IsraelRX

Hi all,
When driving my 2000 RX300 over broken roads, it produces an irritating sound from the top of the dashboard where the air to front windsheid (defogger) comes out.
Any suggestions?

parula

IRX, what sort of sound?

My '99 had a LOT of rattles from the top of the dash, seem to be mostly fixed in the '03.

ederny

Is, this is a tough problem because it could range from something that accedently droped down in the air vent to somthhing that came lose in the dash. Even a repair that was poorly done. Without a lot of disassembly you may never find it.- It's not the glove box, is it ??

IsraelRX

No its not the glove box, I think its the air vent to the front windshiel that is a bit loose, well what can you do.
anyways thanks.

parula

Ederny, how did you make out with your Gbox?

Did it rattle, hopefully not as much as mine, they never did fix it right?

ederny

Yes, the glove box is all better. Thanks for your help and input on that. The closing is still a bit hard. That is to get the latch to catch the first time. The 300 is pretty tight now at 62kmiles!

parula

Ed, FWIW, I noticed on repairs of the GBOX ( and there were several repairs on my '99) they finally seemed to replace the catch hook that is attached to the upper part of the dash that catches the GBOX door. On that hook is a piece of TOUGH plastic that seems to cushion the latch of the door.

I noticed after one of the repairs that worked somewhat on the rattles that that piece of plastic was wider (the GBOX still rattled from somewhere) and the rattling was lessened. I presume that the plastic cushion is to tighten the door. Perhaps your is too tight?? But if you've fixed the rattles, stick with it!

ederny

I've noticed that plastic piece (kind of tubing about a 1/4" long. was concerned it might wear out/break to pieces and then things would start ratteling again. I'll keep an eye on it.

BTW, do you really run 38psi? Doesn't that promote rattles/

parula

EDY, I thought the same thing about the plastic piece but traded the car before it could deteriorate! It seems like a VERY tough plastic so hopefully it will last, same on the '03.

Yea, I like the firmer ride of 38, I find that after a while ~5-10k the tires soften and the ride gets a little lighter, much like breaking in a new mattress; then the firmer ride is just right, for me. Even if I rode on 32 I think over time I would raise the pressure a bit each year as the tires seem to soften up over time and I think this car needs a firmer tire. I like quiet rides though so I won't move to the more aggressive treaded tires.

In winter, just when snow is on the road, I always reduce the pressure to 30 or lower depending on the amount of snow on the road to get better grip, at 26-28 the car will go through almost anything. Once to get out of the driveway I went to low 20's, almost like beach driving and she went right out!

ederny

Interesting. I run mine at 32 in the summer and would probably go higher to get a better handling vehicle but the roads up here are so crappy I can't take it. Lower pressure for the snow is a good trick to keep in mind for ereryone in the north. Winter, I am often down to 28 just to soften up the ride on the 5 deg days when the rubber is stiff and the shocks are nearly frozen.

parula

IRX, if you bought the car from a dealer and it is under warranty they should fix it. Either way, I would stuff an end of a rag in the area where the noise is and try to isolate it. You might be able to locate it and secure the loose item yourself or at least put someone in the shop right on the problem. I have been able to do that several times on my '99 (there were lots of opportunities on that car. )

Ederny, the '99 was more stifly suspended than the '03, they changed something to give the car a softer ride, I can go over the same bumps in this car that evoked various buzzy rattles in the '99 that don't or barely do in the '03. The roads here are actually quite good and on all but a few it hasn't been a problem and I like the firmer handing of the 38, easier turning, etc. And best is I haven't heard a thing from the Gbox! FINALLY

nodefect

I had the same problem and they replaced some clips and added some foam in the dash.

gcrim21

My 99 RX300 is notorious for rattles. But every Toyota product we have owned has had rattles.
Nevertheless, I still can't stand them. Years ago people used to complain about Ford vehicles rattling. However, I have owned twelve Ford cars and pickups through the years and none of them rattled as much as the Toyotas, (Camry, 2 Avalons, 4Runner, and 99 Lexus RX300), has rattled. I hate like heck to pay the kind of money these things costs and have irritating rattles. I'll be glad if Toyota/Lexus gets their act together and eliminates rattles. Why is it such a problem to manufacture a vehicle without rattles? After building millions of vehicles, it looks like they could get it right!

JRB

You obviously must like Toyota products for their other qualities, otherwise you wouldn't keep buying all of these cars with rattles in them! Just curious, is it your experience that they developed rattles over time, or were they typically plagued with rattles when they were pretty new?

parula

JRB, jumping in here, I will add that I too along with gc find the number of rattles and buzzy sounds, well, disconcerting in such an expensive car. This may be particularly due to the stiffer suspension than standard sedans, but then perhaps extra measures need to be taken to clean up the issues as people see/hear them.

I have noticed the same rattles when both of my Lexus cars were new , it is difficult to tell if they multiply but they don't seem to. I believe they are the same issues, some the same in both cars, that if fixed would reveal a wonderfully quiet ride, notwithstanding front windshield wind noise in my opinion. Frankly I think L:exus has done such a GREAT job quieting the car chassis that the normal rattles and such are just more annoyingly noticable, but then maybe those should be looked at, I don't know.