2004 Accord - Cabin rattles

I've got a 2004 Accord EX and I've been very happy with it except for
several "rattles" inside my cabin. Currently, the central console
rattles, the cover on the visor mirror rattles when the visor is down,
and the front passenger door has something going on as well. It's a
real symphony inside.

Have others had similar experiences? One reason I went from VW to
Honda is Honda's reputation of building solid cars. With all these
rattles, I'm not so sure anymore.

 

"Richard Hofer" wrote

Mine has rattles, too. Apparently this "feature" has become standard
equipment. Mine come and go - I have no idea why that is, so it makes them
even more difficult to diagnose and fix.

 

My 2004 Accord EX has started to develop a rattle that is coming from
somewhere on the passenger side. It's really noticeable in cold weather but
doesn't seem to be there all the time. Taken on a whole I feel my Honda is
pretty solidly built but I have definitely lost the illusion of perfection
from this and other minor problems with the car.

Richard

 

The present day version of the term "rattletrap"?

 

I don't have the 04, but my 03 does the same thing!

I even had the dealer keep it over night one time to have them try
to fix or at least figure out where the rattle is coming from, and
they got nothing fixed. It went away for a while after they removed
the panels in the rear (where the plastic from the roof hits the
rear windshield and the seatbelt retracter).

On occasion, I climb into the back seats and just start pushing
around on the plastic panels and the roof and I can feel it move
by a few cm and I would hear a few clicks here and there ...
sounds more like things were being snapped back into place.

 

It's standard on most new cars these days.

It has to do with cost-savings and you can expect it to get worse over the
years.

The interior is a very convenient and effective place for automakers to
achieve cost savings: It's subject to very few regulations, not subject to
the weather and is generally very lightly-stressed compared to other
components.

Honda's declared aim is to stuff all their cars with about 7 airbags, ABS
and other "safety" devices. That's an expensive desire. However, they can't
raise the selling price, so the interior will be sacrificed.

Better get used to it, or start spending more on higher-end cars.

 

My Accord 2004 with 4500 miles has a noise problem with my door,
window, overhead area - rattle­s and squeaks. This is my first Honda
and I don't know what to ex­pect. I noticed niose is reklated to the
temprature, unable to repeat any of it, or get ride of it.

 

My Accord EX 2004 developed the same set of rattles within 6 months
after purchasing. I put a lot of miles on my car (up to 37,000 after
13 months) and the rattle does not go away. The dealer could do
nothing. I learned to turn up the radio. The rattles and the
humongous posts on both side of the windshield are my only complaints
with my Honda.

 

Everything I have read affirms that the newer Hondas indeed are cheap pieces
of shit on the inside that rattle and squeak quite a bit. From my personal
experience my girlfriend bought an 04 Accord in August of 2004 and it has
rattled and squeaked since new. I have driven it quite a bit. It happens
at varying places. I notice it where the a pillar comes down to the
windshield/dash area. Also the noice above my left ear while driving comes
from about the upper door/seatbelt b pillar area. There is no pattern for
this noise except that if the road is bumpy then the noise will be present.
Temperature doesn't seem to matter.

When I worked at Ford one of my jobs was to diagnose noises and fix them.
The thing we did mostly was to remove trim pieces and install foam and or
cork tape on the pieces. This seemed to work 90% of the time. If it gets
too bad I will do the same on my g/f's car. There are some pieces that are
pretty much jammed up against each other on the new Accord and it shouldn't
be that way. Perhaps some trimming of pieces may be in order. I assure you
I will not waste my time taking the car to the dealership.

Due to the noise issue I am putting of purchasing a new Accord this year. I
will wait for a redesign. My 96 Accord is still going strong.

 

check for extra lose screws

 

It took my 2003 Accord 24 months to develop the squeaks, but now it
has them. Are you sure that this isn't something you ask the dealer
to look into under the warranty?

Ron

 

"Milleron" wrote

Yes, this is something you ask the dealer to fix under warranty. My dealer
has one guy who devotes his entire? time fixing rattles. OK, so he was
unsuccessful the first time... What was scary was he telling me that my car
(rattle-wise) was one of the better ones.

 

I wonder how long before Honda balks at reimbursing the dealers for such
work? Especially considering the ubiquity of rattles/buzzes/squeaks in
modern cars and how much those warranty claims are costing them.

Should that happen, the dealership will have to personally eat the cost of
the work, and they may start refusing to do it.

 

I have to agree with you...I was thinking about getting a new Accord
but will hold off because of the rattling. I hope Honda takes this
issue seriously and doesn't try to cut corners on the next generation
Accord. I think people are willing to pay a little extra money, be it
$100-200 to avoid problems like this from happening.


Nick

 

My '03 Accord has an annoying intermittent rattle somewhere in the radio
head unit. If apply pressure to the front cover it will usually go away,
until I let go. It also has a contestant annoying squeak that comes from
the stainless steel trim panel around the shifter. If I pull the trim panel
up a bit it will go away until the panel falls back into place.

If anybody has had success with any methods of quieting these annoyances
please let me know.

BTW: Having switched to Honda after many years of American brand ownership
(Chrysler and GM) I can tell you that these squeaks and rattles (while
annoying) are minor compared the constant and ever-present noise you would
hear from most American cars.

 

My '03 Accord has an annoying intermittent rattle somewhere in the radio
head unit. If apply pressure to the front cover it will usually go away,
until I let go. It also has a contestant annoying squeak that comes from
the stainless steel trim panel around the shifter. If I pull the trim panel
up a bit it will go away until the panel falls back into place.

If anybody has had success with any methods of quieting these annoyances
please let me know.

BTW: Having switched to Honda after many years of American brand ownership
(Chrysler and GM) I can tell you that these squeaks and rattles (while
annoying) are minor compared the constant and ever-present noise you would
hear from most American cars.

 

My '03 Accord has an annoying intermittent rattle somewhere in the radio
head unit. If apply pressure to the front cover it will usually go away,
until I let go. It also has a contestant annoying squeak that comes from
the stainless steel trim panel around the shifter. If I pull the trim panel
up a bit it will go away until the panel falls back into place.

If anybody has had success with any methods of quieting these annoyances
please let me know.

BTW: Having switched to Honda after many years of American brand ownership
(Chrysler and GM) I can tell you that these squeaks and rattles (while
annoying) are minor compared the constant and ever-present noise you would
hear from most American cars.

 

My '03 Accord has an annoying intermittent rattle somewhere in the radio
head unit. If apply pressure to the front cover it will usually go away,
until I let go. It also has a contestant annoying squeak that comes from
the stainless steel trim panel around the shifter. If I pull the trim panel
up a bit it will go away until the panel falls back into place.

If anybody has had success with any methods of quieting these annoyances
please let me know.

BTW: Having switched to Honda after many years of American brand ownership
(Chrysler and GM) I can tell you that these squeaks and rattles (while
annoying) are minor compared the constant and ever-present noise you would
hear from most American cars.

 

I had some luck pulling up the shifter trim plastic (it isn't really
stainless steel) and putting a small bit of foam rubber under it at the
front edge.

Other noises come and go constantly on my '03 Accord and I am very unhappy
about it. They have been there since the day I brought the car home and the
dealer has been completely useless about fixing them. The noises are
temperature sensitive and maddening.

From pulling a few bits apart I find that Honda didn't use insulating tape
or anything between the many snap together plastic pieces which make up the
dash assembly.

Cost cutting gone mad.

Maybe I will try Toyota next time.

John

 

Many newer Toyotas have interior rattles too. As has been pointed out
before, most if not all car manufacturers have been using hard plastics
for reasons pertaining to safety, economy and the environment. In other
words, don't blame the manufacturers; blame the governments.