i suppose i shouldn't complain too much about a little ratting form a $700 car, but the tailgate on my 97 Legacy Wagon is driving me batty. at idle in gear, and over rough roads it rattles and buzzes like crazy. does anyone know of a way to adjust the latch or the rubber "bumpstops" in the doorjamb to stabilize the tailgate more when its closed? when i used to work at a volvo dealer, the tailgate bumpstops on the wagons were threaded so they could be made shorter or taller to slightly adjust how the tailgate sat when it was closed, but the bumpstops on my wagon seem to be solid. i should mention that if i really put some rump roast into it and slam the tailgate closed it still rattles a little bit, but not as much. 

 

any tips or tricks to cure this annoying problem would be greatly appreciated. 

 thanks

Check to make sure your latch mechanism isn't frozen.

Shoot a little deep creep/pb blaster into it and actuate the mechanism a few times.

It should loosen up and you might even see a little rust drip out.

Also, make sure your latch handle is all the way down before you shut it.

The return spring may not be pulling the handle all the way back to the "closed" point.

 

Twitch

So when it is idling, have you gotten out and listened to exactly where the rattle is coming from on the hatch? I know on my 00 OBS had a rattle noise form the hatch and I when I popped open the plastic covers I found a piece of Styrofoam had come loose from behind the metal bar that runs between the latching mechanisms and the hatch handle. I re-glued it back in place and the noise went away - not sure if this is the same noise you are getting.

So when it is idling, have you gotten out and listened to exactly where the rattle is coming from on the hatch? I know on my 00 OBS had a rattle noise form the hatch and I when I popped open the plastic covers I found a piece of Styrofoam had come loose from behind the metal bar that runs between the latching mechanisms and the hatch handle. I re-glued it back in place and the noise went away - not sure if this is the same noise you are getting.

Ill try listening outside the car when i can get someone else to help. it doesn't rattle in park or neutral, and i certainly don't want to end up as a Darwin award nominee by trusting the handbrake to hold the car still when its in gear. 

Try wrapping some electrician's tape around the metal loop on the door-sill.

The latch-mechanism holds on to that loop, and adding extra tape sometimes cures any looseness.

I had a few noises coming from mine too, one of them was the licence plate, I stuck a piece of foam behind it and that fixed it. Another noise was the rear interior trim panel, it had come loose and a few of the clips had popped out of the holes in the tail gate. The third noise was more of a squeak that I fixed by putting a dab of Vaseline on the rubber stops.  

Edited August 10, 201411 yr by AEROCOOK