Help me ID & solve the Most Annoying RATTLE
Today, 01:13 AM
#1
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Help me ID & solve the Most Annoying RATTLE
I'm not a frequent poster. If you search my posts, last thing I asked about was a noise that came from within the cabin, turned out to be something about the way in which the 2/3 rear seat latched onto its latch.
I have a new riddle, or better yet, a new RATTLE. This rattle comes from the outside, it is a not-too-loud, metal-on-metal noise, that I hear if I hit a small pothole, or a speed bump, or a manhole cover, small things like that. Most noticeable on the driver's side, windows down, at speeds between 25-50mph. Nothing structural or anything you'd feel in your steering feedback, it's just a tinny rattly clack-clack sound. VERY annoying because if you are outside the car it sounds like something's broken, but as a driver there's no real impact to steering or suspension performance. It's just THAT RATTLE.
I used to take the car to scheduled Ax and Bx maintenance visits at Mercedes Benz Manhattan, which MB proudly touts as "The Only Dealership In The United States Owned And Operated Directly By Mercedes Benz". They should be the best in the bizniz, shouldn't they?
The first (2) scheduled maintenance appointments that I brought up THE RATTLE, they told me "we were not able to reproduce the noise, there is nothing we can do". The third (3rd) time, I took one of their technicians out for a drive and make them familiarize themselves with THE RATTLE. They heard it too, and heard when it came up and when it didn't. They drove the car. A few days later I received a diagnostic - A shock tower and a control arm. I think to myself "OMG this will be costly, but it sounds like it makes sense". I decided to move forward with the service.
Few days later and a few thousand dollars lighter (I'm embarrassed to say), I pick up the car. After 5 or 6 quiet blocks, I hit a small pothole and CLACK-CLACK - CLACK-CLACK - the RATTLE is still there. I take the car back to MB of Manhattan, and ask for an actual "foreman" (a "real" mechanic, that's how they call them) to drive around with me. I drive around with him, who listens patiently to me and to THE RATTLE with an even-keeled demeanor.
This time around, MB of Manhattan tells me "most likely" it is something within the catalytic converter. They think there is a loose/degraded chunk of something within the Cat that is making that dreaded RATTLE. And of course replacing the Cat is a some thousand dollars more.
You would imagine that "The Only Dealership In The United States Owned And Operated Directly By Mercedes Benz" has a database of "known issues" for each platform, no?
What do you think this is, has anyone had anything like it in their W212?
I have a new riddle, or better yet, a new RATTLE. This rattle comes from the outside, it is a not-too-loud, metal-on-metal noise, that I hear if I hit a small pothole, or a speed bump, or a manhole cover, small things like that. Most noticeable on the driver's side, windows down, at speeds between 25-50mph. Nothing structural or anything you'd feel in your steering feedback, it's just a tinny rattly clack-clack sound. VERY annoying because if you are outside the car it sounds like something's broken, but as a driver there's no real impact to steering or suspension performance. It's just THAT RATTLE.
I used to take the car to scheduled Ax and Bx maintenance visits at Mercedes Benz Manhattan, which MB proudly touts as "The Only Dealership In The United States Owned And Operated Directly By Mercedes Benz". They should be the best in the bizniz, shouldn't they?
The first (2) scheduled maintenance appointments that I brought up THE RATTLE, they told me "we were not able to reproduce the noise, there is nothing we can do". The third (3rd) time, I took one of their technicians out for a drive and make them familiarize themselves with THE RATTLE. They heard it too, and heard when it came up and when it didn't. They drove the car. A few days later I received a diagnostic - A shock tower and a control arm. I think to myself "OMG this will be costly, but it sounds like it makes sense". I decided to move forward with the service.
Few days later and a few thousand dollars lighter (I'm embarrassed to say), I pick up the car. After 5 or 6 quiet blocks, I hit a small pothole and CLACK-CLACK - CLACK-CLACK - the RATTLE is still there. I take the car back to MB of Manhattan, and ask for an actual "foreman" (a "real" mechanic, that's how they call them) to drive around with me. I drive around with him, who listens patiently to me and to THE RATTLE with an even-keeled demeanor.
This time around, MB of Manhattan tells me "most likely" it is something within the catalytic converter. They think there is a loose/degraded chunk of something within the Cat that is making that dreaded RATTLE. And of course replacing the Cat is a some thousand dollars more.
You would imagine that "The Only Dealership In The United States Owned And Operated Directly By Mercedes Benz" has a database of "known issues" for each platform, no?
What do you think this is, has anyone had anything like it in their W212?
Today, 05:00 AM
#2
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you either have a tool down there, or some of the fasteners are missing on the splash pan
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OldManAndHisCar (Today)
Today, 10:36 AM
#4
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Cats do make a horrible rattle when they start to degrade. It's like someone is shaking a bunch of small rocks inside a tin can. If you can go under the car and hit the cat with a rubber hammer you can confirm if that is the noise source.
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pierrejoliat (Today)
Today, 11:24 AM
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I'm not a frequent poster. If you search my posts, last thing I asked about was a noise that came from within the cabin, turned out to be something about the way in which the 2/3 rear seat latched onto its latch.
I have a new riddle, or better yet, a new RATTLE. This rattle comes from the outside, it is a not-too-loud, metal-on-metal noise, that I hear if I hit a small pothole, or a speed bump, or a manhole cover, small things like that. Most noticeable on the driver's side, windows down, at speeds between 25-50mph. Nothing structural or anything you'd feel in your steering feedback, it's just a tinny rattly clack-clack sound. VERY annoying because if you are outside the car it sounds like something's broken, but as a driver there's no real impact to steering or suspension performance. It's just THAT RATTLE.
I used to take the car to scheduled Ax and Bx maintenance visits at Mercedes Benz Manhattan, which MB proudly touts as "The Only Dealership In The United States Owned And Operated Directly By Mercedes Benz". They should be the best in the bizniz, shouldn't they?
The first (2) scheduled maintenance appointments that I brought up THE RATTLE, they told me "we were not able to reproduce the noise, there is nothing we can do". The third (3rd) time, I took one of their technicians out for a drive and make them familiarize themselves with THE RATTLE. They heard it too, and heard when it came up and when it didn't. They drove the car. A few days later I received a diagnostic - A shock tower and a control arm. I think to myself "OMG this will be costly, but it sounds like it makes sense". I decided to move forward with the service.
Few days later and a few thousand dollars lighter (I'm embarrassed to say), I pick up the car. After 5 or 6 quiet blocks, I hit a small pothole and CLACK-CLACK - CLACK-CLACK - the RATTLE is still there. I take the car back to MB of Manhattan, and ask for an actual "foreman" (a "real" mechanic, that's how they call them) to drive around with me. I drive around with him, who listens patiently to me and to THE RATTLE with an even-keeled demeanor.
This time around, MB of Manhattan tells me "most likely" it is something within the catalytic converter. They think there is a loose/degraded chunk of something within the Cat that is making that dreaded RATTLE. And of course replacing the Cat is a some thousand dollars more.
You would imagine that "The Only Dealership In The United States Owned And Operated Directly By Mercedes Benz" has a database of "known issues" for each platform, no?
What do you think this is, has anyone had anything like it in their W212?
I have a new riddle, or better yet, a new RATTLE. This rattle comes from the outside, it is a not-too-loud, metal-on-metal noise, that I hear if I hit a small pothole, or a speed bump, or a manhole cover, small things like that. Most noticeable on the driver's side, windows down, at speeds between 25-50mph. Nothing structural or anything you'd feel in your steering feedback, it's just a tinny rattly clack-clack sound. VERY annoying because if you are outside the car it sounds like something's broken, but as a driver there's no real impact to steering or suspension performance. It's just THAT RATTLE.
I used to take the car to scheduled Ax and Bx maintenance visits at Mercedes Benz Manhattan, which MB proudly touts as "The Only Dealership In The United States Owned And Operated Directly By Mercedes Benz". They should be the best in the bizniz, shouldn't they?
The first (2) scheduled maintenance appointments that I brought up THE RATTLE, they told me "we were not able to reproduce the noise, there is nothing we can do". The third (3rd) time, I took one of their technicians out for a drive and make them familiarize themselves with THE RATTLE. They heard it too, and heard when it came up and when it didn't. They drove the car. A few days later I received a diagnostic - A shock tower and a control arm. I think to myself "OMG this will be costly, but it sounds like it makes sense". I decided to move forward with the service.
Few days later and a few thousand dollars lighter (I'm embarrassed to say), I pick up the car. After 5 or 6 quiet blocks, I hit a small pothole and CLACK-CLACK - CLACK-CLACK - the RATTLE is still there. I take the car back to MB of Manhattan, and ask for an actual "foreman" (a "real" mechanic, that's how they call them) to drive around with me. I drive around with him, who listens patiently to me and to THE RATTLE with an even-keeled demeanor.
This time around, MB of Manhattan tells me "most likely" it is something within the catalytic converter. They think there is a loose/degraded chunk of something within the Cat that is making that dreaded RATTLE. And of course replacing the Cat is a some thousand dollars more.
You would imagine that "The Only Dealership In The United States Owned And Operated Directly By Mercedes Benz" has a database of "known issues" for each platform, no?
What do you think this is, has anyone had anything like it in their W212?
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CaliBenzDriver (Today)
