1. Punch (of varies sizes or as needed)
2. Hammer
3. Pry Bar
4. Helper
5. Good and tight

Pry as needed. Just gotta struggle to get it done.

 

Cheap mounts can for sure make for a very rough ride. Also expensive race mounts can do the same thing lol. I rode in a 240sx with polyurethane race mounts - BRUTAL.

I lowered my sub frame when doing my clutch to undo the 3 mounts. That's the easiest if you have a hoist. Without one I guess a bfp (big pry) bar and a helper is the next best way.

 

I'm not sure if the Matrix has the exact same motor mount setup (I think it does), but here is the info for a Gen 9 Corolla if it is:

Transverse engine engine mounting bracket rear x Transverse engine engine mounting insulator
TMMC, NUMMI made: 48 ft. lbs.
TAKAOKA, TAL made: 64 ft. lbs.

Transverse engine engine mounting bracket front x Transverse engine engine mounting insulator front: 38 ft. lbs.

The two DIYs on this Gen 9 forum for the driver side and passenger side mounts do show their respective torque specs.

I've heard many people say that the rear mount is very difficult to remove and install, but for some reason I didn't have a problem with it and it didn't take long to remove/install. You should not have to file or modify a part to make it fit. Your cheap aftermarket part was probably not manufactured/designed correctly. Sometimes you have to lift/lower the engine or transmission a bit to make the mounts fit, so that could also have been an issue. $15 mounts are a waste of your time and money. I highly recommend OE Toyota mounts instead of aftermarket, especially the VERY cheap aftermarket mounts.

Please let us know what brand of cheap mounts you used.

 

She bought Westar Engine Mounts, EM-9155, EM-9158, EM-9163, EM-9164.

The rear fit was terrible, the center support was not in the correct location compared to OEM, hence why it was a * to get on and took modification.

I had the engine still supported when i tightened all the MMs, so I went back and undid that, letting the motor rest then tightening everything. Vibrations reduced a whole lot, though still more than initially. Cheap mounts are cheap. I swapped in the old OEM Front and rear for now, and the vibrations are about what they were before. Waiting on OEM mounts to arrive for Driver, Pass, and rear.

Yesterday the anchor i previously ordered came in. I put it in the front and vibrations are much less. I suspect putting in the rear toyota MM should keep things vibration free. Though I'll put the toyota driver and pass MM in too.

My solution for the read MM issue, was the same as John's advice.

I had to jack the engine higher to gain that 1/2" clearance to get the bolt in the MM to fit under the mount bracket on the engine, once i jacked it up the fuss was minimal. I seriosuly struggled for an hour with the MM, so anybody doing the rear save yourself time and bruises on your ribs and lift that engine HIGH before putting in the rear MM.

I'm hoping once this pain is done the rear exhaust manifold will go smoothly. My DD's downpipe was a breeze when I did it awhile ago. Soaking in PB blaster for 2 days works wonders on exhaust bolts.

I appreciate all the help and comments.

 

You can also rock ESMM motor mount inserts. Really good $30 mod IMO a helper definitely helps as well.

 

ESMM motor mount inserts

Damn wish i saw this product earlier, might have just cheesed it and shored up the old mounts. But I'll keep these in mind if there are still vibes with the OEM mounts. Package should arrive by Monday, so I know what I'll be doing monday night

 

If anything, all the struggles you're going through has been really helpful for myself. Definitely staying away from westar mounts now.

 

Need to replace my mounts also. Anyone tried the Beck Arnley mounts? Should I just stick with OEM?

 

Let me know if you do beck. I've been needing to do the same.

 

The B/A front mount actually looked sturdier than the toyota OEM one. The toyota one is shaped like \ with one connection per side while the B/A front mount is shaped like an X with 2 connections per side.

I ended up replacing the driver and passenger sides with toyota, and the front with B/A, the rear was broken but it drove around fine. it has some slight vibrations. I then finally received the OEM rear and replaced it and no/minimal vibrations. I only did OEM since the rear is a pain and I never want to do it again.

I found that the OEM rear mount side with the single bolt is the hardest part to get into position, usually hitting the frame or the metal line that is right above the frame. The end of it is not threaded for about 7/16 from the end, if you take off 1/4 inch via filing, dremel grinding, or cutting via dremel or other methods, then jack the engine as high as you can until you don't see it lifting. Then you can get it in there pretty easily.

I put that single bolt side in first kind of at a 90 degree angle then rotate count clockwise to the the double bolt side facing the rear of the car.

Hope this helps everyone in the future. The mounts are all easy except the rear, though with the clipping of the end it's manageable.

 

I've heard so many people say that the rear mount was a real pain, but I didn't have any problems with replacing it. Maybe I just got lucky. You shouldn't have to modify or grind off a part of it to make it fit, though.

 

Looking to tackle the 4 mounts on my 06. Anyone can provide an update on using non OEM mounts. $800 Canadian for OEM’s is quite expensive! Which mount has the most effect on reducing vibration at idle?

 

Think about it this way.

Aftermarket mounts are hit or miss when it comes to quality of materials. Yes they are cheaper, but anyway you slice it, the labor is the same.

To save money, oem is the way to go here. Why? Because you only want to do this job once. With aftermarket, you may get 2 years before you have to do the job again. Especially with the trans mount.

 

OEM has been the best recorded. I replaced mine with OEM and it was super quiet mounts. Absorbed every vibration from the motor very well.


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I've replaced all four of them once. That was not too long ago in miles (maybe at 375K+? I can't remember when).

 

So my girlfriend's matrix has 211k miles on it, not that well taken care of until I came around. She needs it to last another two years through nursing school, so there is an exhaust leak, and some sound from the exhaust manifold. But before we get to that the motor mounts need replacing. The passenger side MM more or less flopped when taken out, totally broken Drive side MM had a crack in it but is in the best shape of the mounts Front MM has some play side to side but front to back is good, has minor cracking Rear MM has large cracks All the mounts except the rear motor mount was a breeze to take out and replace. The rear was a huge pain to take out literally took me an hour, and the aftermarket one was a pain to get in and then even worse to get it lined up. It took some filing and hammering to get that part to a better fit, took 5 hours with filing. It was nightmare but it was done. So I put the car down and the engine shakes quite a bit back and forth. I'd guess movement is 1/2", most noticeable on the passenger side motor mount. She bought the el cheaper $15 each motor mounts, I'm guessing even though they didn't budge much by hand the motor moves them more than I could. Interestingly, I put the car back on jacks and the motor doesn't vibrate since it's at a slight incline. I retightened everything once I jacked the motor so the bolt would go through the mount. Perhaps I need to let the motor sit differently then tighten the bolts? OEM toyota parts are on their way, since she needs her car as her DD, I need to get this fixed ASAP. I'm going to swap back in the better old motor mounts until the new parts come in. However the rear is going to be a huge pain, to get in and out, really not sure if I can get the OEM one back in. Any tips on how to fit it in? Also do you think she can drive with a bit excessive vibrations, as her old motor mounts were shot and the car vibrated hence why new MMs.. Also anybody have the FSM for an 06 matrix AT so I know the torque specs for all mounts. I saw 2 other topics with torque specs but only for 2 of the 4 motor mounts. Thanks for the help

My guess is that this is long behind you but I had the same issues with both motor mounts and exhaust leak. My Matrix is a standard trans but I think when I bought the el cheapo Ebay motor mounts, they were defaulted as auto trans without disclosing. I filled my voids with silicone but it still shook. I changed out the mounts again with a little better luck. Lastly, I ordered standard trans rear mount and let the silicone sit in it for months. I have yet to install it, due to the PIA that it is, as you are aware of. My exhaust leak eludes me. I've changed the cat/front pipe several times and have a fresh donut gasket but can't figure out where the leak is coming from without focusing all my energy on it. Any conclusions you have to share here would be helpful.

 

I tried 3 brands of aftermarket ones on my '04 XR. The top mounts were fine. NONE of the rear aftermarket ones aligned. I ended up getting OEM.

 

As a data point, I just went through the exact experience as the OP in his first couple posts. I paid roughly 115 at r***auto for a the full kit of DEA/Marmon mounts. Test drive was poopoo stew. I now have uncomfortable vibes at idle (stoplight), and I also have a lot more racket when accelerating. These mounts are doggy doo.

The rear mount was the worst. I didn't have to file/cut, but I probably should have. 20 min to get the bottom four bolts out. 45 min to lean my torso upside down over the fender and get that main bolt out. 1.5 hrs to figure out how to hold my mouth just right to remove the old mount. Another 2 hrs screwing around getting the new one on. If I had known how hard that rear was going to be, I might have bought OEM. Shopping for that now.

The other three mounts together only took maybe 4 hours. Trivial compared to the back one. That included ovaling out one mounting hold on the right side mount.

This morning I'm going out to put 3/4 old mounts back in one at a time until I can stand to drive it. But no way I'm touching that rear again without an OEM replacement in my hand.

 

As a data point, I just went through the exact experience as the OP in his first couple posts. I paid roughly 115 at r***auto for a the full kit of DEA/Marmon mounts. Test drive was poopoo stew. I now have uncomfortable vibes at idle (stoplight), and I also have a lot more racket when accelerating. These mounts are doggy doo.

The rear mount was the worst. I didn't have to file/cut, but I probably should have. 20 min to get the bottom four bolts out. 45 min to lean my torso upside down over the fender and get that main bolt out. 1.5 hrs to figure out how to hold my mouth just right to remove the old mount. Another 2 hrs screwing around getting the new one on. If I had known how hard that rear was going to be, I might have bought OEM. Shopping for that now.

The other three mounts together only took maybe 4 hours. Trivial compared to the back one. That included ovaling out one mounting hold on the right side mount.

This morning I'm going out to put 3/4 old mounts back in one at a time until I can stand to drive it. But no way I'm touching that rear again without an OEM replacement in my hand.

For the rear mount, hammer the long bolt out of the mount and replace it with a grade 8 bolt and nut. That will save your back and sanity. Makes a pita job a lot easier.