Date: Thu, 30 Sep 1999 14:45:40 -0400
Reply-To: Bulley <gmbulley@BULLEY-HEWLETT.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Bulley <gmbulley@BULLEY-HEWLETT.COM>
Subject: Re: How to check motor mounts, second request.
I can speak only from my experience with Air-cooled vans/busses, but I am
pretty sure the mounts are similar on the H20 vans as well.
There are two mount systems. One at the front on the transmission, a single
mount. And a grouping of four mounts at the rear of the motor on a mount
bar.
Of the four on the bar at the rear of the motor, the two in the middle are
designed primarily to absorb/damp movement of the motor up and down. The
outside pair of mounts control/damp torque, or rotation of the motor along
the crankshaft's axis of rotation, but also contribute to control of
movement up and down.
The mount at the front of the transmission serves both roles.
The check procedure that I use is somewhat dangerous, so proceed only if
you feel confident that your life insurance is paid up. First, find a
partner who you trust implicitly. Start the van, and have them sit in the
drivers seat. Set the parking brake firmly. Go to the back of the van with
a good flash light. On the Van-Air-gan, you have to get under the van to
see the rear mounts clearly, I think this is also true of the Van-Agua-n.
Now here's the Danger, Will Robinson. Get under the van, and use your
eyeballs and the flashlight to peer at the REAR mounts. Have your trusted
buddy step on the clutch with his left foot and step on the BRAKE with his
right foot. Next, have him put it in first, and GENTLY release the clutch
just until the van strains a bit, then push the clutch to the floor again.
Have him do this a couple of times while you eyeball the mounts thoroughly.
Then have him do the same thing with the van in REVERSE. Then repeat the
whole procedure while eyeballing the front mount.
What you should see: Some deflection, and some minor movement of the motor;
maybe a centimeter in any direction. What you shouldn't see. Cracked
rubber, split mounts, lots of movement. If you have clutch chatter, you
prolly have one or many bad mounts particularly, the front mount and the
outside rear mounts are shot in their "torque" aspect. It is good practice
(PM) to replace them all at once, and be done with. The front one is around
$125, and each of the rear ones is something like $10. The tranny one is a
cinch to replace. The rear ones are a pain. (Again, Van-Air-gan experience
here).
Cheers.
G. Matthew Bulley
Director
Bulley-Hewlett & Associates
www.bulley-hewlett.com <http://www.bulley-hewlett.com/>
Cary, NC USA
888.468.4880 tollfree
-----Original Message-----
From: Vernon Craddock [SMTP:Vernon@CRADDOCK.COM]
Sent: Thursday, September 30, 1999 12:07 PM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: How to check motor mounts, second request.
Hi,
I didn't get any feedback the first time, so I'll try again. How
do I check
the motor mounts? What exactly does one look for here? I am trying to
resolve
a problem with excessive bucking or clutch chatter when engaging first
gear on
an incline.
Thanks again,
Vernon Craddock
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