Stuntin' 101

well, after driving around on a lowered car, with this, that, and the other things on it, along with 18's and a 40 series tire in nyc for a few years, my car had developed alot of rattles.. the 2 12's pounding away in the car im sure hasnt helped. im sure alot of you guys know what im talking about. since my car has decided to declare psychological warfare on me, i have made a point to hunt down every individual noise in the car and eliminate it. so far ive made real progress. ive located alot of things that were the cause, and did whatever i could to get rid of them. just about every noise in the front of my car is now gone.

i was having issues with my two front doors, i guess cause they have been used so much. they were a significant contributer to my problems. so i decided to finally do something about it.

i took off both door panels, and tightened every bolt and screw i could find. one of the nuts that hold the exterior door handles on was halfway off, and it took me about 20 minutes to find out what the hell was causing that one noise. to eliminate every other little noise radiating from the doors, i bought 1/2" green foam sheets from a craft store, and heavy duty spray adhesive. i sprayed the back of each door panel with adhesive, and molded the foam to the back of both door panels going inside every indent and over every protrusion. cut out the oppropiate openings for the window switches, speakers and what-not, and made sure the foam sheets were as tight and close to every part of the panels as i could get them. when i put them back on, the door panel clips would no longer reach the holes, so i just used the top track, (had to bang it down with my fist to compress the foam sheet in it), armrest cup, and the bottom screws to hold it on.. it was a bit of a fight, but worked out fine. the foam presses against every moving part for the door locks, and keeps the thin inner door skins from vibrating. now, when i close the doors, they close with a solid thump, like it was a new car, and they are 100% noise free when i drive. Also, the inside of the car has become more quiet with the added insulation. the edges of the door panel itself doesnt not sit flush up against the metal door skin anymore, but that doesnt bother me one bit since you can even see it, and dont even notice it getting in and out of the car. if i wanted, i could just put a few screws in them to pull them in tight, and just use those black plastic caps to hide the screws. (i have black leather).
this has eliminated alot of stress while im driving, and the rear deck is next on the hit list. after that, ill be installing the warp speed sub frame connectors. im sure that will eliminate all the noises from the leather rubbing against things, and whatever other noises and rattles that are caused from the cabin being slightly twisted. but like i said, the doors made a big difference.

dmbmaxima2k2

iTrader: (1)

good job. it's a pain to get rid of all the noises in your doors ect.... did you take any pictures?? you should post them

pavelsmax

iTrader: (12)

god i need to do this soo bad... except my front doors arent the cause of the problem its this one noise i hear when i hit a bump over my right shoulder and i cant pinpoint it... i need to have someone else drive around while im in the back seat i guess to find it... what are your plans for the rear deck??

Irish

iTrader: (3)

good work, i think i got lucky cause i dont have any rattles, that or i just dont pay attention to them. but i dont hear any

Stuntin' 101

sorry i didnt take any pics, its pretty much straght foward though.. for the rear deck, im gonna pull it off, and do the same thing. it'll be much easier though, cause its flat. no crevices and corners to make the foam padding dip into. ill just use the deck as a template. ill spray the whole bottom of it with adhesive, lay it onto the pad, let it stick, and then just cut the foam around the edges. if i cant get the clips to hold it back in, ill just screw it down with a few self tapping screws and cover the heads with plastic caps. im already assuming that after i do that, i might get some rubbing against the back window that can cause a little noise. if thats the case then ill buy some gray foam strips they sell in home depot. they sell them as insulation strips for window a/c units. ill cut them into thin strips and push it down in between the deck and back window. at this point ill do anything. i already ordered 17" rims to replace my 18's just to get some more rubber to soften the ride some more. ive had enough of driving a car that looks nice but makes me go insane everytime drive.