TheSamba.com :: View topic - Transmission Mounts

Fri Mar 06, 2015 7:03 pm

I bought a Manx style street buggy with a 1965 chassis last year and I am in the midst of dismantling the engine and transaxle and replace whatever seals and gaskets that I can. The transaxle had solid mounts. What are the pros and cons of solid vs. rubber mounts on a street buggy with a fiberglass body.

Fri Mar 06, 2015 7:30 pm

rubber mounts were designed to absorb shock a little shock and to take some of the torque load but they are not well accustomed to high output engines. the disadvantage if the rubber mount is they wear out. solid mounts don't were out and they allow no movement of the transaxle this is good offroad because all the bumping around and the constant start and stop the trans doesn't move. but if you do solid mounts you need to do all solid mounts and add an intermediate mount to the middle of the transaxle because if you put a solid mount on but still get a little movement in the trans then something breaks. street guys often like rubber mounts because the solid mounts cause a little more noise in the chassis since all the vibes of the trans are now directly connected to the chassis

I had a front rubber mount fail and it in turn caused many other failures including loss of throttle control and a broken nose cone housing. My father also had a front rubber mount fail but fortunately we caught it quick and replaced it but its a pain.

both cars now have solid front, back, and intermediate mounts so the transaxle does not and cannot move and really very little risk of failure. but we do a lot of off road driving

Fri Mar 06, 2015 10:44 pm

Solid mounts are noisy, but in a buggy you'll never hear the difference. IF you are running a bigger motor or big tires, or off-roading, then I would for sure go with solid mounts. If you think you want softer mounts but something better than stock rubber, do not use the red urethane ones, they are absolute shite, use the Rhino mounts from CB performance. Nothing wrong with stock mounts either of you are just building a street cruiser.

brad

Sat Mar 07, 2015 12:37 am

For any performance motor go solid mounts. They are a little noisier but you can actually learn to use the vibrations to tell how well your motor is running.

Sat Mar 07, 2015 6:04 am

Our street buggy was switched over to solids shortly after we bought it. If I had to do it again, I probably wouldnt bother, but as mentioned, in a buggy you probably wont notice much if any difference. Toss a coin.

Sat Mar 07, 2015 2:42 pm

slalombuggy wrote: ... do not use the red urethane ones, they are absolute shite...

brad
I see people saying this a lot, I had a set last over 15yrs. Were they better a long time ago?

Sat Mar 07, 2015 3:03 pm

weasel_ugs wrote: slalombuggy wrote: ... do not use the red urethane ones, they are absolute shite...

brad
I see people saying this a lot, I had a set last over 15yrs. Were they better a long time ago?

Nothing wrong with the urethane mounts. The problem is people over tighten the mounting hardware and crush the urethane. You must install the bolt sleeves that come in the kit and you can not over tighten the bolts.

Sat Mar 07, 2015 4:16 pm

If you choose to use rubber mounts remember you must also have a transaxle grounding strap.

Sat Mar 07, 2015 6:01 pm

The solid mount that is/was on it looks like it was a homemade rig with angle iron. I think I am going to try going with either the urethane mounts or the Rhino mounts. If I were to get a trans support, such as an Empi 9543, I should be good to go, correct?

Also, what is the piece of "chassis" sheet metal called that the shift lever goes through? I think I found my "vibration" that I noticed at an idle. This sheet metal was "bondo'd" to the chassis and it was broke loose in a few places. I will probably weld it back on, but it is a little bent up, so I'd like to replace it if I knew what it was called.

Thanks for all of the suggestions.

Sat Mar 07, 2015 8:31 pm

DO NOT use the cheap red urethane transmission mounts. If you are here looking for advice, heed it. Those are junk.

I think you are describing what is called a "tunnel" on a VW pan. Pictures help. Post some and we can help. Its not uncommon in buggies for the shifter mount to have been relocated, so you may actually have some poor fabrication in that area.

Sat Mar 07, 2015 8:56 pm

I run the Rhino mounts on my 2165 powered heavy buggy. No problem doing 5K drops on pavement donuts, off roading or crossing the country. No other straps. Had solid mounts in one, and only one. Noise and vibration was fatiguing after several hours driving.

But I am old.

Sun Mar 08, 2015 7:39 am

Here is a pic of the sheet metal that I would like to replace. I am looking for what it is called.

I will stay away from the urethane mounts. What support cradle would I use for the rear trans mounts if I wanted to go with the Rhino mounts? Should I or should I not use a strap if I am using this type of mount?

Sun Mar 08, 2015 9:10 am

I dunno what I would call that. I'm going with "torsion housing nosecone tin"

You could probably more easily fabricate a piece than find a donor.

The damage you have on the frame horn on your other thread may be related to this damage. Some careful measuring to make sure your while rear torsion housing isn't tweaked would be in order.

Mon Mar 09, 2015 7:08 am

http://www.appletreeauto.com/WELD-IN-TRANSMISSION-MOUNT-113-701-173/

Is this what you're talking about?

Mon Mar 09, 2015 9:00 am

Here is a mid mount. Can get both soft or solid weld in.

Mon Mar 09, 2015 10:50 am

The damaged part seems to be where the selector shaft goes thru a piece of tin above the front transmission mount. It provides a point for the rubber boot on the selector shaft to mate against and appears to also provide routing for ebrake and clutch cable housings.

The apparent damage to this part and the other damage that he shows to the gusset on one of his frame horns (different pic, different thread) might mean he has a tweaked frame horn.

Mon Mar 09, 2015 4:56 pm

panpan388 wrote: Here is a pic of the sheet metal that I would like to replace. I am looking for what it is called.

Yeah, I'm thinking he means the sheet metal above the trans mount. The control tubes pass through it. It looks like it's just laying there loose. I say just bend it back to shape and tack weld it down. Finish with some seam sealer. Of course after determining any frame horn damage.

Mike T

Thu Mar 12, 2015 2:01 pm

I use THIS on the tranz in my CLASS11 BUG!! Ditched the solid mounts, as you could NOT hear yourself think!! (Rubber mounts are HD units from GENE BERG) This will PREVENT any front tranz mount problems, period!!

Thu Mar 12, 2015 5:37 pm

mr_bill wrote: I use THIS on the tranz in my CLASS11 BUG!! Ditched the solid mounts, as you could NOT hear yourself think!! (Rubber mounts are HD units from GENE BERG) This will PREVENT any front tranz mount problems, period!!

I just installed one of those on my buggy also. Testing will happen within a month or so.
I run HD rubber mounts too.

Thu Mar 12, 2015 7:23 pm

mr_bill wrote: I use THIS on the tranz in my CLASS11 BUG!! Ditched the solid mounts, as you could NOT hear yourself think!! (Rubber mounts are HD units from GENE BERG) This will PREVENT any front tranz mount problems, period!!

Ok, please tell me what model number this is. I've been on the site, and can't seem to find it. Also, is this bolt in, or is there any welding involved at all? It almost appears to be the GB641A, but I don't see rubber anywhere in the Gene Berg Site. Any help would be appreciated.