[jaysalfa]

I have a low mileage "79" and have had to replace my motor mounts TWICE in the last 12 months. Last ones started sagging after only 1 month. Only about 3,000 miles. Only drive on paved roads and avoid the pot holes.

They just seem to lose their support and the engine sags down and hits the Oil pan guard. The muffler starts draging over even a small (4") bump.

Do the upgrade ones sold by Center Line work better then the International ?

I have tried putting my own aluminum, heavy foil tape over the rubber in hopes of keeping oil off of the rubber and maybe reduce some of the heat that might be causing the rubber to soften. Looked a lot like the Center Line ones when I was done. That did not help. Could even be contributing to the problem. Any thoughts?

Has anyone come up with a way to increase the lenght of time between replacing these mounts? they are a pain in the butt to replace, and costly.

Does jacking the engine up and bracing it over the winter make any difference? I can not afford to do this every 3 months

thanks
Jay

 

[spiderserie4]

new mounts should never sag in 12 months, no matter how much oil they were subjected to - that is plain crazy!
Jobs a pain (as you know), so maybe the reinforced ones will set your mind at rest next time you go for it although they do say you might get a bit more vibes at idle
Reinforced Engine Mounts

 

[Geoman]

Same thing happened to my mounts. I put new ones on and they started to sag again. I could tell because the fan started hitting the fan shroud. So I placed a square piece of 3/16 steel underneath each mount to raise the engine a bit and it's been fine for over a year now. It's almost like some of them have less rigid rubber and compress a bit, as if they initially deform under the weight and once compressed slightly, they're fine. Anyway, next time I replace them, it will be with the reinforced version.

 

[Q.V.]

It may be worth trying mounts from transaxle models (only rubber). The only thing needed is to bore new holes for studs in one of them (they don't differ from each other, unlike Spider's, which are mirror-symmetrical)

 

[Andrew]

I basically never change my motor mounts except on cars that show up with broken or very sagged ones, and don't have trouble. I don't put a lot of miles on my cars, but I've had my Super for 15 years, put 35,000 on it, no problem. Something's not right.
I know it's counter to received wisdom, but I keep and reuse decent motor mounts that are still bonded well, not oil-saturated, and not sagged.
Andrew

 

[spiderserie4]

they don't differ from each other, unlike Spider's, which are mirror-symmetrical)

?? the spider mounts are completely different left and right, not just a mirror image of each other....

 

[Q.V.]

I don't mean the steel upper part, only rubber underneath. Tried this trick on S4, successfully

 

[Q.V.]

Poly mounts?
http://www.alfabb.com/bb/forums/spi...een-accelerating-decelerating.html#post494129

 

[Andrew]

The softer the mount the better, in terms of avoiding driveline and chassis vibration issues. Going this route can lead to problems where you had none before. Some have good experiences, some don't. I found the poly trans mount to be way too harsh for a street car.
Andrew

 

[Q.V.]

Tried these?
Engine mounts – standard | Classic Alfa Romeo spare parts and accessories
or
Engine mounts – Heavy Duty | Classic Alfa Romeo spare parts and accessories

 

[SamW]

I have the poly mounts in one Spider, they are good, the biggest negative against them would be that they vibrate a little more when car is used often, but if you let it sit too long in cold weather, the car will vibrate to the point you think your crank is about to fly out of the block, but after you heat soak them, they get soft and the vibration goes back to normal (really not all that bad). I have the Spruell cup design ones on my other Spider, still in the restoration process, but they have been supporting the engine for about 8 months, don't see any signs of sagging, and the vibration is not as bad as the poly mounts, seems much like stock if my memory is good.

 

[MitchW]

So how do you know when your mounts are shot? The engine on my 92 seems low in relation to the sump guard but when I looked at the mounts I didn't see much deformation. The 92 has an electric fan so I can't judge by the fan shroud.

 

[rtalcot]

Crank Pulley touches stabilizer bar

Well, this spring when I started my '91 there was a pretty alarming scraping noise--crank pulley touching the stabilizer bar; and also the serpentine belt showed a mysterious wear pattern on one side.

Last spring I had installed a new transmission mount, and during the winter the car was parked on a slight nose-down slope for quite a while. I guess those were contributing factors.

Looks like there isn't much space under the crank pulley under the best of conditions!

 

[bianchi2]

i have had paul spreull motor mounts in my 84 spider for 3 years now,, still looks new, with clearence on the skid pan..

 

[Giovanni2000]

i have had paul spreull motor mounts in my 84 spider for 3 years now,, still looks new, with clearence on the skid pan..

Did you buy the complete mount from them or just the reinforcer?

 

[RandallM]

I purchased the aluminum reinforcers from Spreull. I am very happy with them. I have exhaust pipe that is very close to the steering box and would rattle against each other on turns. After I put them in, no more problem. They do not transmit any more vibration through the body. However. I tried the transmission mount stiffener and that transmits a lot more through the body of the car.

 

[bianchi2]

i was wondering about the trans mount polly( on a stock alfa tranny) as a comparision..on my t5 tranny..i have a polly mount form energy suspenion.it is quite large.. but no vibration at all at all engine speeds very smooth.. why would it be diff. from a stock alfa tranny.. driveshaft(s) angle? i have an alumiumn shaft behind my tranny.. it is lighter than the stock steel shaft' but then again the front shaft is held up with a bearing/ rubber mount.. so why is my system with a polly mount smooth, and with a polly mount on a stock tranny...worse?

 

[RandallM]

Hey Bianchi,

I do not know what to tell you, but the poly mount on the Alfa tranny is mounted between the seats and the place that sold it warned me about I would hear ever bump through that transmission mount. I needed the two poly washers that mount on the sides, anayway, but the inserts locks that mount in place.

I only drove it for two miles with the insert in before I realized there would be no living with it. Drove it home and pulled it out.

 

[bianchi2]

my t5 tranny mount is in the same place as the alfa tranny mount....hummmm.. that really suprised me when i first mounted the motor t5 in my car.. than the trans mount was in the same place.