Downpipe results in replacing my engine mounts

kwistof

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So after having my 3" DP and sports cat fitted a month or two ago- its turned out that the DP is making a horrible grinding noise at high revs and specifically when I go round a left hand corner or reverse the car.

When this occurs, the vibrations can be felt throughout the cabin and it really isn't pleasant :(

I had the DP fitted the same time as my SMF and I have been so worried it could be transmission related or driveshaft issues - So popped in to Parsons Performance yesterday and after taking Ben for a quick spin, he confirmed my engine mounts are tired and need replacing.

So.....

What to replace with?

I've obviously had a quick search and seen that there are 3 main routes people go down when upgrading them and I was wondering if people could give there experiences and opinions on the options below - or any other options I have missed out on....

1. Buy new copied OEM parts and fill them with Tiger Seal

2. THS Performance - £220 for the full kit including dog bone- but I have been reading they need to be replaced after 2 years.
FR3 Engine Mounts | Uprated engine mounts | THS Performance

3. Vibratechnic - These seem the daddys to have, but have a price to command that. I think I have seen a full kit for about £350ish but not sure how long they would last. Wouldn't be happy if they needed replacing after 2 years like THS for that money!

So what are you guys running?

Is it also correct that I need to buy new bolts as well for the mounts?

Cheers

Chris
 
Another option is to use polyurethane Liquid casting rubber rather than tiger seal.
Prawny told me about this as you can buy different grades. 85 is equivalent to track grade i think

Polytek Poly PT Flex 85 Liquid Casting Rubber - mbfg.co.uk

Cheers for the link, I can see it's mentioned in this thread -

http://www.audi-sport.net/vb/a3-s3-forum-8l-chassis/183163-engine-gearbox-mount-fitting-guide.html

Wondered if anyone who has bought the product can confirm on whether you need thel 1kg kit or can you can get away with the 500kg kit?
 
Ask Reesy. I've just done his, can't remember the amount he purchased though. It was just about enough though.
 
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Ask Reesy. I've just done his, can't remember the amount he purchased though. It was just about enough though.

Thanks for confirming it was just about enough- as i just re-looked at the thread I linked and Reesy says he bought the 1kg kit, so looks like I'll opt for that if I go down the route of copied parts and filling them in!

(all of this to be carried out by your good self obviously ;) ) lol
 
I have the exact same symptoms!! taken me ages trying to track down the issue as at first thought it might be a failing CV joint or wheel bearing as it only seemed to happen on left hand turns.

The only difference is that I have just done my engine mounts but the noise only started to happen after i have recently taken the DP off to redo the gaskets. So my thinking is that in doing this i have altered the position of the dp slightly so it now rubs on the prop shaft under certain conditions eg reversing or turn ing left.

My plan after work today was to jack up the front and see if i can modify the exhaust mount on the DP on the subframe somehow so that it sits better as other than that i cant work out how i would adjust the way it sits without removing the DP again and redoing it.

Any advise would be helpful
 
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I have the exact same symptoms!! taken me ages trying to track down the issue as at first thought it might be a failing CV joint or wheel bearing as it only seemed to happen on left hand turns.

The only difference is that I have just done my engine mounts but the noise only started to happen after i have recently taken the DP off to redo the gaskets. So my thinking is that in doing this i have altered the position of the dp slightly so it now rubs on the prop shaft under certain conditions eg reversing or turn ing left.

Posts like this make me happy as I too thought I had (another) major issue to sort out that would cost me big bucks- but turns out to be a bit of chaffing due to the fatter 3" DP!

I am trying to reduce the number of times I have to reverse and turn left at the moment until I get the issue sorted :) haha

Hopefully I'll be getting the new mounts by the end of the month and if I still have this issue after the new mounts, I'll also have to find an alternative solution to the problem as the noise and feel of the vibration is unbearable - I won't be carrying out any of the work myself though.

Also - what was the reason you changed the gaskets on the DP? Was it blowing and which gaskets did you have in there?
 
rob had the gaskets that were supplied by relentless with the dp and sports cat, which were both blowing

hope this helps
 
rob had the gaskets that were supplied by relentless with the dp and sports cat, which were both blowing

hope this helps

Yeah it does thanks, I have the gaskets in there from relentless as well - no blowing from them 'as yet' so I'll be leaving it as it is....

I have a V3 version and they apparently changed the gaskets from the earlier versions- not sure what version Bob is running though.

If it aint broke don't fix it comes to mind in my case.
 
I am getting mine replaced soon, other than the dogbone mount I am just going OEM.
 
Yeah it does thanks, I have the gaskets in there from relentless as well - no blowing from them 'as yet' so I'll be leaving it as it is....

I have a V3 version and they apparently changed the gaskets from the earlier versions- not sure what version Bob is running though.

If it aint broke don't fix it comes to mind in my case.

Not to pi55 on your chips or anything lol but mine was a v3 with the supposed better gaskets too but they have not held together very well and have only been on the car 6months and a few thousand miles. So i removed them and split them in half and redid them with exhaust sealent on both sides.

Last resort for me is to remove the dp again and redo it making sure its got better clearance on the prop shaft but am hoping (fingers very crossed) i can man handle the exhaust mount a bit to move the DP away from the prop shaft or even use some chunky cable ties to hold the dp in a position where it wont hit the prop and move as much in reverse or turning left.
 
Not to pi55 on your chips or anything lol but mine was a v3 with the supposed better gaskets too but they have not held together very well and have only been on the car 6months and a few thousand miles. So i removed them and split them in half and redid them with exhaust sealent on both sides.

Fuming!

looks like I may have to follow this route if that's the case, although I have run up several thousand miles on her in the past couple of months already. Hope you get it sorted though, and let us know how you get on with your man handling! Lol
 
Are the v3 gaskets made from a copper type material? I have read on here to stay away from the gaskets that relentless supply and to use genuine gaskets, the reason I ask is I have a 3" dp to fit it was supplied with copper type gaskets, think I will get some gaskets from audi
 
Fuming!

looks like I may have to follow this route if that's the case, although I have run up several thousand miles on her in the past couple of months already. Hope you get it sorted though, and let us know how you get on with your man handling! Lol

Yeah i wasnt exactly happy lol especially as getting the dp off the turbo isnt the easiest job in the world but i had a few helping hands from future on here etc so off with the subframe (had it re-alligned since re fitting) which it makes it alot easier but still could of done without it.

As for man handling ;) just spent a good 45mins under the car on axle stands (still not easy access really but do able) i gave it a thorough check over and i still cant see any fresh marks on either the dp or the prop shaft to indicate rubbing but it is very tight in that gap. My dp flexi is about 5-6mm from the prop shaft but i cant get it to move enough to touch but the flexi is only 2mm from the body of the car and the flimsy heat shield thingy which defo had a few marks on it.

So i have conducted an experiment (be it quite a permanent) i removed the sheild to give a mil or 2 more space and realised once removed that its there to hold 2 cables away from the prop. So i drew a straight line and trimmed it so that it now stops before the flexi joint of the dp and re-fitted it.

Gonna head home in a mo so will see if thats made any difference so wish me luck if not might pop to my local indy garage 2moro to get it on a lift and have a proper look at it under neath without need double joints in my arms and neck.
 
Are the v3 gaskets made from a copper type material? I have read on here to stay away from the gaskets that relentless supply and to use genuine gaskets, the reason I ask is I have a 3" dp to fit it was supplied with copper type gaskets, think I will get some gaskets from audi

Mine were silver
 
Good luck bob!

I may have to borrow my mates ramp tomorrow just to have a look for any obvious marks on where it's hitting/rubbing.

Dusty- I can't remember what material it was made of tbh- I think Ben told me it was copper though.
 
:(

Still making the same noise on my way home so my fix did not work.

I too will try and get mine up on a ramp 2moro and see whats what but i can see me having to redo my dp again and trying to get as much room as poss in the tunnel around the DP flexi before tightening the nuts onto the turbo oh joy of joys.

Kwistof keep me posted as to what you find and of course any solutions too and i will do the same so we will fix this cos it is damn annoying.
 
I kept moving my engine mounts about until the rubbing stopped

After experimenting with a jubilee clip around the exhaust hanger and the dp i concluded that my dp was hitting/rubbing the body of the car and this was the horrible noise it was the bit i removed the heatshield from yesterday but obviously it was still too close to the body.

So after seeing this post by s3dave an hour ago i have checked my engine mounts and i did have some adjustment that could be made so i have undone the bolts that go into the engine and gearbox and used my foot to push the engine over towards the passenger side and got my dad to nip the bolts up whilst it was moved over. I have now tightened them up and been for a spin and the noise has basically gone as far as i can tell :)

I am going to drive it for a bit now and monitor the noise and if i can still hear it at all i will try to move the engine a little more tomorrow.
 
That sounds like good news!

So a bit of engine movement towards the passenger side, along with new engine mounts and it should solve any issues :)
 
Just to p155 on everyones chips i can and have removed the Downpipe on ron in 25mins, and re fitted it in 25 mins aswell, ok its easy as all the bolts undo, but lets face it, 3 nuts on the turbo, 2 on the decat 2 on the dogbone and 4 on the subframe, gun them off and the DP is in your hand
 
Just to p155 on everyones chips i can and have removed the Downpipe on ron in 25mins, and re fitted it in 25 mins aswell, ok its easy as all the bolts undo, but lets face it, 3 nuts on the turbo, 2 on the decat 2 on the dogbone and 4 on the subframe, gun them off and the DP is in your hand

So when are the Phil Miller clones gonna be available to the rest of the UK?
 
My Noise is 95% gone and I c an only get it to make a slight noise on compressing left hand turns (eg downhill and quite tight a turn)

So gonna have another play with the engine mounts today to try to get it 100% gone
 
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Right just to finish off my findings re - the noise and this thread. I went back today and adjusted the engine mounts so that the engine is now as far over to the passenger side as possible. managed to do this on my own this time as i just undid the bolts a couple of turns on both engine mounts and then as there was a gap by the bolt i put a big screwdriver in the slot and levered the engine over fully and held it there while i nipped the bolt up. did this on all 4 bolts and then checked the clearance of the dp under the car and with the heatshield trimmed i know have about 5mm between it and the body of the car and about 6mm between it and the prop.

Went for a quick drive and cant hear the noise at all now and its alot smoother in reverse too :)

Also took the opportunity to trim the pipe where it joins using a sleeve as it was a little too long so cut about an inch off the cat back and it sits better now too.

So hopefully job done and back to enjoying the car and its smooth ride
 
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Could I just double check with people that Lemforder is company that makes official Audi parts before they stamp the 4 rings on it?

I seem to recall they make the top mounts as I replaced these last year with the LCR ones.

Just debating what mounts to get and whether the Lemforder would be worth the extra bit of dosh - almost double when compared to the cheapest alternative though! They will be modded as well with the polytek stuff from above

Engine Mount | Engine Mounts For All Cars | Cheap Engine Mounts
 
Update:

Thought I will let anyone who's reading this the result on how this has been fixed. (I get annoyed sometimes reading a thread and it not being finished with a result and conclusion lol)

So in order to fix my problem 100% and so it doesn't come back in a hurry, I ended up buying the lemforder OEM mounts from 'car parts for less'. With those and the polytek filled in, the end product is what's in the attached picture (after a quick respray- thanks Ben)

So the result........baring in mind I have a couple of black series powerful flex bushes in the wishbone and everything else is poly bushed on the car,with coilovers, LCR top mounts and a SMF - it was extremely solid and very tight. The noise is quiet a lot in the cabin, but everything is spot on with what I have.

Only had about 70 miles in her so far, so things will probably get a bit softer and quieter- however I have not had one issue with the DP at all. Nothing rubbing against it- so it's a joy to power round left hand corners and reverse again :)

I have to add that my engine mounts looked very tired when removed, so I'm not 100% sure if standard brand new oem mounts would work just on there own to fix the issue. I personally just wanted it fixed and not fussed about the extra vibration, more noise and hard feel of the car. That went out the window for me a while ago now tbh! Lol
 

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hi guys, have you had any problems with the down pipe hitting the heat sheild on the steering rack? if so did moving the down pipe up help? cheers
 

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