Rattle Rattleson

Well don't get too excited. It's a 50% bet I will end up with either an exhaust that does not fit or one that is illegal due to noise regulations. Even if it fits I still need to run a exhaust noise test on it to ensure the car's exhaust noise is still legal. And under the latest ADRs and EPA regulations, the ZRE182 Corollas (along with anything else manufactured after 2011) needs to meet extremely stringent noise regulations pertaining to the exhaust. Without going into too much detail, the test for the Corolla ZRE182 hatch is that the noise level cannot exceed 83 dB when measured using an "A" weighted sound meter (set to fast response) when placed a distance of 500 mm from the rear of the exhaust tip at a 45 degree angle (microphone is at exhaust height). Then the engine needs to be revved to exactly 3750 RPM whilst the gearbox is in neutral and the throttle then suddenly released. The resulting loudest reading taken during this whole process is the noise level for the purposes of the EPA test (thus determining if the car is legal or not). There are lots of details regarding the rules but basically the Toyota ZRE182 Corolla hatchback has a prescribed noise level of 78 dB for this test (as per the Government's Green Vehicle Guide Stationary Noise Level for the 5 door ZRE182 Corolla Hatch), however there is a 5dB allowance over and above that. That's how you get the 83 dB, however I think some of that allowance is to allow for the ageing of the car and exhaust system. Anyway, since I already own the required gear (Class 2 meter plus tripod), I did the test on my Corolla this afternoon. The readings I got were 77.5 dB and 77.8 dB. What this means is that Toyota gives us nothing to play with and all we have is the 5 dB EPA allowance. The bottom line is that if the TRD exhaust is more than 5 dB louder than the stock exhaust, it is illegal and I'll have to take it off regardless of whether it fits perfectly or not. Had I been thoroughly acquainted with the severity of the news laws I would not have risked it, even though subjectively I think the TRD exhausts are relatively quiet and possibly within the 5dB allowance. The saving grace is that since the measurement is "A" weighted, the fact that the tone becomes a bit more "bassy" to add to the volume makes it easier on the "A" weighted reading, since we humans are less sensitive to bass sounds than we are midrange sounds. I think if the TRD exhaust "passes", it is going to right on the absolute limit. Another ridiculous thing about all of these new rules. Somehow, the Green Vehicle test done on the Toyota Corolla Sedan manual transmission seems to have been stuffed up by the Government (or Toyota). It has an 89 dB rating which means according to the official sources, that exhaust is more than twice as loud as the one on the hatchback version (a 10 dB increase in sound pressure levels is a subjective doubling in loudness). Which of course is utter nonsense, since the CVT version of the sedan measures "normally" at 80 dB (though interestingly still 2 dB louder than the hatch). The bottom line is that if you wish to buy a current model Corolla and you love noisy exhausts, buy the sedan and then install the loudest possible exhaust you can find for it, since you can legally have that exhaust at 94 dB - only 1 dB below the levels they black flagged you at Amaroo Park in the racing days for excessive noise!!. Enjoy the Government loophole lol!!

Thanks for the info. Yes, I saw the centre exhaust / diffuser combo earlier in the week (Jerry at Garage88 mentioned it as well). But I don't want to alter the rear bumper cosmetics at all, let alone radically, plus the all-up cost is extremely high. Adrenalinmotorsports, The part consists of the pipe leading from the rear flange joint to the muffler, muffler itself, tail pipe plus tip. You can see it in the photo I linked to. So it is an axleback, not a catback. TRD never made any catbacks for the ZRE models that I am aware of. I was intending to post photos plus audio files if it all works out, though no loud crazy revving - just enough so that you get the idea over stock. But if it is like I am expecting, it should just be a slightly louder sound than stock, but noticeably more "sporty" sounding - I am pretty much expecting it to be somewhat like the original AE82 Corolla twin cam, which had a very similar stock exhaust compared to what I would end up with after installing the TRD part. I don't want to change the character that much and I certainly don't really want it much louder, which is why I picked the TRD part - it is Japanese emission / noise law friendly which means it is fine for Australia as well. Last thing I would want is a "loud" exhaust or anything that draws un-neccessary attention to the car. The TRD exhaust parts are relatively subtle improvements and more like what you would expect from the Toyota factory if they hypothetically brought out a fully compliant "sports" version of a 4 cylinder Corolla.

Ah, stuff it. I took another good hard look under the rear end of my ZRE182 today whilst also looking long and hard at that photo of the MS153-12009 exhaust. Now I think it is likely that it will fit. I think the tip expands at a point where it will still clear the shroud, since the tail pipe is aiming downwards at that point and it is a little longer than the stock one (so the tip will stick out more than the stock one does and hence be a bit lower to begin with). So I have bitten the bullet and ordered the part through Jerry at Garage 88. Extremely helpful bloke. $600 which is by far the best price I could find and seemingly reasonable considering people were paying around $500 for these around 6 years ago. Once I get it I won't take it out of the wrapping at first - I will just measure the flange to hanger distance and compare that to the stock exhaust. I will then only attempt to unwrap and install it if the distances are the same. If it does not pass that fundamental measurement test then at least no other ZRE182 owner will have to waste money on it. And a member here will get a brand new exhaust for the ZRE152 at a considerably reduced price. And I won't be buying Christmas presents for anyone. But I will try to think positive :) Before ordering it I did download that picture from eBay and checked it Microsoft Paint to try and ascertain what the length is between the flange and hanger mount. Based on the eBay picture it seemed to be roughly 82 cm based on an exhaust pipe diameter between the muffler and flange of 53mm. And when I measured my stock muffler and flange piping, it was also roughly 82 cm. So a good start. I am feeling positive the part will fit without any dramas. I will update once I get the part.

Having done more research into this, I think it is too risky to go ahead unless someone has already fitted a TRD exhaust successfully to the ZRE182. TRD do list a centre-exiting exhaust for the ZRE186 which has the same chassis and bumper shroud, but it requires changing the bumper shroud for a TRD diffuser (exhaust exits under diffuser), which makes the whole thing ridiculously expensive unless you are going after that "look". The closest part I could find in the TRD catalogue is part no. MS153-12009. It's listed for a few models including the ZRE152 Corolla and the overseas equivalents of our Rukus that use the 2ZR-FE engine. After exchanging quite few emails with Garage88 yesterday (good, quick responses and helpful), the cost excluding local shipping is $600. That was the best price I could get after checking with some other places. The problem is that although I am fairly sure the TRD part MS153-12009 will interface to the existing exhaust flange and rear exhaust hanger, I am not sure the tip will clear the stock bumper shroud sufficiently. I found a website that had OEM parts diagrams for both the ZRE152 and ZRE182 and although the rear exhausts share the same part number prefix and look identical, they have a different part number suffix. Then again, they could be the identical part and Toyota merely give them different suffixes simply because they are destined for different models or perhaps the ZRE182 has some minor revisions that do not effect mounting points, etc. If you look at the TRD part MS153-12009, however, the piping is the same diameter as stock (2 inch?) but the tip is much larger. Then if you compare that to how the stock exhaust fits in relation to the bumper shroud, you can see my misgivings about it fitting as regards the tip itself. It well might fit but there is no way to really know unless you have the part in your hands ready to fit. In the end I suspect it would fit OK but I don't have $600 to throw around unless I know it will fit, since then I'd have to on-sell it at a loss to a ZRE152 owner. I don't really know why TRD did not bring out an exhaust for the ZRE182 specifically, since it was effectively the successor to the ZRE182 and the ZRE182 has been around - at least here - for two years now. As I say, if someone has fitted the part successfully I would not hesitate to buy it. I wish there was a contact email for TRD directly but there does not seem any way to contact them. And dealers don't really want to help out regarding TRD any further than looking up the parts catalogue - something anyone can do. Here is a link to pictures of a used MS153-12009 on eBay. You can see what I mean about the tip size relative to pipe size and you can then compare that to your stock exhaust. http://www.ebay.ca/itm/TOYOTA-Auris-ZRE152H-Corolla-Rumion-ZRE152N-High-Response-Muffler-Ver-S-/141426795376?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item20edb1a370

Hi, Does anyone happen to know if the exhaust systems of the ZRE152 hatch and ZRE182 hatch are identical, especially as regards mounting / hanging points, etc? Although I realise these are not even "warm" hatches I am drawn to the rather pleasant and sporty tone of the TRD high response mufflers together with the fact that they are not really that much louder than the stock exhaust and so won't draw attention to the car (something I don't want). It sort of gives some of that original "twin cam" feel of the early Toyota / Suzuki twin cam motors from the 1980s :) But looking at the TRD parts catalogue, they don't have anything listed for anything later than the ZRE152, which to me seems more of an oversight - or at least a possible indicator that it still fits the current ZRE182 model given this model is two years old now. I did read a post here from early 2012 where someone put a TRD exhaust on the ZRE152 but there wasn't any feedback as I think it was reported via a third party. Anyway, I'd certainly be interested in acquiring the TRD part as I am not comfortable with another brand, especially as almost every aftermarket exhaust I have seen is illegal (either too loud or have variable baffles which are also street illegal). So if anyone has put a TRD exhaust on the ZRE182 or has otherwise looked at both models to compare the exhaust systems, I'd appreciate the feedback. Thanks

Thanks for the reply Chris. The wrecked Corolla from which I got the wheel was a mid 2013 model, so if for some reason Toyota stopped using the part, they were likely putting them in that and earlier models. But I can't help feeling that leaving the part out was a mistake on the part of the Toyota factory, since I can see that it serves at least some purpose in terms of channelling the 5 cables from the wheel assembly into the clock spring (audio controls, Bluetooth controls, horn cable, airbag cable and cruise control cable. Without the part, these cables can move around easily (which probably caused the racket - remember all these cables move when the wheel rotates) and I can see that ease of movement possibly putting eventual strain on the cables and connectors over time. Even if part absence wasn't responsible for the rattle (though I think it was), I'm not sure I'd be that comfortable driving a car when I knew the cable for the airbag, for example, was not quite as secure without the part as it is with the part (which might be justification in itself for a recall). And if the clock spring were to wear prematurely because the part is missing, Toyota charge over $1,000 for a new one. Not cheap when you see springs for earlier models costing $50 on eBay. Still, it's not for me to instigate an investigation, since I am neither a qualified mechanic, qualified engineer, nor do I know if Toyota deliberately leave the part out these days and whether doing so was "ok'ed by their engineers (but I certainly have much more peace of mind knowing my car now has the bracket). Glad you have a new car and are happy with it. And I am glad I just bought the base model Corolla. Stuffed if I would want to blow more than $22,000 on any Toyota these days. I don't think Toyota are the same quality company they were even 8 years ago when Mum bought a Yaris. The car just feels cheap compared to earlier Toyotas and every time I do some servicing on it I come across certain things that just spell "cheap to manufacture" - a good case in point being the cover over the oil drain plug and filter cartridge. Rather than spend a few dollars making a proper cover they used a cheap thing that you bend over thus fatiguing the plastic each and every time you do it. Then there is the luggage compartment light bulb where you have spend an hour or so pulling the seats and rear trim all out of the car just to get at the bulb holder. What a stupid, idiotic design. Cheap for Toyota though since they know a light bulb is a consumable and not warrantable. Yep, these cars are now built with the dollar in mind above everything else. The sad bit is that I would happily have paid $5,000 more just to get a significantly better built and engineered car where things were better thought out and better materials used - even if it had no more features. Just so long as it also had all the parts it was meant to have. Seems you can't even get that with Toyota these days! I wonder if any other bits are missing!!??

I'm not sure if anyone still has any interest in this thread, but regardless, you might want to read this. Yesterday I did decide after all to pull then disassemble the steering wheel on my Corolla, since as mentioned previously I was suspecting my "driver's side dash rattle" was actually coming from somewhere in the region of the airbag / clock spring, etc. Having literally fixed every single possible source of rattles from the driver's side dash itself over the previous couple of weekends, there really wasn't anywhere else it could come from in my opinion. As it turns out, I happened to also possess an additional Corolla steering wheel assembly (including the deployed airbag) that I bought dirt cheap from a written-off 2013 Corolla Ascent hatch. I was using this wheel to "practice" on in terms of learning how to remove the airbag and various other parts of the wheel assembly without causing any damage, etc. That way I fully knew what to expect when pulling off my own wheel and would be confident of doing a perfect job and not damaging anything and also not run into anything unexpected. Yes, I did have the official service manual but there is no substitute for hands-on experience. So I pull my wheel off without any problems whatsoever and begin to disassemble the various bits. And then I discovered quite quickly the source of all my problems. What I saw was that AN ENTIRE PART was completely missing from the innards of my steering wheel! According to an exploded parts diagram supplied to me by my local Toyota parts centre (and specifically for cars of my build date since they pulled the diagram based on my VIN), it is part number 45713A. Part number 45713A is a metal bracket / guide. It is a few inches long and attaches to the interior alloy frame of the steering wheel via two substantial Philips head bolts. The part appears to serve primarily as a guide for the wiring harness components that attach to the controls on either side of the wheel (audio, Bluetooth, etc), the airbag cable and the horn cable. The cables then exit through this bracket and connect to the spiral cable on the steering column (also known as the clock spring). It also has a built-in "damper" whereby a section of the part is affixed via a strong, rubberised suspension. My guess is that this possibly exists in the case where the airbag deploys, since it might sort of act as a cushion to the recoil from the airbag explosion and would thus likely protect the certain internal parts of the steering wheel sub-assembly that might be sensitive to such shock. That is only my uneducated guess though - I am not an engineer and I'd really have to ask the person who designed the inside of the steering wheel to explain why the part was designed as it is. The part also has a felt pad at either end that corresponds to where the cables from the steering wheel controls pass through. Well, whatever the case, this entire part was missing on my wheel but was certainly present and correct on the wheel from the wrecked 2013 Corolla (my build date is February 2014). I then reassembled my wheel using part number 45713A donated from the wrecked Corolla wheel. After carefully reaffixing the wheel and airbag, etc I took the car on a test drive. Rattle problem completely and utterly gone. So the question now becomes why was my car constructed without this part, given that it is included in the parts list and parts diagram for cars within my VIN range and I saw the part for myself inside the steering wheel of a 2013 Corolla? The other implication is whether there is any safety issue if this part does not exist or whether the part purely prevents the very annoying and surprisingly intrusive rattles. Maybe my car is the only one out there that never had this part installed but on the other hand, maybe there are heaps of cars out there without the part. Maybe Toyota themselves decided to delete the part for some reason (I can attest that by including the bracket, it would take longer to assemble and install the wheel and we know how car companies like saving a few cents on every car (time is saved and they don't need to supply the part). But if they did intentionally delete the part I would argue they did not appreciate all the implications of doing so, since my rattle really was quite irritating and really detracted from the perceived quality of the car. Anyway, I just though I would give this final update, just in case anyone else wants to check their own wheels. If you are merely looking for the existence of the part only, you can see it (or not see it) merely after removing the horn pad / airbag. If the part is missing, you will see the cables connect to the clock spring connector through a very large orifice and they are not really well supported. On the other hand, if the bracket is there, you will see a much smaller hole since the bracket covers most of the back cover and you should see the cables going though guides and a much smaller hole. Installing the part btw requires the wheel to be removed and partially disassembled. I will be interested to know if other cars have this part missing. Now it really would not surprise me if Toyota recalls these cars were they to find out about the missing part and it was not a case of them having knowingly deleted it from production (you'd think if they had, there would be separate parts diagrams for Corollas of 2013 build dates versus my February 2014 car.

So I decided to spend yet more time - yesterday and today - on this incredibly annoying rattle, as it is really embarrassing when I have passengers and everything else is so quiet on smooth roads. I methodically got under the dash and literally insulated one way or another every single possible cable, panel, other parts, wire(s), etc, etc. Then for good measure I applied Krytox GPL105 to every single plastic part mating joint in the whole structure (this is a permanent non-migrating lubricant specifically designed for use in car interior parts to eliminate squeaks, etc). The only parts I really could not get to were inside the steering wheel, in the pod behind the steering wheel where the wiper and indicator stalks are and the upper section of the steering itself. Obviously I did not attempt to actually pull the entire dash apart, since that would ultimately make things far worse, but quite a lot of the internal structure and wiring is actually accessible if you just pull off the bottom cover over the pedals on the driver's side and remove the glovebox on the passenger side. Anyway, I was really happy to drive the car after spending about 4 hours doing all of this and find all the rattles completely gone! I spent nearly a whole hour driving over second rate roads and not a single significant noise from the dashboard. Thinking I had finally solved the problem I put the car in the garage. The next day (this morning) I take the car out - not having made any changes to it since I parked it - and the exact same rattle is back just as loud as before! So bang goes my temperature theory, as when I was test driving it yesterday and last night the temperatures ranged from 7 degrees to about 19 degrees. And this morning it was well within that range as well. Given all the parts I have attacked I am really starting to wonder if it is something like the driver's side airbags (internally) causing the issue (since both are very firmly mounted obviously) or perhaps something going on inside that pod with the stalks or even with the steering mechanism between the first universal joint (which is near the pedals) and the telescopic section closer towards the wheel itself. They were parts that I am not prepared to look at since I don't want to risk any air bag deployment or possibly stuffing up the ECU or creating possible error codes when the car is under warranty (I do have factory instructions on how to remove the bags and disassemble the parts I am suspecting, however I am not prepared to attempt it without prior experience doing the exact same thing on an identical car. Meaning I'll likely never do it. So I am at a point now where I have basically given up and unless someone specifically solves this incredibly annoying problem with these Corollas, I guess I am stuck with it for another 20 years.... Then again, I am half expecting a recall for some faulty part here - something to do with drivers side airbags (lose internal parts or mountings), the internal mechanism of the indicator stalk or - less likely - something to do with the steering between the wheel itself and that first universal joint before it exits through the firewall. At this point I'd actually be suspecting the airbags as the rattle source first up but I obviously cannot test drive the car without them installed.

I also have this elusive rattle seemingly coming from the dashboard area around or behind the instrument cluster area. I spent the entire weekend just past trying to track it down. I did reduce the various rattles coming from the front of the interior (and some other interior areas) in doing so, but I did not get rid of the specific rattle that seems to come from behind the instrument cluster. I had thought it was something to do with a loose fitting white terminal block behind the instrument cluster (accessible by removing the panel above the pedals and reaching upwards), but I secured that with foam and also secured the bonnet release cable which was also unsecured ex-factory) but these did not make an appreciable difference so far as I could tell. I am certainly not prepared to rip the entire dash out, nor am I prepared to let a dealer do it, since I reckon the chances of getting the car back without cosmetic damage and without the rattle is just about nil. Infact I'd be far more likely to get it back with even more rattles, since whenever you pull apart interior assemblies these days, you can never usually get them back to the way they were at the factory unless you both renew all the clips (and sometimes even the parts themselves if they have integrated claws) and have a lot of experience pulling apart and re-assembling the particular components that you are dealing with (if you are doing it for the first time, it is almost inevitable you will distort / break clips and do things the wrong way, ending up with more problems). Anyway, I am pretty much a the point where there are only a few more things I am going to try, at which point I will just be philosophical about it and tell myself that it is just a $22,000 car. I would definitely feel much worse if I had bought the Levin ZR, though. I think Toyota build quality has improved in some areas but gone downhill since the 90s to mid 2000s in terms of interior quality. I never had issues with the Corollas I owned in the mid to late 90s and their interiors seemed to be more robustly built with far less individual parts and thus less chance of issues occurring. If anyone ever does get to the bottom of this 2013 / 2014 Corolla "dash" rattle, I am sure we would all like to know. In the end though, every car I have ever owned has sooner or later developed pretty severe rattles. I think it is inevitable where you have bad roads (as we do), mass production cars built to a price where the manufacturer goes out of their way to save ten cents and definitely where you have climate extremes. I noticed the rattles got much worse when Winter came and there seems to be a "critical" temperature of around 11 degrees - at or below which, the rattles seem to be a lot worse.