I have a 2010 Lexus RX 350 with 27K on the odometer. Since around the 15K mile mark I've been dealing with rear seat rattles, and that's a nice way of putting it. When I drive over the wonderfully pocked marked roads of Los Angeles, the rear seats vibrate, rattle and clang as if they are coming apart. I replicated the noise for the service guys at my local dealer (Jim Falk Lexus). To their credit they replaced the track locating pins on the rear seats.

Unfortunately, that made things worse. The car rattles and clangs more than before. It has gotten so bad that I am considering selling a car which I bought outright just 2 years ago. Has anyone had a similar experience?

By the way, I have already ruled out common sources of rattle complaints like the trunk cover.

Your suggestions are appreciated.

 

There should be a way to trace the rattle, it not that big of a area.

Is it the metal seat belt buckles?

My 2012 have packets built in the side of the seat backs just for that purpose.

 

Put the seat belt clip in front of the seat and recline the seat a notch or two. See if that helps.

 

Neah, sounds like it's easier for the dealership to "replace the track locating pins"

 

When you put the rear seats down, you will notice that you can put down just the right or left side. When the seats are up there is a piece/rod of metal near to top of the seat that goes into the other seat back and fastens into place. I believe that since this piece is metal and is clamped into another metal object that they can rattle when the seats move around when you hit road imperfections. I wrapped this piece/rod in electrical tape (or Gorilla tape) and that took out one rattle in my car.

Another source of rattles is the doors. Specifically, where the doors clamp shut on the U shaped bracket that holds them shut. I wrapped one layer of Gorilla tape on the U bracket on all four doors. The doors on the car are large and there is body flex causing this problem when you hit road imperfections.

The rear package cover is another possibility. Since it is removable, just take it out and see if the noise goes away. While you are at it, pull out the little companion shelf on the back window. Once you find the problem you can put these back one at a time. But, debugging the problem with them in the car is a problem because they could be a possible source of problems.

One final suggestion. If you can, take a patient and younger person with good hearing with you. They can be in the back seat or even in the trunk while you drive over a consistent test course you have mapped out. It won't take long to start isolating problems. My daughter and I have spent several hours out isolating and correcting every sound in my 450h.

Sometimes it is easier to just remove items and see if the noise is gone ... I have not tried to remove the back seat ... but, if I had an annoying noise I would consider it. Just to isolate it. If you know for certain where the noise is originating, then you can start modifying/replacing the components.

One other thing I noticed is that you can get more rattles/noises if the center arm rest is down in the back. So do your tests with it up and in place. That was a disappointment to me because I like the way it looks down ... but the design was not good enough to leave it down all the time.

As you remove problems, you will probably notice new issues as the car gets quieter and quieter.

 

I get the occasional rattling and vibration of the rear seats that you mentioned. This occurs sometimes when I've put one of the seatbacks down, and then put it back up. I usually go back and adjust the angle of the seatback a little, and that seams to make the problem go away.

 

UCSB, good approach and final comments " As you remove problems, you will probably notice new issues as the car gets quieter and quieter "
However, mine 2010 450h does not produce any rattles or noises except when seat belt metallic part is not correctly repositioned or any thing with moving parts moving when the car is in motion.

However sometimes, and for all kind of premium vehicles, there should be one car from the production chains experiencing some nasty inconveniences or troubles.

 

My rattle turned out to be that piece that attaches to the hatch. The piece didn't exist on the 2nd version or my 400h. Apparently mine wasn't in tight.

 

i have the same problem with my 2011 RX350. The moulding around the drivers side window was rattling terribly. they fixed it after 3 attempts and noticed a rattle in the seat belt housing. They claim to have fixed but it's worse that ever.

 

Read my comments about the doors and their attachment point above. That sound will appear to come from the seat belt retract area, but it is really the door clamp.

 

I have noticed that the headrests will rattle if they are not all the way down and no one in the seats.

 

[QUOTE=UCSB;7007067]...My daughter and I have spent several hours out isolating and correcting every sound in my 450h....QUOTE]

I don't understand why we spending our time on fixing rattles in >$50K vehicles-my former 5 y. o. LR2 and 4 y.o. XC90 did not have anything like my new RX, and our Q5 has very little rattle from its sunroof. The plastic Toyota uses in the RX is not as good as in euro vehicles; I only hope that everything else is bettter quality ...time will tell.

 

[quote=m1964;7366556]Toyota quality seems to be dropping every year, my 06 RX was much better quality than my 08 and my 08 was so much better than the 10 that I have now (rattles inside the steering wheel, rattles in the back seat, suspension squeaks, crazy radio that changes and turns on and off by itself, weird flash of light after turning off the car, etc etc). I have to agree with you with the European quality is the only one that seems to be consistent, I will be looking into a MB ML or a Audi Q7 as my next SUV.

 

I’m not sure if the rattling noise is due to poor material quality or poor design, but my new RX rattles quite a bit and it is definitely bothersome. I never had this issue with the beemer that I traded in.

However, if given the opportunity to go back in time, I would still purchase the Lexus for its superior reliability as my intention is to keep the vehicle beyond warranty period. IMO, European cars are ideal for lease or short term ownership only as maintenance becomes way too pricy and frequent once you pass the 4-5yr mark. Extended warranty is a must with these vehicles.

 

Very strange what you say because my 2010 RX 450h does not produce any rattle. Nothing, pure silence. Sorry for you maybe Ti fix this with a spray containing a greasy product where there are some metal parts and movements.