Hope everyone had a good weekend for labor day (US) . My wife got some new wheels a few months ago, a 2006 Honda Pilot. (1st non-us big 3/ foreign vehicle for me, but she likes it).
Anyways, ever since we've had it, there's been change rolling around in the interior, somewhere, hidden. Everytime you go around a corner, there it slides. Not world affecting, but just annoying.
I try to fix everything else, so I tore the thing apart this past weekend. Completely dismantle the center console/dash trim, digging ever deeper for the change. Tear apart stuff, go for a drive listening, then tear more stuff apart. On the third drive, the harmonic balancer/ crank drive pulley, disintegrates about four houses down the street away from me. One more thing on the list.
Have to break out the big tools to try to loosen crank pulley, and I couldn't budge that bolt. Ended up searching You tube, and used a breaker bar wedged on the frame, and bumped the starter a couple times and it loosened right up.
Turns out the center console contains its own heater core and A/C coil, for the rear seat vents, and the change wasn't in it either, it was under it. There was a big u shaped plastic vent, that goes under both driver and passenger seats, that's hooked to the dash vents. Rather than disconnecting A/c and heat, and removing rest of center console, and both front seats and carpet to get at it, I cheated.
Went to the shop and got a cut off wheel in the grinder, cut a three sided flap in the plastic, and drove around grabbing coins out as they would slide past. 10 assorted coins: dimes, pennies, and one quarter. Slapped some duct tape on top of the flap, and put everything back together.
I can just see someone with a three year old kid, who had a ball sliding coins in the dash vent, and his mom having a fit at listening to them slide around for the first 100,000 miles. I just couldn't see listening to it for the next 100,000.