car I paid for.

Good job, VW - shame that they had to be fixed at the dealership and that this couldn't have just come from the factory. Had a FIVE page report on what they did and it took 3 days. Worth it though!

if you have time do you think you could scan that report? I'd like to show my dealer how to fix the **** they claim is "normal" or that they can't hear.

[clutchrider]

Dealer fixed 99% of the rattles from the sub, wastegate, passenger door speaker. I may fix this next one on my own. My '12 GLI Autobahn now has developed a slight rattle when going over bumps and it seems to be coming from the drivers door. When I put my arm on the door armrest and push the rattle goes away. Almost sounds like the window is loos but I know it's now. Could be the bar inside the door for the locking mechanism. I'm gonna pull the door panel and play around a bit.

[Rob093090]

Hello everyone, i recently got a 2012 jetta SE with conv/ and i love the car, i use to own a 2009 SE. The problem i have is when i have the windows down and im getting out of first ( i have the 5 spd manual) i makes this metal rattleing sound that i have no idea what the heck it is, is anyone else experiencing this?

[Sternat]

I have the passenger door one too, had the dealer try to fix it once ...

know there is a "knocking" when i go over bumps form the passenger door!
Tomorrow i will take the whole panel off, try without and will test an report!

[whiplash willy]

The worst rattle I have is the small dash trim insert that is covered by the head light knob. When I push in hard on the trim it stops. I also noticed that I can push in the trim a little on the lift side of the knob, almost like a tab is broken.

[Verebs1]

Well this isn't looking like it's getting anywhere fast. I've been on VW customer care's case about the problems with the rattles and other things for months and since my last dealer visit I am not feeling too great about my choice in dealer. The dealer I bought my car from is (and always really has been) giving me the run-around on repairing the issues I bring it in for. This past week I had brought it in for seven (7) issues.

1. Driver's side C-Pillar trim is sagging for no reason (no one sits back there)
2. Drivers door sounds wierd (empty) it's very difficult to describe but when you close the Passanger door the sound it make is solid but the driver's door is not. The Driver's door also rattels occasionally. I suggested the fix may be similar to the TSB from a while back where foam was added to the Passanger door to stop the rattels.
3. The screw on the rear bumper on the left side (by muffler) is missing and it doesnt appear to ever have been there maybe factory error.
4. Steering wheel makes 'creaking sound' when it is turned slowly. It's the "clock spring" they fixed this same issue about 8 months ago and it's back now.
5. There is still an unusual whine upon acceleration (asked may times to have this fixed and they can't find it).
6. The large trim panel that is under the steering wheel (contains headlight switch) does not line up with the gauge cluster trim ever since they replaced the air vents (they had come loose and were ratteling) the panel was never lined up right there is a gap on top on either side of the steering wheel.
7. The dash rattels sounds like it is coming from the area near the A-Pillar and windshield. (no it's not the cowl).

Out of all these things they only replaced the missing screw (bolt) and they didn't even use the correct one!!!! I was told that the shop foreman decided not to do any of the other things because they were 12/12 items. [I talked to a customer care person the day the dealer called me and she said that the 12/12 is a 12month/12k mile warranty on replacement parts, ie. if they have to replace you clutch, radio, or buttons, it should be only within the first 12k miles/12 months. She confirmed that none of the things were 12/12 and that they should have done the repairs]. I went to another dealer and they were like "wow __ is giving you the run-around" and I was like ya I know it's really annoying. They saw my car, center console removed and said that they would be more than happy to repair the problems but would like the car to be back to factory first. I said that was fine but wouldn't be able to do that until probably April since that is (hopefully) when the parts are coming in. I was called by my regional case manager and she left me a message that she would call me today by end of business. I never got a call so I call and the lady who answered says my phone # does not match the one on my account. WTF is right. She changed it and said that she will have the regional case manager call me tomorrow. She also said that they were waiting on me to tell them when my appointment was and again WTF, I'm waiting for them to call me! Basically VW is ****ED UP and I HATE THEM.

[NekoSaur]

Well this isn't looking like it's getting anywhere fast. I've been on VW customer care's case about the problems with the rattles and other things for months and since my last dealer visit I am not feeling too great about my choice in dealer. The dealer I bought my car from is (and always really has been) giving me the run-around on repairing the issues I bring it in for. This past week I had brought it in for seven (7) issues.

I definitely feel your pain, Verebs1.

I had several issues with my 2011 Jetta SEL as well. Most of it had to do with the cheap plastic trim that they chose to use on these new models. I don't think the engineers truly thought out that when you lessen the quality of the materials you are going to have issues with fit, finish and noise. The old, higher-quality "squishy" material they used absorbed of most of these noises for sure.

(As an aside, my wife is leasing a 2012 Tiguan that was made in the German plant... it has a good balance of high-quality trim and plastic. But I can tell you that her Tiguan, which was the same price as my SEL, feels like it is significantly better built. It is night and day.)

I took my car into the dealership and had them address some of the bigger issues (clock spring, broken trim from factory, etc) but ultimately decided that I would try to fix some of the things myself.

The car is relatively easy to take apart - as long as you do some research on your own. There were about 6 individual rattles that were driving me crazy. With a trim prybar, a torx screwdriver and some felt tape I pretty much fixed all of them myself.

Most of the time its wiring that is rattling on the inside of a panel - I also found a loose screw and in one situation the dashboard was rubbing up against another piece of plastic trim causing a "cracking" noise when going over bumps. Gently pried the two pieces apart and put a strip of felt tape in between and its gone! 5-minute fix. The dealership would have never found it because it took days of driving for me to figure out where the sound was coming from.

Its really frustrating that I had to do this all myself - I chalked it up to a learning experience. I can pretty much take the interior of my car apart now though (and I didn't break anything, thank god)
I just figured that it's my car and I will try to do the best to make it something that I am happy to drive around in rather than wait and wait for the dealership to deal with it. In my case, they just didn't seem to care as much about the little noises that were driving me crazy - they only wanted to deal with the bigger things.

I will continue to take the car in for issues that I cant possibly fix (bought the platinum warranty) but I am much happier now that I took the time to deal with the little things.

If you can't get someone else to do it - just do it yourself. They don't like the car as much as you do

[Verebs1]

I definitely feel your pain, Verebs1.

I had several issues with my 2011 Jetta SEL as well. Most of it had to do with the cheap plastic trim that they chose to use on these new models. I don't think the engineers truly thought out that when you lessen the quality of the materials you are going to have issues with fit, finish and noise. The old, higher-quality "squishy" material they used absorbed of most of these noises for sure.

(As an aside, my wife is leasing a 2012 Tiguan that was made in the German plant... it has a good balance of high-quality trim and plastic. But I can tell you that her Tiguan, which was the same price as my SEL, feels like it is significantly better built. It is night and day.)

I took my car into the dealership and had them address some of the bigger issues (clock spring, broken trim from factory, etc) but ultimately decided that I would try to fix some of the things myself.

The car is relatively easy to take apart - as long as you do some research on your own. There were about 6 individual rattles that were driving me crazy. With a trim prybar, a torx screwdriver and some felt tape I pretty much fixed all of them myself.

Most of the time its wiring that is rattling on the inside of a panel - I also found a loose screw and in one situation the dashboard was rubbing up against another piece of plastic trim causing a "cracking" noise when going over bumps. Gently pried the two pieces apart and put a strip of felt tape in between and its gone! 5-minute fix. The dealership would have never found it because it took days of driving for me to figure out where the sound was coming from.

Its really frustrating that I had to do this all myself - I chalked it up to a learning experience. I can pretty much take the interior of my car apart now though (and I didn't break anything, thank god)
I just figured that it's my car and I will try to do the best to make it something that I am happy to drive around in rather than wait and wait for the dealership to deal with it. In my case, they just didn't seem to care as much about the little noises that were driving me crazy - they only wanted to deal with the bigger things.

I will continue to take the car in for issues that I cant possibly fix (bought the platinum warranty) but I am much happier now that I took the time to deal with the little things.

If you can't get someone else to do it - just do it yourself. They don't like the car as much as you do

I have tried to find some of the problems but It's difficult. I also figure since it's only covered for another 14k miles, I might as well have them 'dig' into it themselves. After that I'm confident I can do it. I have the repair manual and am pretty handy. I have the center console out atm, which is supposedly why they wont touch it now. I have to wait til the parts come in or put it back and have them poke around and then rip it out again when the parts come. It just erks me that they blatantly lied to me and have been giving me the run-around since day 1.

Oh! BTW your clock spring broke too!!? They replaced mine about 3 months after I had the car and the replacement is broken again

One more thing, I was thinking ever since they announced the soft touch dash for the sel premium. If the dash is still an issue, after all the troubles, why not retrofit the new one? Granted this is an expensive part due to the amount of real estate it takes up in the car. I think there's one listed as "comfort dash" in the parts catalog at $1025.00 but the one labeled "GLI" and another spec code which I suspect to be the SEL Premium don't have prices. Is there any difference between the dashes other than material?
BTW I think the one that is $1025.00 includes the passenger airbag even though it doesn't state so, because the airbag is plastic welded to the dash.

[bmain0407]

has anyone had any problems with when the heater or ac is on there is a whistle noise in the vents. doesnt do it all the time and doesnt do it on every setting for the blower? dealer has taken my dash apart twice and found nothing. im starting to think its just something with the dual climate control?

[JettaVR6mk]

Tried to get at a few things today.

First up was the door trim pieces. Popped them off, and found most of the metal retaining clips to be loose and rattling around. I took those out of the door. Then I used kitchen shelf lining material, cut it to just wrap the metal retaining clips, and put each one back in, then popped the trim back on. It was pretty easy to pull the trim off and replace it, just get something thin in behind the trim piece and pull slowly.

The next was under the passenger side dash, as this is where I hear most of my rattling from. I pulled the foam barrier out, it had two plastic screws that come out easily with a flathead screwdriver. Here is where I found the HVAC vents COMPLETELY loose! I mean, this whole assembly seems to not be attached to anything. I poked around for a good 30 minutes, but could not figure out how this is supposed to be attached or what to. So for now, I have that left as-is until I figure it out.

Third was popping the passenger side dash side-panel off to have a look inside. Here, I found the glovebox door hinge. It's the piece that causes the glovebox door to open very slowly with fluid motion. It's a clever little mechanism, but the damn thing rattles like crazy. I have a feeling that this (and the HVAC vents) are the main cause of my rattles. I couldn't figure out how to make this mechanism not rattle without affecting it's movement.

So I've got these two issues to figure out a solution to. Anyone have any experience with these items?

[Verebs1]

Tried to get at a few things today.

First up was the door trim pieces. Popped them off, and found most of the metal retaining clips to be loose and rattling around. I took those out of the door. Then I used kitchen shelf lining material, cut it to just wrap the metal retaining clips, and put each one back in, then popped the trim back on. It was pretty easy to pull the trim off and replace it, just get something thin in behind the trim piece and pull slowly.

The next was under the passenger side dash, as this is where I hear most of my rattling from. I pulled the foam barrier out, it had two plastic screws that come out easily with a flathead screwdriver. Here is where I found the HVAC vents COMPLETELY loose! I mean, this whole assembly seems to not be attached to anything. I poked around for a good 30 minutes, but could not figure out how this is supposed to be attached or what to. So for now, I have that left as-is until I figure it out.

Third was popping the passenger side dash side-panel off to have a look inside. Here, I found the glovebox door hinge. It's the piece that causes the glovebox door to open very slowly with fluid motion. It's a clever little mechanism, but the damn thing rattles like crazy. I have a feeling that this (and the HVAC vents) are the main cause of my rattles. I couldn't figure out how to make this mechanism not rattle without affecting it's movement.

So I've got these two issues to figure out a solution to. Anyone have any experience with these items?

The vent should have an arm on it and a hole. a screw goes through and screws to the hvac unit.

[nicolas.gagnon]

O.K. so my TDI is driving me insane. When it gets just a tad cold outside, I get this cracking---thinking it's between the two pieces of plastics that meets from the upper dash and the plastic around where the transmission stick is...

So I read this thread so many times, I know someone said to lube it up... I'm trying to get a more permanent solution. I was thinking : Put some pressure up and down on the trims and i could add a Felt pad there...well guess what, I think the top part is in the shape of a "U" downwards...so that each side goes on the side of the bottom plastic...if you know what i mean...that means it's not an easy fix...now I think I actually have to take off the WHOLE DASH ??

Has anyone got that creaking noise ? I knew it was coming from there after reading someones comments here and applying pressure next to my transmission stick plastic trim...and there was the cracking noise... I don't know if I want to take the WHOLE dash off without any instructions :S kinda scared after having the car for a month...

Any input would be greatly appreciated...


OH...on another note... i was driving today for a nice Sunday drive...and with the music off, i can hear a VERY VERY fade rattle sound from my cluster somewhere...it's like rubbing, but as soon as I applied just a little bit of pressure on the top part of the dash, it would stop,,,is that the missing screw recall thing ??
Is there ONE quick fix to have ALL the rattles gone ? oh...wait...yes...sell the car and buy another one ! LOL jk jk I love my car, after owning my 2000 jetta, i thought they would be of same quality...i thought wrong...

[txavier]

Hey guys, there was this rattle that seemed to be coming from in or around my glovebox.

It was driving me absolutely out of my mind. The rattle, ive never experienced anything like it before. It was almost as if it was boring into my mind.

I was to the point of trading the car in because of this when I happened upon my solution. I got out of the car and put some change into a parking meter near my home, I used the last quarter I had in my glovebox. When I got in the car and started to drive I noticed something was missing. The next day as I was driving and it hit me, THE RATTLE WAS GONE. Apparently the coins in the coin holder rattle when the car moves, the rattle seems to echo and amplify on the materials used for the glovebox. Making the rattle hard to spot and loud enough for me to totally overlook the coins in the glovebox as the solution.

I thought this was just me but a friend of mine across the country happened to tell me about a noise problem and I asked him if he had any coins in his glovebox. Viola, that was it. I joined the forum just to let you guys know. You may have some other cause for your rattling, but you might as well give this a try. If it is as upsetting to you as it was to me, try this out. Because if you think about it, really what do you have to lose?

--2012 Jetta

[whiplash willy]

I am trying to fix the Snapping/Cracking from the Head Unit Area, but have been unsuccessful. Can someone who has fixed this please help me out? Here is what I have done so far:

I put a heavy felt pad under the radio/nav unit

I put felt tape in the following areas, between the NAV and HVAC mount tabs and the dashboard where they mount. (See Pics With Red Circles) Note: you can see the white felt tape peeking out from the HVAC mounts. The felt tape for the NAV unit is the same.



I also put some felt tape on the back of the trim that goes around the NAV and HVAC controls. (See Red Circles)



So far it hasn't seemed to help at all. Any suggestions or tips would be greatly appreciated!

[Verebs1]

I am trying to fix the Snapping/Cracking from the Head Unit Area, but have been unsuccessful. Can someone who has fixed this please help me out? Here is what I have done so far:

I put a heavy felt pad under the radio/nav unit

I put felt tape in the following areas, between the NAV and HVAC mount tabs and the dashboard where they mount. (See Pics With Red Circles) Note: you can see the white felt tape peeking out from the HVAC mounts. The felt tape for the NAV unit is the same.



I also put some felt tape on the back of the trim that goes around the NAV and HVAC controls. (See Red Circles)


So far it hasn't seemed to help at all. Any suggestions or tips would be greatly appreciated!

Did you drive without the trim on? I think it may be your trim or at least in my case. It would appear that the dealer broke one of the metal clips and some of the others are loose.