FX50 Driver Door Wood Trim Buzz/Vibration

L

loarmistead

Member
Car
2009 FX50S
I've had an issue with the wood panel area of my drivers side door trim. When I am listening to music that involves even a moderate level of bass, regardless of the volume level, it causes the wooden trim area to "buzz." It's very annoying, as even turning the volume down still results in the trim buzzing when the proper sound frequency from the music is played (and now it's only more apparent since there's no music to drown it out). When this happens, if I press on the wooden trim from where the buzz is coming from, it will stop. But as soon as I release the pressure, the buzzing continues.

Here's the great part - I took it in and the dealer was kind enough to replace the interior door panel (2 parts, $1,000+ labor per their invoice) under warranty, even though I was just outside of warranty. Awesome, right? As luck would have it, this new door panel has the exact same issue! :bulgy-eyes: What are the odds? Which makes me wonder, could it be something behind the door panel that is buzzing, that stops buzzing when I put pressure on the door panel? Has anyone else encountered this issue before?

In the grand scheme of things this is minor, but the buzz coming from the door panel is very audible and extremely annoying to hear when all I want to hear is unadulterated music without a tinny "bzzz bzzz bzzzz bzzz" coming from my door and echoing in my head. Really kills the experience.
 
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Not even joking -- smack the panel a few times. It may be something else. I had the same issue an a quick smack solved it. Also check if any pennies or anything are in the compartment
 
I have the same thing on mine, depends on the bass and the panel resonates with it. Its only the driver side..and stops if I put a little pressure on it. Not sure how the wood sits in the door panel but if there's a way to secure it more with double sided tape, it may completely solve the problem. Either that or just install two 12" subs and call it a day lol
 
Glad to know I'm not the only one having this issue - like yours, mine is only the drivers side door. What would be different about how the trim is adhered there than on the other doors?

As for the "smack" method, I did try that with the previous door panel. Out of sheer frustration I'd give the wood trim a good smack, and the buzzing would go away for a few seconds, then, in my unprofessional opinion, once the back of the trim that I just smacked to the adhesive became unadhered, it began buzzing again.

I've scheduled to take it by the dealer this weekend. Since I'm out of warranty by a few thousand miles, not sure if they will look at it for free again, since they ate the $1,700 "warranty" job when they replaced the door trim originally. Based on my research, after removing the door panel, the wooden trim is held on by screws, correct? Perhaps removing the wooden trim and putting something between it and the door panel will tighten it down and make the noise go awa?
 
I'll try to find one of those subwoofer test clips on YouTube and use it to resonate the panel and see where it's coming from exactly. Some part of the panel or trim is not sitting tight against the door and is enough to buzz. My guess, because the driver side door is used the most, it may have to do with the constant opening and closing. This causes the clips or panel to wear enough to create bigger tolerances.

Sent from my SGH-I747
 
I've taken my door panel off many times. The wood on the door is attached by like 6 to 8 screws or something. Just tighten them up that's all.
 
Maybe dynamat the back of the door. If the whole door panel is loaded, it should vibrate less.

And tighten up the screws as mentioned. Maybe loctite them so they don't work loose again.
 
Dynamat would work well, loctite on plastic would be a bit concerning, even with the weak stuff. Silicone is safer

Sent from my SGH-I747
 
The dealer again failed to resolve the issue (but they did give themselves plenty of factory-billed labor throughout this process, so I guess they got what they wanted). I decided to take matters into my own hands and took the door panel off. I couldn't identify anything in the wood trim that would be vibrating. The screws were tight and there was no play in the trim at all. The trim piece is solid. However, whenever the wood trim was buzzing, and I'd push on the wood trim, the vibration would stop, leading me to believe that perhaps the source of the buzz was behind the wood trim. The only other cause I could see is the wire cluster directly behind the trim that connects to the drivers side mirror. I wrapped some of the loose wires in electrical tape, and then, taking a play from the old truck collectors playbook, did a "custom" dampening job by securing a cut-to-size old t-shirt to the back of the trim panel - laugh, but it works very well, is cheaper than dynamat, does a better job at fixing creaks/rattles, and doesn't leave behind any sticky residue. I went ahead and did that to all four doors, as well as the "creaky" center console seat heater switches DIY. Since then, the ride is quieter than ever. No vibrations, no buzzing, no creaking, no nothing. Just a smooth ride.

I'm happy I resolved the issue (likely vibration caused by either the loose wires or the plastic wire coupler vibrating against the door trim or the door panel at particular temperatures/sound frequencies). And the dealer's happy they got a bunch of factory billed hours over the past month. Everybody wins.

---------- Post added at 04:48 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:46 PM ----------

On a side note - the dealer took the car in Friday, and said they'd attach felt pieces behind the trim panel to alleviate the issue. After going back and doing the job myself (and checking theirs in the process), I confirmed all they did was remove the little plastic trim piece from the door handle, attache felt pieces to each of the pawls, and reattach it. No evidence that the trim panel was ever removed, and no physical evidence that any changes were made to it from its stock condition. They did two minutes of work MAX - and billed $171 in factory labor.
 
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Typical dealer, minimal work, high costs.. Glad you got it resolved!

Sent from my SGH-I747
 
After a month of driving around, I can confirm that the door panel buzzing/vibration is gone. My best guess is that the buzzing noise was coming from the power mirror wire harness that may have been slightly touching the inside of the wooden trim, causing it to produce an audible vibration. Wrapping the harness in some extra electrical tape (probably unnecessary) and placing a simple padding behind the piece of trim seems to have resolved this headache I've been battling for over a year. Now I can listen to my music in peace without the incessant "bzzz bzzz bzzz" overwhelming my left ear.
 
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