Engine mount brands

[BearZDefect]

My first choice for an engine mount is OEM, but since I don't have a multi-item list to make an order from the Internet worthwhile, and my local dealer charges astronomic prices, I am considering aftermarket brands available locally. The vehicle is a 1991 Honda Accord, and the mount is the easy torque strut (the rubber is broken).

The brands I have considered are:

1. Honda OEM
2. Anchor
3. Duralast (AutoZone)

My question of the moment is: Any significant difference between Anchor and Duralast? Duralast is just a marketing brand, so any idea who makes them? Made in China?

I want a mount that has strong+stiff rubber. I bought a Beck & Arnley mount for another application a while back and was disappointed with how soft the rubber was. I could easily push it all over with my bare fingers, though nothing was broken.

 

[JohnBrowning]

The durometer of the ruber used for the mount is going to be application specific...Most companies try to get close tot he OEM mount's stiffness. Now if you want truly stiff then get a mount that is urathane instead of rubber.

 

[punisher]

Many of the Beck Arnley parts I have used have been repackaged OEM components. Be careful comparing old engine mounts to new. Rubber changes under heat, oil exposure, and time. That soft mount could be closer to an OEM mount than you think.

 

[BearZDefect]

Thanks for the responses, JB and punisher.

I found Beck & Arnley a bit deceptive: Their photo on-line looked exactly like the OEM part, yet the real part had no markings on it at all and the rubber was slimmer. Whatever the case, I understand how rubber changes as it ages and is exposed to the elements.

I have seen urethane mounts sold in sets, but not individually. I'd consider buying the one I need, but not a whole set.

Any opinions about the aftermarket brands mentioned in the OP?

 

[The Critic]

Can't speak for Hondas, but on the Saturn S-Series, the infamous upper motor mount is an application where one should only use the OEM mount. Aftermarket mounts rarely last more than a few years.

 

[Merkava_4]

My Buick has 3 trans mounts and 1 engine mount. The rear trans mount is a solid rubber mount, while all the rest are oil filled. I wish there was some way to replace all the oil filled mounts with solid rubber mounts, but so far I haven't found anything. Maybe it's because the car would be shaking all over the place without oil filled mounts; I don't know.

 

[rpn453]

Stay away from urethane unless you're really serious about wanting the performance gain. I replaced one mount on my Mazda3 with a urethane version, primarily to reduce wheel hop. The car was more enjoyable to drive without the engine flopping around - a bigger difference than I had imagined an engine mount could make - but the vibrations below 1500 rpm were just too much for me, so I'm back to the factory mount. I even tried drilling holes in the urethane to soften it a bit, but that didn't do enough.

 

[widman]

On my Grand Cherokee Limited I took the old mounts to the local tire retreader and made new mounts out of them for 5% of the cost of new ones. Turned out much better than the original, especially since our roads are almost all dirt/gravel.

 

[ShiningArcanine]

Is there any chance that you could retrofit a shock absorber to act as an engine mount? Toyota used shock absorbers as engine mounts in my 1995 Avalon and I never had to replace any of them.

 

[BearZDefect]

Thanks, everyone, for the replies. I appreciate your thoughts and ideas, and take note of your experiences.

I, too, dislike the engine flopping back and forth.

 

[Volvohead]

Originally Posted By: rpn453
Stay away from urethane unless you're really serious about wanting the performance gain.


This is generally true. But there are some variations that suggest at least a look. The upper mount bushing is also a chronic wear item on all I-5 Volvos. Many owners have gone to urethane. But there are different densities available, from soft to very hard. The softer urethanes are not as bad from a NVH perspective and make a good compromise. Unfortunately, the softer varieties are also prone to some wear, but not as quickly as the OEM rubber does.

 

[swalve]

I'd like to know too- any Anchor I've seen has just been cheap rubber in a repainted bracket. There did not appear to be any attention to detail or any application-specific changes.