W210 Sunshade Rattle?

[GParker]

My '99 E430 sunshade (ya know... that big ole piece of cardboard that slides out under the glass sunroof) seems to be rattling in the headliner... if I hit an occasional sharp bump I get a "thud thud" up there.

A little wary of taking it to the the dealer lest they want to start a science project by yanking the headliner to fix it.

Anyone else seen this? Is there a simple way to extract and fix?

Thanks,
Greg

[vince]

My E430 has the same rattle, but I don't think it is the sunshade. I have ridden in the back seat while another driver traverses railroad tracks and I am convinced that it is the headliner rattling against the rear of the sunroof frame (which is just above the front of the rear seat cushion - you can follow the contour of the headliner). The only fix I can see is to drop the headliner and attach a strip of foam to the back of the sunroof frame to keep the headliner from hitting the metal frame. I put a post on this forum for the prodedure to remove the headliner some time ago, but no one responded, so I guess no one has done this on the cars with the new, "hard" headliners.

[DuqueAlva]

VINCE,...I have the same rattling problem in my '99 E430. Would you be kind to post again the procedure to remove the headliner. Thanks in advance!!!

[vince]

I have never dropped my headliner. Someone else did, but I can't remember who. The dealer replaced my entire sunroof assemby to cure the rattle, and it seemed cured for a while, but came back. I think they "over-engineered" the fix when they replaced the assembly. One of these days I will drop the headliner. The procedure should be on www.startekinfo.com, the M-B tech website. You have to subscribe. $20 for 24 hours, so gather up anything you might need and download when you visit the site. The info there is supposed to be virtually massive.

[DuqueAlva]

Vince,...Thank you for the tip. I will check the M-B tech website.

[The Godfather]

To fix that rattling, both existing in my former 99 e320 and in my current 00 e55, you just put a couple of old socks from the rear of the sundshade, where the rear dome light is. Rudimental yes, efficient, yes Just tuck the socks back there. It may create a slight buldging if you don't do it right, but trust me, it works

[vince]

Doctor - That is an approach I have considered, but not tried. Are you saying you remove the rear dome light and stuff the socks forward towards the rear of the sunroof? I was thinking about a block of foam rubbber pushed forward with a stick. I think you have confirmed my theory that the dealer threw too many parts and not enough thought into trying to fix mine.

[The Godfather]

Well I went to a shop that dealer with british cars and who happens to be sublet by the local benz dealership for all sunroof/headliner work b/c they don't know any better. The English gentleman there asked me jokingly if I had a pair of old socks...which for some unknown reason happened to be on my floorboard, and he just pried the back of the headliner, poping out I think the dome light, either on purpose or not, and just shoved the socks in there. I actually haven't done it yet on my e55, but I'm doing it right now So I"ll be right back and report back later!