My approach to front subframe motor mount repair.

[Ray_73Turkis_OH]

Hi,

A few weeks ago many of you shared ideas on how to fix the subframe.

Thanks for all your suggestions.

After much meditation and studying of everything including the factory repair manual I decided to drop the whole subframe which I found quite easy to do and Easier than the European car article which suggests to pull the engine. (See pictures below.)

1. unhook steering coupler

2. Unbolt unbroken motor mount.

2. Raise engine an inch with jack and suspend engine from top.

3. unbolt and hang caliper from struts (3 bolts each side)

4. support subframe with floor jack

5. unbolt top of struts (3 bolts each side)

6. unbolt subframe (3 bolts each side)

It's out!

Remove steering box

Pull tops of struts toward each other and tie together.

Get a buddy to help you put it in the back of the mini van or wrestle it yourself.

take to welders

pick up from welders and pay $65.

Be happy

do the reverse of the above to put back together

Be happier.

Good luck.

[jlandreth]

Thanks Ray-I'm sure will comein handy for me someday.Where in OH. is Springboro?

[Ray_73Turkis_OH]

Hi,

I got it all buttend up today and had a very nice test drive.

It must have been cracking for quite a while because a vibration and rattle I have had for over 5,000 miles is gone now.

Also, Springboro is between Cincinnati and Dayton.

Ray

[robspeed]

Hi,

A few weeks ago many of you shared ideas on how to fix the subframe.

Thanks for all your suggestions.

After much meditation and studying of everything including the factory repair manual I decided to drop the whole subframe which I found quite easy to do and Easier than the European car article which suggests to pull the engine. (See pictures below.)

1. unhook steering coupler

2. Unbolt unbroken motor mount.

2. Raise engine an inch with jack and suspend engine from top.

3. unbolt and hang caliper from struts (3 bolts each side)

4. support subframe with floor jack

5. unbolt top of struts (3 bolts each side)

6. unbolt subframe (3 bolts each side)

It's out!

Remove steering box

Pull tops of struts toward each other and tie together.

Get a buddy to help you put it in the back of the mini van or wrestle it yourself.

take to welders

pick up from welders and pay $65.

Be happy

do the reverse of the above to put back together

Be happier.

Good luck.

hehe, nice... id be a little concerned in that yer subframe is not exactly reinforced so much as just repaired. When we did mine i added an L-channel strip of metal to both sides (ground to fit), and welded it all the way up the engine mounting tab on the forward side, less so on the back side (iirc). I was too stupid at the time to stop to take a picture of it.... that is the ONE place i havent broken anything since! (once i TORE THE RUBBER MOUNT IN HALF launching out of a walmart parking lot, uphill, with a bunch a stuff in the trunk!! Limited slip and a trunkload... a sure recipe for disaster... ;-p next time i broke the metal piece on the ENGINE side!!)

[jerry]

i repaired a crack in my subframe and posted the following information about a year ago:

I recently reinforced two cracked subframes by welding a small metal plate approximately 1/8inch thick as shown in the first photo. I used a small jigsaw to rough out the piece then molded it with a ball pien hammer and file.

As it took approximately 30 years (and 150K miles or more) for the crack to grow approximately 3/8 inch I considered the stresses low. This plate transmits the bending stress as shear loading across the newly placed weld bead.

Note: the engine mount was originally fabricated from a steel stamping. The edges were not chamfered (beveled) and thus consisted of a rather sharp edge which is VERY suseptible to crack initiation and subsequent crack growth.

If you have the opportunity I strongly recommend that you take a file or stone (sandpaper will work too) to the edge of the engine mount and lightly dress the edge to remove the burr. IF and I stress IF a crack hasn't initiated, this will serve to extend the cycles to crack initiation.

[SailLaser]

I just had to do this mine and just finished maybe 20 minutes ago. Thanks for the great advice! It worked great!!! Can't wait to get it welded!!!