Motor mounts bad?

[bock207]

I have been having some troubles with hard shifts since I got my car. It seems to bang into the lower gears, and shudder a bit when i let the clutch out to get rolling. I just ordered a new torque rod bushing hoping that this is the problem, because there is a bit of play in it now, not only side to side, but also a little up and down. I also read that you can check for a broken motor mount by putting the car in gear and rocking it back and forth and watch the engine. when i push on the front bumper the engine rocks to the back about a half an inch, and i can see it lift up on the front mount a little. Should the new torque rod bushing cure this, or do I possibly need new engine mounts, or could it even be something in the clutch that is causing my problems? I wonder if it might be the clutch or something because it seems to get less severe as the car warms up. I'm just anxious to get the bushing in and i'm really hoping it will solve my problems, and I'm wondering what you guys think of this?

[russiankid]

well you definitly need to replace the bushing in your shifter rod, forgot how its called, you can inspect your engine mounts, there is on in the front down where the header connects to the down pipe, its there on the frame, one in the rear, inspect them and see if they need replacing, your going to be down there anyways replacing those bushings, there is also one on the left side near the water pump area i believe, and one on top near the Carb, since yours is an LX, its a rode coming from the fire wall to the engine, those may need replace ment also, only the bushings tho

[AccordEpicenter]

Ehh ive broken more motor mounts than any other parts on the car soo far. My guess is they are shot. Maybe you have clutch chatter too, is your clutch properly adjusted also?

[russiankid]

Ehh ive broken more motor mounts than any other parts on the car soo far. My guess is they are shot. Maybe you have clutch chatter too, is your clutch properly adjusted also?

also when was the last time you replaced your clutch? may want to check the cable like mentioned above about the adjustment, if its correctly adjusted, do you have free play in your pedal?

[bock207]

ummm.... I'm not sure if my clutch is properly adjusted, it seems to engage fine, about in the middle of the pedal travel. I have no idea what clutch chatter is. I have no idea how old the clutch is, I got the car about a month ago, and it came with maintinance records all the way back to the day it came off the showroom floor, so I'll have to sift through those and see. Can you tell if the motor mounts are broken just by looking at them? because they look to be in good shape

[russiankid]

see how the rubber bushings are, but for an 86, you should replace them anyways

[bock207]

Well I replaced the torque rod bushing, and it seemed to help the problem a little, but it didn't completely go away. The front and driver side motor mounts seem fine, but I think the back one needs to be replaced. When I am costing along if I get back on the gas it makes a loud bang that I can feel coming through the car. I assume this is the engine twisting on the broken mount. By the way is there anything I have to remove to get access to the rear mount, or will I be able to reach it from underneath fine?

[russiankid]

it's not a very very simple task but i gthink you have to remove the cross member, but you have to loosen all the other engine mounts, since you are pushing the engine up, it needs to travel a bit

[cardoc33]

Worn motor mounts will cause clutch chatter, which is that shuddering you feel when you let out the clutch. Replace all your mounts and that should fix alot of your problems.