A rattling engine can be very disturbing. If your Chevy Sonic is experiencing this problem, we’ll cover the most common causes. A rattling engine can be caused be the exhaust, timing chain, loose accessories, and much more.
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Engine Rattling Causes: Chevy Sonic
Here are the most common causes of a rattling sound in your Sonic:
Exhaust
The exhaust system is one of the most common culprits that can make it sound like your Chevy Sonic’s engine is rattling. While the exhaust is outside of the engine itself, it can often cause sounds that are confused for an internal engine rattle.
Heat Shield
The number one rattling culprit in your Sonic’s exhaust system is the heat shield. They can get a little loose as the vehicle ages and accumulates mileage. Once this happens, it’ll rattle all of the time. It’s particularly noticeable when you rev the engine in neutral and let off of the gas pedal. You should hear a rattle as the engine comes back down from the higher RPM.
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If the heat shield is loose, you’ll need to take your Sonic into a good exhaust shop and have it welded back into place. The good news is that a loose heat shield is never going to leave you broken down on the side of the road.
Exhaust Leak
If your exhaust system is leaking, it will often make an aggressive ticking sound. Some folks have described it as a rattle. If it is leaking, the most common place that it leaks from is going to be where it bolts to the block at the exhaust manifolds. You can check and see if any of the exhaust manifold bolts have broken off. This is very common in all vehicles.
Catalytic Converter
The catalytic converter is responsible for scrubbing the majority of the pollutants out of your exhaust. As it ages, the metals inside can break down. When this happens, you can hear them rattle around.
When the catalytic converter does fail, it’ll often give you code P0420, or P0430. If your check engine light is on, you may want to see if you have an emissions related code. That would be very strong evidence that the catalytic converter is causing the problem.
Most auto parts stores are happy to scan your codes free of charge. Otherwise, scanners are really cheap.
Timing Chain
A loose timing chain can really make a rattling sound. This sound is particularly noticeable when you start the Sonic. A bad tensioner will leave the chain loose and ready to jump a tooth or fall off all of the way. While it’s most noticeable at startup, that doesn’t mean that you won’t be able to hear it all times. Sometimes you can, sometimes you can’t.
Loose Accessory
If something has worked its way loose on your engine, it can rattle and dance at different RPMs. If you’ve left your oil cap loose on top of the valve cover, that can cause a rattling sound. Or, if you’ve left a tool on top of the intake or valve cover it can cause a rattling sound. It doesn’t even need to be something loose, it can just be out of place.
Oil
This seems obvious, but it’s worth checking out. If there is no oil in the crankcase, the engine is going to sound like a rattling old buzzsaw. That rattling sound is the sound of your Sonic’s engine dying.
If you have a blown head gasket, you could be losing water that goes into the crankcase. When this happens the oil loses its viscosity as it is watered down. The oil will look orange and foamy when this is the case.
Internal Engine Issue
If you’ve been looking for all of the issues described above, it could be that there is something inside of the engine that is making it rattle. You could have a stuck lifter, a burnt valve, the wrong spark plugs, or more. Hopefully, one of the easier to fix and more common issues listed above though.
Conclusion: Sonic Engine Rattling
Good luck fixing the rattle coming from your Chevy Sonic. If there is anything that you would like to add, please leave a comment below.
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2016 Chevrolet Sonic
2016 Chevrolet Sonic Owner Comments
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A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
Vehicle began having trouble with acceleration and jerking when stopped in July 2019. Took vehicle to a shop where it was suggested I replace the battery and the oxygen sensors. Both were replaced. Vehicle still continues to jerk and not properly accelerate. Vehicle drives smooth so long as their is a full tank of gas and its going a steady at least 40 mph. When the gas gets below half tank, the vehicle will continue with the jerking and accelerating issue. Vehicle also has to be restarted numerous times after gas is put in.- Jacksonville, FL, USA
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problem #3Sonic
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The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Sonic. While driving 15 mph, the vehicle shut off without warning. The contact also mentioned that the vehicle shut off without warning while at a complete stop. The contact took the vehicle to an independent mechanic where they diagnosed the vehicle and replaced the oxygen sensor; however, the failure persisted. The contact took the vehicle back to the independent mechanic on numerous occasions and had the thermostat and intake main gasket set replaced, and an engine tune -up; however, the failure continued. The manufacturer and dealer were not notified of the failures. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 78,456.- Houston, TX, USA
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Takata recall- the engine light is on I have taken it to auto shop they could not find any wrong took it to a Chevy dealer they cannot find anything wrong. But my car shakes and stalls on me. It's very frastrating spending on the vechile and one can find what's going on.- Milwaukee, WI, USA
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