[MikeyBolt]

Since I got my 2019 Premier, I've had a couple small rattles that can be heard with the radio off on any pavement that isn't perfectly smooth. They sounded like they were coming from the front doors, so I started to investigate. I opened the front doors and gently tapped the bottom rear of the door on the inside with my fist: where there is painted metal below the interior door panel. The door rattled for a full second as it vibrated. I discovered that if I just held my thumb against the periphery of the plastic door panel, the rattling went away. That whole large plastic door panel doesn't seem to be formed perfectly to the metal behind it. I made sure that all the clips were tight and all 4 doors had the same problem, although the rears a bit less. On the front lower corner of the front doors, there is so much of a gap between the door panels and the metal frame behind it that you can almost get a pinky finger in there.

My solution was to shove small pieces of foam between the edge of the door panel and the metal frame at the periphery in 3 places: rear middle, bottom middle, and front lower corner (the one at the front lower corner has to be a bigger piece of foam due to the large gap). The door now simply makes one thud as you'd expect if you rap on it gently and the rattles while driving are completely gone. Note that the rattles sound a lot worse with the door open because with it closed, the rubber door seals push against the door to mute some of it. I also noticed that the small bolts under the plastic caps on the top of the door handle were loose: I tightened those too.

Hope this helps anyone who might have the same problem. This is not a testament to build quality as I've found that every car has certain areas that are rattle-prone, even high end luxury cars. I've never owned a car where I didn't have to track down at least one rattle on my own when the car was brand new. With as many parts as are found in modern cars, it may be nearly impossible to take delivery of one that has not a single rattle. But driving electric makes you want to find them all!

Mike

 

[ZoomZoom]

I'd take it in and let their body shop take it apart and check for fit and assembly issues. I 100% agree that there are going to be nuances and issues, I have a piece of exterior door molding in the right rear door I think I'm going to take in for them to 're-glue.' It's minor, but a rattle that you are experiencing would drive me more nuts than I already am. I like your fix for it though, thanks for sharing.

 

[MikeyBolt]

I've always fixed minor/interior rattles myself as I'm always afraid of what the dealership will do and whether or not they'll fix that and create two more problems. It's almost fun to track down a rattle and fix it, as long as there are only one or two and it isn't a chronic problem. My only regret is that not taking it in won't give others (Chevy and other owners) the benefit of knowing there was a problem so it can be addressed, so I do appreciate your comment. It was clear to me that at least on the lower front corner, the plastic wasn't molded properly to fit the shape of the metal behind it. Maybe the dealer would have a more "official insert" for that area but the foam works well and prevented a half day of lost time going to the dealer.

Mike

 

[ZoomZoom]

I've always fixed minor/interior rattles myself as I'm always afraid of what the dealership will do and whether or not they'll fix that and create two more problems.

To me, your logic is sound and I can't really disagree with it.

 

[MDBolt]

I know exactly what you’re referring to regarding the front lower side of the door panel. I’m thinking that was deliberate because that’s where I always started with the pry tool to pop open the clips one by one when I replaced the door speakers. Come to think of it, I could’ve probably popped open the panel with my bare hands / fingers because of the generosity of that gap, as you had observed. My wife’s ‘10 Forester has a similar configuration when it comes to the door panel - sheet metal interface; I’m guessing that this can’t be a coincidence.

 

[California]

I hope this isn't a repeat of my experience when I bought a new '80 Chevy Citation. Their first euro-style front wheel drive transverse engine innovative design. First time I bought a new car, paid cash. I waited until they had built a half million of them, hoping they had worked the bugs out by then.

That thing had rattles that were unfixable. One was the legendary but apparently real coke can left inside an inaccessible portion of the rear quarter panel. I couldn't find it and the dealer couldn't find it in three visits. Drove me nuts. Lots of other assembly issues like your door panel. Front license plate bracket soon rusted severely and the car had never been in snow. Clutch cable separated at the fitting 50 miles from home. Lots more, the car was undrivable before 50k miles. It's interesting to see how few problems like this are reported here for Bolts.

Build quality of Bolts was an early concern of mine that seems to be unfounded. Maybe the assembly labor (or QC inspection) is more concerned about jobs going away now, compared to 40 years ago.

 

[MDBolt]

By the way, as a follow up to my prior comment above, our Bolt door panels don’t rattle except when I have the speakers on full tilt, despite the door panel gap below. But I like your suggestion of padding the area with foam. May mitigate it.

 

[Lin19687]

My rear hatch rattles and creaks. They are looking at it while doing the Stablizer bar and dash issue.
It actually is TAKING THE PAINT off the sides where the door seems to be rubbing.... side to side as you can tell by the wear marks. You really hear the creaking when turning sharp (L shape).
I am wondering if my bolt has a bigger issue. Like it is twisting when turning.
I had this in before for this when they did the traction battery recall.

 

[p7wang]

My rear hatch rattles and creaks. They are looking at it while doing the Stablizer bar and dash issue.
It actually is TAKING THE PAINT off the sides where the door seems to be rubbing.... side to side as you can tell by the wear marks. You really hear the creaking when turning sharp (L shape).
I am wondering if my bolt has a bigger issue. Like it is twisting when turning.
I had this in before for this when they did the traction battery recall.

Hm... I thought you were describing the Model 3. Guess same problem with Bolt. I'll keep an eye out for similar issues.

 

[ZoomZoom]

Hm... I thought you were describing the Model 3. Guess same problem with Bolt. I'll keep an eye out for similar issues.

I test drove 3 Tesla M3's before buying the Bolt, one for an entire weekend. They were well made, just like the Bolt, tight and the handling was amazing. Had one on order but I ordered too late to get it in time for the tax credit and I did some creative tax adjustments (Pres. Trump would be proud) expecting the full credit so I switched.

 

[ldesaul]

Since I got my 2019 Premier, I've had a couple small rattles that can be heard with the radio off on any pavement that isn't perfectly smooth. They sounded like they were coming from the front doors, so I started to investigate. I opened the front doors and gently tapped the bottom rear of the door on the inside with my fist: where there is painted metal below the interior door panel. The door rattled for a full second as it vibrated. I discovered that if I just held my thumb against the periphery of the plastic door panel, the rattling went away. That whole large plastic door panel doesn't seem to be formed perfectly to the metal behind it. I made sure that all the clips were tight and all 4 doors had the same problem, although the rears a bit less. On the front lower corner of the front doors, there is so much of a gap between the door panels and the metal frame behind it that you can almost get a pinky finger in there.

My solution was to shove small pieces of foam between the edge of the door panel and the metal frame at the periphery in 3 places: rear middle, bottom middle, and front lower corner (the one at the front lower corner has to be a bigger piece of foam due to the large gap). The door now simply makes one thud as you'd expect if you rap on it gently and the rattles while driving are completely gone. Note that the rattles sound a lot worse with the door open because with it closed, the rubber door seals push against the door to mute some of it. I also noticed that the small bolts under the plastic caps on the top of the door handle were loose: I tightened those too.

Hope this helps anyone who might have the same problem. This is not a testament to build quality as I've found that every car has certain areas that are rattle-prone, even high end luxury cars. I've never owned a car where I didn't have to track down at least one rattle on my own when the car was brand new. With as many parts as are found in modern cars, it may be nearly impossible to take delivery of one that has not a single rattle. But driving electric makes you want to find them all!

Mike

I had the same problem, an annoying buzz/rattle coming from the rear door area, passenger side. Drove me crazy driving rideshare, probably annoying to the passengers as well.
I got on the creeper, examined the door panel gaps and found 1/8 inch space at the bottom.
Some foam insulation cut to size, tucked up in there, fixed it.
Thank you Mike, great sleuthing.
Larry