Hey guys, I just finished installing a set of Avid Racing motor mounts in my 97 civic ex with a turbo LS swap. Up until this point I have been rocking the ole energy suspension motor mount inserts. They are not a bad product, but with the car making well over 400whp and hopefully over 500 once the weather warms up they just were not cutting it. The biggest problem I had with them is that the plastic ties that hold them in the torque mount would break from motor rocking so much, and trying to squeeze them out.
Another thing I really disliked about them was the lag, I hated coming out of a corner at an Autocross event or shifting at the drag strip and feeling the motor wind up before the car actually moved. The motor bouncing around when getting on and off the gas quickly also was very undesirable.
I finally decided that it was time to invest in some nice motor mounts. Now I have read quite a few threads on many different forums about mounts, but could never decide which ones to get. They all seemed to look good (esp since a b series in an EK is so common and hard to mess up), and the prices were fairly close. My biggest fear about the mounts was vibration, I did not want to feel like my dash was going to shake out my car when sitting at a stoplight.
After making a few calls to different shops and manufactures, I found myself talking to the good people over at Avid Racing. They were extremely helpful and took the time to listen to all my wants and concerns. The service was on par with that of Mike Laskey over at Laskey Racing, which is saying a lot if you have ever dealt with him on anything. I explained to them that I wanted a firm setup, without too terrible vibrations. He recommend to me that I get the 70A durometer kit, which is their street/strip setup.
Once the product arrived, I noticed that they had a very nice high quality bushing compared to some of the other mounts I have seen. The finish of the mounts is a bit rough, but still looks nice in the bay. If your looking for a highly polished show finish, these are not the mounts for you, but you probably will not be reading in this forum either. The kit included a trans mount with hardware, rear mount with hardware, and my favorite part, a new drivers since mount, bracket, and hardware to replace that crap stock oil filled mount that likes to implode.
Here are the steps I took to install with the motor in the car:
After placing a jack under the motor for support I unbolted the drivers side bracket, it was one 19mm nut and two 17mm IIRC.
I then removed the factory rubber. This required removing 3 14mm bolts. If you have PS, its easiest to pull the reservoir off its bracket, and then remove the bracket which requires taking off two 10mm bolts.
Then I simple bolted in the new bracket using the 3 -14mm bolts that were on the car. I left them loose to make fitting everything easier.
I then slid in the new rubber onto the two post bracket on the engine, and between the bracket. I then used the supplied hardware to bolt everything up. Make sure to tighten everything, then remove the jack.
Here is the old vs. the new.
I then moved onto the rear bracket, I really dont have any pictures of the install, as it is tight back there, and a huge PITA to get to. I first unbolted the t-bracket from the trans. There are two large 19mm bolts to undo. There is also one through bolt on the top that is a 17mm IIRC. The top bolt is best reached from the engine bay on the passenger side. I then unbolted the bracket from the rubber.
This was the hard part, if you still have heat, the heater core hoses get in the way of the bracket. Basically, just ram it out anyway you can, it will fit, but its a HUGE PITA. I strongly recommend planning ahead if you ever have the motor out and doing this then.
Once the bracket is out, unbolt the stock rubber and install the new on with the provided hardware. Once again leave it loose. Then ram the t-bracket back in, and loosely install the stock hardware. Once everything is in position tighten it all up. This takes some creativity with extensions and wrenches, but it can be done fairly easily.
Here is the old vs. the new.
Finally I moved to the trans side. Place a jack under the trans to support it, and then remove the 3-17mm bolts and one 1 - through bolt to remove the trans bracket. Once complete, unbolt the factory rubber.
Then install the new rubber with supplied hardware, once again leave things loose. Now loosely install the bracket. Once in place tighten everything down and remove the jack.
Here is a comparison of the OEM vs. Avid Racing trans mount.
Overall, I am very impressed with the mounts. The car has a very crisp feel to it, and the shift quality is vastly improved. I love hitting the gas and just moving, instead of feeling the motor rock. Wheel hop in third gear has also been dramatically reduced. The vibs are definitely noticeable, however I must say I was expecting much worse. Very reasonable and livable for a street car.
If I had to give these mounts a rating they would be as follows,
Fit - 44/50 - Like most aftermarket parts they are not perfect, but they are pretty damn close.
Finish - 40/50 - The mounts are a bit rough on the surface, but still look very nice.
Bushing quality - 48/50 - I really liked these bushings, they seemed very stout and perform extremely well.
Overall Mount quality - 46/50 - Once again not perfect, but damn close.
Overall Value - 47/50 - These mounts perform extremely well, but once the price is factored in they are a steal.
Overall I am very happy with these mounts, if your debating whether or not to make the upgrade to some nice mounts just as I was, I highly recommend you give Avid Racing a call right now and order yourself a set.
