Noisy interior panels
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Nov 2016
Posts: 186
Likes: 15
From: Elliot Lake Ontario, Canada
Noisy interior panels
Bought my 2000 Base Coupe last October, 30,000 miles, seems like it had been very well looked after. Anyway, had small creaking noises occasionally from where interior panels meet, annoying on rougher roads, but not too bad. It recently, last week or two, got much worse. Drove me crazy. Last night I went through it all, made sure nothing was loose, didn't find a problem. So I just hit the spots where interior panels meet, mainly around the halo, with silicone spray lube. Made sure to get the spots where the fasteners are. Five minutes into a ride afterwards, and it now doesn't just "look" new, it sounds new as well. Well worth the small effort.
Administrator
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 367,756
Likes: 24,681
From: In a parallel universe. Currently own 2014 Stingray Coupe.
C7 of the Year - Modified Finalist 2021
MO Events Coordinator
St. Jude Co-Organizer
St. Jude Donor '03 thru '25
NCM Sinkhole Donor
CI 5, 8 & 11 Veteran
Hopefully it keeps the panels from making noise for a while. I can understand how annoying a bunch of creaks and rattles can be in a vehicle.
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Nov 2016
Posts: 186
Likes: 15
From: Elliot Lake Ontario, Canada
I really now just think age has "dried" and maybe "deformed" the interior panels a bit, unnoticeable to the eye. I can live with lubing the mating areas and fasteners once in a while. We'll see. How often it has to be done will determine my next move. If necessary, I suppose I could replace the fasteners, but if I can just lube it, even once or twice a year, I think I'll stick with that
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 3,294
Likes: 480
From: Brea CA
Get some .5 inch wide felt rolls with an adhesive backing. Put this on one side of where the panels come together. This will stop the plastic to plastic noise.
Clean up any of the lubricants you used since these can and will run down the panels and cause discoloration. Depending on the lubricant it may also dissolve the plastic.
You can get the felt rolls on Amazon for about $10 to $15.
Gary
Clean up any of the lubricants you used since these can and will run down the panels and cause discoloration. Depending on the lubricant it may also dissolve the plastic.
You can get the felt rolls on Amazon for about $10 to $15.
Gary
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Nov 2016
Posts: 186
Likes: 15
From: Elliot Lake Ontario, Canada
Thanks for the heads up Gary. Did this yesterday, and I've been keeping an eye for any sign of seeping out, nothing yet. I sprayed a piece of an old plastic dash panel from another car before I sprayed it in my vette, it just seemed to soak in sort of and felt kind of wax like. Got some on my hand, slippery as hell. Silicone spray lube is supposed to be safe for just about anything I believe, but on your advice I will at a minimum keep a very close eye on it for long enough to be sure it doesn't cause damage. If I had thought of it I probably would have done as you've suggested instead.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 3,294
Likes: 480
From: Brea CA
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Corvette Engines RANKED by Peak Torque (70+ Years of Muscle!)
Joe Kucinski
Corvette ZR1X Will Be Pacing the Indy 500, And Could Probably Race, Too!
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Corvettes Coming to Mecum Indy 2026!
Brett Foote
Top 10 C9 Corvette MUST-HAVES to Fix These C8 Generation Flaws!
Michael S. Palmer
10 Revolutionary 'Corvette Firsts' Most People Don't Know
Joe Kucinski
5 Reasons to Upgrade to an LS6-Powered Corvette; 5 Reasons to Stay LT2
Michael S. Palmer
2027 Corvette vs The World: Every C8 vs Its Closest Competitor
Joe Kucinski