Changing Engine Mounts V6 Ecotec VS

[pomiedore vs]

Hi

My drivers side mount has collapsed on my '96 Acclaim.
Does anyone have some detailed advice on how to replace both engine mounts.
It looks difficult and all I have is a trolley jack.

[Brett_jjj]

Here's what the VS V6 gregory's manual says about changing the front engine mounts--
1) Disconnect the negative battery terminal.
2) Raise the front of the vehicle and support on chassis stands.
3) Remove the nuts retaining the front mountings to the crossmember.
4) Raise the engine slighty using a jack or overhead tackle.

NOTE: If a jack is used to raise the engine, ensure a piece of timber is between the sump and the head of the jack.

5) When removing the left hand front mounting, Proceed as follows -
a) Release the clamp securing the inlet duct hose to the throttle body, release the air cleaner housing clips and disconnect the wiring connectors from the air flow sensor and air temperature sensor. Remove the duct and the air flow sensor and air cleaner housing from the vehicle.
b) On air conditioned models, remove the drive belt from the engine using a 15mm ring spanner to rotate the tensioner pully from the drive belt.
c) Remove the air conditioning compressor retaining bolts and secure the compressor away from the engine using a piece of rope or wire. Do not attempt to disconnect the refrigerant lines.

6) Remove the nuts retaining the mountings to the engine brackets
7) If neccessary remove the bolt retaining the knock sensor cover plate, Remove the engine bracket retaining bolts and manoeuvre the engine brackets and mountings from the vehicle.

Installation is the reversal of the removal procedure with attention to the following points:
1) If the engine bracket was removed from the engine , install the bracket and the knock sensor cover plate. Tighten the bolts securely.
2) When the full weight of the engine is on the mounting, tighten all nuts securely.
3) Where applicable, rotate the drive belt tensioner and install the engine drive belt.

[FstStig]

They say if one is stuffed to replace both, but if the passenger side one still looks decent (no cracks) then i wouldn't bother.

If you plan on doing the passenger side, you will need to remove the Belt and AC Compressor (No need to disconnect the lines)

1. Jack the car up or put it on ramps (Ramps is alot better for this as you will need your best jack to jack up the motor)
2. There will be 4 14mm bolts (2 on the top 2 on the bottom of the mount) Undo these
3. Depending on how high off the ground your car is you may need to get some bricks and build up the jack so its closer to the sump, get your jack (Trolley jacks are great help if you have one) get a decent bit of wood (nice size piece of ply board is good) and put it on your jack and start jacking up under the sump (Using just your jack will crack or damage your sump this is why we use a piece of wood)
4. Jack up your motor high enough so you can get the mount/s out
5. Put in your new mount/s
6. very very slowly start letting the motor down, you will probably need a very long steel bar to help move the motor over (We had to with my Buick) This is the bit that can get really hard.
7. Put the nuts back on and tighten up either with a Torque Wrench to manufactures specs or until they feel tight enough

Get a quote from a Mechanic. If your not a very strong person you maybe be better off getting the mechanic to do it, as step 6 is an absolute prick to try and do


Mumbo

[pomiedore vs]

Thanks guys,

I will give it a go.
Sounds straightforward.

[hako]

Thanks guys,

I will give it a go.
Sounds straightforward.

Trust me - it ain't straightforward....I'm a tight-ass and recently paid a mechanic to do mine...about $200 labour from memory and whilst I cried tears of blood when I handed the money over I never regretted it.
However it sure ain't impossible and if you do a decent search on this forum there are some good posts on doing this job plus a few tricks the workshop manuals don't tell you.
Good Luck.

[Dave93]

Yea i need to do my mounts on my V6 VS ute too... gotta do my tranny mount too lol all are collapsed atm =(

[FstStig]

Tranny mounts are so much more easier to do. Would rather do one of them over an engine mount any day.

[Cpt Awesome]

yeh the job is a piece of piss to accomplish, but just wanna mention something. When i did mine there were mild steel flange nuts holding the mounts on.... and they were slightly corroded and lock tightened by some douche, Yeh you can guess the difficulty i had removing it. So what im suggesting is if ya havent got high grade nuts anchoring the mounts, get them!

[Z2TT]

Here is a guide I wrote for people :

Changing 3.8 V6 Engine Mounts (VS-VY)

[thekid93]

step 6, i had wheels on the jack and turned it with the jack

work for me but in my vt

[pomiedore vs]

G'day guys,

Replaced the engine mounts today and found it a breeze.
I found that you need to remove the brackets from the block and then everything just falls into place
with a minimum of effort.
I actually found it was more difficult to change the transmission mount.
Be patient and give yourself room to work.
The a/c compressor needs to be moved out of the way and the p/s pump needs to come out.

[Paul13pp]

PITA job, particularly the passenger side.
I am half way through changing both engine mounts on my VS and am stuck trying to align the passenger mount so it goes through the 2 holes in the crossmember.
It is more than an inch out from the holes and will need a lot of persuading with some sort of lever.
I'd rate it as one of the worst jobs I have ever done car repair wise to be honest.

Anyway, back to it to try and get that last mount in the holes

[Paul13pp]

Spent the best part of the day trying to align this mount... not a happening thing !

I don't know the history of the 2 new engine mounts I was given, other than they were purchased from ebay over a year ago for a VP.

Something is not right with the mounts or the car. There is no evidence of any smash repair and it drives straight.

Not really sure what to do other than put one of the old broken mounts back in for now.
That itself requires pulling the air con compressor off again.
Very frustrating for sure.