2021 rattle in passenger seat

I hear a slight rattle in the front passenger seat when driving over uneven pavement. This is a 2021 ORP. 3k miles. Has anyone else experienced this? After much investigation, I figured out that I can recreate the noise by giving a solid punch to the passenger seat back rest - the vibration causes the rattle noise from some indiscernible place within the seat. I’m ocd about rattles when I drive, so perhaps I need to work on myself and not the 4runner. But really, I’m losing my shit day by day. If someone sits in the seat, no rattle. But driving alone, there’s a rattle. Common experience? Simple fix?
Thanks for any advice.

 

The passenger seat rattles in my ‘19 exactly the same. Its the seat-back shaking a tiny bit in mine, doesnt really bother me so I have never put much thought into fixing it.

 

My 2020 does the same. I don't really notice anymore.

 

I usually turn the radio up

 

My 2020 rattled like a mofo. Driver side door, dashboard and rear seats. Dealer fixed everything. However Toyota was kind enough to put me into a 2021 for my Troubles.

the 2021 has some noise however nothing compared to the 2020. However with that said it’s best to get over it and zone it out. Never going to get a rattle free or noise free interior.

 

I will find out when I get mine. Ugh. Rattles drive me crazy as well. I lost my shizzo on an Accord years ago on weatherstripping. Thankfully after forums like this I found a fix.

 

Thank you for the responses. I admit, it is a small gripe about a great rig. Yet I really can’t stand hearing small rattles when driving. I can confirm it’s the passenger seat back, so I’m going to experiment with the seat pocket, seat settings, etc and see if I can eliminate the noise.

 

My wife’s 20 SR5 Premium drivers seat makes a rattle when I drive and put the seat back the whole way. I found if I adjust it forward a little bit the noise stops. So far we both really like the 4Runner!

 

My front passenger seat does the same thing. I think it's just the design tolerances. When I was in for my final free oil change, the tech looked into it and compared to other 4runners on the lot. They all did it.

My 97 Tacoma did it too.

 

Sorry to revive an older thread, but my brand new (from March '21) TRD ORP has a rattle in the unoccupied passenger seat also... it is fairly faint, but it is driving me nuts. I also have OCD issues with this sort of thing though! Do many others experience this? Has anyone had any luck finding a fix/ mitigation strategy? Aside from alway having a passenger with you... ha!

 

Yes, mine doesn't rattle, but I noticed that my drivers seat had an annoying "click", especially going around corners. I took it in twice and they couldn't "duplicate" the issue. It was only here that i found that it's because of the welds/rivets, and the solution is to move the seat up about 1 millimeter. Problem solved and i've been click free ever since.

Cheers,

Sean

 

If you're talking about the front passenger seat, mine does it too.

Had dealership look at it and they said it's normal. It's the tolerances in the seat back recline mechanism.

We tried several new 4Runners on the lot and they did it too.

My 97 Tacoma was the same.

I agree, it's annoying.

 

Cold comfort to know that I am not alone. If I take a longer solo drive, I’ll throw the passenger seat backrest all the way back, so that it rests against the rear seat (or child seat). Or I just turn up the volume. And at highway speed, I can’t notice it.

 

Taking solace in this thread.

 

That should help.

As a side note, my 3 year bumper to bumper warranty expires in 5 months.

I've tried really really hard to find something that isn't right so I can get it corrected before the warranty expires. So far nothing, which is a very good thing.

I hope I didn't just jinx myself.

 

If the seat is all the way back, move it up just a touch and that should fix it. My drivers seat did the same thing and moving it up just a touch from the rearmost point fixed it.

 

Thanks! Yes, the front passenger seat rattle over certain bumps.

Ok, I actually feel better that I am not alone. It’s not terrible.

 

Thanks for the suggestion! It’s a rattle in the seat back on the front passenger side. I have played with all sorts of seat positions and it persists. Anyway, I’ll live with it as long as it doesn’t get worse.

Thanks again!

 

I may or may not have found the issue to stop the rattle sound, but not the seat shaking. Behind the seatbelt buckle, where the seat meets the backrest, there is a plastic cap. I wasn’t able to remove it, but if you stick your finger in there, you’ll eventually feel some metal. I think it’s vibrating against that. When I press against that cap, the rattle noise stops. I tried to stick a piece of felt tape in there, but it’s a really tight squeeze. Not sure if I got it, but we will find out. Try pressing that cap with one hand and hitting the seat with the other, and see if the sounds stops.

 

Did this work? I can't seem to find it on mine. Having the same issue.

 

I’m fairly certain that is what is causing the rattle, but the felt tape didn’t seem to work completely. It still stops ratting when I push it in with my hand, though.

 

I agree that it is coming from that area. I was able to confirm that yesterday, now I just need to figure out what exactly it is. I notice the sound is stopped or minimized by pushing the seatbelt fastener towards the driver’s side. I’m inclined to believe it is something inside the plastic cover of the area you’re talking about where the seat reclines.

 

Mine rattled, but tilting it back a few degrees seemed to fix it.

 

I heard it on my 2020 4runner as well and I always thought it had something to do the seat belts

 

This is an old thread, but a valid one. Mine is doing this wobble over bumps. If I move the seat all the way back to stop or forward to stop it wont do it. You can litterally hit the back and it wobbles in the tracks.. Annoying to say the least.
But if someone is in seat, no issue as seat is obviously weighted.
So, I need to figure out how the seat is in the rails at different points. Obviously went full back or fwd, it has some tension to keep something from moving.