caha14

Hi guys, I have done a search for this and haven't found much.

When I'm driving my '04 GX (9700G build) alone, the passenger seat vibrates and makes a slight (but very annoying) rattling noise, particularly on bumpy roads. I can also replicate the sound by lightly tapping the side of the back rest on that seat when the car is parked. Basically, all it takes is some vibration of the seat to hear this noise. All is quiet when there's a passenger in front.

I'd appreciate any feedback you may have if you've experienced this. The seat vibration appears normal; it's just the noise that kills me.

Thanks in advance!

StevenS

I think I don't have a rattle in the front passenger seat, but I definitely have a squiking seat in the rear. It drives me crazy sometimes. Several times I tried to lubricate it in place where it is attach.
The sound disappear for some time, then comeback. I would appreciate if someone can give some advise. Of course I can go to the dealer for the fix, but first of all, it takes time I don't have,
second - dealer will not always fix it permanently.

tetra7

I have the same problem...it comes from the latch mechanism under the seat. If you pay very close attention to the mechanism, you will notice the following:
1) The rubber stop on the bottom of the seat compresses against the bottom matting (pay attention here)
2) The inside of the metal latch engages to the metal bolt.
3) I think the engineers originally thought that the rubber stop (from 1) would not compress enough to cause play between the metal latch and the metal bolt, but it does.

This is where the rattling noise comes from...it drove me nuts trying to find this. The first time the techs tried putting felt tape across the bolt...worked for a bit until you had to actually use the cargo area and lift the seats. This would rip the felt tape up and you are back to items 2 & 3. Besides, DO NOT USE THE FELT TAPE METHOD...it just screws up the latch mechanism and makes it a PITA to disengage the latch. I will have to remove the tech's botched job eventually. Rather, do the following to prove this is the problem. Take a soft cloth and fold it several times and place it under the area where the rubber stop hits the carpet...I did this and the rattles have stopped for now. Very ghetto for a premium vehicle IMO...

caha14

Interesting... I don't have this one. The only one I had in the back seat was from leather rubbing against leather (thanks to the 60/40 seat). Leather conditioner took care of it.

For your problem, all you need is enough preload on the rubber stop so that the latch is nice and tight, as you found out by putting cloth there. A cleaner way to achieve this, since the cloth bothers you (as it would bother me!), is to put foam tape on the rubber stop. Use the kind that's self-adhering on one side. This will, effectively, "enlarge" the rubber stop, and you won't even notice it like you do the cloth on the carpet.

Any thoughts on the front seat, anybody!?

CdeFabio

My dealer said the sound comes from the leather between the 2 rear seats. They suggested to use leather conditioner between the seats very often, which I have done with some success. But the sounds come back and it is not a permanent fix. Although it does help for a short time.