subwoofer rattle

[IRSmart]

someone on here before said that they had a solution for the rattle coming from the subwoofer when the sound is turned way up. something to do with the seatbelt tensioner?

[Shecky]

that can be one of the rattles, but the more likely cause is the entire sub becoming loose. its 3 bolts you have to remove the rear panel, i stuffed an old t-shirt behind it and bolted it back into place.

[IRSmart]

are there any how-to's on removing that panel? my service department really didn't have anything...they just know lol

[lochinprc]

I have had the seat belt out and tried all kinds of things but it still rattled, the seat belt has an axle piece that moves (vibrates) with the subwoofer, maybe cause its about 5cm away from the sub box lol... I couldnt make it stop so I stuck lots of closed-cell foam in the empty spaces around the seat belt tensioner, (above the subwoofer box behind the panels) making sure not to hinder the moving parts, and that reduced the level of the rattle significantly.

[Jo3y]

My rattle comes from the 2 back speakers in the hatchback... the ones that you can unclip from the hatchback & they pop out. I do have 2 12" subs pushing bass through it but it might help you on takin out some rattle! My solution is to put the foamy things they put in packages or the bubble wrapping... So then no space is between the hatchback & the speakers!

[giantsnation]

Any DIY for removing the paneling around the subwoofer?

[lochinprc]

Didnt make a DIY of the removal cause its not that complicated, at least on the 09. There are a few clips on the top and bottom panels, from memory you will have to remove the bottom first (all the way to the passenger door). Use a flat (plastic) object to lever the panel at the clip points. There are screws too.

[giantsnation]

Alright, I'll take a closer look at this tonight. I have some left over dynamat that should help quiet the rattle.

[jeepney_driver]

I have been hunting sources of noise on my 07 Compass. Here's what I found:
Subwoofer area: The swivel mount for the seatbelt will vibrate when volume is turned up. Apply silicone rtv around the bolt and the belt swivel, careful not to apply silicone to the belt itself. There are two swivels on the right passenger side. Make sure you apply rtv to both.
The plastic surround for the porthole (2 pcs) have protrusions that contact the sheet metal. They have gaps and they rattle. Solution - apply silicone rtv to the protrusions that make contact to the metal. Don't worry. Silicone RTV is removable but is an excellent adhesive. Easy to clean and remove when dry and it never hardens. Remains pliable for 50 years. If you have dynamat, put some on inside the surface of the plastic panels... the black lower panel and the two off white panels (upper). Apply rtv to the edges of the black panel which is on the lowest side (found next to the spare tire)

Please note: The subwoofer itself is well built and mounted well. It usually does not produce the unbearable noise.

Doors: The metal links for the handle and lock vibrate in its guide. I removed mine from the guides and applied a 3 sq in dynamat so the links will rest on it.
There is a small plastic protrusion that is loose in each door... kind of light yellowish in color. They make noise. Again rtv fixed it. The plastic push lock itself makes noise being a little bit loose in its guide. Apply some peanut oil ( do not use if you are allergic to peanuts) . Apply dynamating to the inside of the door panels and also on the inside plastic surfaces of the panels. Also behind the door speakers. I did all these and now my sound system sounds much much better even without changing or upgrading the speakers (although I plan to upgrade the tailgate speakers soon) In fact if you upgrade your speakers and did not do these things your noises will be worse! To find vibrations and noise sources simply bang on the panels with your palm. If there is something loose you will hear it.

[giantsnation]

Good suggestion on the seat belt tensioner in the subwoofer area. I agree that the subwoofer is well built and does not rattle. Actually, I have proven that the mechanism inside the seat belt tensioner is main cause. How did I do this? A friend and I took the removed seat belt tensioner when we applyied dynamat. Without it, the sub sounds fantastic! To fix this we added dynamat to the back of the plastic cover (the piece that covers the sheet metal and the tensioner). That seems to have done the trick!