Subaru TSB 12-140-12 for Rear Deck Popping
 

:w00t:

The purpose of this bulletin is to provide a repair procedure to address a customer concern of a "clack" or "popping" sound from the trunk and / or rear package shelf area. The sound may occur over bumps or when a twisting motion is introduced into the vehicle chassis at low speeds.

Thanks. So, basically, spray grease until it's out of warranty.
Not that I was hoping for anything better...

This seems like a ghetto fix for this problem. I wonder what they are doing different at the factory?

I liked that the dealers get a whole 4 DOLLARS to cover costs. Like they don't have a hammer and grease laying around.

This actually seems like a pretty reasonable fix to me. The less the dealer has to do to my car the happier I am. I sure don't want some newbie car tech going in my car with welding equipment!

The joy of having a post VIN range car.

I didn't expect the TSB would be just to spray lube. But at least we know the exact spots to spray now. Thanks for the post!

Would welding that seam stop that? Just asking cause I have no idea... mine just started. Greasing it seems like a preventative measure until it goes out of warranty. I shouldn't have to drive something that does that. No one buys a pizza with spoiled meat and the fix is to just sprinkle season on it till it cant be tasted... it still has bad meat on it... sorry for the shitty analogy.

What is the vin range of the affected cars?

Per the TSB:

COUNTERMEASURE IN PRODUCTION
A countermeasure was incorporated into production in July, 2012 starting with VIN number
D*602788.

The noise is probably coming from the two plates rubbing against each other so the grease idea makes sense. At the factory, they probably either apply the grease on it or changed the weld pattern to allow for less movement or make the movement quiet. This isn't something I would be worried about.

On the other hand, if the TSB was about sludge and said "just change the oil when customer complains", I would be very worried.

I'm trying to get Toyota to fix mine right now - printed the Subaru TSB and gave to the service adviser, who looked bewildered. My FRS VIN is 12XX, manuf in March 2012.

Well now I REALLY don't feel bad about fixing this issue myself months ago by spraying lube into those same areas. I felt somewhat ghetto doing this until now...

Maybe Subaru engineers copied you! :o