New Energy Suspension Engine Mounts
 

Ok I know there are a lot of threads on this already but I just finished doing one of my engine mounts and I took a lot of pictures to show off so here they are.


Whole crossmember removed with old engine mounts still in.
http://geo.animounted.net/engm1.jpg

Here is a close up of the original rear engine mount, it's about ready to fall out
http://geo.animounted.net/engm2.jpg

Correction, it did fall out...
http://geo.animounted.net/engm3.jpg

Here are the metal tubes I purchased for $4 dollars to press out the old mount (that was the theory anyway). One was the perfect size, 3 and 1/2 in (outer diameter) for pressing out the original mount. The other was 4in diameter (inner diameter) which was to allow the engine mount to fall into it after pressing it out. Unfortunately it was too large and didn't sit properly.
http://geo.animounted.net/engm4.jpg

Picture of it fitting perfectly on top of the old mount
http://geo.animounted.net/engm5.jpg

Picture of the press we tried using to press out the engine mounts
http://geo.animounted.net/engm6.jpg

More pictures to come in my next post....

Here are a bunch of pictures of the bushings I bought for the cross member that I somehow installed incorrectly, gotta revisit this when I work on the next engine mount. When tightening them they popped out of place somewhat.

UPDATE: I ended up putting the old sub frame bushing back in to the cross-member instead of using the energy suspension replacements. Even after following the directions to a T, they just didn't sit right. When you would tighten the cross-member bolts, the sub frame bushing would pop out of place from the pressure.

http://geo.animounted.net/engm7.jpg
http://geo.animounted.net/engm8.jpg
http://geo.animounted.net/engm9.jpg
http://geo.animounted.net/engm10.jpg
http://geo.animounted.net/engm11.jpg

So after we failed to push out the old engine mount using the press, Andreas (dude who owns ufixitcenter in arizona) got a saw and hacked away at the old engine mount from the inside and got it out in no time. Here is a picture of the new mount being pressed in using a bench press.

http://geo.animounted.net/engm12.jpg

I only got the rear mount installed today and had to put my car back together as I didn't allot enough time for this job. Ufixit center lets you use their tools but you have to schedule the hours you plan on using, due to the problems we had with the press I ended up only getting one mount done in three hours.

I must say though, replacing just the rear mount has made a huge difference in how the car performs already. I can't wait to do the front mount. More pictures and feedback once I complete the second half of the job.

A for effort. :D

last time I removed bushings, I had to use a torch. :p

Great DIY! Keep it coming.

You can cut the ES motor mount bushing in half and install it really easily! nice photos by the way!

Yeah I had a completely blown out rear mount and I just got a new one in there today. The performance and responsiveness difference are phenomenal.

Are you going to try to some mount inserts with this install or not?

I read about using a torch, that was actually the only method I was afraid to try in fear of exploding rubber etc :)


Oooo never thought of that. I guess it would work since they fill the hole, but for the small amount of effort it took to get them in with a bench press it wasn't too bad leaving them in tact.


Seriously I can't agree more on the responsiveness difference and I still have three more mounts to go! btw, aren't the ES engine mounts inserts or are you talking about something different?

Thanks and will definitely keep them coming =)

I just did my front and side engine mounts today. I ended up finding the right size tubes to work on the press and man that made it so much easier. The proper size tubes needed for pressing out the old mounts are 3 and 1/2 inch outer diameter for the inner tube, then the tube that the mount drops into needs an inner diameter just over 3 and 1/2 inch. The place I was getting my tubes from didn't have anything with an inner diameter that was larger by just a tad on paper, so I told them to just get me a tube with an inner diameter of 3 and 1/2 inches. Well I guess I got lucky because the inner diameter was actually slightly bigger than 3 and 1/2 inches so it allowed the old mount to fall through properly. Here are some pictures to show what I'm talking about.

http://geo.animounted.net/em13.jpg
The above is a picture of us actually pressing the old mount out.
http://geo.animounted.net/em14.jpg
Stopped pressing for a moment to get another picture.

http://geo.animounted.net/em15.jpg
This is a closeup of how the tubes sit on top of the engine mount.

http://geo.animounted.net/em16.jpg
We're halfway done in this picture, Andreas actually stopped so I could get some good pictures for the internet.

http://geo.animounted.net/em17.jpg
Another picture at the halfway point, just to show how the mount slides out.

Anyway I only have one mount left to do but I'll leave that for next week. Guy at the auto parts store got me the wrong one so I couldn't finish the whole job today.

For those of you that want to do your own engine mounts I highly recommend looking for a shop like U-Fix-It center in your area. Of course I'm not sure if there is a place as cool as this anywhere else, but if you live in Arizona you can check this one out. The owner of the shop is literally a life saver. Every time I get stuck on something that seems impossible to me, he comes along and gives me advice or lends me a hand and I'm past the problem point in a matter of minutes. If nothing else, I hope the information and pictures in this forum post will help others out in the future

Very helpful, especially the press sizes and pics. I have to replace my core support, so probably going to replace the mounts while I have the center member removed. It's currently hanging freely on the front end where it broke off the rusted core support!

Nice pics and DIY!!:D

Yeah, I'm bumping this because I've read through the writeup twice and it's just sheerly awesome. Thank you!

One question, though: Did you end up attacking the inside of the metal mount with steel wool or a torch to get it shiny and blemish free? Did you grease the inside to get the ES insert pressed in more easily?

Great Post! :sprint:

If you don't have access to a press you can do what I did. I used a 3000 lb floor jack as a press. I positioned the jack under the deck of my house, then placed the mount and insert on the jack. It started to lift the deck a couple inches but then they popped right in. I also removed my old mounts inserts with a combination of a jig saw/ sawzall. Just make sure you don't cut too far and go into the actual mount. Then take a hammer and chisel and hit it around the edge. It will bend and they will pop right out.