I decided to clean up the slop in the of the drivetrain by replacing and upgrading most of the mounts in the system. I have seen quite a few people asking questions replacing their mounts and asking which ones to go with. I will give feedback on the mounts that I choose, hopefully this will help you with it comes time for replacements.
I have an 02 s4 with about 80k on the clock, so my mounts had been used and abused. I was experiencing a couple of symptoms that were leading me to believe that it was time replace my mounts. The first tell tale sign was a noticeable clunk coming from the rear of the car under heavy acceleration and when apply gas after gear changes. It sounded like someone had hit the underside of the car with a big rubber mallet. The second symptom I was experiencing was difficulty shifting into Reverse and 1st gears. I noticed that shifting in general had become notchy and more difficult. I was afraid the my transmission was on the way out or that at the minimum, my 1st and 2nd gear syncro was done for.
I went about upgrading in 3 stages. Starting first with 034 Motorsport track density Motor Mounts. Secondly with Stern Front and Rear Differential mounts, and the final stage being 034 Motorsport track density Transmission Mounts.
I set out the do all the work myself with a little help from a buddy. The motor mounts turned out to be a huge PITA. I read the write-ups here and also on Audiworld, and it seemed that it would be fairly easy, but if there is an easy way to do this, I have no idea what it is... after about 10 hours we finally got the passenger side motor mount replaced, and there was no way I was going to attempt the drivers side mount. Each mount is held in place by only two nuts, one on the top and one on the bottom, but these nuts are forged in hell and require a contortionist to even get near them. I recommend letting the pros handle this one. It was fairly inexpensive to have a shop do the drivers side, and probably would have been the same price if they did the passenger side too. If you are going to attempt to DIY it, at least make sure that you have someone helping you that has done a motor mount swap before.
Once the motor mounts where in, I was extremely pleased with the results. I was worried that they were going to be too stiff and that they were going to transmit too much vibration into the car. This was not the case. There was a noticeable difference over the stock motor mounts, but the vibration is not droning or irritating. If you like the growl of an aftermarket exhaust, then you will probably enjoy the 034 Motorsport track density Motor Mounts. Acceleration feels more responsive and I felt more connected with the car. The clunk was was lessened and the thing that was most surprising and relieving was that now the shifter felt much more smooth and solid. The slop was much improved.
Stage two, the Stern Differential mounts. I did both the front and rear sets by myself in a couple of hours. This job was pretty easy, and Stern provides excellent instructions with both of the kits, including a list of the tools you will need for the install. For the rear diff mounts, you will definitely need something to press the old rubber bushing out of the rear cross member. I did it in a vice with a 30mm socket which is about the same size as the old bushings and a piece of copper pipe that was the slightly larger than the eyelet of the cross member. Sandwich the old rubber bushing between the socket and the pipe and use the vice to press the socket through the cross member eye let and push the old bushing into the pipe. Once the old ones are removed, the new bushing press right into the cross member by hand. getting the cross member back into place and bolted up can be a little tricky, be ready for it to put up a fight and just be patient with it.
The Stern Differential Ring Kit install is straight forward, following the provided instructions makes it easy. I did not encounter any surprises during the process. This is a solid metal piece that fits into the stock mount allowing for less movement in the stock mounts.
With the Stern Differential Mounts with drivetrain is even more solid. Again acceleration is more responsive and power is applied to the wheels more smoothly. Shifting is more solid and the clunking is gone. Vibration with this setup is also increased. Some people may not be happy with the increase. It is not bad at most speeds and rpms. However if you have any unbalance in your drive line, you will feel it with these mounts. These mounts have exposed an existing problem in my car. I'm getting a strong low frequency vibration starting around 4000 rpms in 4th/5th/6th gears. A couple things could be causing this, possibly an axle, driveshaft, or wheel that is out of balance or it could be a worn U-joint. I'm getting the balance check on my wheels and driveline inspected to see if I can find the source of vibration.
I'm considering removing the Differential Ring Kit, because I have a feeling that the solid metal ring is transmitting much of of the vibration from my driveline into the car. Apikol also makes a kit to replace this stock mount with a new aluminum piece and polyurethane bushings. This is another option to consider. The vibration is not intolerable, my girlfriend never even noticed it and slept though it without ever noticing. I think once I track down the source of the unbalance, I will be happy with this setup.
The 034 Motorsport track density Transmission Mounts were by far the easiest job, even though no instructions are provided. Two hours, two jack stands, 10mm, 13mm, 17mm socket wrenches, and you definitely need a ratcheting 16mm wrench. You will also require the thru bolt hardware kit for these mounts. Getting to the top bolt was a little tricky, there is a downpipe heat shield right above the top bolt, making space tight, and there is a small 10mm bolt holding the heat shield in place. Pull the front wheels off before you lift the car, and you'll get a straight line of sight on the 10mm bolts, this makes it much easier. Once they are out, you will be able to bend the heat shield out of the way and get the top mount bolt out.
The trans mounts made the biggest difference in vibration out of everything. I noticed it right away. It might be over the top for some. It has amplified the growl of the engine inside the cabin and makes the car sound very mean and muscle car like. I'm hearing a few rattles in the cabin as a result of the extra vibration, which will probably make me switch up to a lesser density mount, but I'm going to leave them as is for the time being to see if the grow on me some more. Performance wise, I love these mounts too. On top of everything else, there is more improvement it power application to the wheels and shifting has improved again, very smooth and very solid. Again I feel more connection with the car, every engine nuance can be felt along with every blip on the throttle. When I punch, it goes, and it growls, not your typical idea of how Andi should feel, it's much more raw, and aggressive.
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Originally Posted by RolledMySTi
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