I've searched here and in Gen II about rear license plate rattles. I have mine in a chrome frame with no tabs to lock the plate to the frame. The problem is a consistent rattle from the plate/frame when going over rough roads. What seems to be the best solution would be to drill 2 very shallow holes into the body where the lower plate screws would go. My concern is drilling into that section of the hatch. Is there anything back there within 1/4 inch that I could hit and damage; i.e. the washer reservoir? I would then put 2 short self-tapping screws in to secure the bottom of the plate and frame to the body of the lower hatch.
I think the bigger problem is the frame hitting the trunk, not the plate hitting the frame. Why not just silicone some sort of little rubber pieces to the back of the plate frame between the trunk and the frame to act as a buffer between the metal hitting metal and making noise? I had the same problem on my 06' as you do now and just putting a 'buffer' between the 2 worked fine. I surely wouldn't drill into the body just to fix it.
Get some of those sticky silicone buttons they make to put on the bottom of picture frames. Stick them on the bottom corners of the license plate. If you can't find those, then put some of that thick double sided tape across the bottom of the license.
I put some Velcro double-stick on both the plate-to-frame and behind the plate to the the body. The jury is still out on this fix as I wonder if rain will affect the adhesion. I still think Toyota should have put 2 more holes to secure the plate/frame. Thanks all for the suggestions.
You should be good, i did the same on my last car, the velcro on the body and then double sided tape the frame to the Lisc plate - problem solved.
Seasalsa, I thought of that solution too, but was afraid the additional depth would push out the frame and plate on a weird angle. So far, the double-stick velcro is working. I still think Toyota should have just provided 4 holes since that area is prone to rattling. Every car I've owned had 4 holes for the rear plate.
When I installed the rear plate, I put a few pieces of electrical tape on the back side of each lower corner, to act as a cushion. I believe I stacked 3 pieces on each side--enough to cushion, but not so much it caused the plate bottom to stick out. Works great--a year later, no issues.
I put a piece of SINGLE sided 1/8" sticky foam tape under all four corners of my rear plate when I moved it from my old car 6 years ago because I didn't want it to scratch the paint. I don't have a plate frame. If I did, I would also put tape under the frame. No real need to stick it to both the frame and plate. I just replaced the old beat up plate with a new plate and did the same thing. I've had the plate since Jan 1986 and it was pretty weather worn. The foam tape was still firmly stuck to the old plate.
The self stick buttons are good if you aren't going to go the 4 screw route. Stick the self stick silicone buttons to the car, not the frame. They do a better job of protecting the paint because they won't pound and rub against the paint if they are attached to the paint.
Actually, if you don't put it between the plate and the frame AND between the frame and the body you have a chance of getting a rattle from between the frame and the plate. If you have a frame, use the foam tape both between the frame and the license plate and the back of the frame and the car body.
Yep - I did something like that by putting velcro strips behind the frame and in front of the plate (all hidden). Then more double-stick behind the plate and to the car body. So far, it seems OK, but I worry what weather will do to it. I still wish there were holes back there!
That foam tape is pretty sturdy and it is kind of protected from the elements. The last car I sold still had enough foam to stop all the rattles after about 5 years. It might not look good or stick to anything else but it will do the job for a lot longer than you might think.
