Strange Rattling Noise From Dashboard

[agboifo]

Hi all,

This is my first post so pardon any newbie errors:

I bought a used 2014 Toyota Camry car (SE) bought 12 days ago. Although Autocheck VIN gave it 93, after paying for it, I notice that the right side passenger airbag deployed already and the windows glass on that side had been replaced. Other than that, it looks and works perfect.

However a few days ago, I started to notice a rattling noise in the dashboard. When I drive it seems to be on the right of the dashboard, but when I ride on the passenger side, I hear it on the left. I don't think it's the suspension as it seems focused on the dashboard area. Any ideas please? Thank you.

[Red Yaris 54]

Most rattles on Toyotas can be traced to something that the owner has put in either the glove box or door bins.

Other sources of rattles can be seat belt catches in the unused seat rattling against the interior bodywork......Suprisingly this is sometimes difficult to trace which side

Hope this helps

[Owen1]

Had something simular once... was driving me crazy!

[agboifo]

So I took it to the garage. They checked everything. It is not the wheel and it is nothing "mechanical". It's a "no man's land". The person at the garage told me not to worry about it, and that unless it gets worse I should wait until the car is due for service.

I couldn't wait. I started to hear the noise again around the right side door. I took it back. He opened the inside of the door and found loose clips. He fixed those. The noise 'apparently' stopped, but I rejoiced too soon because it soon returned.

It continued, still seeming to come from around the dashboard. The weirdest thing is that when driving I can swear it's coming from the right side of the dashboard but I ride passenger it is on the left. When driving and I lean towards the passenger side, the source of noise shifts to the left...

Yesterday I made an interesting observation. The noise had been rattling continuously but after leaving the car in the sun for about 3 hours, the noise disappeared completely... for several hours. It came back in the evening, leading me to the following hypothesis. There's something plastic and loose inside the dashboard area. When the weather is hot it expands and fills up any spaces around it, and when the weather cools down, it rattles around some empty spaces. It may not make sense but I can't think of anything else.

It is driving me crazy.

Today, the car has gone back to the garage. They will look inside the dashboard area.

[agboifo]

OK. So they took apart the entire dashboard and found (like in the right door) many loose clips. I drove the car to work today. The noise has gone! For now...

[aldrin]

I got a 2014 camry with a plastic sounding rattle coming from the dash. Already spent a 100 dollars so far. Not happy. 

Ag

[agboifo]

Sorry I'm only just updating this post.  I write in case it's useful to someone.  I felt very stupid when I found out the cause of the rattling noise.  It was caused by my sun glasses in the overhead case (near the sunscreen shield) - you know that space between the driver's and the front passenger's sunscreen.  Now isn't that silly?

Hope this helps save someone else from freaking out.

[agboifo]

On 2/27/2015 at 10:21 AM, Red Yaris 54 said:

Most rattles on Toyotas can be traced to something that the owner has put in either the glove box or door bins.

Other sources of rattles can be seat belt catches in the unused seat rattling against the interior bodywork......Suprisingly this is sometimes difficult to trace which side

Hope this helps

Very correct.  These two (content in box) and seat belt catch are the only sources of rattles I have had since I bought this car.

[coolwaters]

The same thing happened to me. The sound was caused by fuel lines under my truck that were vibrating against the chassis. 

[kayakbuddie]

This sound is not in the cup holder nor the sunglass holder nor the seat belts  - this sound is in the dash.  It makes a couple different sounds, some times it sounds like something is sliding most of the time it sounds like a rattle but it is never all the time.  It only happens traveling over 60 MPH and road condition has nothing to do with it at all - for example going down the interstate - quietly then it makes a noise, then nothing for an hour then several rattles or the sliding sound.  I have turned off the fan blower motor  - still makes the noise, so that ruled out the fan on the blower for AC,  so what is this noise.  Until last week this car has been perfect and BTW has less than 50K miles on the car....so this is not favorable for Toyota..

[Pinerozin]

Did you ever find what was causing the noise? I have a 2016 Camry SE doesn’t match my strange popping unusual noise over 45 mph in the center Dash console thought it might be the CV joints but I can’t figure it out.