Transfer case rattle

There's a rattle coming from somewhere near the transfer case shifter. Possibly under the big fake carbon fiber cover. Anyone had this issue before?

In searching I found that some transfer case knobs have a rattle in the knob itself, but that is not my problem. (I pulled off the knob and drove a bit to check)

When in 2wd the rattle stops upon acceleration, but starts again when I let off the gas and also at idle just sitting still. If I put hard pressure on the knob/stick to the left or right, I can make the sound stop. But it sounds like the sound is below the surface of the plastic carbon fiber.

It's clearly behind caused by the normal vibration of the transfer case. I just can't pinpoint exactly where. I think I probably need to remove the carbon fiber piece to find the itch.

Anyone have any tips? Its extremely annoying.

 

Might have had something slip through the shifter gate? Maybe a dime or penny? Nothing down in the TC shifter "pouch"? I've had coins and SD cards get down there and rattle and buzz before. Hope you find it!

 

Pull off the fake carbon fiber piece and check? I don't have have this rattle. I do have a buzz through the center console plastic at certain rpms, but that's caused by resonance with my aftermarket exhaust.

 

Yes, pulling it off is the plan. I found a photo of the area with the carbon fiber cover pulled off. Looks like several wires could be potential rattlers.

 

The transfer case shifter itself is known to rattle. Mine did, and I got a new black OEM.

 

I'll throw this out there to the OP.....

I had an absolutely infuriating intermittent buzzing rattle that was coming from the general area of the transfer case shifter on my '22 ORP. I pulled the dash and center console apart several times with no success and lived with that shit for over 2 years. I finally stumbled upon the cause of it... the goddamn little cover for the USB charging port..... when the cover was flipped open it would vibrate/buzz against the overhang of the plastic dash section directly over it. That was one of the happiest moments of my life.

 

Yeah hits weird. I can't pinpoint the source. I've emptied the center console. I've emptied the glove box and jiggled the cabin air filter around. At one point I thought the sound changes with fan speed. Then I sourced it to the transfer case shifter.

So strange that I can't even determine if I'm within 3 feet of the source. I'll check the usb cover!

 

It is hard to pinpoint weird sounds. I had a rattle that turned out to be the splash shields behind the front tires. Found posts that suggested spraying WD40 on the plastic rivets behind front tires.
It worked!
Good luck