VibraTechnics 'Fast Road' Engine Mounts (manual) - 2 x sides and 1 x dogbone

[pudding]

I keep hearing about uprated engine mounts but why do I need them?

Because VW's mounts are sh1t quite frankly.  Who wants a big fat Walrus flopping around in a hammock when they throw their GTI into a corner?

The stock mounts are great for refinement, but that /\ is exactly what the engine feels like when driving hard - a heavy dead weight wobbling around and unsettling the car in the corners.  It doesn't feel like part of the car, but rather an anvil mounted on bed springs.

VW fit soggy mounts because their engines are not particularly smooth and average Joe doesn't want noise and vibration spoiling his facebook statusing whilst accelerating down the road.

Chaps and chapesses who want a more performance biased drive hate the standard engine mounts, but they also hate increased NVH (Noise, Vibration, Harshness). They also don't like wheel hopping when getting jiggy with the gas pedal in the wet either.

Hmmm, I know what you mean, and that wheel hop is super annoying.  Do these Vibrator Techniques solve that then?

Absolutely.  The engine actually feels like an integral part of the car and doesn't move around anywhere near as much, which is vital when you're balancing the car on the throttle mid corner and don't want unpredictable behaviour.   Wheelhop is completely eradicated, as is excessive engine rock, which can quickly destroy the short flexis you get in aftermarket downpipes.  The gearshift in manual cars improves drastically too 

Yeah I'm feeling that.  Pics?

Here they are in their unfitted form, looking all purposeful and tasty.



Here is the right hand one fitted.  A bit tricky to see the juicy bits but the fact all the stock accessories bolts onto it like stock speaks volumes, compared to some other mounts which over look such obviousness.



The gearbox one fitted, in all it's billet alloy splendour, yum.



The dogbone.  I nicked RedRobin's pic as I don't have one of mine fitted, but they are gold in colour now, not alloy.



So why Vibrator Techniques over other brands made of polyurethane?

It's a rubber vs poly thing. Rubber is way more forgiving than polyurethane, hence why car makers do not use it in their road cars.

Vibratechnics have been in the game way longer than their competitors and they know only too well the downsides of poly engine mounts.  Some people don't mind the harshness of poly, but I hate it personally.  It makes me want to set fire to the car when sat in traffic for extended periods.

OK, so VT use tiny blocks of stiffer rubber to reduce movement, but there must be an NVH compromise, surely?

Yep, there is.  Anyone who says there isn't (and applies to other uprated mounts) is lying.

The VTs are actually smoother / quieter than the OEM mounts at certain rpms, and slightly harsher than OEM at other rpms.

The most immediate and noticable change is more mechanical chuntering noise from the gearbox in the cabin.  The engine / transmission sounds gruffer but it's not mega intrusive. It's actually quite nice in a weird Motorsport kind of way. Purposeful.  If you have the stereo on, or the windows open, or the HVAC blowing all the time, you will barely notice it.  If you're an everything switched off kind of guy, you will definitely notice it, but again, it's not that intrusive compared to poly.  Poly shakes the dashboard, these don't shake anything at all.

Cold fast idle = very slight increase in NVH ~1100rpm.

Warm idle HVAC on econ ~780rpm = stock smooth.

Warm idle with HVAC on auto ~900rpm = a slight vibration like a diesel engine.  I rarely use the A/C, so I never notice any vibes at idle.

The only other vibration I've noticed is at ~2300rpm ish, and it's slight.  Otherwise everywhere else in the rpm range it's stock smooth.

OK, sounds great.  I can stomach a slight increase in NVH. Should I buy them, and how much?

Yes, you should!  AKS Tuning currently sell them at 10% off, so get yourself a good deal  - https://www.akstuning.co.uk/53-vibratechnics

For those who love increased NVH, VT do a Race Spec compound and they are epic.  A bit too harsh for me but they're brilliant on track.

They're just a brilliant upgrade for fast road driving, especially if you've already upgraded the suspension and bushes.  These mounts are just the cherry on top without totally destroying the cars refinement.  I use my car every day in heavy traffic and I am super fussy with NVH, so if I can live with them, anyone can 

What about the small end of the dogbone?

VT have that covered too. Pic of it in the first image up top.  I have one, but haven't yet fitted it as it needs pressing in.

It certainly solves the issue of the shoddy voided bush VW put in it.

[99hagued]

Great write up  Iv already got the two dog bone mount bushes fitted on mine which eliminated wheel hop, but after watching my car get mapped last month at R tech and seeing the amount of movement that's still present I think I will complete the set and buy the two top ones. Plus my stupid vwr intake keeps popping out of the stupid front mount so these should help. Did you get any further with your vwr inktake?

[pudding]

Thanks mate!

Yep, even with the dogbone done, the standard shoulder mounts still allow a lot of movement.  Especially in the summer months when ambient temps and radiated heat from the drivetrain really softens them up. 

Mine has been dyno'd with all 3 VT mounts and engine rock was negligible      I have the small end VT mount pressed into a spare torque link but not yet fitted to the car.  Did you notice any additional NVH when you added the small end bush, or did you do both together at the same time?

Yes wheelhop is non-existent with all 3 mounts and the SuperPro console bushes......but I did get a bit of hopping when I backed my rebound off a bit recently, so damping also plays a part in the old hopscotch fandango front wheel dancing.

The VWR intake is still on the naughty step awaiting a suitable punishment    Currently I am giving the Revo intake a go.

I would say they are equal in terms of noise levels, but the Revo fits a hell of a lot better and is far better quality as well.  I know ITG make the VWR kit, but I have no idea who makes Revo's, but hats off to them.  You can tell it was designed to fit properly in a standard GTI.  The VWR appears to have been designed for their race cars, which clearly don't have things getting in the way of the canister!!

[A1_Audi]

i made my own using stock mount and 60 shore polyurethane mix, massive improvement and hardly any NVH change. should have gone harder. not bad for 20 quid though, will probably upgrade to virba in the future

[pudding]

Yeah I looked into that but I read that over time the urethane can start to separate from the rubber/housings and you're back to square one!  The Vibras aren't cheap but they are bloody good!  Anything is better than the stock rubbish.

[A1_Audi]

Yh i agree, vibra are best and long lasting option, driven a mates car with them on and felt great, all the slack taken out.
The modded stock were a compromise...explaining to missus why i bought ttrs calipers and b16 coils just before Christmas was hard enough lol

[99hagued]

Thanks mate!

Yep, even with the dogbone done, the standard shoulder mounts still allow a lot of movement.  Especially in the summer months when ambient temps and radiated heat from the drivetrain really softens them up. 

Mine has been dyno'd with all 3 VT mounts and engine rock was negligible      I have the small end VT mount pressed into a spare torque link but not yet fitted to the car.  Did you notice any additional NVH when you added the small end bush, or did you do both together at the same time?

Yes wheelhop is non-existent with all 3 mounts and the SuperPro console bushes......but I did get a bit of hopping when I backed my rebound off a bit recently, so damping also plays a part in the old hopscotch fandango front wheel dancing.

The VWR intake is still on the naughty step awaiting a suitable punishment    Currently I am giving the Revo intake a go.

I would say they are equal in terms of noise levels, but the Revo fits a hell of a lot better and is far better quality as well.  I know ITG make the VWR kit, but I have no idea who makes Revo's, but hats off to them.  You can tell it was designed to fit properly in a standard GTI.  The VWR appears to have been designed for their race cars, which clearly don't have things getting in the way of the canister!!

I fitted the big lower bush first and the small one a few months after. The big one wasn't that noticeable but the small one is a bit of teeth rattler. Iv only had it on a few week so hopefully it will settle down.

As for the vwr intake what a load of s#*t how they can charge the best part of £500 for this is a joke. I have been in touch with Vw racing about it and at first they seemed willing to help said they were doing a revised intake but now they don't  respond to my emails and just fob me off when I call. It's annoying because I've spent quite a bit on there products over the years so they have lost a customer. The reason I went for there intake in the first place is because people said it was quiet but I think it's the opposite, that and it looks nice.

[pudding]

Ah, I suspected as much!  I might leave the small one off for now then!

I got naff all back from them about it as well.  Interesting to hear they are thinking of revising it.  If they do, I hope they intend to swap it out for the duff ones free of charge.

It honestly boggles my mind how someone at VWR could fit one to a Golf, clearly see that it will snap the coolant elbow off,  clearly see the that air guide plate needs trimming to clear the radiator, can clearly see the MAF aperture is utterly worthless on some tubes, force the customer to puncture a brand new silicon elbow for a recirc valve......and then say "Yep, that's perfect, we will sell that for £500".   

False advertising really f'cks me off at the best of times, but when it comes parts of that value, there is zero excuse for it.

Are they on twitter or facebook?  I might upload the catalogue of crapness for everyone to see.  Then they will take notice.  Companies are more precious about their public image these days than anything else these days.  Zero f'cks given to the people who already shelled out 50 sheets for that garbage.   I bet ITG held them to ransom on a contract.  You must sell 500 of them or you can bugger off.

[teo_parvu]

  Good thinking.
I also have the lower mount "Fast Road" and feel some vibrations.
If I wanted vibration, I would've bought a polyurethane insert and at least benefit from the stiffness.

[99hagued]

Ah, I suspected as much!  I might leave the small one off for now then!

I got naff all back from them about it as well.  Interesting to hear they are thinking of revising it.  If they do, I hope they intend to swap it out for the duff ones free of charge.

It honestly boggles my mind how someone at VWR could fit one to a Golf, clearly see that it will snap the coolant elbow off,  clearly see the that air guide plate needs trimming to clear the radiator, can clearly see the MAF aperture is utterly worthless on some tubes, force the customer to puncture a brand new silicon elbow for a recirc valve......and then say "Yep, that's perfect, we will sell that for £500".   

False advertising really f'cks me off at the best of times, but when it comes parts of that value, there is zero excuse for it.

Are they on twitter or facebook?  I might upload the catalogue of crapness for everyone to see.  Then they will take notice.  Companies are more precious about their public image these days than anything else these days.  Zero f'cks given to the people who already shelled out 50 sheets for that garbage.   I bet ITG held them to ransom on a contract.  You must sell 500 of them or you can bugger off.

Yes they are on Facebook that's how I got a response by posting my disappointment on there Facebook page. Plz do the same and let me know if they respond.

[Dan_FR]

They will probably delete your comment and block you from posting on their page

[pudding]

Yeah probably!

I know I come across a bit man against the world sometimes.  I just don't like seeing consumers being ripped off with shoddy goods at premium prices.   £500 isn't throw away money for anyone.  You kind of expect a certain quality at that price.  Not even a brand new OEM airbox costs anywhere near that much, but it's 10x the quality!

[Andy]

Been looking at the vibra technics bottom mount upgrade on my r32 dsg..you mentioned the  more noticeable noise how you finding it now after it's been on a while

[pudding]

You only get extra NVH with all 3 mounts fitted, but just the dogbone with standard side mounts is virtually zero increase in NVH 

All 3 mounts are epic in terms of locking the engine/trans down, but I do 20K miles a year and the NVH started getting on my t1ts, so I'm back to stock side mounts with Vibratechnics dogbone.  That combo works well 

All 3 Vibrator Techniques in the summer are superb, but over winter you won't like the NVH.  F'ck knows how people cope with poly engine mounts.  Anyone who says they don't increase NVH are flat out lying.

[Andy]

Cheers for the info..I have the 034 motor sport mounts at the top and I only do 3k miles a year but also looking at the vw racing line ones