Symptoms of Bad Engine Mount (Motor Mount)

How to know if I have a bad engine mount (motor mount)? Learn how to check your engine mount by following the procedures below.

An Engine Mount is a rubber and steel component that prevents excessive engine movement during driving and reduces vibrations. Engine mounts can flex to a certain degree but not so much that it stresses the transmission and drivetrain.

What does an engine mount do?

An engine mount is a part that holds the engine. Engine mounts hold the engine but also reduce vibrations so that the driver and passengers don’t feel engine vibrations.

Symptoms

Vibrations are the most typical symptoms of faulty engine mounts. However, there are other symptoms of a defective engine mount that can differ based on an automobile’s model and make, such as the following:

• Steering wheel or cabin vibrations worsen when stopped.
• Engine feels loud
• Car bangs when placed in gear.
• Thump or clunk when you press the gas pedal
• Excessive movement of transmission or engine
• Noisy sounds when the vehicle is put in gear.
• Excessive vibration when driving uphill or accelerating.
• Oil leaks from the mount in case of hydraulic oil-filled motor mounts.
• Failure of the motor mount will result in uncomfortable rides for passengers. Further, it can add extra pressure that can damage other areas of the vehicle.

These symptoms may differ based on the extremity of the engine mount’s damage and the design and configuration of the engine. Typically, vibrations are more apparent when the automobile is initially started and tend to be less noticeable once the engine warms up.

Other common symptoms of a bad engine mount are clunking noise while shifting from park to drive or from park to neutral. The clunking noise is heard because the engine mount’s rubber component has deteriorated, allowing engine movement.

Types of engine mounts

Rubber Motor Mounts

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There are a few variations of an engine mount. One variation of the engine mount is made of solid rubber and steel, and the other is made of solid rubber, steel, and oil-filled.

This variation of the engine mount is also known as a hydraulic engine mount. A solid rubber mount is cost-effective and excellent for reducing noise and decreasing vibration transmitted by the engine. Also, the solid rubber engine mount is durable and can last long without changing for many years.

Hydraulic Motor Mounts

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A hydraulic oil-filled engine mount is expensive and typically used in most luxury vehicles. It is excellent in noise and vibration reduction. The downside of hydraulic oil-filled mounts is that they can leak the hydraulic fluid and perform much worse than rubber mounts.

Always start by conducting a visual inspection. With the hood open, use a flashlight and look for the engine mount. There are a few locations where the engine mounts will be located. Engine mounts are usually located on the engine’s side or back.

Location of engine mounts on 6, 8, and 12-cylinder engines. 

​Location of the engine mounts on four-cylinder engines.

On the passenger side, near the front right strut tower. If this is oil-filled, inspect it for oil leaks. If it is a rubber mount, inspect it for cracks.

​Here is shown an engine bottom mount. Inspect it for cracks.  ​Don’t forget to inspect the transmission mount as well. Shine the flashlight on the engine mount and visually inspect it. The rubber should be in good condition and not torn.

Sometimes it can be easy to visually determine if an engine mount has failed because the separation often happens inside the mount. Oil leaks for a hydraulic engine mount mean it has failed.

​Oil leak from a hydraulic motor mount. 

An alternative approach to assessing a 4-cylinder engine is to put the vehicle in gear without the engine. Watch for movements as you rock the engine forward and backward. This assessment isn’t always effective on bigger engines. The engine shouldn’t move excessively. If there is minimal engine movement, engine failure might still be possible due to the mount’s design limitations.

How do you change a bad motor mount?

Changing the engine mount on a four-cylinder engine is easy and can be performed at home. You will need to support the engine while at the same time being careful not to crack the oil pan.

A transmission jack works best for this procedure.

1. Park the vehicle and set the parking brakes. Allow the engine to cool down.
2. Use a transmission jack to support the engine. A woodblock can be placed between the jack and the pan to avoid damage to the oil pan.
3. Jack up the engine about .5 to 1 inch. Do not raise the engine any higher or risk damaging the wires or cracking the oil pan.
4. Remove the bolts that secure the engine mount to the engine.
5. Remove the bolts that mount the engine mount to the frame.
6. Install new mounts in reverse order.
7. Torque the bolts to your manufacturer’s specifications.

How much does it cost to replace an Engine Mount?

It can cost as much as $500 labor on a luxury vehicle to replace each mount. Some engine mounts are buried deep in the engine bay, so removing a lot of components is required to get it, thus justifying the labor cost. Engine mount price will vary depending on whether the shop used OEM or aftermarket parts.

Motor mounts can last up to 200,000 miles, as they often do. We have seen hydraulic mounts fail as early as 60k miles in a few cases. The owner may often not even know or only notice vibrations when your car hits around 100k-120k miles.

Generally, it is expensive to replace the engine mount since the engine mount itself supports the engine.  A transmission jack and engine support are needed to support the engine while the engine mount is replaced. It costs about $150 to replace each engine mount on a typical economical passenger car.

Special tools are required to remove the Mercedes engine mount.

Can you buy an engine mount online?

Looking to save money by buying motor mounts online? You can buy engine mounts online, including OEM mounts, at a fraction of the dealer cost.

We hope you find the Symptoms of Bad Engine Mount (Motor Mount) guide helpful. Check these troubleshooting and repair guides for more help on your vehicle.