I think there's been a few in the Leon section talking about the merits of a stiffer dog bone mount, but I thought I'd add a Toledo version.
First off, fitting. It was meant to be an easy job, but when I felt one of the chassis bolts give a little too easy I knew I was in trouble. One trip to the garage confirmed it, it had snapped in the cross member. So they had to sort it for me, one hour labour charged but probably a fair few more actually working on it.
So the first time I started the car I thought they'd mounted it wrong. The stiffness of the mount coupled with the V5 uneven firing shook the car so much. Trying again with my head out the window showed that it was only an internal vibration, there wasn't anything loose. However, there is no chance I'd be able to sell the car with that startup in place, any person who didn't understand the reason would walk away.
The initial drive home was 'on choke', IE the engine was still warming up. It seemed to be smack bang in the middle of some sort of engine vibration, which again shook the car. I was starting to regret my decision.
Anyway, with the engine warm, things settled down. A long run at motorway speeds showed no difference in high speed running. At warm idle there wasn't any vibes either.
However, the biggest benefit by far is the traction off the lights. I had to be uphill in the wet and really clumsy with the clutch to get the traction control to fire. There is just so much more grip now because the engine torque isn't having to fight with a squashy engine mount.
So that's pretty much it. Cons are a horrible 'thump' when the car is started, and a really bad vibration from about 1300 to 1500 rpm. Pro's are the so much better power delivery to the wheels.
First off, fitting. It was meant to be an easy job, but when I felt one of the chassis bolts give a little too easy I knew I was in trouble. One trip to the garage confirmed it, it had snapped in the cross member. So they had to sort it for me, one hour labour charged but probably a fair few more actually working on it.
So the first time I started the car I thought they'd mounted it wrong. The stiffness of the mount coupled with the V5 uneven firing shook the car so much. Trying again with my head out the window showed that it was only an internal vibration, there wasn't anything loose. However, there is no chance I'd be able to sell the car with that startup in place, any person who didn't understand the reason would walk away.
The initial drive home was 'on choke', IE the engine was still warming up. It seemed to be smack bang in the middle of some sort of engine vibration, which again shook the car. I was starting to regret my decision.
Anyway, with the engine warm, things settled down. A long run at motorway speeds showed no difference in high speed running. At warm idle there wasn't any vibes either.
However, the biggest benefit by far is the traction off the lights. I had to be uphill in the wet and really clumsy with the clutch to get the traction control to fire. There is just so much more grip now because the engine torque isn't having to fight with a squashy engine mount.
So that's pretty much it. Cons are a horrible 'thump' when the car is started, and a really bad vibration from about 1300 to 1500 rpm. Pro's are the so much better power delivery to the wheels.
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