Heat shield rattle help. (pic)
 

Hi.

I have a heat shield that is making a rattle. It is located near the front of the engine ; you can see is by just looking under the front bumper (see picture below)

My question : can I just rip this out & leave it like that or do I absolutely need to put another one?

Also, those three bolts that hold it in place : Do they hold anything else together or can I just unscrew them without any worries?

Many thanks?

M.

http://www.micho.ca/protege5/IMG_1828.JPG

It is good to keep it - get metal zip ties or header wrap...

I pulled mine off last week. Its not like it serves a purpose.

I had alot of rattling on the ride home one day. So I pulled into my driveway reached under and pulled off the heat shield. It was rusted up really bad (possibly less then yours) so I just had to pull alittle and it came right off. I didnt even bother with the bolts.

Alot of us have problems with that heat shield so we just pull it off. Other then that I dont think the screws go anywhere (just to hold the shield) If you do want to pull them off, you will strip them just look how rusted they are.

Hmmm... I have a small rattle front the front at low RPM. It doesn't rattle all the time, so its hard to figure out where its coming from. Will have to check this thing out.

You could use over sized washers (b'n the bolt head and the shield) If you want to still use them still.