I'm no mechanic, but I'm close to positive that these are the appendix of the 5th Gen Maximas. The car runs NO different with them unplugged, and if they're plugged into anything and something goes wrong, they'll short your whole computer out. Even other mechanics I talk to (not Nissan specialists) always tell me "electric? what the hell is an electric motor mount?" and I respond with "exactly".

Now is there any actual purpose of these or are they just there to show very poor engineering by Nissan?

 

"
The motor mounts are supposed to harden up when the RPM's of the motor goes over about 1000 RPM. When it drops below that, they loosen up I believe.
"

 

You will notice a difference, DEFINITELY

 

I think I remember reading they're only on automatics. When idling with your foot on the brake in gear they soften to lessen the vibration.

 

are they really that useless ?????

 

So, what brought this on? If you think they serve no purpose then simply unplug them.

 

I'm pretty sure if they served no purpose Nissan wouldn't spend the $$$ to develop and put them in a production vehicle. Just saying.

 

They absolutely do serve a purpose. As mentioned, in an automatic, at idle there is additional vibrations where a manual Maxima (which would be in neutral) would otherwise not experience. Therefore, as mentioned, the electric mounts soften at idle and the actuator will then add pressure to the inner liquidy goodness once the throttle increases.

Consider who these cars are marketed toward and sold new to. The majority who buy a Maxima new is not interested in having added vibrations. In any case, added vibrations from a new car is NOT a positive selling point.

Just unplug the mounts. Better yet, replace them. They are probably leaking anyway if they are the originals. Use the manual tranny Maxima engine mounts. You will have slightly increased vibrations, but it is easy to get accustomed to.

 

Good answer. Quaint and to the point.

 

I ended up smoking my ecu after I noticed the day before the slight squeaking that they make when they are on the way out, reprogrammed a used ecu unplugged the mount for now and since then I have noticed a difference in amount of movement I never noticed before, they will on my next list of things to do, just change them all while I am in there.

Everyone says its a stupid set up, but it does serve its job for what they are designed to do

 

Alrighty then, apparently they do have a purpose. Although during my startup, I hear a whining noise coming from some electronic thing by the motor that I originally thought was the ABS, but I am not applying the brake. I'm scared that this means they've gone bad and I want to unplug them before putting in a new ECM. How many are there and what are their locations? I can't seem to find anything about them.

"I'm no mechanic" hence the reason why I'm on this forum in the first place.

 

I unplugged mine and replaced with MT mounts with PUR inserts, definitely one of my 2 favorite and most noticeable mods.

 

Reading the posts here, I knew that the electric mount changed from soft to firm. But being electric, exactly how did it do that? Was it a big electromagnet inside? After having an electric motor mount go bad, I dissected it to see exactly what was inside the thing.

As it turns out, the mount is not really an electric mount, it is a hydraulic device. It uses electricity to run a small electric motor that pumps oil in and out of a rubber bladder. Built into the little motor are contacts that are supposed to shut off the motor after it has rotated some certain number of times. As too many members have found out, this design fails and "poof" goes your ECU.

But a second kind of failure can occur. The rubber bladder can rupture and the oil leaks out. This is what happened to me, I saw an oil puddle under my car and it wasn't engine oil. At least this failure does not damage the ECU. But I then started hearing a thumping noise when I drove over bumps. When I realized that I had this thumping noise when I parked and shut the engine off, the light bulb lit up and I concluded I better replace the mount.

There are 2 electric mounts on your car, the radiator and firewall sides of the engine.

As far as unplugging the motor mounts, here are pictures of the connectors on my 2000, which I think is the same as your 2001.



This picture of the rear connector is taken while looking over the driver's side fender.

 

FYI, some vehicles (and I have no clue the rational) may have only one (1) electronic mount. My '03 had only one up front. Go figure. Although, I'd check for both as Dennis outlined above. Just don't sweat it if there is only one.

 

Same here.

 

I never did notice on my 4th gen GLE. It had a electric front mount and it was replaced by a regular mount from the GXE. OEM of course. Only vibrations I noticed was when I added the NWP torque link

I only had one(1) electric mount on my 4th gen (radiator side)

 

If I got it right, the 5.0 gens had 2 electric mounts and the 5.5 gens had just one.

 

my 5.5 gen (2002) had two (front and rear) motor mounts

 

Yeah, but you declared them useless. As others have already stated, they're not useless.

The whining you mention might be coming from the alternator assuming the whine changes pitch as the RPM goes up and down. I kind of doubt the motor mount would make noise. But if you're concerned then simply unplug them.

 

I deem a lot of items on my car useless. Doesn't mean they're useless for other owners, just useless to me and my needs.

 

.....

 

Yep.. I got 2 OEM MAF housings for anyone who's interested. A stock cat back, IM, 2 sets of primary O2 sensors, and a fast cat.

 

Only two? I was hearing from some people that there were 4 of them; I knew about the one by the radiator and the other by the dipstick. But alright cool, I guess that's all. I'll have to make sure the mechanic at the dealership knows to LEAVE THESE UNPLUGGED when he's replacing the IACV/TPS and wires.

 

there are four total but I think only two are electric

 

If your mechanic is not a Nissan guy, tell him that the engine has to be running over 1000 rpm when you unplug the connectors. Over 1000 rpm has the mounts in the "stiff" mode, which is what you want for driving. If you don't the mounts will be in soft mode and the engine will bounce around more than it should.