Annoying noises..

mcp123

New Member
#1
My 2014 Corolla is just out of warranty and I have a flurry of annoying noises. Just wondering if anyone has/can explain these, and possible fixes.

  • Cold weather start up rattle (below freezing temp)- This only happens in the winter and usually a cold start. Rattle for maybe 1 second right when the engine fires then goes away. From previous searches it seems somewhat common and more or less a non issue? Still running 0W-20 oil.
  • Slow, uphill/downhill turn scrape- Happens only in this scenario. I was thinking this could be dust shields.. I did try to bend them back to alleviate the issue but it still happens. Maybe try to pound them back further?
  • Slowing down, bumpy road, rattle- Maybe some sort of heat shield or something underneath?
  • Warm(er) weather startup- Noticing a rattle here as well. Not the same as the cold weather rattle. It's quieter and doesn't seem to be coming from the same location.
  • Shut down- This is one I noticed today.. I turned off my car and was sitting in it longer than usual. I noticed a sound of something electronically closing? Anyone know what that would be? It could be the same noise that I'm hearing on the warmer weather start up...
  • Lastly.. Whistle from drivers side window/mirror. Has done this since day 1. Usually don't notice it because music will drown it out, but it's there.

I've brought these to the attention of my Toyota dealership at my last service. He didn't seem concerned with the cold weather rattle as he said other Toyota models experience something similar. They also didn't look at it since it's hard to repeat and winter was already over so the odds of getting it to happen would be slim to none. They also looked at the dust shields during a rotation and said they all looked fine and couldn't see any spot that may be scraping. I have a tough time bringing my car there for them to spend time trying to diagnose all these and could fail to repeat any of them.. then I'm out $$ for nothing.

The car shows no signs of anything mechanically wrong and no real reason for concern.. other than my own OCD. I'm just hoping someone may have experienced these and could point me in some directions of where to look.

Thank you!
 
#2
You don't mention the mileage, but a lot of the noise comes with age as things wear. Rubber suspension/motor mount bushings begin to crack, the strut bearings get dirt in them and begin to grind. The weather and environment is a factor, as well. Things degrade a lot faster in snow belt states.

Look here for info. regarding your engine rattle:
https://www.toyotanation.com/forum/...ise-approximately-1-second-cold-start-up.html

Worn sway bar bushings and end links are a major cause of most chassis noise. Check for worn/leaking struts while your inspecting the exhaust heat shield. As far as the electronic noise you hear at shut down, it's probably the blend door electronic actuator for the ventilation system. All my vehicles make the same noise from the center of the dash. It would say normal operation for that.
 

mcp123

New Member
#3
Thank you for the response!

The car has right around 55k on it.

I'll look at the struts when I dig into it.. However (at least with my other vehicles that have had strut issues) isn't the noise evident when just doing turns in general? Not certain cases like I'm seeing? I suppose every one is different though.
 
#4
Yes, struts can generate all kinds noise when they begin to die. When they leak and loose compression you get a banging noise, similar to riding on a tire which is low on air. Speed bumps are a good way to test for that.
 
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