Rattling Noise (inconsistent) During Acceleration at Low RPM
 

Hi There,
Almost a year ago I purchased a 2020 Defender (110 HSE, P400) and I love it.
From day one I have been hearing, somewhat inconsistent, rattling noise during acceleration from low RPM in lower gears (1, 2, 3 maybe 4). It was very faint at first and has gotten louder (on occasions) recently. I believe it is coming from the center bottom by the front seats or from the lower engine compartment.
I have recently had the first service done at the dealership locally and they couldn't find anything that was rattling in the undercarriage. I'm at a holding pattern until something breaks ,unless someone has any idea where it is coming from. I would love to get it handled under warranty...

I've researched online and found a couple of ideas, but I'm not sure about either and have no leads to go one.

1. The camshaft belt could be misaligned or slipping.
2. The motor mounts are worn? on a new vehicle?

If someone has any idea, please let me know.
Thanks,

Roy

there is an issue with the Diesel Drive Belt... Maybe the same with the petrol....
INGENIUM I6 3.0L Diesel Accessory Drive Belt – Damaged/snapped or noisy

What octane are you fueling with?
I would suggest liqimoly fuel cleaner+premium fuel for one full tank.
also, what is your OS cersion? My p400 made that exact noise when accelerating after one of the updates. It was finally cured a month ago, two years into my lease, with fresh updates and dealer in-house module updates.
so id also check firmwares.
but no, thats definitely abnormal.

Thanks for the reply, here is the update:

I have taken my Defender into the dealer, after ruling out the heat shield rattle, the foreman took my truck home (an hour away) overnight and that's exactly what he said.
Based on his experience, even though it says 'Premium Gas Recommended' on the gas cap, using anything but premium gas would result in noises, knocking etc.

They flushed out my gas tank's 87 octane and replaced it with 9, not sure if they added anything to it.
I drove it down to the Mexican border (~150 miles) and so far, so good. I'm going to drive it back on Sunday and I will be able to give a final answer if the problem is solved.
I hope it is the problem, as much as I don't like to pend extra money on gas ($6/gallon in Southern California), I will be happy to if it made these noises cease.

I'm not sure what it my OS version but since I'm subscribed to the data plan, I believe my software is being updated regularly.

Fingers crossed 🤞 I hope we found the solution.

Just a quick update: It is 98% better with a 91 octane (I also ran a fuel system cleaner). I can still hear a little bit of a weird sound here and there but way less frequent and a lot more faint.

Im glad your issue improved. Consider leaving california

LMAO! This ⬆︎

OP: why not using 93 believe that is the recommendation?

We don't have 93 octane here is Comi-fornia (I haven't seen any), I'd use it if I could.

91 is fine. It’s still premium. Just stop using 87.

wow, I've been experiencing the same exact sound and thought it may be fuel related although I always use 91 because that's the best available in Ca. I've filled up at shell with another fresh tank and even added Liquimoly fuel cleaner treatment, I'm through half that tank and it's not gotten any better. Happens on acceleration, worse under load and in lower rpm range 1-4 gears that I can tell. Did it take a while for fuel treatment to help? Any other ideas, also almost sounds like a tensioner bearing, and noise does not happen at idle or in park reving the engine. It's driving me crazy.