I think I have an engine mount problem. Is there anyway to tell which ones are bad just by looking at the engine? Here's a link showing the engine movement. http://youtu.be/1FkR8wkSGU8 Any help is appreciated. Thanks

 

It's kind of hard to determine which mount it is that's causing the trouble. I would definitely be inclined to agree that you have a bad mount or three. An engine should not move that much under those tasks. You're going to need to inspect each mount individually to determine their condition. Excellent video btw, it always helps to have something besides words to base off of.

 

I've looked at all the mounts (the best I could), I didn't see anything that struck me as abnormal. Do I just start replacing them? Where to start? Back or front. I've already replaced the dogbone mount. The old one was slightly ripped. No noticeable improvement after the replacement.

I have a 99 ES VVTi. I think the front mount is hydraulic, hence it's expensive. From what I've read the rear is a PITA because of the drive shaft. I'll take some suggestions on where to start. Thanks in advance.

 

I can see how the rear would be a PITA, and the front is expensive, but unless I'm wrong and that much movement is normal, I would replace both.

A quick check or rockauto.com shows both mounts, though it says it's listing for the hydro mount is for 1mz non vvti. Rear shows up at $34 and the front actually shows up at $42. It says normal price on that mount is $60 though, so I'd jump on it if it will work and there's not a significant difference between vvt and non vvt mounts. I can't offer any knowledge on that, but some quick research might reveal the answer, or perhaps another member can answer it.

 

I believe that's normal for an engine to move with the transmission. I did the same test on a 2008 V6 Mitsubishi with FWD with about 60k miles, and it reacted in the same fashion. Notice that it tilts back when in Drive, since you're moving forward, and it tilts forward when you're in Reverse.

 

Yes, it will definitely move, but that's a lot of movement compared to other vehicles I have seen. If the dampening material is not dried out, cracking, torn, or just overall bad looking, then there's no real reason to replace them, but that does seem like a lot of movement to me.

 

What got me thinking about mounts was that sometimes when I accelerate from a stop I hear a clunk. Or if I accelerate quickly from a coast i can hear a clunk. I think that may indicated a bad front mount.

 

That looks like too much movement to me. If you start replacing mounts, always, and I means always, replace them all. When one starts going bad, it stretches and stresses the other mounts as well. So if you replace only one, the other mounts could be failing and will stress the new mount and it will fail fairly quickly.

The front active mount can only be had from the dealer AFAIK, you could replace it with a non electronic version if you wanted to save money.

 

Problem solved. Two of the bolts on the front engine mount were extremely loose. I tightened them down and clunk is gone.

FYI: another symptom was a single clunk when I turned either direction. It sounded like something was shifting in the engine compartment. I only discovered the problem by observing the front motor mount when my wife put the car in drive and pressed the accelerator. Then it was obvious.