My TP wagon is due for rego. and the engine mounts need replacing to get a roadworthy.

I priced new ones from Repco. Holy macaroni! $132 each for left and right and $62 for front. I bought the rear one some time ago but haven't replaced it yet. The car needs front shocks too, so this is getting expensive.

I've read the info posts and am considering the sikaflex solution.

I have taken out the left (passenger side) mount. It was surprisingly easy and only took 10 minutes. The rubber is cracked in two places but the mount has not collapsed and is not perished.

Should I remove all the existing rubber and fill the whole thing with sikaflex or should I leave the existing rubber and just fill the gaps and cracks?

How do you remove the rubber anyway? I was thinking of drilling out as much as possible and then using a round or half-round rasp or file.

My TP wagon is due for rego. and the engine mounts need replacing to get a roadworthy.

I priced new ones from Repco. Holy macaroni! $132 each for left and right and $62 for front. I bought the rear one some time ago but haven't replaced it yet. The car needs front shocks too, so this is getting expensive.

I've read the info posts and am considering the sikaflex solution.

I have taken out the left (passenger side) mount. It was surprisingly easy and only took 10 minutes. The rubber is cracked in two places but the mount has not collapsed and is not perished.

Should I remove all the existing rubber and fill the whole thing with sikaflex or should I leave the existing rubber and just fill the gaps and cracks?

How do you remove the rubber anyway? I was thinking of drilling out as much as possible and then using a round or half-round rasp or file.

don't bother removing anything . my solid mounts have been there for almost 2 years now with out a problem. so search for diy solid mounts and you will find my thread:D (I have done every mount in that way. (the rear mount is a pain in the ass to do:D ).

don't bother removing anything.......I have done every mount in that way.
Thanks. That's what I figured. I will try to get some acetone to clean the mounts properly and then roughen the rubber a bit to help adhesion.


(the rear mount is a pain in the ass to do)
Yes, you're not kidding. I replaced the front mount when I bought the car but gave up on the back one. That's why I still have the rear mount.

Thanks again,
Coldamus

Just a progress update:

I bought some sikaflex 252. Was quite annoyed when I got home and found it was the white variety despite being in a black tube. Anyway, I sikaflexed the passenger side mount and waited 3 days for it to dry. Then painted it black. Just put it in this morning. The car is smoother to drive already.

I've checked out the driver side (gearbox) mount and it seems cracked too, though not too bad. I will do it next. The rear mount actually looks quite OK, so may not have to do that one. The front mount itself seems OK but the rubber in the top end of the little shock absorber thingy ('scuse my technical language) is completely broken away. It's completely st*ffed. I figure once I fix that, it will be smooth as!

I had my CV joints done a few days ago, which seems to make the bad engine mounts more noticable.....I replaced my front one because it was the worst of them, but the vibration is still there, might give the sikaflex a go on some second hand jobbies.....

..I replaced my front one because it was the worst of them, but the vibration is still there, might give the sikaflex a go on some second hand jobbies.....
That's not a bad idea if you can get them cheap enough. You can have them ready to just swap over when you take your own out rather than be off the road for a few days waiting for yours to dry.

I've just taken the drivers side (gearbox) mount off mine. It is an EFI engine, so the air cleaner had to be taken off to get to the mount. There's also other piping and wiring that gets in the way of wielding a spanner. The bolts are mighty tight too. Getting the side bolts out (through the wheel arch), I dropped one inside the chassis. Also dropped a 14mm socket in there . After about an hour, I fished the bolt out with a magnet but the socket disappeared forever. When putting them back in, I might have to temporarily glue the bolt and socket to the end of the socket extension.

The mount was split much worse than I thought. It would have been doing virtually nothing to stop vibration. I've sikaflexed it and am waiting for it to dry now. I also sikaflexed the eye of the shock absorber thingy. It will be very interesting to see how much difference the repaired mounts make.

Do broken engine mounts really make a difference? Ive had a broken 'top left' engine mount ( dont know if thats what the actual name for it) ever since i got my car, which was around 1 yr ago, and so I really cant justify myself to get a new one. The car is very smooth to drive and so i dont see the point in spending $100+ on a new one.

My gear changes could be a little smoother i spose (This might be the broken mount)... but i tend to ride the clutch a little longer because of this, and this makes it almost impossible to tell i have even changed gears for the passengers in the car. So I would rather spend the $100 on something else.......

Do broken engine mounts really make a difference? Ive had a broken 'top left' engine mount ( dont know if thats what the actual name for it) ever since i got my car, which was around 1 yr ago, and so I really cant justify myself to get a new one. The car is very smooth to drive and so i dont see the point in spending $100+ on a new one.

My gear changes could be a little smoother i spose (This might be the broken mount)... but i tend to ride the clutch a little longer because of this, and this makes it almost impossible to tell i have even changed gears for the passengers in the car. So I would rather spend the $100 on something else.......
well in most cases broken engine mounts will make the car vibrate alot more than it should. and can damage various components around the engine bay, and connected to the engine by the excessive vibrations. It also places extra stress on the gearbox in some bad situations from what I've heard.

well in most cases broken engine mounts will make the car vibrate alot more than it should. and can damage various components around the engine bay, and connected to the engine by the excessive vibrations. It also places extra stress on the gearbox in some bad situations from what I've heard.

Ahh thanks! Maybe i should think about getting a new mount after all.

Well, they do hold the engine and gearbox onto the car, which could be important.

If only one is cracked, you may not feel much difference, but it will put more strain on the others and hasten their eventual failure.

In my case, 3 out of 4 were broken. The front one might as well not have been there, the left was badly cracked but still providing some support and the right was barely holding itself together, so it is no wonder the vibration was bad. The sikaflex is worth a try. It costs about $29 a tube, say $40 all up including acetone for cleaning and turps for thinning. One tube did all 3 mounts, so $40 was a lot better than the $326 that the 3 mounts would have cost me. If they fail and I have to buy new mounts, I will sikaflex the new ones anyway to provide better support.