Hello! I am helping out my friend who has a 2004 Corolla. As the title of the post states, the motor of the car seems to shake a lot when at idle in gear. It shakes more than it used to in drive , but reverse is much worse. Seems to run very rough at idle in reverse. Once you get on the gas in drive or reverse, the shaking stops. The car also does not shake at idle when in park or neutral. Car has 80k on it currently.
Local mechanic said that the car has a bad front/side and rear motor mount. Seems plausible since I have read that the motor mounts on these cars are weak. Strange thing is, the car has no issues when under load or acceleration. Just want to get you guys expert opinion before he drops $600 to fix it.
Observe the engine from the side of the car while it is running, with someone stepping on the gas and brake at the same time while the tranny is in drive. See how that compares to when the car is in park.
Observe the engine from the side of the car while it is running, with someone stepping on the gas and brake at the same time while the tranny is in drive. See how that compares to when the car is in park.
I have already done a motor mount check like you suggest above. There is some additional movement when comparing against the vehicle being in park and revving the motor. I was thinking that there should be some additional movement though. What got me is that there is not a lot of movement, maybe 1/8-1/4inch of movement. Is that still too much?
You know what. This sounds soooo similar to mine. Shaking at idle/reverse
I've gone through a whole list of different scenerios to try and fix the problem. Warming up it's fine but within a minute it starts to pulsate/vibrate/surge. I've noticed it gets worse in reverse (fully warmed up) when you can feel the surge in power when letting it roll backwards, it's basically spuddering. My rpms are also slightly lower than factory, probably 500-600rpms when in drive/reverse. This is the funny part, as soon as I begin to accelerate the car runs perfect. It only begins to expose the problem when I've nearly come to a stop (lets say 2mph or a split second before idle rpm in first) that I can feel it spudder. Another member on here has had this problem for several years and has still yet to diagnose it. I've taken it to two different shops (one being the Toyota dealer) and neither can diagnose a problem with the car. The thing you need to consider is that bad motor mounts wouldn't have any affect on the performance of the car in reverse. Why does the car run rough? This is the same thing I'm wondering. A smooth/steady vibration is one thing for motor mounts but why does the motor surge/spudder in reverse?
__________________ 2005 Corolla LE - Impulse Red - Auto Trans - 1ZZFE - 86,000mi 2003 Echo - Auto Trans - 96,000mi. - slow as dog-dirt - I'd rather put my money in the bank than in the tank!!!!!
Did anyone ever fix this problem. I have the same problem when I am sitting at a light in Drive or in Reverse the car shakes while idling. If anyone has any insight into this problem please let me know. Thanks in Advance.
Did anyone ever fix this problem. I have the same problem when I am sitting at a light in Drive or in Reverse the car shakes while idling. If anyone has any insight into this problem please let me know. Thanks in Advance.
Well, I took it back to the dealer a second time a few months back and they stated that the passenger side motor mount was weak. I have yet to replace it yet to see if it solves the problem but just wanted to report back on new information. Most of the similar problems I've read on here appear to be intake leaks, dirty idle air control valve sensor, or dirty throttle body. Hopefully, yours is one of the last two because I think the mounts are pretty pricey. FYI too, one of the rep.'s @ the Toyota dealership stated that this generation motor is notorious for running "rougher". Honestly though, besides this problem the car has been pretty great for reliability in the last 10k miles I've driven it!
You know what. This sounds soooo similar to mine. Shaking at idle/reverse
I've gone through a whole list of different scenerios to try and fix the problem. Warming up it's fine but within a minute it starts to pulsate/vibrate/surge. I've noticed it gets worse in reverse (fully warmed up) when you can feel the surge in power when letting it roll backwards, it's basically spuddering. My rpms are also slightly lower than factory, probably 500-600rpms when in drive/reverse. This is the funny part, as soon as I begin to accelerate the car runs perfect. It only begins to expose the problem when I've nearly come to a stop (lets say 2mph or a split second before idle rpm in first) that I can feel it spudder. Another member on here has had this problem for several years and has still yet to diagnose it. I've taken it to two different shops (one being the Toyota dealer) and neither can diagnose a problem with the car. The thing you need to consider is that bad motor mounts wouldn't have any affect on the performance of the car in reverse. Why does the car run rough? This is the same thing I'm wondering. A smooth/steady vibration is one thing for motor mounts but why does the motor surge/spudder in reverse?
I never tested this in reverse, but I once had what I would call severe rough engine idle at traffic stops and completely solved it by replacing the intake manifold gasket.
Just my two cents.
__________________
1989 Toyota Camry base 5spd (retired at 206,000mi)
2000 Saturn SL2 5spd
2004 Pontiac Grand Am SE1 V6 (totaled due to a rear-end collision)
2003 Toyota Corolla LE
I never tested this in reverse, but I once had what I would call severe rough engine idle at traffic stops and completely solved it by replacing the intake manifold gasket.
Just my two cents.
Did you spray carb cleaner around the manifold to see if it improved idle at all before replacing? Just curious because I've done this test several times and there is no improvement in my low idle. When I leave the AC on and coast up to lights it seems to disipate the problem somewhat by bringing the rpms up a few hundred but this doesn't always work. I feel it's unrelated but something I do to ignore the problem
I changed my intake manifold today and it is still vibrating.
Yea, it's frustrating to have to throw parts & money at a car only to have it not fix the problem. At least the intake gasket is a cheap part. The last place I took the car to was going to swap in a new trans mount but the owner said it would only be a band aid because the problem is lying somewhere else. He said it was as if the engine had an imbalance and that I should take it to Toyota. Funny because Toyota said it was a result of a week passenger side motor mount. My sister has a 2005 corolla le with a 5 speed and hers seems to run weird at idle too but doesn't vibrate nearly as bad. However, mine has 113k miles to her 55k miles. What sucks is the mounts are very expensive $115-$200 a piece depending on which one you're ordering.
Yea, it's frustrating to have to throw parts & money at a car only to have it not fix the problem. At least the intake gasket is a cheap part. The last place I took the car to was going to swap in a new trans mount but the owner said it would only be a band aid because the problem is lying somewhere else. He said it was as if the engine had an imbalance and that I should take it to Toyota. Funny because Toyota said it was a result of a week passenger side motor mount. My sister has a 2005 corolla le with a 5 speed and hers seems to run weird at idle too but doesn't vibrate nearly as bad. However, mine has 113k miles to her 55k miles. What sucks is the mounts are very expensive $115-$200 a piece depending on which one you're ordering.
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