Solid Transmission Mounts. For the Getrag 5-spd is what im looking for.


Does anyone have any pictures of them installed?

Anyone have any info on them, or tips for making them?
Does anyone sell them?

Thanks,
Chris Hahn
'87 GT - 350 tpi

I had a V8 auto. I tried solid mounts, and after 1/2 day of work and a 10 minute test ride, I prompty swapped them back. Car shook and rattled like a rail dragster.

I mounted my solid, just used the upper part of the stock mount and welded some steel between the bottom and the frame.
Mine is a 5 speed, I think rogers problem was with his auto.
Here is my build thread, it wont win a prize but it gets the job done.
https://www.fiero.nl/forum/Forum1/HTML/053856.html

I replaced the rubber pads in the stock mounts with 1-1/2" x 1-1/2" perforated steel tubing. Both mount halves had holes in them so all I had to do was bolt them together with 3/8" nuts and bolts. This dropped the tranny 1/2" allowing me to use the lowest set of holes in the front mount and gave me just a little more clearance up top.

It does transmit a lot of vibration to the passenger compartment, especially with the solid steel cradle mounts. I can even feel the starter engage and turn the flywheel.

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1986 SE 350 V8

tesmith66 is yours and auto as well?
I have solid motor, tranny and cradle bushings. There is no more vibration then I had with my V6.

It may possibly been due to it being an auto, but it went back to smooth when I put OEMs back in. My trans problems were due to clutch packs burning up, not any vibration issues.

Mine is an Isuzu 5 spd.

solid motor or tranny mounts can not only produce a rugh ride, they can shake things lose like connectors and maybe leave stranded someplace.

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[IMG]



Trueleo.com/fiero.htm
RSpiderII@aol.com

My SBC/getrag car also has the engine solid mounted as well as the cradle (88 car). I can post pics of the mounts later this evening. Sure there is a slight vibration at idle, but it is hardly noticable.

The severity of this has a lot to do with how well matched/balanced the rotating assembly is when it is installed as well as the camshaft/powerband the engine is designed for.

We've been solid mounting everything we've built in-house for the last 10 years.

No one has had any related issues in all that time.

Archie

Thanks for the feed back!

I ordered a set from Archie, should be here soon.


I have polyurethane cradle mounts, and plan to keep them. I dont really mind too much if the car is shakey or vibrates. I expect it with a V8.

****Thanks "Francis T'" for the reminder of stuff coming loose... I will keep that in mind!!***

Chris Hahn
'87 GT - 350 tpi

Do the bushings in the cradle make up for the solid mounts?

quote Originally posted by Archie: We've been solid mounting everything we've built in-house for the last 10 years. No one has had any related issues in all that time. Archie

quote Originally posted by Francis T: Do the bushings in the cradle make up for the solid mounts?

I've ridden in an 88 GT with a solid mounted LT1 5-speed and while you do feel more vibration than stock, it's not what I would call objectionable. Definitely harsher than stock, but nothing that gave me any concern. And the 88 uses a solid mounted cradle, too, so there was nothing to take up any vibrations.

Now, if you've got a HUGE cam, that may cause a lot more vibrations. And each person's personal taste and tolerance for the vibration will be different as well.

If you ever get a chance to get a ride in a solid mounted V8 - go for it. It's really the only way to tell for sure if you'll find it acceptable or not.

Out of all of them I've done in the last 10 years, not one person has made a comment about vibration.

I'll bet that 99% of the people that would argue that solid mount is a problem wouldn't even know if it was a solid mount unless you told them.

This subject has come up many times in the past & there's always a few people that claim it'll shake everything loose etc. etc. etc.

I ususally don't even comment in threads like this one because I get tired of arguing with people that ignore my many swaps with solid mounts because it disagrees with their theory.

As far as how it compares to stock.......... I'm really the wrong one to ask about that because I've only driven stock V-6 Fieros a total of maybe 300 miles in my whole life. The last time I drove a 4 cyl. Fiero more than a couple of blocks was 19 years ago.

Archie

quote Originally posted by rogergarrison: I had a V8 auto. I tried solid mounts, and after 1/2 day of work and a 10 minute test ride, I prompty swapped them back. Car shook and rattled like a rail dragster.

WHAT...HE...SAID!

Even RACE cars use rubber mounts, wonder why....

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carpe diem

quote Originally posted by frankenfiero1: Even RACE cars use rubber mounts, wonder why....

Define "Race" car.

Anyway I solid mounted mine because I didnt want my valve covers to be ate up by the hinge box.

heres a few pics of mine from my V8 prettymuch the rubber was repplaced with steel,
worked great, i was running a pretty stout 355 SBC, and the ride was nice, not obnoxious at all

Engines, transaxles, wheels, etc. are all slightly out of balance and vibrate when operating. Vibration can be destructive; you can only flex a piece of steel so many times before it work hardens and cracks.

Automotive engineers don't want their cars to fall apart from metal fatigue, so they design in high-compliance materials in various places. These "vibration absorbers" convert the vibration to heat and get rid of the problem.

So you'll find these vibration absorbers pretty much everywhere a vibration source is attached to the chassis. That's why there's rubber bushings in the suspension, rubber mounts under the engine and transaxle, etc, etc.

Now this isn't to say that you can't solid mount the drivetrain and not be OK. But when you make these kind of changes, it's important to put some thought into where the highest compliance part in the mount system is now. If the most flexible part is the cradle or a mount bracket then you can expect to see a future failure due to metal fatigue in that location.

What I've seen in my experience is that a poly mounted engine and transaxle (not metal to metal, even) caused the cradle to fail in the front transaxle mount area due to metal fatigue.

quote Originally posted by $Rich$: heres a few pics of mine from my V8 prettymuch the rubber was repplaced with steel, worked great, i was running a pretty stout 355 SBC, and the ride was nice, not obnoxious at all

+ to you $Rich$ for showing pictures!

+ to the others who have helped.

Thank you!

I believe Rodney's poly mounts would be a good intermediate option.

The amount of use the car gets might be a factor, as everyone has different tolerance levels, my issue with the solid mounted V8 was during deceleration which was like 1:1 ratio steering, at low speed in 1st and 2nd gear letting off the gas abruptly would throw you forward, but then again engine performance characteristics come into play here also. The vibration was noticeable but ride quality is usually not that high on the list as performance is increased. Solid mounting is a performance advantage, however if you have female company in the passenger seat on a regular basis you might want to keep that in mind.

quote Originally posted by Joseph Upson: I believe Rodney's poly mounts would be a good intermediate option. The amount of use the car gets might be a factor, as everyone has different tolerance levels, my issue with the solid mounted V8 was during deceleration which was like 1:1 ratio steering, at low speed in 1st and 2nd gear letting off the gas abruptly would throw you forward, but then again engine performance characteristics come into play here also. The vibration was noticeable but ride quality is usually not that high on the list as performance is increased. Solid mounting is a performance advantage, however if you have female company in the passenger seat on a regular basis you might want to keep that in mind.

I currently have the transmission mounted with polyurethene trans mounts (I believe they were from West Coast Fiero). Since the motor is mounted solid to the cradle, I would like the transmission to be mounted the same.

As for female company... She would be the wife, and she loves the car (vibrating or not)! I am sure that by taking the poly mounts off, and replacing them with solid, there wont be TOO much of a big difference in vibration.

My 88 GT with SBC has been running for 14 years with solid mounted engine, trans, and cradle. "No one" who has ever ridden in the car has made a comment on vibration, and nothing has ever failed on the car due to any sort of vibration. GM Directors and Engineers have ridden in the car with no complaints, just smiles. That being said, it can be done correctly.

quote Originally posted by California Kid: My 88 GT with SBC has been running for 14 years with solid mounted engine, trans, and cradle. "No one" who has ever ridden in the car has made a comment on vibration, and nothing has ever failed on the car due to any sort of vibration. GM Directors and Engineers have ridden in the car with no complaints, just smiles. That being said, it can be done correctly.

Yeah, but you have special aftermarket valve covers that make 150 hp, and absorb the vibration. The only thing they cant do is get you a dyno sheet.

Is anyone actually debating the fact that you cant notice a motor and tranny is solid mounted? That rediculous. Simple question, If solid mounting work so well, and noone could tell, why oh why do ALL auto manufacturers use Rubber mounts? Because its cheaper to build, I doubt that.

I started this thread. Thanks to all who added input, whether positive of negative toward solid trans mounts!

I want to add my opinion of them. The V8 motor is solid mounted, and always has been - so its only right that the transmission be solid mounted also!

As for vibration, I have NO complaints!!!! If I, or the wife were to complain about anything, it would be the exhaust! With such a short distance to travel through 3" pipes, there isnt much you can do to muffle the sound.

I also specifically asked the wife to try to "feel" for any abnormal, or even objectionable, or excessive vibrations or feelings. She had nothing at all to complain about. Neither did I.

I would believe that the amount of vibration felt with solid mounts has to do with the degree of balancing precison used to build the engine and transmisson. Well balanced engines don't vibrate as much as engines with poor balancing.

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87GT 3.4 Turbo- 0-60 5.2 seconds
2006 3800SC Series III swap in progress
Engine Controls, PCM goodies,
re-programming & odd electronics stuff
" I'M ON THE LOOSE WITHOUT THE JUICE "

Dig it! Let's solid mount everything! I hear solid rubber tires are all the craze, let's do that next! If stress cracks develop due to excess vibration, we'll just weld them up, cause they must be a weak link anyway. Hell, why do we even need springs, solid mount them too. Suspension is on only something that the engineers designed to convert heat into friction. Screw high temp shocks doing the job, conserve friction I say! The Fiero space frame is so strong that any sustained resonant shock can't affect it. It is bulletproof! If something along the way has cracked or broken, it must be a weak link.Physics be damned, people have said it works so I believe it!

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carpe diem

I use stock rubber mounts with a 3/8" hole drilled through the steel top and bottom plates and the rubber inbetween. I have the bolt just snugged down to the steel plates with a nylon locknut. That way I have the benefit of (some) vibration absorption with the ability to absorb heavier shock loads. This may not be the "right" way to do it either, but it has kept the tranny in the right place on my race car after I broke a couple stock mounts.

quote Originally posted by Archie: Out of all of them I've done in the last 10 years, not one person has made a comment about vibration. I'll bet that 99% of the people that would argue that solid mount is a problem wouldn't even know if it was a solid mount unless you told them. This subject has come up many times in the past & there's always a few people that claim it'll shake everything loose etc. etc. etc. I ususally don't even comment in threads like this one because I get tired of arguing with people that ignore my many swaps with solid mounts because it disagrees with their theory. As far as how it compares to stock.......... I'm really the wrong one to ask about that because I've only driven stock V-6 Fieros a total of maybe 300 miles in my whole life. The last time I drove a 4 cyl. Fiero more than a couple of blocks was 19 years ago. Archie

Now you can see why i usually don't even comment in threads like this.

There are tons of experts that will tell you it's no good & none of them has actually tried it.

Archie

Doesn't mixing a solid engine mount with rubber/poly trans mounts put stress on the solid engine mount? I would think that when the trans moves on rubber and the engine doesn't, that would stress the engine mount. It seems that one should use the same mounts in all three places to minimize stress. Am I wrong?

In the meantime, I am looking for some solid trans mounts for my SBC - to match the solid engine mount in Archie's kit. I can't find a listing or price at Archie's site. I guess I'll call.

Thanks for all the info, guys!

Solid mounting increases loads on other parts of the drivetrain, the main function of motor/trans mounts is to offer shock load resistance, along with limiting engine vibrations.

Basically, its a easy way to decrease the life or your axles and transmission parts. I wouldnt see a big issue if it was a drag only car with an auto, but no other situation would result in a solid mount being better than a rubber.

quote Originally posted by Archie: Now you can see why i usually don't even comment in threads like this. Archie

That's two times, so when are you going to stop? Laugh, you left yourself open for that one.

[This message has been edited by Joseph Upson (edited 07-07-2008).]

quote Originally posted by Joseph Upson: That's two times, so when are you going to stop? Laugh, you left yourself open for that one.

HaHa, what a snappy comeback & it only took a year for you to notice that I had left myself open for that one.

Notice how I used the word "Usually".

Archie