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Motor Mount Breaks w/ Pics

47K views 183 replies 51 participants last post by  chaos4 
#1 ·
I recently got a speed 3 and i love the car. Some spirited driving and this happens. The engine fell and took out the driver side axel also. Ive had the car for a week. Its already at the dealer getting fixed. My problem is is this a known problem and is there some type of recall? I just dont want the same weak part put back in only to have this happen again.





 
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#3 ·
And the thing is, I'm a pretty fast driver :(. Please keep us posted on this and if you can take some more pics (without the airbox) please do. It would be nice to compare them to the previous thread but I'm sure the damage to the mount will look similar.

To answer your question, no there isn't a recall that I know of as of yet. There are people with > 5000 miles and no problem. I myself will probably be at 4k tomorrow or wednesday. But that of course doesn't mean it can't happen later, which kinda sucks. I really hope Mazda is paying attention and could come up with some reasonable explanation because I have a feeling this isn't the last we'll hear of this. Anyway good luck!

Found this on the Australian forums:

http://www.ozmazdaclub.com/forums/mps-discussion/22287-mps-3-broken-engine-mount.html

I searched and it was the only one I could find. Someone suggested it might've been a bad batch. I really hope so.
 
#7 ·
daum, this is not good news. I really hope mazda takes action soon since replacing a motor mount or mounts will be much cheaper in the long run than replacing all the bits that break when the engine falls.
spirited driving or not, this car should not break under anything you can throw at it stock besides maybe repeated 6k clutch drops and even then it should hold up or it simply wasnt designed strong enough.

good luck with the fix, keep us updated.
 
#9 ·
I'll be interested to see if it's an engine mount, as appears to have happened to the Oz guy, or the transmission mount as happened to SachielDesign. Since here the driver's side fell and hit the axle, it's looking like the transmission mount.

I wish we had heard some speculation from SD's dealer or Mazda about the cause. Best potential explanation I've heard was from the VW mechanic who said it had been a problem on one GTi he'd seen and was due to overtightening.
 
#10 ·
yeah...ithink its the tranny mount also, there should be enough evidence of a problem for mazda to fix this issue.
i'm surprised mine is intact !! honestly i beat the hell out of my car...i powershift very often, also doing lots of hard launches...just for practice.
 
#12 ·
Well I went to the dealer and took a look at the car. The tech said that the motor mount broke and the engine fell and broke the driver side axel. I asked wether it was a transmission or a motor mount. The guy said that the motor and tranny share the same mount. Not sure if he knew what he was talking about. Anywho I went to the back and the tech showed me the mount and the actual metal around the bolt had snaped off. The bolt was fine but it looks like the metal was pulled apart. It looks like Mazda might of had a bad run of aluminum or something. How many mounts are there in this car anyway?
 
#13 ·
3 mounts one on the right side holding the engine, one on the left side holding the end of the transaxle and one under the engine at the back hooked to the bellhousing to control the twisting of the engine/transaxle package. All front wheel drive cars I have seen support the weight of the engine/transaxle on 2 mounts and have either 1 or 2 mounts that just control the torque loads but don't support any of the weight.
 
#15 ·
[quote author=dantheman1998 link=topic=65861.msg1129478#msg1129478 date=1167768175]
Well I went to the dealer and took a look at the car. The tech said that the motor mount broke and the engine fell and broke the driver side axel. I asked wether it was a transmission or a motor mount. The guy said that the motor and tranny share the same mount. Not sure if he knew what he was talking about. Anywho I went to the back and the tech showed me the mount and the actual metal around the bolt had snaped off. The bolt was fine but it looks like the metal was pulled apart. It looks like Mazda might of had a bad run of aluminum or something. How many mounts are there in this car anyway?
[/quote]

This is exactly what happened to sachieldesign. Check out his thread. A big hunk of metal just separated from the block. The only thing promising about these 2 incidents is they happened pretty early on. In any case I'm gonna want my mount replaced even if it turns out to only affect certain vins.
 
#17 ·
[quote author=Mazdaspeed33 link=topic=65861.msg1129746#msg1129746 date=1167776311]
please let me know im friking paranoid
[/quote]

You are :) Plus it'll be impossible to tell since it snaps suddenly.

I'm driving my car like I normally drive it. If it snaps, oh well... off to the dealer I go.
 
#19 ·
[quote author=Mazdaspeed33 link=topic=65861.msg1129757#msg1129757 date=1167776820]
i think Street unit needs to get on top of making there mounts fast .... i just got my AWR this week but i think ill hold off till i get that side mount problem fixed .... i dont think AWR will help in this case it may make things even worst cus its to stiff
[/quote]

yes, but I think mazda needs to design proper engine mounts to handle the twisting and extra torque load exerted by the turbo engine...if that is part of the issue.
 
#22 ·
so what was the circumstance under which this mount broke?
sachiel's situation seemed mild, was this a case of actually pushing the engine?
I went for a drive tonight and beat the snot outta the engine a bit, in a sick/tiwsted way I want to snap a mount before race season starts.
 
#23 ·
[quote author=dutchie3 link=topic=65861.msg1129707#msg1129707 date=1167774731]
hmmmm....no fluke then, I would say this is an issue.
what was your build date?
[/quote]

I second that, what's your build date. I got my car early on, the build date is 8/06. Is yours earlier? I haven't had a problem with mine YET, but I've only logged 1000 miles and havent taken it past 5K rpm yet. I don't like hearing these stories, because my luck sucks. I'll just plan on it breaking, that way I'm not let down. Good luck. :x
 
#24 ·
[quote author=Mazdaspeed33 link=topic=65861.msg1129757#msg1129757 date=1167776820]
i think Street unit needs to get on top of making there mounts fast .... i just got my AWR this week but i think ill hold off till i get that side mount problem fixed .... i dont think AWR will help in this case it may make things even worst cus its to stiff
[/quote]
the awr will help those who are worried.
the stiffness is what is needed...the stock mounts are allowing too much movement. the stiff rear mount will keep the engine from flopping around and busting the driverside mount.
 
#25 ·
How can i check the build on my car?

Sachiel did they fix your car and how long did it take?

so what was the circumstance under which this mount broke?
sachiel's situation seemed mild, was this a case of actually pushing the engine?
I went for a drive tonight and beat the snot outta the engine a bit, in a sick/tiwsted way I want to snap a mount before race season starts.
I kinda think thats the main reason we havent seen many break so far. Once racing season starts and it gets warmer out and people are past the break in period then there are gonna be alot more busted mounts. Also did you do a hard launch?

One last thing, is anyone having wheel hop problems?
 
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