Identify this part...

[Jim]

So, after my latest trip to the dealership to have them continue to chase down the extremely irritating squeaks and rattles in my '03 MM, I've now found this little item lying on the floor in the back seat. They had all manner of "stuff" out of the interior of the car, looking for some random object that was rolling around and making noise. Turned out to be a random metal object UNDER the carpet on the drivers side. Nice.


Thing (http://www.pictobot.com/PictoCode/MailLink.asp?Set=902)


So what is this thing? I'm guessing it's supposed to be in the drivers side B pillar, as that's where they first looked for the noise.

Meanwhile, I still have:
4 squeaking door panels
A rattle in the back seat area
A horrifically loud high pitched squeak from under the car when turning right (sounds a bit like a loose heat sheild, perhaps)
A rattle from inside the dash

So, I'm working a deal now to trade 'er in on an '04 F150. This car has very nearly put me off Ford; an extremely dissapointing experience with build quality. The first 60 days of ownership, back in June/July of last year, the car was in the shop for 30 of those days. Good stuff.

Anyone need a pair of Eibach springs? Mine finally arrived about a week ago, having ordered them in oh, August.

Oh yeah; what IS that part?

-Jim

[carfixer]

You are right, it goes along the bottom of the "B" pillar. You will have to remove the seat belt retractor assembly to reinstall it. The hole in center section is for the wire harness that goes to the left rear door.

BTW, have you tried another dealer to iron out your problems?

[67435animal]

Jim , my MM has been a dream and I usually stick with GM cars. I have had great service from Team Ford in Marietta. The tech there is Scott Levin and he is very knowledgeable re MMs and SVT performance cars.

Before you give up, phone Team, ask for Allen (service advisor) and make an appointment with Scott. You will not be disappointed with the results.

Bob

[Jim]

Aha, I suspected it went in that B pillar. Good info.

I think, perhaps, it's too late for me and this car... I've tried a couple of dealerships for service, and I have heard good things about Team Ford in Marietta, but to be honest I've never found the time to take it all the way up there!

Add to this the fact that I think, without more serious (and expensive!) mods, the car just isn't fast enough. Just time for a change. Truck for utility, and something else for the sporting element, methinks.

I'll give the Service Director up @ Team Ford a call Monday, and at least get the egregious stuff taken care of...

[67435animal]

Jim, I understand.

Bob

[woaface]

The Marauder isn't for everyone: ) It takes something special to connect with it, and that's great. I don't know about everyone else but if I ever have the chance for a Marauder, it won't be my only car. I don't think there's any car in the world that can do everything everyone wants. We can't have that anyways, automobiles need to evolve. I don't think anyone here wants the most perfect T model (if it were invented.)

Also, you show me a car manufacturer that hasn't made a mass produced vehicle, and possibly a non-mass produced vehicle, that has not provided grief...and I'll show you a world that doesn't exist...

[Donny Carlson]

Originally posted by Jim

A horrifically loud high pitched squeak from under the car when turning right (sounds a bit like a loose heat sheild, perhaps)
-Jim

This sounds very close to a high pitched squeak that my car gave off, also worse when turning right. My dealer was savvy about the problem and fixed it in no time. The cause? There are rubber bumpers under the hood that come in contact when it is closed, keeping it from vibrating. These are adjustable and have a set screw. Sometimes they work loose slightly and they move against the hood when the car vibrates, and you get a squeak not unlike drawing a hard piece of rubber against a chalk board.
The fix is to adjust the bumpers AND apply an amount of white grease to the surface of the bumper. Squeak is gone!!


Annoying rattles and squeeks have been my only major beef with this car. I have owned four Ford products in sucession prior to the MM (Probe, Sable, Sable, Taurus) and NONE had any of the rattles and squeeks I suffered with.

I have noticed that the rattle on the passenger seat can be eliminated by adjusting the seat, which leads me to believe it's the seat touching something else (the console?) or it's rattling on the track. My dealer actually removed and reinstalled the seat and the track, but the rattle reappears if you move the seat into a certain position.

I had a dash rattle, too, which appeared the first cold day we had here in Birmingham. I fixed it by reaching up and pressing down on the dash near the windshield, using a good amount of force. It worked, and the rattle hasn't come back.

[Jim]

This sounds very close to a high pitched squeak that my car gave off, also worse when turning right. My dealer was savvy about the problem and fixed it in no time. The cause? There are rubber bumpers under the hood that come in contact when it is closed...

Hmm. Good info. I went out and adjusted the bumpers under the hood (the two at the front corners, correct?) but there are no visible set screws? I applied some white lithium grease to the heads, and closed the hood. Took 'er for a drive...

No joy. Still there. Might go try to adjust 'em up some more, to keep them under more tension...

Thanks for the tips!

-Jim

[NOMARQUIS]

My MM has a slew of rattles too. Do what I do. Turn the radio up! :) I have never met a dealer who will address interior rattles. :( If they could charge for rattle repair like it was a 30K service, then they would be happy to fix them. Sometimes you'll get more noises by trying to fix the ones that annoy you!

Eric

[Donny Carlson]

Originally posted by Jim
Hmm. Good info. I went out and adjusted the bumpers under the hood (the two at the front corners, correct?) but there are no visible set screws? I applied some white lithium grease to the heads, and closed the hood. Took 'er for a drive...

No joy. Still there. Might go try to adjust 'em up some more, to keep them under more tension...

Thanks for the tips!

-Jim

Actually, it's not a set screw. There's a nut that you tighten up when you set the bumper height. Ooopsy!:stupid:

[Rollin'Thunder]

I have been having the same squeak. Adjusting the posts hasn't done the trick for me. Haven't tried grease yet. Aren't there supposed to be some rubber wedges along the edge of the fenders..... between it and the edges of the hood?

[Jim]

Actually, it's not a set screw.

Doh! Either way, still squeaking.

Looks like I'm very close to pulling the trigger on the new F150, BTW. Be sad to see the Marauder go, but variety is the spice of life! I'll get my speed fix in the spring when I procure a late 60's Torino, methinks.

NOMARQUIS, My dealer has attempted to fix the various interior rattles, but they've just not been successful. In particular, the door panels are problematic. The "metal matrix" looking part on each panel seems to disagree with the plastic forming the rest of the panel. Not a brilliant design / execution, IMO. The parts are thermal welded together at specific points, and between a not perfect fit and the lack of tension on the parts, squeaks come out.

Speaking of which, to identify EXACTLY where the squeaks were coming from in my M, I built my own "CJSSE" (Crazy Jim's Super Squeak Exciter) and pinpointed the location and excitation frequency of each noise. 58 - 63 Hz, btw. Gave the location to the dealer for them to fix. They jammed much foam rubber behind the panels (they bow out now) and rammed an extra screw into the drivers side panel. Class act.

Good times.

-Jim