Loud Metalic 'rattle' Under The Car

[JHL]

Well things just got worse with the LC. Driving along a country road yesterday when suddenly a loud metallic noise as though the exhaust had fallen off and was being dragged along under the car. Stopped to have a look but there was nothing to see, all appeared to be OK. Drove off and the noise started immediately. Further examination reveals that the noise is only evident when the drive is engaged (in gear), no rattle when in Park or neutral. The noise appears to be coming from somewhere amongst the drive shafts which are covered by the protective steel shield so not able to see without removing the plate.

Car will be booked into the garage as soon as the holidays are over, will keep you informed of the outcome. Also have a very noisy air con compressor which will need to be changed at some point.

The joys of owning an LC

[AyeupIQ]

Hi, check the rattle is not your exhaust cat, which tend to breakdown and become loose in the cat box.... that happened to me, I too have a noisy aircon I understand it's the aircon clutch bearing please let me know what your garage say about it - Hope this helps

[JHL]

Hi Derek, Thanks for the pointers. Car will go into the garage next Monday, delay due to holidays and heavy workload. So hopefully will have some feedback next Tuesday.

Regarding the air con compressor there are plenty of threads on the other Toyota forums about these units failing, seems to be a common problem. Some of the other guys have fitted a shorter timing belt and bypassed the compressor as a temporary fix, others have repaired the clutch, others have changed the unit. Toyota would charge somewhere in the region of £1000 for this work, will see what my local garage can do while the car is in for the rattle.

I have breakdown insurance with 'Auto Group' and I hope that they will pay for whatever needs to be done regarding the above problems, fingers crossed, will let you know.

Cheers

Jeff

[JHL]

Well it shows how good my mechanical skills are................the metallic rattle was caused by a loose heat shield above the rear silencer. Apparently it had dropped away from the retaining screws and was rattling on the silencer. At least I got the 'Metallic noise' right. Larger size washers were fitted to the retaining screws, all fixed in 15 minutes.

The Air Con Compressor is currently being changed hope to have the car back this evening. It will be nice to drive along without rattles from the front and back of the car.

[AyeupIQ]

Well it shows how good my mechanical skills are................the metallic rattle was caused by a loose heat shield above the rear silencer. Apparently it had dropped away from the retaining screws and was rattling on the silencer. At least I got the 'Metallic noise' right. Larger size washers were fitted to the retaining screws, all fixed in 15 minutes.

The Air Con Compressor is currently being changed hope to have the car back this evening. It will be nice to drive along without rattles from the front and back of the car.

Hi Jeff, that's a great bit of news for you..... thanks for your update...... Happy Landcruiser Regards Derek

[firemac]

Well it shows how good my mechanical skills are................the metallic rattle was caused by a loose heat shield above the rear silencer. Apparently it had dropped away from the retaining screws and was rattling on the silencer. At least I got the 'Metallic noise' right. Larger size washers were fitted to the retaining screws, all fixed in 15 minutes.

The Air Con Compressor is currently being changed hope to have the car back this evening. It will be nice to drive along without rattles from the front and back of the car.

Hi Jeff,

I've just logged on & was going to reply to your orig post to suggest the heat shield. I had a similar issue on a RAV 4.2 and simply removed the shield.

Glad you got it sorted.

[JHL]

Thanks Guy's, Just got the car back, rattle free. The cost to replace the Air Con Compressor, re-gas etc. was £458.34, that is less than half the price quoted by Mr T.

Might start a new topic.............to Waxoyl or not to Waxoyl, what do think?

[firemac]

Thanks Guy's, Just got the car back, rattle free. The cost to replace the Air Con Compressor, re-gas etc. was £458.34, that is less than half the price quoted by Mr T.

Might start a new topic.............to Waxoyl or not to Waxoyl, what do think?

Generally I would say "yes" having had good results over the years with Waxoyl. Had our previous RAV 4.2 done professionally by a local Waxoyl depot and it was a good job. Having said that, it was a belt & braces decision given that we intended (at the time) to hang onto the car but not having any reason to be concerned about rust issues on Toyotas generally and RAVs in particular.

Re the LC, I'm not aware that there have been any corrosion issues, certainly not on the 120s or 150s, so Waxoyling may be somewhat unnecessary, especially if the car is not used much off-road. However, it could be a good insurance policy if the car is/has been regularly off-roaded.

If you're going to do it, I reckon that professional application is best. It's certainly a lot less unpleasant than doing it yourself - the stuff tends to get everywhere if you don't have the appropriate kit!

[JHL]

Hi Jim,

Thanks for the feedback, I had two quotes for Waxoyl and under sealing, both came in around the £800 mark. Guess this price is OK given the work that is entailed. However, my pension won't stretch that far, so I think I will leave it for now.

Might slide underneath when the weather warms up with a tin of under seal and a couple of cans of waxoyl, bit of DIY won't hurt (the car). Better still, could ask a friend to do it for me ;)