2001 Corolla rattling sound, please help!!

[zapping1234]

HI, I have a 2001 Corolla with about 77K miles on it. I have tried to take good care of it, making sure I'm up to date with oil change, transmission fluid change etc....

I have noticed that there is a constant rattling sound coming from around the lower right side of the engine when the car is warmed up and I am stopped and on the brakes. It goes away when I shift into park or neutral or when I accelerate. The car drives fine and accelerates smoothly. The sound only starts when I am stopped and on the brakes in gear. It is very annoying and I cannot seem to find out where it is coming from. When I open the hood to listen, the engine sounds fine. For some reason it has gotten worse and more consistent now that I have changed my tires, but I can detect nothing wrong with steering or driving. Braking is also fine.

I have changed the serpentine belt earlier this year and it looks fine. I took it to the dealer and they couldnt simulate it. I had my friend give the engine a couple of yanks but the mounts seem fine.

Please help....

[jolimojo]

hey there,

i believe i may be having the same problem as you. Although it is not every time i'm stopped and on the brakes, only occasionally. But it's almost as if something is tapping on the firewall very fast, and you can feel it only through the brake pedal right? (well you can also feel it a bit through the gas pedal if you just lightly touch it, you can feel the rattle while stopped) I looked around in the engine bay to make sure there was nothing obviously hitting or banging around, and made sure everything is snug. Seems to help i guess, i don't get it very often.

[Bennie]

It's very hard to diagnose things like this over the computer but I would look very closely at the front (passanger side of engine bay) motor mount. I think the best way to describe the symptoms is that the engine just sounds LOUD, and course, you can feel excessive engine vibrating especially at idle-2000RMPs and from 4000-6000RPMs. Also look for a wet spot around the mount. That's a dead givaway it's bad.

From the factor they are fluid filled mount and they are expensive. The only aftermarket ones I know of are NOT fluid filled and will NOT resolve the problem. You will either need to buy a used OEM mount or get a new one for about $200 from toyota.