Avanza: New Rear Engine / Transmission Mounting (DIY)

2005 Toyota Avanza AT 1.3L

Mileage: 180k km

The repair job I did about 9 months ago failed again.

The vibration of engine can be felt in the cabin especially during high speed, so mush so there’s vibration on the steering..

Finally settled with a brand new original mounting:

INSULATOR, ENGINE MOUNTING, REAR NO.1

Part no.: 12371‑BZ010

The mounting is actually located behind the transmission and fitted underneath the mounting bracket 12321E in the following diagram:

 

The DIY write-up can be obtained from my last repair job posting:

http://upgr8s.blogspot.com/2011/10/avanza-diy-repair-transmission-mounting.html

I strongly advice Avanza owners conduct a periodical visual check on the condition of their mount [look out for crack lines, replace when excessive] because being a hardy Toyota, the car can still be used even when the mount is badly worn and if the owner is not particular or sensitive enough, may not even notice it. Driven around with a worn engine mounting may cause other components of the car to fail due to the excessive vibration of the engine, I suspected my ATF metal cooler tube ruptured by this excessive movement/shift of the engine/transmission, now suffered from leaky ATF..

Next DIY will get it fixed, one way or another..

Thanks for reading and stay tuned for more to come.

Avanza: DIY Repair Transmission Mounting

A recent change of transmission fluid has led me to inspect the transmission mounting while I crawled under the car, and I’m suspecting it has cracked.

I also noticed an occasion knocking sound from the central cabin tunnel when going through bumps.

So I came across this epoxy adhesive which is perfect for the job.

It has 3 types, 4min, 5min and 90min and each can withstand 3 tons, 3.5 tons and 4 tons respectively. I think 90 min is too long, hence I picked the 5 min variant. The entire car doesn’t even weight 3 tons..

Going under the car again and yes, the black clean line is created due to rubbing, meaning there are movement between the top plate and the 2 rubber support blocks, which shouldn’t happen unless the section has cracked or broken.

This following photo is taken from the rear, notice the same black crack lines between the V-shape top plate and the 2 rubber blocks? Oh! That’s my pet taking her nap in the back ground..

Found a jack point, it’s at the flywheel housing, at the joint where the transmission is connected.

After jacking the transmission up, the gap between the top plate and the 2 rubber blocks are clear!!

Since the gap is not wide enough for me to apply the epoxy adhesive, I had to remove the mounting. 2 size 14mm bolts at the top and 2 size 14mm nuts at the bottom, to be accessed through the bottom cross beam. Look at the following picture after ripping off the 2 sections.. The 2 sections are supposed to be moulded together.

Here goes nothing.. mix the epoxy with the hardener.. the mix is actually hot, an increase in temperature due to the chemical reaction.

I only apply one side, the top plate. Then slide the top plate over the rubber blocks.. I need to act swift because I only have 5 min before the epoxy harden even though it takes hours to fully cure.

Installing the transmission mounting back to it’s original location.. Hint: Put in the top bolts first before tightening the bottom nuts because the top bolts do not have free play while the bottom has.

Slowly lower the jack..

Hint: I lay some old newspaper under the jack to distribute the weight because I worry I might crack my tiles.

Viola!

I think the past 7 years, 160k km of flying over speed bumps and uneven road have finally taken a toll on the transmission mounting.. but fear not, after tonight, flying continues.. !!!

Thank you for reading. Comments are welcome!