I have finally discovered the source of an annoying rattle in the dash. It is coming from the center speaker grille on top of the dashboard. If I press down on it while driving, the rattle goes away. I have put in a temporary fix by inserting a business card under the front edge of the grille. Does anyone know if the grille is held on by snaps and can be removed from the top or is it bolted on requiring removal of part or all of the dashboard?
I assume it's a speaker. It's a grille with holes that is about 5 inches square. It's right above the MFD on top of the dash.
It's the center speaker on the JBL sound system. Don't know how it's held in. You might try prying it out with a flat head screwdriver (put tape over the head to protect against scratches).
There is thread with photos on how to remove it and disconnect it(search for it). It is just held with clips.
Well my search turned up everything I wanted to know about removing all the speaker covers except the center-dash speaker. I did find one post that indicated that you can pry it up from the top but no pictures. I guess I'll just go at it with a screw driver and hope for the best.
I've taken this grille/speaker out before. I can't remember which edge to start from, but use a credit card (or similar) to tuck under the grille, and then lift the nontucked edge of the credit card up. This will force the speaker up and pop it out nicely. I also remember pushing the card into the plastic grille after I got it under the edge, which probably helped to flex the retention clips in (loose) a bit. It's being held in there by some formed plastic clips that are part of the grill assembly itself. Hope that helps... Edit/Update: http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-prius-audio-electronics/34286-middle-speaker-jbl.html has some additional info. I believe I wedged the credit card into the edge that faces you. Mike
Thanks for the info SebMike. I'll give it a try this weekend. I suppose by using a credit card (an expired one) the risk of breaking the grille before breaking the credit card is farely low.
Yeah, that's part of the gig...also, lifting up on that grille across its width by using the credit card distributes the force across it. If you just put a screwdriver in there, you'd likely booger up the plastic because of the small surface area you're using to pry it out of there. Good luck on the rattle hunt!
