|
Engine mounts
The car shook terribly at idle, so I began by changing out the engine mounts. The mounts fasten to the subframe from above with hex screws, 6mm I think. They fasten to the aluminum arms from below with a single 8mm hex, which you access through a little hole in the bottom of the subframe. Take that bottom one loose first, then go after the ones above.
The rubber in the left front mount had dissolved into a ball of slime, and the inner bit was rattling loose in the outer. I had to take the power steering hoses off the steering gear to get access. I jacked the engine up from below to get the arm lifted off the mount, and then I was able to slide it out and slide the new one in. It had a heat shield, which was over one of the bolts, so I wound up removing the arm from the engine block. I now know I didn't have to do that; I could have just jacked up a little to take the pressure off, and rotated the heat shield a bit.
The right mount was a little harder to get to. I took the air cleaner cover off, but had to work under the intake manifold. It was awkward but doable. The right mount had compressed almost an inch shorter than the new one, but otherwise looked fine. This also had a heat shield, which I rotated to give clear access to the two hex screws.
|