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He had to get under Billy Murray |
D Vautier
4/2016
The Zetec 2.0 liter engine in the ZX2 has four motor mounts. The two big hefty ones are on either side and are replaced from the top. The two smaller mounts are mostly for vibration and are replaced from the bottom. The rear mount is usually the one that goes bad because of it's size and location.
The front lower mount can be removed with little trouble. The back mount can only be replaced by removing the mounting bracket.
To see if your lower mounts are bad run your ZX2 up onto some ramps. Get under the car with a light and inspect the mounts which are fastened to the engine brace. If they need to be replaced here are some suggestions:
1. Use a good car ramp. Set the hand brake. Take a jack and raise each side of the car a little more and let it rest on two sturdy jack stands. This insures that the entire car is stable and you are safe to work underneath.
2. Remove the lateral brace that runs parallel to the two front wheels. Easy to remove. Remove the lower engine mounting bar. It has two big bolts at each end and two smaller nuts for each of the engine mounts. Nothing will fall because the engine is securely supported by the two big side engine mounts on top, The two lower mounts are used to absorb vibration and are not designed to support much engine weight.
3, The front mount can be removed by taking out the big nut and sliding the bolt out. There is sufficient clearance to do this. This is the easy one to replace.
4. There is no clearance to remove the back engine mounting bolt so you have to remove the bracket. There are two bolts holding the bracket in place. However the upper bolt does not clear the chassis, so the engine has to be raised about an inch. To raise the engine it is necessary to loosen the bolts on the upper engine mount which is under the battery. There are four bolts under the battery holder that must be taken loose about an inch. Do not loosen the bolts attached to the engine, only the bolts attached to the chassis. Then jack up the engine. You should see it move up, You can then remove the top mounting bolt.
5. Once the mount and bracket have come out, you can remove the large nut and replace the mount. Don't completely tighten the nut until the mount is back in place.
6. Replace and tighten the back engine mounting bracket. Lower the engine. Replace and tighten the lower mounting bar, all 6 nuts and 2 bolts. Tighten upper engine mount bolts. Replace battery holder and battery. Drive away happily.
Here you can see the rear mounting bracket with it's two bolts. You have to remove the engine brace then remove the two bolts holding the bracket
Tighten the big bolt after the new mount is installed.
This shows the two mounting bolts for the rear mounting bracket. its easier to loosen them from under the car.
Here is the upper passenger side mount under the battery. There are four bolts that need to be loosened to allow the engine to be raised.
Here is the bad mount.
