Nasty rattle...

[Alex]

The backer rod should arrive Wednesday. I'll let you know. Aside from the rattle I love my Ranger.

Same, my ranger has been great so far. Just the rattle is quite annoying especially on a new vehicle. I have added a second nine inch long cut of the one inch backer rod in front of the original one (since you get a good 10 feet per bag).

I have attached a very crude side view drawing of this change (sorry for spelling error .)

It keeps the backer rod more secure since it has something to back up against, and keep it in place. I used one of those inspection cameras to see behind the dash to make sure i wouldn't break anything. i could see circuit boards and electronics a good 2.5 - 3 inches in the cavity, but before that there are two plastic standoffs/ramps that support the dash about three inches in from both sides of the nine inch baker. I am not too sure where everything lines up when the backer rod is in there since you can't get a ruler or camera back there to see.

I will add to this thread after a few days of driving with the extra backer in it. I will see if it quiets the rattle even more, or it damages anything.

The extra backer defiantly made the area over the gauges even more rigid, pushing down on the weak part of the dash over the gauge cluster required much more effort to see under the defrost bezel.

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[TrebMaxx]

OK, I have started to experience the rattle when using the defroster as winter sets in. I think this needs to be a TSB and Ford should take care of this. If not I will get something to cushion the defroster vents since that is where the vibration is coming from.

 

[Alex]

OK, I have started to experience the rattle when using the defroster as winter sets in. I think this needs to be a TSB and Ford should take care of this. If not I will get something to cushion the defroster vents since that is where the vibration is coming from.

I wouldn't think it would end up being a TSB, since they would have to replace the entire top part of the dash with one that has a receptacle to push in the last V clip. Maybe they will find a different solution, if you hear anything or see anything from Ford about this issue let us know. I have tired the foam under the defrost bezel, it works but, it pushes up the bezel enough to see underneath it while driving. If you try a few different types of foam you might get lucky and find one that works, I wasn't able to have much success.

 

[Alex]

I did one last check and I think the double foam backer rod worked the best, no rattle or problems to report and everything stayed in place for me. I just hope I haven't worn out the clips and holders too much by taking the defrost bezel on and off multiple times.
Hope this helps anyone with this similar issue.
I will reply to this thread if a problem arises.

 

[stangertwc]

I found my dash rattle - mine is coming from the alert led lights at the edge of the dash near the windshield- there is a trim piece which I can actually now shake back and fourth which i think is odd at 777 miles of light use thus far - with that and the buzz of the fuel injectors is a bit aggravating

I still LOVE this truck thoough

 

[Alex]

I found my dash rattle - mine is coming from the alert led lights at the edge of the dash near the windshield- there is a trim piece which I can actually now shake back and fourth which i think is odd at 777 miles of light use thus far - with that and the buzz of the fuel injectors is a bit aggravating

I still LOVE this truck thoough

This bezel seems to be causing all sorts of rattles. If you find a fix for the rattle with the alert led bezel in it, let us know.
I hope Ford fixes this issue in the next generation of Rangers.

 

[SpaceRanger]

So. Any fix yet? Alex, how's your backer rod holding up? Didn't you say that adding this made the dash bulge up enough to where you can see it?

 

[David J Appel]

I have the dash rattle after the windshield defroster has been running hot for 15 minutes. It goes away when I turn off the defroster. The heat must me warping the panel allowing it to rattle. To be honest the cabin has a lot of rattles. Can’t find the one coming from the back seats. Not happy. The truck is brand new. Too many rattles. I hope Ford fixes this.

 

[Alex]

So. Any fix yet? Alex, how's your backer rod holding up? Didn't you say that adding this made the dash bulge up enough to where you can see it?

Sorry for the late reply, the two backer rods under the dash have worked great for me. I almost forgot about this thread since my dash has stopped rattling. The dash bulging happens if you put the backer rod under the defrost bezel. This causes the defrost bezel to rise up over the dash by an eighth to a quarter of an inch, but it also stops the rattle.
I took a few more pics of my dash. The two backer rods cause the dash over the gauge cluster to rise a little, but since the dash is curved it is hardly noticeable.

I undid the bezel clips one last time to make sure the backer rods are still in place. Nothing has shifted as of today.
As long as you don't push the backer rods too far back into the dash, it should stop the rattle. The backer rods slip nicely under the lip of the dash, once the second one slips under the dash, there is no need to push the rods further back. I think I made a post in this thread a while back with a drawing of how I ended up making it work, and the dimensions I used for the backer rods.

Let me know if anyone else is successful with this. It has worked very well for me, and has been rattle free for over 2000 miles, but everyone's dash seems to be different. It may work for some and not for others.

 

[Alex]

One more update; I decided to add one more 1 inch backer rod making it 3 deep under the dash.

I will try the 3 rods under the dash for a while to see how they do (hopefully will help anyone that still has rattles with 2 rods under the dash). The 3 rods under the dash do cause the dash to bulge more, but the dash is curved so it isn't that noticeable. though it is more noticeable than the 2 rods under the dash.

 

[Alex]

So far no problems with the 3 rods, except making the dash bulge a little more. I think that is the max number of rods you can get under your dash. hopefully this helps anyone that still has rattles with only 2 rods under the dash.

 

[SpaceRanger]

So far no problems with the 3 rods, except making the dash bulge a little more. I think that is the max number of rods you can get under your dash. hopefully this helps anyone that still has rattles with only 2 rods under the dash.

So how long were each of the backer rods that you used? Were all three 1" in diameter?

Also, my truck needs to go to the dealer for other reasons and I'm curious as to what they will do for this? I wonder if they have any fixes in the work?

 

[David J Appel]

So how long were each of the backer rods that you used? Were all three 1" in diameter?

Also, my truck needs to go to the dealer for other reasons and I'm curious as to what they will do for this? I wonder if they have any fixes in the work?

Please let us know what the dealer says and does.

 

[Alex]

So how long were each of the backer rods that you used? Were all three 1" in diameter?

Also, my truck needs to go to the dealer for other reasons and I'm curious as to what they will do for this? I wonder if they have any fixes in the work?

All 3 backer rods are one inch in diameter by nine inches long. The nine inches is ruffly the distance between the dash brackets.
I circled one of the dash brackets below, the other bracket is off to the right still covered by the bezel.

let us know what your dealer says. When i brought my Ranger to my Ford dealer, I disassembled the bezel to show them where and why it was rattling. They snapped the bezel back down drove it down the road, and said they couldn't get it to rattle. When I called back and said the dash was still rattling, they said they could try to double sided tape it down. I didn't want tape on my new dash so i went this route.

Hope you have better luck at your dealer to fix this issue.

 

[Dan Kobler]

Just started noticing the rattle about a month ago. I am taking my vehicle in to the shop next week for the Recall and Rough Cold Start Shifting(that they didn't fix the first time I brought it in). I will bug them about this as well. I just put a small piece of plastic under the bezel so it props up the plastic and that stopped the rattle. But it looks stupid. I'll for sure try the Rod Solution if the dealer doesn't do anything. I'll make sure it gets reported to Ford as this is obviously and issue.

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