Club Arnage

Random question here and nowt to do with le mans but is there any Audi owners/enthusiasts/mechanics out there??? I have an A3 sport 3 door which has the sound system that has the subwoofer in the boot. Problem is it rattles like a b*****d. Im only 22 so i like my "boom boom" music so dont want to loose the sub but has anyone got a solution???

Err, change your taste in music and ditch the base system, or just switch it off and listen to the music of the engine ! Granted a A3 sport probably doesn't sound as good a a straight 5 cylinder mind you.

Mike, here's some more practical advice  ;D

Is the sub solidly mounted, is there any loose fixings, are the speaker cones damaged or displaced, is there anything in there that shouldn't be?

Spend a couple of hours taking the covers off and have a gentle prod and pull of the box to see if there is anything not as it should be.

The worst scenario is that you've blown the speaker cones (when, through excessive 'vibes', the cone moves further than it should and is damaged) and they'll need replacing.

as steve says it sounds like its either loose or you have blown the cone. have a looksy and tighten up or if ned be find yourself a new speaker cone say from a scrapped A3 or something and replace.
Alternatively get yourself down to testdrive another A3 like yours drive round the corner, swap the speakers and take the car back and bobs your mothers brother. Hold on no that would be wrong  :police:

Are you certain it is the subwoofer that is rattling?

The vibrations created by such a device can easily loosen other surrounding trim.

This would be my guess also.The younger Hip-hop group here actually take all weather stripping out of the trunk area,loosen the license plate cover,etc.,just to achieve this "VERY ANNOYING RATTLE".
Damn punk kids,SLOW DOWN THIS IS A NEIGHBORHOOD!

Check all the fittings and surrounding trim, as already mentioned that could be the problem. However if it is not that and it is making a fuzzy sort of rattle, then it might you have knocked it 'off centre' that being the case then it will most likely need replacing or, (a slightly risky strategy) crank it up to full volume and bass and play it hard for a few seconds, sometimes (only sometimes) it can knock it back in. No guarantees I am afraid. (This worked with a 12 inch JBL I had a few years ago) good luck

Cheers guys. I've been out at it the night and it sounds like its fixings and mountings that surround the sub. Some things i think i can remove and throw away and the guy next door suggested either fitting dynamat sound deadening inside the quater panel or being cheap and puting a silicone bead round everything that could rattle. On the engine noise front its a 2.0 petrol with K and N air filter which makes a pretty meaty grunt after 4000 rpm. Please dont put me in the "boy racer" catagory though  ???

I would suggest using velcro to stick the sub to the carpet in the boot. There are some very good industrial type velcro's about, we had to use a crow bar to get a sub away from the carpet before.

The sub's hidden behind the panel on the left of the boot. Its a factory fitted thing that sounds pretty good apart from the bloody rattles. Spoke to an Audi tech on the phone about it and he said "these things happen in 4 year old cars,theres nothing we can do" I'll soon show that twat  ;D

Take a large hammer to it.  It'll never rattle again.

Have a good listen, and undo the trim around it (as its fitted).  If the rattle comes from the speaker itself its the voicecoil hitting the magnet.  The magnet may be falling off, or the coil has seperated due to over use!.  Either way its fatal.  Try Mantovani

Having been a member of the "Boom Boom" brigade back along (until some nice boys from the local estate stole it all) my advice would be.... ideally on a Sunday morning at about 5 am after about 8 pints of stella the nite before, get the system warmed up (5 mins on normal volume).

Lower the back seats (if they move, not too sure about such modern machines) crank it up till it rattles but leave the boot shut. Crawl in and press everywhere until rattle is traced, removing trim etc until you find the source. If seats are fixed, get in boot and have responsible mate shut you in to repeat the above.

Also check back number plate, my BMW one used to fart like a grandma with drum and bass pumping (the plate, not the grandma) and the jack, wheel brace, and spare wheel and its mounting gear. Also worth checking is the connections to the back lights, if on big clip blocks a few inches back from the lights they can dring on metal beside them.

Should the rattle be the sub cone or mag its self, new really powerful replacements are so cheap now that you can get a new un and develop new interesting noises/rattles within hours of installation.

Dynamat is cool and really works. MY VW Bus was loads in it but alas no tunes due to the wankres back in 1997, when I lost interest due to no insurance for the gear £2K was alot to lose then..

Happy hunting for the rattle and remember.... heart thumps when bass line pumps!!

PP

I think i am getting old, i didn't understand any of that.

That sounds more like what would happen with my mates  >:(

The rattle has now been traced to the rear light mountings,the plastic grill that protects the speaker and a metal thing that does'nt seem to do anything.

The grill is in the bin,the light has been tightened and the metal thing has a tube of silicone between it and the inner wing.

Next task is to cause more problems by fitting 19 inch RS6 alloys  ;D

Currently rebuilding an '84 ur quattro that has now got the top coat and laquer on the shell. The last time it was on the road there was no need for a sound system as the single box 3inch exhaust after the 5cyl engine was music enough. So yes there are Audi enthusiasts on here !!

Glad to hear it my man. This is my 1st of many Audi's i hope.

Its a 53 plate A3 sport 2.0 FSI. Not planning on changing it that much,maybe just the bigger wheels and the newer model front bumper. I've put the K and N induction kit on just to help the sound a bit and may get the ecu remapped soon. Was going for a custom stainless steel exhaust but i'm not too sure about the noise it'll make,dont want to make it all lound and tacky.

On a more Le Mans note,have you heard about the Q7 model that has a de-tuned version of the R10 engine from last years race car??? Over 1000nm of torque  :o