Interior rattles '21 Q5
 

Got the car in November of last year and after 12k miles it sounds like a 30 year old stagecoach bus. Random creaks, rattles and buzzing noises seem to be coming from everywhere. It would be extremely difficult to pinpoint or bring up to the dealer's attention as there is no one major noise source, just many random ones throughout the interior. I really wanted to like this car and was hoping to keep it for many years, but I'm not sure how much longer I can endure this. The car just does not feel solid. It's my 5th Audi and definitely the worst when it comes to interior rattles. I really don't enjoy the car any more because of this and don't know what to do. Trading it in for a different brand would mean a huge hit. I imagine it will only get worse, especially when temps drop in the winter. Anyone else or am I the only unlucky one here?

No rattles here, 3500 miles in 10 months. You have up to 12 month from delivery to have the dealer check on rattles and such, might be worth a try.

:( Sounds like really bad luck. I have 27K on my 2018 Q5 and it's been rattle-free. Could the dealer take the car for a day or two and drive it around?

I wish this would help, but based on my previous experience with dealers, the tech will usually go around the block and report that "everything is up to spec". Even elevating the matter to involve a shop foreman only helps when there is an obvious, pronounced issue while random noises are extremely difficult to diagnose. Few months ago, I've had a rather loud door rattle and they put some silicone coating on the door seals which alleviated the issue for about a month. The noise then came back. I bought the same spray they used, but the fix is only temporary.

The spray helps isolate problem areas and now you can focus on those panels and make sure they are all fully seated. (Door panels area always major culprits) Sometimes just tapping with the palm of your hand all around the perimeter (where most of the clips are) can fully seat any clips that are not fully seated. The wood or aluminum trim inserts work similarly. It only takes one clip to not be fully seated to cause your symptoms for each panel.
Overinflated tires can make the situation worse as well. I have had rattles in vehicles in the past and it drives me crazy.. Been lucky with my 2011 and now my 2020 so far. Our A3 Cab is rattle free to my surprise also.
Good Luck.

Taking my new (less than 2 month old) SQ5 in next week to have a dash rattle obliterated. My 3rd Audi, but first one with a rattle. I have hopes it will be found but if it's really hot outside no rattle (expansion of plastics).

My Q5e had a severe rattle in the passenger side dash under all conditions. It magically went away at about 300 miles. Weird. There is now a slight rattle in the center dash console area. You can hear a lot more when in EV mode. I almost wish the bad rattle was still there as it was undeniable. I’m not sure if I’m keeping my appointment to bring it in later this week as I know I’ll be frustrated when they don’t fix it. I’m always cautious about things with the dash as they could create more rattles by pulling it apart.

I’m also having terrible rattles in my new Q5, coming from the center of the dash and then center console under the shifter. I love this car my first Audi (had some unreliable BMWs) but the rattles are driving me a little crazy

I have had mine since May 2021 and no rattles or noises so far. Sometimes the rattles people experience can be traced to a single, simple issue that can be corrected if you can only find it (stating the obvious, I know, but trying to make the point hat this is not a widespread problem with the 2021 Q5, at least in my experience so far).

I have a 2022 Q5 and it has a rattle in the center dash area. I took it to the dealership, did a test drive with the technician , and pin pointed the sound. Two weeks later I received my Q5 back and it still is making the rattling noise. However they took out my front windshield and part of the dash and placed padding all around stating the noise was coming from where windshield and dash meet. Obviously this was not the issue or at least it wasn’t the rattle I complained about. Feeling defeated as I want to love my new Q5 but the rattle drives me crazy.

This is the thing. If they rip your car apart looking for rattles, there is a good chance that can create new rattles.

This is an interesting post for me...I think quiet cabins are a double edged sword. I've got an SQ5 prestige with the acoustic glass and this thing is quiet....super quiet and I love it, especially when I'm on the phone and people are surprised to learn I'm doing 75 on the freeway when they thought I was at home. Yes that really does happen to me frequently. But it also means I can hear the delicate squeak of my brake pedal and this ever so slight sound from the center of my dash that sounds like drizzle or a super soft rain hitting the windscreen. Those noises don't bother me - I chalk it up to character and the fact of the matter is...if the cabin wasn't so quiet to begin with I'd never hear those noises. As a car manufacturer, the more quiet you make a cabin, the more complaints you can expect since people's thresholds will drop accordingly for noises to complain about. So there's that. In addressing the OP's question, when I'm in offroad mode going up my private road with rocks and ruts, and the chassis is flexing sometimes with the weight shifting back and forth from opposite corners, I can hear panels creaking. I accept that the chassis has a certain amount of flex engineered into it, so that will happen. My '02 allroad wagon was built like a brick house and there was almost none of that. So this is a long way of saying - I wonder if your chassis is as solid as it should be. Do the noises you hear correspond with any particular motion or stress on the vehicle? Have you emptied all the compartments and taken another listen? Sometimes noises come from all the stuff that people let accumulate in their cars.

I doubt they took out your perfectly good windshield to address rattling noises

Audi SQ5 Rattles All Over
 

I have a 2020 SQ5 with barely 20K miles on it and my vehicle has been to the shop more than a ****ing human with cancer. I too keep having nothing but rattle noises throughout my entire cabin. My dashboard just started rattling even more when going over bumps or roads. I took it to the shop just recently and the shop Forman drove with me and said he can’t fix all the noises that I will have to live with it! BS. My money has no flaws, why should my car have issues.

I like everyone complaining about their Q5 have issues with it and will sadly be giving it back and never going back to Audi.

2022 Q5 dash rattle
 

I have a Q5 2022 Ed 1 and I do hear rattles which seem to be coming from the dash speakers when driving over rough surfaces. To test this I press firmly against the speaker grill while going over the rough road surface and the noise is aupressed until I release it again. It has the Harmon Kardon speakers and it seems as if something inside maybe loose. Also squeaking from the wheels when slowly and firmly applying the brakes but I assume this might be possibly be due to either a bit of rust or the brakes needing a little time to bed in. It's not even a month yet since I've had the car so just monitoring that.

this is exactly why I come to forums and YouTube first to try to fix rattles on specific models/years and not dealers unless the problem is unbearable

huh?

I have a 2022 Q5 Prestige. My first rattle happened with the MMI screen at about a year old with 5k miles. It was squeaking one time when it was cold. It was unbearable but went away a few days later. Later, my front passenger seat began to rattle, seems to rattle at a certain position but haven’t heard it in a few days. I installed a 12” speaker in the trunk that I installed 5 months ago and though I either blew out the speaker or something else but turned out to be the trunk floor mat rattling against the back. Right now I have a rattle that I can’t find while driving, sounds like it’s in the trunk. It’s fairly recent. I have a lot of stuff in the back that may rattle and installed a new toddler car seat recently. Another rattle is when I close the drivers door, the sound is in the back. Now, with that 12” speaker, there is a rattle in the sunroof when it’s open and it rattles the hell out of the spoiler. My knobs to the panels in the trunk are all loose. I am wondering what damage the 12” speaker may have caused, I do turn it up loud.

I am having a rattle in my 2021 Q5e front dash. Did you figure yours out?