The front & side mounts have been completed (pics will be posted once all three are complete), however unlike the front side mounts where I have used Landrover V8 "cotton reel" type mounts, using this type of mount on the rear mount turned out to be more work for no benefit of the smaller mount size. Modifying the standard Starlet mount to fit the Mini subframe was simple.
Firstly, I cut the "wings" of the standard rear Starlet mount which left only two bolts holes as opposed the four it came with. I trimmed the mount and welded some new 3mm plate on to give it a box section shape, and three holes to bolt it to the subframe - a bit more stability than just two bolts.
The rubber in the Starlet mount was old and a massive crack had formed in one side of it that went about 1/2 way though the width of the rubber. Toyota no doubt want something ludicrously expensive for a new mount so I had a few other cheaper options. You can buy polyurethane mounts that you press fit into the standard mount, or you can DIY cast into the mount (using Sikaflex or 3M urethane products), or get it done commercially in whatever Shore (hardness) rating you want.
I chose the latter (getting a professional company to cast it) so to prep for this, I had to cut out the original rubber with a hacksaw...
... and with a wood chisel, then dremel, took about 3/4 hour to cut and strip away all the rubber from the outer ring and centre pin. I will post pics up of the result when I get it back. Note that the sleeve inside the mount has been kept as there was no benefit of removing it - and I left a rough surface on the inside of the sleeve so that the polyurethane has something to key into when curing.
Firstly, I cut the "wings" of the standard rear Starlet mount which left only two bolts holes as opposed the four it came with. I trimmed the mount and welded some new 3mm plate on to give it a box section shape, and three holes to bolt it to the subframe - a bit more stability than just two bolts.
The rubber in the Starlet mount was old and a massive crack had formed in one side of it that went about 1/2 way though the width of the rubber. Toyota no doubt want something ludicrously expensive for a new mount so I had a few other cheaper options. You can buy polyurethane mounts that you press fit into the standard mount, or you can DIY cast into the mount (using Sikaflex or 3M urethane products), or get it done commercially in whatever Shore (hardness) rating you want.
I chose the latter (getting a professional company to cast it) so to prep for this, I had to cut out the original rubber with a hacksaw...
... and with a wood chisel, then dremel, took about 3/4 hour to cut and strip away all the rubber from the outer ring and centre pin. I will post pics up of the result when I get it back. Note that the sleeve inside the mount has been kept as there was no benefit of removing it - and I left a rough surface on the inside of the sleeve so that the polyurethane has something to key into when curing.
I've tried the Sikaflex approach, and it wasn't too successful at all....
ReplyDeleteSince then, I have had a couple of mounts cast in polyurethane, and it has been very successful, so I can definitely recommend that approach.
See http://martybugs.net/magna/mount.cgi for more info about my experiences with polyurethane mounts.
(PS. There's a urethane workshop down in Armadale that will do custom casts.)