Changed my engine mounts....what a job....

I have had a set of solid mounts (that I got from J. Marsh) for my '92 SC sitting in my garage for about 9-months. I finally got around to installing them during the holidays. This is a job that separates the men from the boys. I used the "from the top" method requiring the removal of the intercooler and tubes, alternator, PS pump and bracket, etc for the driver's side, and then the removal of the MAF, intake, AC compressor, and jackshaft assembly for the passenger side. It took a good 2-days to complete the job (mainly because I did it with just my hand tools, and without any assistance).
The engine idles much better (the old mounts came out in pieces, so I'm sure the pan was slamming the frame) and this gave me the opportunity to do a lot of "de-greasing".
Just one more item added to my SC "do-it-yourself" list.



(My wife thinks I'm nuts because I do this for "recreation". She may be right..............)

Congrats. Next time you need to do it, it'll be easier With the solid mounts though, that shouldn't be for quite a while.

You also have company. Not only my wife, but many of my friends think I'm nuts for doing the work myself also. I hear this phrase a lot: "Why don't you just go buy a new car?" to which I reply "If I'd found one that I liked better, I probably would". Also, for what it costs me to fix broken stuff and restore worn stuff, it still works out to be <1/4 of what a new car payment would be. Of course that would be a far different story if I relied on shop maintenance.

My exact thoughts..... If I could find a car I liked better, I would consider making a change......but, if I invested an amount equal to the new car payments into this bird......it would be a much better car than anything that you could afford to buy new anyway.........

Next time bring it to my place. I have air tools and an extra set of hands. Glad to hear the good news though. Nick

I did it the same way, and while it seems like quite a chore, putting everything back together shows how really simple it is. Just bolting and unbolting things. No real hassle. Biggest problem I had was the bolts on the back side of the motor mount and dealing with the front of the car lifted up and having to reach down low to deal with the power steering fittings. Took me two days as well spread out over two weekends.

Lots of parts, not too bad and you get to know the parts of your car real well.

Sharing some picks.

All the tools I used:


Looking a little bare in the engine compartment. (Removing the hood really helps with this job)



New Mount Going In

TbirdSCFan said:

Also, for what it costs me to fix broken stuff and restore worn stuff, it still works out to be <1/4 of what a new car payment would be.

Click to expand...

I agree. It's much nicer (and more fun) to have a car budget rather than a car note each month.
I do rely on a local shop for a lot, since this is my daily driver and certain things I need to know they're done right. Even so, I'm ahead of where I'd be if I was still paying on the car that we replaced with the SC, aside from the initial price of the car. On top of that, I've got a car title for a change. If we'd bought a new car, it would be even worse.

Motor mounts...

How much and where is the best place to buy new motor mounts. Im redoing my head gaskets and have 125k on my car, so it might be something I want to look into. Solid are the best I take it?

Mike8675309
Only one can of Mountain Dew ?

Try the stores and ask for a non-hydraulic mount.
Other places to check are:
http://www.mn12performance.com/
http://www.supercoupeperformance.com/

SC motor mount change out

Sounds like a job well done!!! I'm most likely going to be doing this in the near future, I'm a one month old 91 SC owner with 120k miles, just looking as best possible, my mounts are stock, hyd. units, still seem to be holding so far. What are the symptons of problems? Leaking, etc??

I pretty much do my own work, If I can't satisfy myself, no one can.

I really have got to bone up on tooling, what kind of "wrench" did you use to break the Intercooler pipes?? I have yet to here anyone mention this on recent posts, I am assuming some type of nylon strap wrench??

Anyway, great job, good luck with your car....

Wrench? Wrench?.... We doone need no stinkin wrench... we take the SC top and upper tube off as 1 piece . Then cover the SC inlet to keep crud out. Reseal with a razor thin layer of copper RTV.

But if you just absolutely must, its called a spanner nut wrench.

As far as how to tell if the mounts are worn, open the hood, put the car in gear and goose the throttle slightly. Look how high the engine jumps.if it more than about an inch, they've worn out. You can also inspect the limit arm to see if they're resting on the bottom of the lower mount bracket. You have to get under the car and look way up from the back of the engine to see them.

Another way to tell if they are shot is if it is a real tight fit to get the oil filter out when you change the oil. Both my mounts had collapsed so the filter was pretty difficult to remove (or replace). I could also hear the block slamming the frame if I hit a pothole in the road. The idle was starting to get flacky too.

I didn't have to remove the upper bracket from the block on either side of the engine. The mounts were in two pieces so half came out with the lower bracket, and I clamped the top half with some vise grips to keep it from turning as I unscrewed the nut from the mount's center bolt.

I haven't been this sore and stiff for a long time.....bending down to get to this stuff on a lowered bird will take its toll. (being 45 and sitting behind a desk 5 days a week doesn't prepare you for this stuff.......but man, I love getting that grease under my fingernails!!!!!!)

SC motor mounts, aches and pains......

Well, add 10 years and you know where I'm coming from, but, as you say, love that grease...........I'll checkout my mounts this weekend; thanks for the tips and suggestions.

I've got a full set of service manuals and wiring diagrams, vacuum lines, etc. if you ever need any paticular info. I here that there are cd's available for this info, man, that would be the way to go; if you know of anyone selling the Manuals on CD's, let me know.

Later.

OK to the rest of the older-n-stiffer folks.. Something which will help your lower back (like mine) is to regularly park your foot up on the radiator support when stooping over the engine compartment. You'll look like you're stretching out, but your back will feel a lot better when you're done.

Those of you who know what I'm taling about KNOW what I'm talking about.

So youguys are dsoing the mounts from up top

I was under the impression that I should takle the motor mounts from underneath the car? I am going to be doing them in a caouple of days, could somebody fire me an email or post here with some steps/tips. dsabados@schreinercanada.com

Thanks all.

You can perform this task either way.......

If you do it from underneath, you don't have to remove as much "stuff" to get to them, but you are working on your back (unless you happen to have a lift to put the car up on).

From the top, you have to remove a bunch of stuff which takes longer, but it seemed to be easier than trying to break the bolts loose while laying on your back. It is easier to see what your working on from the top.

Well maybe a case of MtDew.

SC Top Nut Removal
I used a piece of a 2x4 and a hammer (seen in the picture) and some light taps to rotate the nut off and on. Don't do this if you don't know what you are doing as you could crack the aluminum top.

Top or Bottom
The bottom should really involve removal of the exhaust. I have bad luck removing exhaust systems, more often than not twisting or rounding off bolts and I get tired of drilling things out. Plus I needed to change spark plugs and wires so I figured the front would work.

Low Slung Bird
I raised my bird up on jack stands so I didn't have to lean over quite that much. though to get down to the mounts I then needed to stand on a tool box to get tall enough.

Mounts
I purchased my mounts + transmission mount from MN12Performance. You can tell if the engine mounts are failed with the help of a friend. Have them gun the throttle while you stand out front and watch the engine under the hood. The driver's side of the engine will lift up a good 2 inches if the mount is fried.

More often than not it is just the driver's side mount that has failed completely. Otherwise with a flashlight and a close look you should be able to see the mount has seperated.