LScowboyLS

The LS400 was designed and built with the finest parts in the world, and at the time our cars were built, no Porsche, Ferrari, Merdedes, BMW or any other car had the same level of refinement or reliability.

A big part of why is due to the engineering that went into the parts, you cannot expect a cheap knockoff motor mount to compete with what was the finest motor mount ever made.

I see everyone trying to "improve" their LS400 with aftermarket parts, these small companies do not have the financial deep pockets or world class engineering staff of Toyota's premiere division, so exactly how can you expect any aftermarket part to be anywhere near as good, much less "better" - this is not a Ford Escort or Dodge Neon you are trying to fix up here, it is the LS, the world standard for automobiles!

the only exception to this is where there has been a true technological breakthrough, since the 1990's, that has filtered down to everyone by now, - for example, LED lighting for the side markers, however these cases are extremely rare. - There have been no breakthroughs that have filtered their way down to China in any engine related areas, for instance, including motor/transmission mounts.

Trying to "improve" the stock Lexus design, seems to always backfire on people, it's sad to watch

I am all about saving money, but not by going to cheap crummy parts, but what I would recommend instead is to watch for deals (like the brand new original Lexus crankshaft position sensors I recently purchased that were repackaged into a Delphi box for $52 - woohoo!)

Twista4004

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Agreed



Cowboy, that was a world class monologue for a world class car.

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

There are some places you can easily save money and get an identical to OEM or Better than OEM part. Engine mounts are not one of them. However, for small parts, and maint. items there are numerous well regarded suppliers who have immense R&D efforts, and are OEM suppliers.

Case in point, Goodyear makes a great serpentine belt, Gates makes great timing belts, etc...

LScowboyLS

But I see no real cost advantage in your examples, and for the difference of a buck or two, give me OEM Bando or Mitsuboshi every time, especially on something as critical as a timing belt!

sha4000

iTrader: (1)

Yeah I do understand that PD it's just that I'm in the habit of ordering Damn near everything from Amazon since it's less expensive for most items and the quality is usually the same. Maybe not with the mounts and if so it's just a lesson learned. When I get back under the car I'll need to check to see if my boy tightened up everything correctly just to be sure and I believe I installed the Transmission mount backwards so I'll turn it around and see if that makes a difference. It will be a headache to do the work twice but It should be quicker the second time around if that's the case. I know that BillyPow got his mounts off of ebay and reported no issues after 2 years of running them.

sha4000

iTrader: (1)

Well I checked the mounts to make sure everything were tightened up correctly and they were so I just removed all of them and ordered mounts from Sewell. I'll let whoever is interested know if the problem is cured which I'm hoping it is when they arrive. My Boy/trusty mechanic pointed out that it looked like one of the mounts was already showing signs of stress. What do you guys think?

Lavrishevo

iTrader: (1)

Those are the originals? They show wear but don't look too bad. Let us know how the new mounts feel. I already have the trans mount and I am considering the engine mounts at the same time.

sha4000

iTrader: (1)

No those are the after market DEA mounts that I got off of Amazon and installed about 2 weeks ago. I took them off and shipped them back to Amazon for a refund bcuz my engine had more movement/vibration with them than it had with the old worn out mounts. Im waiting on mounts from Sewell Lexus to arrive. These are the old/original mounts.

sha4000

iTrader: (1)

Well I put the OEM mounts on and all the vibration is gone. As has been stated by LScowboy in this thread and others in multiple threads aftermarket mounts are not the way to go and you can tell just by comparing OEM to aftermarket. The material is just not the same! I also changed the strut bar bushings and ball joints while the car is still on stands. I had to burn the bushing out of the passenger side strut bar and heat the bolt up with a torch just to get the bolt out of the sleeve. Driver side just came right out.

lhgdale

I know this thread is a year old but I am finally about to order the motor mounts for my LS. I have had to live with the vibrations and put alot on hold due to life changes (divorce, new house, new city, all the fun stuff). I am finally settling down and it's time to start taking better care of my LS since she has been reliably by my side through it all. My car currently has 126,000 and I need at least another 100,000 out of it.

Anyway, I am taking everyones advice and ordering OEM. I still need to save as much $ as possible though. I looked at Sewell but is there another dealer I should check for a better price on the motor mounts?

Thanks very much!

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

i use carson toyota and lexus of westminster

sha4000

iTrader: (1)

I would also look at Lexus of South Atlanta. They seem to be the cheapest of all the online vendors but if you use them make sure they have the correct part numbers and tell them NOT to change any of them. The guys working the online web orders dept. leave a lot to be desired.

lhgdale

Thanks for the info!

Bill Dowd

I changed my tranny mounts and motor mounts at the same time they were both worn out you will notice a big difference. And the motor/tranny mounts are good to go from the start.