Had an annoying dashboard rattle which turned out to be the radio antenna. This was repaired under warranty. Way to go Toyota!
However now I have another rattle which comes and goes, usually occurring on rough roads at highway speeds. Very difficult to locate but best guess is it is coming from the center of the dash next to the windshield.
I am pretty handy but wondering whether I can fix this myself. Afraid of opening up the top of the dash and damaging something or marring the finish and maybe not getting it back together.
Is this worth a try, or is it better to take this to the dealer for a few hundred dollars of repairs?
Dashboard repairs can be a royal pain. Not because they're technically difficult or require special tools or skills. But because you often end up gutting most of the interior. It can be a lot of work and be extremely time consuming. That also means hiring it out will be expensive. If you're gentle (believe me, staying patient is the hardest part), wrap things in towels, and follow the procedure exactly, you can do it without causing too much damage.
First I would make sure it's not coming from under the hood.
I think I would make a minor effort, and spend a few hours to find it. Take off the outer dash pieces just to see what I can see in case it's something obvious. If I didn't get anywhere on day 1, then I'd probably just leave it and live with the rattle.
Like Joe said, check under the hood first. It could be the wiper linkage or something loose on the firewall.
