Broken engine mounts.

[bjl4776]

So awhile ago i broke what i thought was my tranny mounts. We'll its been three weeks and i finally got the car on the lift. The tranny mounts seemed fine so i continued to look around and so my engine mounts were broke. Not the rubber mount itself, but the aluminum bracket that goes from the engine to the mount snapped in half. And to top it off the mounts on both sides were torn out of the subframe, so now i have to drop the entire subframe and has it welded. So if been driving around for about a month with my engine just free floating on my subframe and steering rack. Thats gonna be a fun sunday job in the rain tomorow. This is my daily and i need to be back in boston on monday for school.

[mattyb]

damn bad luck that. never heard of that happening before in a BM. is there a process or device to get them dead straight or do you just whack em back in?

best of luck!

[genphreak]

So awhile ago i broke what i thought was my tranny mounts. We'll its been three weeks and i finally got the car on the lift. The tranny mounts seemed fine so i continued to look around and so my engine mounts were broke. Not the rubber mount itself, but the aluminum bracket that goes from the engine to the mount snapped in half. And to top it off the mounts on both sides were torn out of the subframe, so now i have to drop the entire subframe and has it welded. So if been driving around for about a month with my engine just free floating on my subframe and steering rack. Thats gonna be a fun sunday job in the rain tomorow. This is my daily and i need to be back in boston on monday for school.

Consider yourself lucky; after all you could have turned the motor upside down inside the engine bay, the damage would be 'extensive'. I'd expect the damage was done sometime ago, with aluminum once there is a fissure (small failiure) it quickly fatigues away more material - like tearing paper there's no stopping the process. It might have been fault in a part, or it might have been someone broke a mount, replaced the rubber but didn't notive or repair the bracket itself. Or maybe it was a shoddy panelbeater not reaplcing everything. How's the pan? A good bump form underneath might start this sort of thing off too... Sorry to hear of your troubles dude... Nick

[Jeff N.]

So when was the accident?

[bjl4776]

I have never been in an accident in the vehicle but it was rear ended a good five years ago. The oil pan is actually resting on the steering rack and it seems the damage being done is on the rack and not on the pan. I havent had a probelm with the steering but i except to soon. I already have about a $3000 dollar list of things that need to be done for this car to be mint, this just adds to it. Iv been driving it for about a month like this, and pretty hard occasionally including a day at the autox without anything bad happening, should i be ok for another week. I ordered a new subframe and should be here be the end of the week and ill do it on saturday on a lift at work.

[genphreak]

I have never been in an accident in the vehicle but it was rear ended a good five years ago. The oil pan is actually resting on the steering rack and it seems the damage being done is on the rack and not on the pan. I havent had a probelm with the steering but i except to soon. I already have about a $3000 dollar list of things that need to be done for this car to be mint, this just adds to it. Iv been driving it for about a month like this, and pretty hard occasionally including a day at the autox without anything bad happening, should i be ok for another week. I ordered a new subframe and should be here be the end of the week and ill do it on saturday on a lift at work.

That depends on what exists in your engine bay to stop the motor turning over when it tries to propel the car forward...

It sounds to me like the only thing holding it would be the tranny mounts and they usually only location-type mounts- on my car they are not very well designed to resist Left and Right movement, only forward/aft. A lot of BMW tranny mounts are very similar, auto/man and thru different generations- even if they were bulkier than they are, I don't think anyone with any sense (let alone a fat wallet) would drive a car with an unsecured engine- it sounds dowright dangerous. Nick

[Bill R.]

a steering rack, they are worm and gear not rack and pinion.

[bjl4776]

You are correct. Its an e36 M3.