So, this morning, I took apart everything in the center gear shift **** area and cleaned it out. My main goal was to get rid of the rattle. What I did was put a 2" strip of electrical tape on the rod that the gear shift ***** slides onto. It was a tight fit, even with just one layer of electrical tape, but it went on. I also put a piece of felt, maybe 1/16" - 1/8" inch thick, on the inside part of the trigger that allows the gear shift **** to move. I had to use a tiny flat head screwdriver to push the felt in enough that it would not get pushed off when depressing the lever. It is hidden once you put the two side plates back on, so no big deal.

My next step was to adjust the strikers so they would hold the doors tighter, thus eliminating the door knock/rattle. Well, the torx bolts are in so tight that it broke the adapter on my socket wrench. I got a new adapter, sprayed WD-40 on them, and went back to work. I got the top bolt loose, but I could not get the bottom one to budge. I went ahead and just put another layer or two of electrical tape on all of the strikers for now. I figure, worst case scenario, I will eventually have to add another layer of electrical tape, but it should eventually build up enough to hold for quite a while. I may just end up at a shop or the dealership to get them to adjust them, but that will be my last resort if I cannot solve the issue myself.

The next piece of the puzzle is that the bed definitely seems to rattle when going over bumps. I have even noticed the rear corner (passenger side) of the bed vibrating up and down when going over bumps. I am not sure if there is a fix for this or not, but the internet will soon tell...

The only other vibration that I seem to notice is maybe the rear seat on the passenger side (longer portion of the rear seats), but it is not bad enough to mess with.

 

If you have the gate w/ the step built into it, that pole may be the cause of the bed rattle. I have not tried to do anything with mine yet, but i can hear it bounce and rattle off something when i shut the gate hard enough.

 

I don't have the step. It is definitely the bed itself rattling.

 

After further "research" (looking at it through the rear window while going over bumps), I have come to the conclusion that the tailgate is actually jumping up and down (rattling). Upon looking on the internet, it seems the best fix for this is to replace the bushings on the strikers. The bushings do not look bad, but I am open to suggestions.

Is there any other fix for this, or do the bushings seem to be the way to go, in terms of fixing this issue? Thanks in advance.

 

Impact driver FTW.

Something like this.
https://smile.amazon.com/TEKTON-2905...00NPPATS?psc=1