Date: Mon, 31 Dec 2007 16:15:26 -0500
Reply-To: Mike <mbucchino@CHARTER.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Mike <mbucchino@CHARTER.NET>
Subject: Re: Dropped my motor...almost..
Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset="utf-8"; reply-type=original
I haven't personally seen the crossbar that you're talking about, but it
would appear that it's there to add a structural tie-together of two side
mounts. I really doubt that the oil pan contacts it at all. It can't,
really, or the engine mounts would have no flex to dampen vibrations away
from the frame, plus it'd chafe where it does contact and eventually wear a
hole thru the pan. This cross-brace would also serve to protect the torque
rotation of the engine (and off-road bouncing of the chassis) from straining
the mounts' bolts. This is what appeared to have happened to your rig, and
would have been prevented by the installation od such a cross-brace. The
looseness that you describe may have been flexing of the long mount and/ otr
it's mounting hardware, due to a lack of this part. My guess is that when
you finally get it properly repaired and add this cross-brace, that
looseness will be gone.
HTH,
Mike B.
----- Original Message -----
From: "dhanson@gorge.net" <dhanson@GORGE.NET>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Monday, December 31, 2007 3:49 PM
Subject: Dropped my motor...almost..
> Yesterday I was running through the desert in my 84 Gas/diesel inline
> four conversion and enjoying
> the dips, then I came to a stop sign and noticed my exhaust note had
> changed..The gear shifting was
> not right, either, so I pulled over and crawled under to find the
> passenger side of the motor was
> hanging low...Hmmm!..So I tossed out all the stuff in the back hatch area,
> after inspecting all the
> motor mounts underneath..
> Now, this motor has always seemed a bit "loose" in the van, ever since I
> bought the already-done
> conversion about 30k thousand miles ago. I've repeatedly checked the
> motor mounts, bought new ones
> and stached em after I found the current ones to be just fine...I simply
> assumed that it was normal
> for the inline four to be able to rock around back there...Not great, but
> perhaps just a poor design.
> I found the right side rear cast aluminum motor mount had sheered the
> mounting bolts right at the
> block..leaving the right side of the motor hanging.....As I began trying
> to see how to fix that, I
> happened to find, in the Bently, a short 2 page write up on the diesel
> motor install/remove...and
> Whoa!..right there in the book it shows a thing they call the Engine
> Support mount...Mine NEVER had
> one...And I, for one, have never encountered any installation that uses
> the oil pan as a stressed
> mounting member..a weight-bearing part of the engine mounting set up...It
> is kind of a transverse
> strap, from rail to rail that the flat bottom of the diesel motor oil pan
> just sits on...takes up
> some of the weight, I guess and keeps it from rocking? We shall see...
> So anyhow, I limped back to my campsite and using some construction wood
> I had around and some
> extra motorcycle tiedown straps...I have now a fine looking '2x4 engine
> support mount'...Gotta love
> the vans...
> If I were home with all my tools, I could have done a permanent fix with
> ease...but since I am
> camping, I will have to depend on the local mechanics to try to "easy-out"
> the broken mount bolts
> out of the block, and to fabricate a strap to sit the pan onto rather than
> my 'special' 2x4 racing
> mount...
>
> Happy new year everyone,
> Don Hanson
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