solid motor mounts?
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for race use most definitely a good plan, road use, not so much, they transmit a huge amount of vibration through the cabin and make for a very rough, noisy car, mine were built out of some standard mounts which had split and failed, I removed all the rubber that was left from the lower half of the mount, and epoxied in a hockey puck, then I took the top half and drilled through slightly smaller than the thread used to hold the mount to the car, and dropped in a bolt, then another hole was drilled through the centre of the puck and the flat plate at the bottom of the mount - put in some wide flat washers either side of the puck to spread the load. Finally it was bolted to itself and the car. Because I was flat broke it kept the car on the road with minimal damage to anything else, but I wouldn't and didn't want to keep it for a day longer than absolutely needed. Back to factory hydraulic mounts and we are back in church mouse territory. Much better.
For racing, I can see no reason why not, its simple enough to fabricate something from stock parts and by the look of it I reckon fabricating a bespoke piece would be easy as well, however for comfort, I would probably add a sliver of rubber somewhere in the build to take out a little of the harshness.
For racing, I can see no reason why not, its simple enough to fabricate something from stock parts and by the look of it I reckon fabricating a bespoke piece would be easy as well, however for comfort, I would probably add a sliver of rubber somewhere in the build to take out a little of the harshness.
I like the hockey puck idea! WOOT for cheap fixes. I was thinking more of a turnbuckle with spherical ends, or a direct copy of the OEM mount, but out of aluminum.
You're obviously talking about the top mount, but are there any options for the bottom two mounts? I'd hate to be out of a race because of a busted bottom mount...
You're obviously talking about the top mount, but are there any options for the bottom two mounts? I'd hate to be out of a race because of a busted bottom mount...
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2,318 Posts
Use a/c hose to modify the mount, this is what I did to my car, halfway between OEM and solid and works well under hard use, cost is next to 0, got this I think from the former Quasimotors site:
"This modification limits mount movement to about 1/2", as opposed to 1" for a stock mount. A short length of air conditioning hose (it's very stiff and very tough) is bolted to the limit-stop tab. When the mount extends, the hose is compressed between the stop tab and the restraining bracket. In this picture the hose is contacting the restraining bracket, but when installed in the car the weight of the engine compresses the mount and gives about 1/8" of clearance when the engine is not under significant load.
The rear mount did not compress enough to provide clearance between the AC hose and the limit bracket, so some small amount of engine vibration is transmitted at idle. A better way to do the mod for both mounts would probably be to drill the hole all the way through the hose, use a longer screw and put the screw in from the top of the hose. You could then tighten the nut enough to compress the hose sufficiently to allow clearance. As the hose gets compressed (when the mount extends), the screw would extend through the hole in the limit-tab stop. The only thing you'd need to watch for would be to keep the screw short enough to keep it from contacting the mount when the hose was fully compressed."
l
in the car the weight of the engine compresses the mount and gives about 1/8" of clearance when the engine is not under significant load.
Modification details:
The rear mount did not compress enough to provide clearance between the AC hose and the limit bracket, so some small amount of engine vibration is transmitted at idle. A better way to do the mod for both mounts would probably be to drill the hole all the way through the hose, use a longer screw and put the screw in from the top of the hose. You could then tighten the nut enough to compress the hose sufficiently to allow clearance. As the hose gets compressed (when the mount extends), the screw would extend through the hole in the limit-tab stop. The only thing you'd need to watch for would be to keep the screw short enough to keep it from contacting the mount when the hose was fully compressed.
"This modification limits mount movement to about 1/2", as opposed to 1" for a stock mount. A short length of air conditioning hose (it's very stiff and very tough) is bolted to the limit-stop tab. When the mount extends, the hose is compressed between the stop tab and the restraining bracket. In this picture the hose is contacting the restraining bracket, but when installed in the car the weight of the engine compresses the mount and gives about 1/8" of clearance when the engine is not under significant load.
The rear mount did not compress enough to provide clearance between the AC hose and the limit bracket, so some small amount of engine vibration is transmitted at idle. A better way to do the mod for both mounts would probably be to drill the hole all the way through the hose, use a longer screw and put the screw in from the top of the hose. You could then tighten the nut enough to compress the hose sufficiently to allow clearance. As the hose gets compressed (when the mount extends), the screw would extend through the hole in the limit-tab stop. The only thing you'd need to watch for would be to keep the screw short enough to keep it from contacting the mount when the hose was fully compressed."
l
in the car the weight of the engine compresses the mount and gives about 1/8" of clearance when the engine is not under significant load.
Modification details:
The rear mount did not compress enough to provide clearance between the AC hose and the limit bracket, so some small amount of engine vibration is transmitted at idle. A better way to do the mod for both mounts would probably be to drill the hole all the way through the hose, use a longer screw and put the screw in from the top of the hose. You could then tighten the nut enough to compress the hose sufficiently to allow clearance. As the hose gets compressed (when the mount extends), the screw would extend through the hole in the limit-tab stop. The only thing you'd need to watch for would be to keep the screw short enough to keep it from contacting the mount when the hose was fully compressed.
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I did a track session w/ Saabs at Cadwell park track UK last year, start/finish is up short steep hill w/ effective jump right in front of clubhouse, you go all out in 2nd and lift off at 60 ish, very hard on engine/gearbox mounts, held back a bit as I had to drive home.
But, w/ 'solid' say steel engine mounts, is something else more expensive going to bust if there is NO movement??
But, w/ 'solid' say steel engine mounts, is something else more expensive going to bust if there is NO movement??
Well, that's entirely possible. I'm thinking that using your AC hose "pitch stop" idea for the bottoms and a solid top ought to be sufficient to keep the motor and tranny securely locked into place, with just a little bit of movement absorption. I don't want to build the motor into a structural member, like a motorcycle, I DO want to limit any unwanted pitch/roll/yaw.
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