My Mustang is Like New Again!

[Flghtmstr1]

A while back, I complained on these forums that the previous owner of my car had painted many of the interior pieces of my car rattle-can silver, and in the process had broken several of the mounting tabs on those parts. Well, I just got finished ripping my interior apart, stripping, prepping, and painting the interior back to stock (2-tone dark and medium parchment ordered from latemodelrestoration.com), and putting self-adhesive felt pads between everything as I put the car back together.

In short, I couldn't possibly be more pleased with the result. Not only is my interior much better looking, but every single squeak, creak, rattle, and crash is completely gone! I'm not exaggerating when I say it is tight as a drum, and has less rattles than my 2002 Toyota Avalon. It makes the whole car much more pleasant to drive, as it not only makes the ride seem smoother and the car more solid, but it also enables me to hear my radio and/or exhaust better

I'm posting this because I always hear people complain about Mustangs' interiors, and I hoped that sharing this with everyone would give others the opportunity to feel as happy as I do now lol.

For those who are interested, basically, the goal is to examine how the parts fit together, and place the pads strategically in places where they would be touching. It is especially important to visualize how the parts could potentially move relative to one another as the car goes over bumps and around corners. The felt I used was purchased from an AC Moore arts & crafts store, and came in large, white sheets with a self-adhesive backing. All in all, I spread the job out over two days, but if you intend to finish in one sitting, it shouldn't take more than 3 hours to take the interior apart, fix the rattles, and put things back together.

I am happy to help anyone who has questions regarding this project. Post in this thread or PM me

 

[2000fordstanggt]

thats great to hear! maybe you could do some short of write-up, im sure a lot of people (myself included) would like to know the main pieces you applied the felt to. :SNSign:

 

[bullitt_2620]

+1 i hate all these damn domestic rattles...never had a problem with my Japanese cars of the past.

 

[Flghtmstr1]

I basically ripped my interior apart and applied felt to pretty much everything, just to be safe. Every car is different, but I would focus on the door handle/window switch inserts, both airbag covers, the center console, and the AC/radio plastic surround. Apply felt everywhere the pieces touch, with the exception of the actual mounting hardware. The good thing rolleyes about our interiors is that they are relatively easy to take apart, so what I did was use my best guesses, fix those, drive the car, and see what else rattled. Enlisting the help of a friend will make it much easier to locate the source of each rattle. Another thing you can do is knock on the dash and see what rattles. It's a big pain in the ass, but well worth it

 

[2000fordstanggt]

I basically ripped my interior apart and applied felt to pretty much everything, just to be safe. Every car is different, but I would focus on the door handle/window switch inserts, both airbag covers, the center console, and the AC/radio plastic surround. Apply felt everywhere the pieces touch, with the exception of the actual mounting hardware. The good thing rolleyes about our interiors is that they are relatively easy to take apart, so what I did was use my best guesses, fix those, drive the car, and see what else rattled. Enlisting the help of a friend will make it much easier to locate the source of each rattle. Another thing you can do is knock on the dash and see what rattles. It's a big pain in the ass, but well worth it

thanks

what about the rear deck? thats where most of my problem is at.

 

[GettinThere]

thanks

what about the rear deck? thats where most of my problem is at.

Me too. There's a buzzing coming from the rear that's not from the stereo.

 

[Flghtmstr1]

I'm sorry; I've never heard a peep out of mine. What exactly do you mean by the "rear deck" anyway? Are you referring to the shelf behind the rear seats, or the decklid itself? You might want to make sure the latches hold the rear seats in place. If they allow the seats to move independently, even when latched, that might be the source of the buzzing. Unfortunately, NVH issues are the extremely hard to diagnose in person, let alone over the Internet.

 

[Zax]

mine doesnt rattle either, hmmm

 

[2000fordstanggt]

I'm sorry; I've never heard a peep out of mine. What exactly do you mean by the "rear deck" anyway? Are you referring to the shelf behind the rear seats, or the decklid itself? You might want to make sure the latches hold the rear seats in place. If they allow the seats to move independently, even when latched, that might be the source of the buzzing. Unfortunately, NVH issues are the extremely hard to diagnose in person, let alone over the Internet.

the cardboard with carpet over it coving the speakers in the back. it hops up and down on the actual metal deck.

 

[justinschmidt1]

ive had this annoying high pitched squeel come from the back of my car..maybe the trunk latch or something for a while. Only sometimes though.

Our cars are naturally gonna make more noise with all the vibrations of the bigger engine and loud exhaust. I dont really notice my interior rattling that much but i would be interested in what you did.