Vibration/Rattle in vicinty of dome light

[DaBee]

Between about 4000-5000 rpm there is a loud and rather aggressive rattling noise in the area of the dome light. I've tried pressing my hand up against the roof, the dome light, and surrounding areas to supress it, but so far, nothing works.

I read the wiki about squeaky targa roof seals, but this doesn't sound like squeaking to me. It's more of a rattling noise similar to the sound a bicycle wheel makes when you stick a playing card through the spokes.

I'm wondering if anyone else has experienced a similar vibrating noise in their NSX, and what if anything, was done to remedy it. Beyond pressing various parts of the roof with my hand while driving, I haven't investigated further, so any suggestions or guidance are much appreciated. Thanks!

 

[anesthesia]

Hard to say if the dome light area is the cause of vibration, I would try using the shinetsu grease from honda to grease up all the rubber around the targa area and all the rubber sealant to see if that help with noise.

 

[brettowen]

I thought the same thing until I isolated the rattle/buzzing noise to my rearview mirror. A common complaint.

 

[jwmelvin]

I thought the same thing until I isolated the rattle/buzzing noise to my rearview mirror. A common complaint.

Yea, my last mirror rattled in one of the two positions; I forget which one it was.

 

[CStricker]

I thought the same thing until I isolated the rattle/buzzing noise to my rearview mirror. A common complaint.

When I was buying my car, on the test drive, I noticed a rattling as well. It turned out to be the rear view mirror, which I replaced (it also had the black spots on it), and now no more rattle.

 

[DaBee]

I thought the same thing until I isolated the rattle/buzzing noise to my rearview mirror. A common complaint.

Yea, my last mirror rattled in one of the two positions; I forget which one it was.

When I was buying my car, on the test drive, I noticed a rattling as well. It turned out to be the rear view mirror, which I replaced (it also had the black spots on it), and now no more rattle.

So my rattle is coming from above and behind my head, or at least that's the way it sounds. In the case of a rattling mirror, would the sound get thrown to the back like that?

 

[jwmelvin]

So my rattle is coming from above and behind my head, or at least that's the way it sounds. In the case of a rattling mirror, would the sound get thrown to the back like that?

I doubt it. In my current car, the cover on the ECM buzzed from time to time. A couple bits of dynamat took care of it.

 

[RYU]

My rattling comes from the domelight cover itself. I've found a thin piece of felt/foam around the perimeter of the dome light lens sandwiched between the lens and the housing it snaps into makes it go away.

I thought I was the only one with this problem since i'm using the SOS engine mounts. I didn't have it with the OEM mounts but the vibration frequency at your rpm around 4-5k is probably the same reverberation I get with the SOS engine mounts near idle.

 

[DaBee]

My rattling comes from the domelight cover itself. I've found a thin piece of felt/foam around the perimeter of the dome light lens sandwiched between the lens and the housing it snaps into makes it go away.

My first thought was the dome light cover too, but even if I press it firmly into the roof by hand, the rattling doesn't stop. But I'll try removing the lens to see if it makes a difference.

The rattle seems to be coming from "deeper" inside the panel on which the dome light is mounted - if that makes sense.

 

[Stephen@NCAutoUSA]

My rattling comes from the domelight cover itself. I've found a thin piece of felt/foam around the perimeter of the dome light lens sandwiched between the lens and the housing it snaps into makes it go away.

I thought I was the only one with this problem since i'm using the SOS engine mounts. I didn't have it with the OEM mounts but the vibration frequency at your rpm around 4-5k is probably the same reverberation I get with the SOS engine mounts near idle.

Ryu, off topic but how do you like their engine mounts? Probably going to pick some up in the future.

 

[vivanshah]

in my targa, the plastic panels on the left and right underside of the targa top (just inside the windows, about 4-5" wide pieces) both rattle just a tiny bit. took forever to find as it sounded like it was coming from the dash.

 

[nsxtacura]

It's the panel above your head. Put your fingers between the panel and the rear glass and pull down a bit while driving. It needs Velcro or a small spacer. Also the hinges for the T-Top storage compartment under the rear glass work themselves loose. Open the compartment lid and move it back and forth to see if it rattles.

 

[DaBee]

It's the panel above your head. Put your fingers between the panel and the rear glass and pull down a bit while driving. It needs Velcro or a small spacer. Also the hinges for the T-Top storage compartment under the rear glass work themselves loose. Open the compartment lid and move it back and forth to see if it rattles.

I remember you pointing it out to me during the test drive. What's strange is the rattle goes off and on - mostly off. For instance, I haven't heard it since I posted this thread - except for last weekend, when it rattled for about 10 mins, and then stopped altogether again. I'll look into dampening the panel, as well as checking out the hinge. Thanks for the suggestions.

I'm loving this car!