We got our Defender back today from the dealer, we took it for the whirring noise we were getting around 48 MPH and above. So they did the A pillar silencer tape and that didn't fix it. Traced the noise to the front bumper area. They took the bumper off and tightened everything under it back to spec, and replaced the front bumper. The noise was gone...or so we thought. We drove it home down the highway and didn't hear the noise once. Until...we were 2 miles from home and we heard it again. It's not as loud, or as prominent, but it is still there. But now it sounds like it originally did, like its coming from the passenger side rear of the vehicle. Somewhere around the area of the lunch box. It almost sounds like something is flapping but if it was that, it wouldn't be speed oriented. It would do it all the time. It only starts at above 48 MPH, and that don't make any sense to me. We do have the roof rack also. But this doesn't sound like a wind noise. It sounds mechanical. I am glad to have it back in the garage. They gave us a 2019 LR Discovery to drive while the Defender was in the shop, and that thing was a straight up POS. It made all kinds of noises and rattles. So in that aspect the Defender is worlds better.

 

Update**** Drove the Defender to get dinner this evening, noise is back 100% and it is louder now than before. I am so pissed! There is no way this noise is coming from the front of the vehicle. To add insult to injury, now both doors are rattling and they weren't before. This LR is most definitely getting the best of me.

 

Keep your chin up - I know it's discouraging.... my Defender was in as well for a different reason - I also had a 2020 D5 SE (21k miles)- quite sound, but what a boat..

What is your build date - might help other who read this and might have had a similar issue.

Mine is Sept 18th build - My only odd thing is on the highway I get this tap tap sound like it's coming from the passenger roofline. It must be the know A-pillar rattle sound...

Good luck and keep patience - this is a first-gen rig and there will be growing pains and hopefully small ones.

 

Well, on the bright side, it's not the A-pillar or the front bumper. Did the dealership do anything to the doors? Acoustics within vehicles can be deceiving. Plenty of times I swore a noise was coming from like the windshield or the dashboard only to find that it was two coins jingling in the cupholder. Could someone else drive while you try out different seats to better pinpoint the sound? I'd open windows as well to try an hear the noise externally. If you haven't, how about turning everything which could (or even couldn't) make any noise whatsoever off? Take as many variables out as possible. Following up on this, you said that it doesn't seem like the rack and box, but, hey, at this point we're grasping at straws. Remove them and take a drive. At least that will rule it out. Good luck!
Nate

 

I get this is a first year vehicle and there will be things to pop up. But ours has already been back to the dealer 4 times since August 16th. It is getting a little annoying to deal with.

I have taken everything out of the car and the shop foreman even rode with me and heard it. He pinpointed it to the front bumper by using a "sound scope". I don't know if he's telling the truth or not, I am not a mechanic. What's weird is it was gone for about 25 miles, and then came back. I just don't get it. The rack is tight, the lunch box is tight. And it didn't make the noise until a few weeks ago and we had both those things then. So I don't know what it is. And they didn't even touch the doors, but now they are both rattling. Coming from a Lexus I am not used to hearing rattles and shouldn't. Especially in an $80K vehicle.

 

Have you checked this out?

 

No, I hadn't seen that but that video is very informative.

It also shows that LR's build quality for their cars are junk! Something so simple gets through their quality control? Come on LR, step up your game. It may be off road capable as hell, but things like this are so annoying.

 

I had the crackling noise with Pillar A. I removed it and added felt and the noise is gone.
Now I have a noise at all 4 doors. sounds like plastic rubbing or cracking. Sounds like when a plane is about to take off and you can ear the overheads crackling.
It took me a while to figure where the noise was coming out from, and I suspect it is the black door appliqués. I think that they are rubbing against the doors when going over the road bumps and cracks or at higher speed.
so I need to figure out how to remove them and add felt behind. someone told me to spray some dry lub between doors and appliqués.

 

Sometimes interior noises reflect around the cabin and come from places least expected. One area that definitely produces ‘crackling’ and ‘clicking’ is the rear door guide that looks like a you know. This produces the noises over bumps etc. Some have noted adjusting it and some have used felt to successfully fix it. I used auto felt, lined the inside female that the guide goes into and all my crackling is gone. Try that out and if that doesn’t solve the issue then continue the hunt. When I heard it I swore it was coming from the headliner but after driving around with someone in the back it was narrowed down successfully to the rear door guide. Hope this might help you.

 

My 96 Discovery had the exact same issue and I'm expecting that the Defender will inevitably do this as well. In fact, the rear door on the Defender looks almost identical to the one on the original Disco. It makes me wonder if all doors that swing out like this are prone to becoming loose over time given the stress on the hinges due to the weight of the door and the spare.