So, a few months ago I noticed a cracking noise somewhere from the back right side of the car. First thought was that it is a back shelf. After removing back trim panels and parcel shelf, nothing was found. Some additional noise isolation was added, but that popping noise was not gone. It was very hard to find, but recently I caught that noise on video, here it is - Now I came to conclusion, that there is something in the roof trim... With a slight touch on the back window (or at the edge of the roof trim) I can reproduce this sound (like on video), but NOT ALWAYS Back window itself looks pretty solid and sound comes like somewhere from the roof (but again clearly from the back, and the right side) Also, it seems that it does not depend on road conditions, while it sometimes can be heard on a pretty smooth road, on some bumpy roads it can be quiet. Anyone got any ideas what can it be and how to get rid of it?

 

Mine does that on front windscreen but only when temp goes below 40 degrees. Drives me insane. Dealer won't cover and quoted 2200.00. Screw them!!

 

I don't know if the back glass is tempered or not. Seeing that phil has that same problem with the front glass.

Is it possible that the glass has separated from the lamination inside?

It seems crazy but I wonder if it is possible a poorly made glass was used.

 

Funny thing is, that I can not reproduce it every time, but occasionally it cracks. Not sure, but does not seem to depend on temperature though. Most of the time even beating the rear glass and the roof with a fist gives no sound at all and as I mentioned glass looks pretty solid (until driving starts lol). But while driving a friend of mine noticed that if you push the rear glass a little bit right on the edge in the center, it stops popping. I agree, philhef, drives me insane too. Can it be the metal? I just wanna sell jag and never see it again because of this problem, have been fighting with it for several months with no result at all

 

Yeah, I've done everything. Pushed on it while driving and it doesn't stop. Now my door panels are making noise with speakers, it's behind the veneer. Wtf?? Why doesn't any of my friends BMW or MERC not do this? It's really embarrassing. And every single jag I've ever owned eventually starts some noise. My 2096 XJ6 L started in the headliner. I had to pay 800.00 for them to replace 4 plastic tabs that just broke?!?!? Norman wear and tear they said, not covered. What freaking wear and tear does the headliner get??? Makes me so disappointed my XF has same issues. I'm seriously thinking about something else next trade. Dare I say a new hybrid lincoln MKZ?

 

It seems to depend on temperature after all (maybe inside/outside temp difference), cause I can not find any explanation why it sometimes pops and sometimes not. Indeed this kind of problem is very disappointing for this type of car.

 

Have you tried running a water hose along the top of the back glass to see if any water is coming in from the seam between the roof panel and glass. Sometimes only a very small amount of water will get through making it impossible to notice without looking for it.

Maybe there is a failure of the windshield adhesive?

That pop is very strange.

 

pitifulpluto, that noise is coming from the rear glass, not from the windshield... Windshield does have some adhesive problems (there's even a TSB to this issue), but it does not make any sounds in my case. Also, the windshield has some bubbles at the edges, but the rear glass looks completely fine to me. I will examine the glass to possible leaks after next car wash, but before did not notice any water whatsoever. That pop though is very clear, sometimes louder, but sometimes it's completely quiet even at bumpy roads. My last idea was to remove the roof panel and try to listen and see what can cause that sound again... But it's not an easy task and success with getting rid of this noise is hardly guaranteed.