07_J35A8_noob

**Disclaimer - do it as your own risk, i'm not responsible break anything** I'm only doing this bc there are no other (**completed step by step) 3G TL rear mount replacement thread and I thought this would help you, as it would have helped me.

First of, my grammar sucks so.. please excuse me. If there are any confusion, feel free to ask. It is a very straight forward project and not exactly tricky (**after scramble all the places and ask for advice, as well as finding the "right tool"), but it is a little annoying due to lack of space. But I'm sure you know that since you're reading this!! Any ways, let's begin..

I have attached all pic below as they should be in order of each steps
** Spray all nuts/bolts (see steps 4) with wd-40 or whatever you prefer.

Step 1 - tools (that i used) all labeled 1 through 11 - 1/ breaker bar 2/ extension bars 3/ small ratchet (you will see soon why) 4/ 10, 12, 14, 17 & 19mm socket 5/ 19mm wrench 6/ 14mm wrench 7/ large ratchet 8/ headlamp (optional) 9/ i used 3 ton car jack 10/ U-connector that gives an angle for unbolting the nuts 11/ half to 3/8 converter (not necessary if you have the right tool)

Step 2 - I don't have a pic for this but Remove the strut tower bar, each side has 3 12mm nuts that need to remove and 2 10mm that attached to some wiring. you can't miss it.

Step 3 - jack location - i placed it right at the box where arrow is pointing. slightly jack it up about 1-2" to loosen some pressure off the mount.

Step 4 - OEM mount - here's a good look at what you are working with back there. Yellow Circles are the 17mm nuts that hold on to the bracket. you can take that off first. Red Circles are 14mm nuts. Black circles are the vacuum lines ends, where you will later be detached. **notices the black rubber below the mount, i find it easier to cut it off for more clearance on the nuts you're trying to reach. unless you plan on keeping it for some reason.

Step 5 - Mount removal - I didn't take a pic of it when i have the wrench set up but here's a demonstration of the exact location that i had it and loosen the bolt of the xlr8 mount. with the wrench in place, i literally have my right knee on top of the motor and my right hand reached down to the wrench. Give it a nice and slow/torque pull. It will come loose. don't unbolt it completely just yet. go to next step..

Step 6 - Nuts removal - by using a combination of the breaker bar + multiples extensions + the U-connector, loosen up all four nuts from the base of the mount. you should be able to twist it out by hand after it start moving. don't get it out completely yet but remove top bolt then remove the base bolts. (that's how i did it at least)

Step 7 - Vacuum_1/Vacuum 2 - Now all the bolts are out, jack the car up another 2" so it'll be easier to slide it to the driver side. Remember in steps 4, the black circles? yea, you're going to look for those as shown in attachment. removed and plug it with a cap as shown. you don't have to worry about the other side as it is just an empty tube that was from the front mount vacuum line. (*i hope you're replacing that too, if not, just plug it up)

Step 7 - Mount Exit - Now the mount is completely free to go, gotta find its exit. so go ahead and unbolt the fuse box (if you haven't done so) and push it to the side as shown in image + those wires too. the mount should slide right out with very minimal trouble.

Step 8 - Finished - place the new mount in place, top bolt go on first, then 4 nuts on the base by using the same tool as step 5-6. but this time, it only 14mm socket is needed instead of 17mm. You could use the small ratchet with a short socket to speed up this process for the top bolt. Once the top bolts and 4 nuts are secured, use the 19mm on each side of the mount to tighten the center bolt/nuts up real good. i think the actual spec for that is 32ft-lbs if i remember correctly. I'm not sure about the top bolts/base nuts though, i just hand tighten them as much as i could.

Step 9 - HAVE YOURSELF A BEER. You deserved it..

I'm sorry for a really long DIY but at least It should have all the info you will need for the replacement. And If I missed anything, please let me know.

Best of luck to all who want to attempt this and again, feel free to ask if you have any question.

Bao

paperboy42190

iTrader: (7)

as a good habit I always place a small piece of 2x4 on the jack to distribute the force a bit better on the transmission or oil pan.

Also, you missed out on the last step where you neutralize the motor mount. I suppose it's not a super important step since the xlr8 mounts are going to be stiffer than oem anyways. But as a good rule, always neutralize it, and anyone looking at this DIY to replace with oem mounts should definitely do it. It will extend the life of the mount and provide more resistance to NVH.

and what happened to your rear mount cover? why is it all ripped?

sockr1

iTrader: (5)

what do you mean by neutralize it?

07_J35A8_noob

thanks paperboy. i never heard of it before but i just done a bit of research. Found this:

How to Neutralize the mount:
"1. Loosen the main engine mounting bolts until
they’re just finger-tight.
2. Start the engine, and set the parking brake.
3. Apply the brakes, and then shift back and forth
between Drive and Reverse several times.
4. Shift to Park, and shut off the engine.
5. Torque the main engine mounting bolts to
spec." -djarovsky <- member on here

07_J35A8_noob

oh, i cut the cover off bc it was in the way of the driver side nuts. well, from the angle that i was in at least

sockr1

iTrader: (5)

How would this work for a manual?

07_J35A8_noob

that i'm not too sure of. maybe you could do a little search for manual.

But my best guess would be to shift to first and release clutch until the car start moving w/o touching the gas pedal, shift to reverse and do the same. then repeat it a few time.

paperboy42190

iTrader: (7)

Same except you would go from reverse and 1st back and forth couple times. But you would need to have the ebrake up really tight and/or have wood blocks by your wheels so your car doesn't actually move. You would need to slip the clutch a bit so the motor is just on the verge before moving the wheels. And then after all that put it back to neutral and then tighten bolts.
It's definitely tricky this way though. Basically you just want the motor to move back and forth a couple times to make sure rubber parts aren't binding.

EM2typeflex

Ok I'm going to need this, motor mounts definitely going to be needed on my tl.

Chris Jordan

were did u pick up your mounts from I have a 6spd and are having quite the time trying to find replacement mounts , weststar is not selling the complete set any more for some reason? I got the right hand side mount from them so far

Award

I just got all 3 from Rockauto.com, and they are Westar.

Chad05TL

can you see the vacuum line on the rear motor mount from the bottom side of the car? I have not tried yet. But I just had a shop replace the sway bar and I now hear a tiny hiss or sucking sound when accelerating.. And I want to check that hose. thanks

t-rd

You can barely see the vacuum line connecting into the bottom of the rear motor mount, via a hole between the sub-frame and the engine compartment. The way I tested if there is a vacuum leak back there was with a vacuum testing gun. If you want to check the upper portion of that vacuum line where the one line T's off to two other lines, you need to put a flattened cardboard box on top of the engine and literally hover yourself over the engine bay to see it. But seeing the vacuum lines connected doesn't mean anything, because a hairline crack in those tubes can cause a vacuum leak.

Chad05TL

I spoke yesterday to the shop that did that swapped the sway bar, they did lower the rear half of the front subframe , and they held up/ braced the engine, and disconnected or loosened the motor mounts from the subframe, thereby allowing the subframe to drop.
But He said that vacuum actually decreases with the increase of a RPM.. So, if I hear a sucking sound with acceleration, or pressing on the throttle, then it would not be from a vacuum leak. Vacuum is at a peak when idle, but I do not hear anything unusual at idle, and I do not hear anything unusual when driving at speed with light throttle.
I checked the intake tonight.. Remove the cover, and remove the filter and removed the bottom piece and found nothing. I even used a bit of general purpose grease when putting the intake back on the throttle body and I put some grease between those 2 plastic pieces of the intake tubing.
So I have no idea what to do or try at this point.

t-rd

You can read the vacuum using a bluetooth OBDII diag piece if you have one. At idle, the vacuum should be around 21/22 inHg. It drops significantly when accelerating, letting the gas pedal go sometimes makes it jump to 24/25 inHg without brake pedal depressed.

The other way to find a vacuum leak is to just spray soapy water around the various hoses around the engine bay.

Chad05TL

They shop owner said I would not hear a vacuum leak from within the car. And I think he is right. Plus, the time I hear it, is not at idle. So I am thinking it is not a vacuum leak. I did check the upper portions of the intake, including right where the air box plugs into the under carriage area and also the air filter joint.. and the the connection to the engine.. And since all that is ok, I am not sure what other options I have. The only other portion I do not remember is behind the bumper cover on the bottom section. I dont remember if there is another joint there. I know the intake wraps under the battery and then goes up in front of the battery but I am not sure how many joints there are underneath there.. So I dont know if its worth removing the bumper cover to check it..

Chad05TL

I found the hissing noise... There is a rubber grommet that goes around the steering linkage.. And it was shifted to 1 side when the raised the subframe, and reconnected the linkage. So, the linkage was slightly pinched off to 1 side. I got a view of what the grommet looks like And then inspected it on my car from the inside, and simply pushed it back into proper position with my finger.. And hissing is gone.
The big side of that grommet merely rests against the body. So it does not exactly "fasten" in any special way. So it is easy for that thing to get whopper-jawd.. haha
The best way to inspect yours for any gaps between the body and the grommet, is to place a bright light on the engine side of the firewall.. And look from the inside to see if you see any light coming through.