A real world range video in 3-9°C dry weather & further thoughts.
Great video Mike !.
At only 2 mins into your video, my ears locked into the "Creaky Dash Board" noise when you where travelling across any uneven ground.
It was more evident when you where travelling slowly over that hardcore covered car park.
I kept waiting and waiting for you to make a comment about it.
Sure enough, you where right on top of the issue in your presentation.
Mine ( like many many others I suspect ) has the same problem.
I started within about 2 - 3 weeks of having the car.
The creaking can be heard from BOTH sides of the dash board ( but at different times ) giving the impression it is emulating from the inside of the car.
But thanks to brilliant detective work by
@Flyingstoo .
He has already tracked down the culprit of this problem.
If you are in anyway remotely interested, in knowing what causes this issue, then read on.
Right, if you stand directly where the drivers door meets the O/S/F wing panel.
O.B.T.W. - This test works on either side just for the record.
Now, focus your gaze both slightly down and then towards the area where the front wiper are sitting against the wind screen, got it !.
Right, there is a metal body coloured panel ( white in your case Mike ) that has a row of slots, running in a front to back direction.
This body coloured panel, is the air intake for the heater ( hence the slots ) and it usually provides access to the wiper motor and it's mechanism as well as a rule.
You can see that this panel runs right across the width of the car and at the point closest to the glass, you will see that this panel has a black rubber gasket fitted to it.
Now, if you push down hard with your fingers on this rubber gasket and listen carefully.
Bingo - you should be able to reproduce that very same tight creaking noise that you can hear inside of the car, it does it on my car 100% for sure !.
And you are only able to apply force in a very small area with the pressure of your fingers.
Remember this long gasket is in constant contact with the entire bottom edge of the glass wind screen, so at any point of movement or deflection you are going to get that creaking noise.
I think this is why it is easy to be fooled into believe the noise is coming from INSIDE of the car !.
@Flyingstoo has been able to remove the fastener's that secure this panel and carefully apply a film of silicone grease to the seal and replace the panel.
He reported an instant fix to the problem, a fantastic proof of concept to a problem most owners will either have already or may encounter at some time in the life of their ownership, I have little doubt about this.
This info provided by
@Flyingstoo is really really useful.
If you intend to ask your dealer to investigate this annoying problem, I suggest you make them aware of these facts.
Nothing worse than having the car at the dealership all day, then to be told :-
"Sorry Sir, we was able to locate / replicate your complaint on this occasion, you will have to bring it back for further investigations" - or in other words, they haven't touched it !.
Even worse, they misdiagnose where the noise is coming from and then proceed to pull apart some of interior trim ( that never get refitted properly ) in an attempt to fix the problem, which it does not of course.
Now you have rattles in places you never had before, because the interior trim clips have been broken in the disassemble process.
As a long retired tech, I absolutely HATE taking my car into the dealer.
I fully intend to rectify the issue myself if at all possible.
We are not making a 120 mile ish round trip and waste a day hanging around, to be told they could not find the fault !.
I understand how the system works ( or not ) in these maters.
Sorry members, long rant now over - phew !.
