Well it looked easy in the chiltern manual but now she's up in the air it's looking like a bigger job.

I'm replacing the front and rear engine mounts and the rear looks like a real b!tch. I get get at the top bolt through the ds wheel arch but the bottom two are impossible. I only see two options: take the exhaust off (groan) or remove the bracket that the two mounts bolt to - the front rear bracket under radiator to under firewall.

Seems like the two tops bolts on the mounts and the four chassis bolts on the bracket and the whole thing would drop out.

As long as I support the engine and tranny, am I OK to remove this bracket?

 

Yes, as long as you use a jack or jackstand to support the engine, you can take out the whole xmember, which is the best way to do it anyways. If you were to take that beam off without supporting the engine, it wont fall out or anything, but it will sag a bit and put a lot fo stress on the remaining two mounts.

 

OK I'm going in...

 

yes sir, block of wood between the oil pan and jack, hold that motor up nice and good.

 

Somethings wrong here. I just slipped a socket off one of the bolts on the front mount with a 2ft breaker. Even the 175lb wheel nuts weren't this hard. Chiltern say they should be 72lbs max. I've soaked them in WD and still won't come off.

Is the Chiltern spec wrong or do I just need to dremmel the nuts off? Anyone done this job?

 

if i remember right, the nut is welded onto the bracket so you only have to turn the bolt w/o using a second wrench. check to see if that is the case.

 

get a bigger breaker bar

 

I'm working the bolt end - it's the nut thats welded right? From the Chiltern manual it's only the top bolt of the rear mount that has a welded nut.

Your's came off fairly easy then?

 

yeah, nothing really, just good leverage. you did drop the cross member? and the bar isn't hangin' up anywhere to stop rotation. a couple of good hard pulls should break it free.

 

For the rear welded nut, this is what we did. Plenty extensions (long enough to make it to your wheel well). As you probably know you can see the bolt through the wheel well. Get a jack stand. Take your rachet extensions place socket on bolt. Let the extension sit on Jack stand outside of wheel well (jack stand is used to keep extensions level). Get breaker bar and a long metal pipe( ADDS LIKE 200 LB/FT Torque). Put this around the handle of the breaker bar. Both should be at approx 12 o'clock position and pull down on that sucker. It will come off with minimal force. I couldn't even get mine off with 400 LB/FT air gun.

 

Ah, good tip with the jack stand. I couldn't get enough action just holding the extensions. Mind you, I was 6" shy of clearing the wheel well - another minor detail.

Cheers! I'll give that a try.....after I replace my clutch.....dang!

 

Werd, I like MireLanski's idea. Mine were tough too, and I soaked w/penetrating oil. Be careful w/all the extensions... I hope u have lifetime warranty in case any of them snap. Who would think you'd need 200 lb/ft on a 14mm bolt.
Jae

 

1/2 impact sockets will stand up to the job.

 

Can you bang on impact sockets w/ 3ft of extensions?

The torsion built up on all those extensions scared the crap out of me. I guess as long as you're not under the car with them, if one does explode you got the wheel arch to protect you.

What I should do is get the clutch guy to do 'em while the tranny is out.