In the how to's it tells how to replace the front and rear mount anyonw with a write up on all 4 or the other two ??? And estimated time

 

support tranny with Jack. Remove bolts going through the mounts. The rear one can be accessed through the drivers side wheel well with tire removed. Unbolt cross member, 2 bolts in the front 2 in the back. Drop the whole cross member with the mounts attached. Replace mounts and install in reverse order. I did it twice recently and it took about 45 min with air tools. No air tools and first time doing it, probably a couple hours. It may take a while to find the right way to access the bolts that go through the mounts, and to get them off. They can be really torqued on there sometimes.

 

I was about to ask about this. I was planning on using the little stock jack to support the engine/tranny. Is there a reason you say support the tranny rather than the engine? I know a VQ doesn't weigh much more than 200 pounds but there has to be more weight resting on the mounts with all the lines and accessories. The manual tranny weighs only 90 pounds or something, so why would you support the tranny? The only reason I can think of is that you might dent the oil pan if you put the jack under the engine. You'll still have both side mounts supporting the engine/tranny, so I suppose it doesn't matter that the jack is off center?

I'm going to be replacing the subframe bushings at the same time so removing the subframe crossmember will kill two birds with one stone.

One question...when I call around to shops asking for quotes, should I just say I have polyurethane motor mounts inserts to be pressed in? And the type of press they need to remove the old mounts and install the new ones is an arbor press, correct?

 

The tranny and motor are connected so it is basically all the same weight. It actually does not need to be supported for any saftey reason. The side mounts will support the motor/tranny just fine while the cross member is out. The real reason you need it supported is for putting back the cross member.

Over the phone just about any shop with a press will probably tell you they can do it. They really need to see it to know for sure.

 

Thanks, Mike.

 

Man! A "just in time" write up. You might just save my life (a bit of an exageration, but still...)

Story: I just changed the strut bearings in my car because of the noise that was happening up front ("cloink...bur bur bur bur bur..." whenever I accelerated around a turn). That did nothing. Only cost me $60 bucks though. I finally had a mechanic drive it around the block. He held the brakes and gave it some gas. Sure enough, it was the MOTOR MOUNTS!


1) Is this as easy to do as you say? Will I need to remove anything else from the engine compartment to get at the mounts? Any pictures for me?


2) Where can i get the mounts for less money? How much should they cost?

The dealer wants RIDICULOUS prices for the mounts (they quoted me $400 in parts if I were to replace all four - don't know how many are actually bad though).

 

If you have a stick, get the Energy Suspension motor mounts unless you care about ride quality above all else! They are cheaper, much firmer, and much much more durable (polyurethane instead of the stock rubber). They are very high quality, you have to hold them in your hand to appreciate them. They will help prevent wheel hop when accelerating fast and the annoying jerky feel when you get on and off the gas in gear.

Thread is here, and yes the deal is still going on. Just call the number listed for Cattman: http://forums.maxima.org/showthread.php?t=360725

($80 for the pair, front and rear.)

If you have an auto, you can make them work but it hasn't been confirmed yet. Somebody was going to try. (The shape of the auto mounts are a little different). If you don't want to try to figure that out, go with OEM replacements from a discount Nissan dealer such as Pinnacle Nissan; prices range from $60 to $150 (their prices reflect a 25% discount off Nissan list price) depending on which of the four mounts you need (you probably need front and rear if the problem occurs when accelerating). As you can see, the Energy Suspension mounts are a much much better deal.

http://www.trademotion.com/partlocat...95&catalogid=1

 

THANKS!!! Unfortunately I have an AUTOMATIC.

However, I have the valvebody mod, so it shifts FAST AND HARD at WOT (like a manual being thrown through the gears whenever you floor the gas).

That's probably how I killed the stock mounts!!! I'll have to see if anyone gets the Energy Suspension mounts onto an automatic...

 

It's a good excuse to swap your tranny for a 5-speed.

Towards the end of that long-@$$ thread somebody mentions that they're going to try putting the ES mounts in an auto, if you're curious.

 

this is a newb question but why and how do you know the mounts have to be changed and how does this help preformance (please dont hate on me for this)

 

Your car is over seven years old. Rubber bushings wear out. If you have an automatic GLE or SE then you have electronically controlled liquid-filled mounts, but I think there is still rubber surrounding that so they wear out too.

If you're not noticing any issues, your mounts aren't bad. One way to test how bad they are is to have someone sit in your car and rev the engine in park/neutral, while you watch the engine. If it's moving around a lot and it looks sloppy, you might want new mounts. It's supposed to move a little bit, but it should only be moving forward/backward, not side to side, and it shouldn't move too much. Maybe someone else can be more specific.

 

HOW I KNEW THE MOUNTS WERE BAD:

1) If you get the classic (so they tell me) "Cloink..bur bur bur bur bur" sound when you accelerate through hard turns. My car does this right now. Can't accelerate fast right now. It's killing me...

2) If you hold the brakes down and give the engine a little gas (don't floor it!) and you get sounds squeaking sounds from the front of the car. That's the engine moving way more than it should...

3) If your suspension parts are all good (strut mounts, bearings, etc) but you get a squeak over bumps anyway, it may in fact be the motor mounts. Try #2 to be more certain.

Man, I gotta take care of this. I don't have a driveway or garage to work out of, only a parking lot with lots of cars and not a lot of space... It would be a b_tch to work out there...