When to Change Motor Mounts

[amateurbob]

I am noticing vibrations at idle on both of my older hondas (2012 accord and 2011 crv) especially after turning on the ac.

The accord oem mounts l think l get for (Honda) reasonable roughly $600. The crv mounts are much more absurd at a $1000+.

Other than annoyance will leaving mounts like this cause any problems?

 

[IndyIan]

As long as they don't allow "excessive" movement, then a bit of hardening or a some extra movement isn't a big deal. Have someone hold the brake and go from drive to reverse a few times to see how much slop there is now.
Also, do some reading in some Honda forums, as there is likely a cheaper decent replacement. Almost all motor mounts are pretty simple to replace in my experience, so I don't mind trying a cheaper one.

 

[grasscutter]

Have someone hold the brake and go from drive to reverse a few times to see how much slop there is now.

My front center mount was separated all the way through, but you'd never know it just by looking at it while the engine is idling.

 

[D60]

I have no idea if these are fluid filled but if so don't buy any old aftermarket rubber.

And try to avoid Anchor/Westar. That stuff is only good (barely) for a quick flip.

I put DEA in a '98 CRV and they felt pretty junky in-hand.

And don't ever do motor mounts on an Astro van. Just go straight to the lobotomy as it'll be faster and the end result is the same.

 

[ctechbob]

Excessive movement will take a toll on the exhaust. You don't want to be breaking studs or converters, so it is a good idea to replace the mounts.

My J Series cars came with the 'fluid filled' mounts, and those went to the graveyard ages ago. I just use whatever cheap replacements at this point, except on the Acura. It tends to eat up the front mount, so it has an Innovative designs (I think that was the company) bushing type mount.

The whole liquid filled thing isn't that big of a deal for an older car, just make sure to block off the vacuum line that runs to them so you don't have a leak.

 

[Gasbuggy]

I've had good luck with the cheap aftermarket mounts on my v6 accord. They don't absorb as much nvh though so that vibration might not improve...

If you have an EX-L it might have the totally unnecessary fluid filled engine mounts that are significantly more money.

 

[zzyzzx]

Another vote for cheap aftermarket mounts.

 

[crashz]

I'll echo D60 on the Anchors. I bought some in preparation to remove the engine in my dump-truck and re-seal it. I realize I take a long time to prepare for major tasks (about 5 years now), but my parts should not be degrading in the boxes as they wait. The anchors are already dry rotting in the box.

 

[amateurbob]

I'll echo D60 on the Anchors. I bought some in preparation to remove the engine in my dump-truck and re-seal it. I realize I take a long time to prepare for major tasks (about 5 years now), but my parts should not be degrading in the boxes as they wait. The anchors are already dry rotting in the box.

Any aftermarket you recommend?

 

[crashz]

Any aftermarket you recommend?

Good question in which I don't have an answer. I haven't actually done the work yet, but I think I'll just go OEM Ford if the price is reasonable. Factory parts are priced funny. Sometimes they are wildly expensive and other times they can be cheaper than the aftermarket.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

Honda motor mounts seem to be the most expensive and also fail the most frequently

 

[oilburnin]

I had this problem recently. The vibration started as a mild annoyance and became terrible after a thousand more miles. I assume vibrations are bad for the rest of the car.

Ordered 3 new aftermarket mounts dirt cheap. Changed only 1, didn't help and decided to sell the car instead of dealing with it since I didn't need the car anyway. Told the buyer and sold for very low price.

If you need to keep the cars, you could try with super cheap aftermarket mounts but be prepared to do the job again with OEM mounts.

 

[zzyzzx]

I think I'll just go OEM Ford if the price is reasonable. Factory parts are priced funny. Sometimes they are wildly expensive and other times they can be cheaper than the aftermarket.

They usually are reasonably priced from places like Tasca parts online. But the OP has a Honda and presumably the OEM ones are going to be expensive even online.

That and it also depends on how hard they are to change.

 

[PandaBear]

I had a 95 Corolla that 2 of the 4 motor mounts were bad and the whole front end would rattle when I was on the brake idling but goes away when I put it in N. Many mechanics said all 4 mounts but one guy who actually investigate said only 2 of the 4. It fixed the nvh.

The mounts + labor were $600 back in the mid-late 2000s. I am sure it would be double by now. I think it was a huge problem because the car was low torque so I floor it a lot, and the throttle cable was sticky so it goes from idle to 25% throttle, until the mechanic lube the cable for me for a small fee. My Integra doesn't have this problem with twice the miles on the motor mounts. It could also be because Corolla is a cheaper car with a smaller engine than the Integra, but nobody knows for sure.

If you don't have excessive vibration during idle you probably don't have a bad mount.

 

[amateurbob]

I had a 95 Corolla that 2 of the 4 motor mounts were bad and the whole front end would rattle when I was on the brake idling but goes away when I put it in N. Many mechanics said all 4 mounts but one guy who actually investigate said only 2 of the 4. It fixed the nvh.

The mounts + labor were $600 back in the mid-late 2000s. I am sure it would be double by now. I think it was a huge problem because the car was low torque so I floor it a lot, and the throttle cable was sticky so it goes from idle to 25% throttle, until the mechanic lube the cable for me for a small fee. My Integra doesn't have this problem with twice the miles on the motor mounts. It could also be because Corolla is a cheaper car with a smaller engine than the Integra, but nobody knows for sure.

If you don't have excessive vibration during idle you probably don't have a bad mount.

Excessive idling is tough for me to say. The aftermarket radio rattles and the license plate holder rattles very annoyingly but not bone jarring.

 

[oilburnin]

If you don't have excessive vibration during idle you probably don't have a bad mount.

Yeah that's a good point. A bad motor mount should also cause vibration while driving. Rough idle only could be a bad spark, low idle, or could just be something so subtle that it can't be identified (age)

 

[SwampSurvivor]

I'll echo D60 on the Anchors. I bought some in preparation to remove the engine in my dump-truck and re-seal it. I realize I take a long time to prepare for major tasks (about 5 years now), but my parts should not be degrading in the boxes as they wait. The anchors are already dry rotting in the box.

I go through a set of anchor mounts a year on my Jeeps

 

[PandaBear]

Yeah that's a good point. A bad motor mount should also cause vibration while driving. Rough idle only could be a bad spark, low idle, or could just be something so subtle that it can't be identified (age)

Mine were never rough during driving probably because the engine was just too small. The rough idling with bad idle feels different. Mine is very specific to which rpm, and idle with N and with D on brake feels different. Mechanic lift it up with stand holding each part of the engine / transmission near the mount to tell which one is bad.