Thought I'd share my experiences with these engine/trans inserts.
The positives:Engine rock is greatly reduced and the (manual) gearshift is also improved. Cheap and easy to fit.
NVH:Nothing added at idle and part throttle cruising, if anything it idles a fair bit smoother. I do get a bit of noise/coarseness when accelerating from 2000rpm upwards but it smoothes out as the engine temperature rises. Overall NVH is a lot better than full aftermarket mounts but there's definitely an increase in NVH. A lot more than I was expecting given the feedback in this thread. Maybe some cars experience less, but in my manual ED30 it's very noticeable!
The negatives:Whilst the concept is a good idea and very cost effective, it is ultimately flawed in practice. Why? Because you have two different density materials occupying the same space which aren't bonded to each other or securely fixed in place. I did already consider this before I bought them, but thought f'ck it, try them anyway.
If you consider the physics.....the gearbox side with the shortest and more rigid driveshaft, and less weight, it tries to pivot the whole drivetrain to the right when you floor it.
This theory was apparently true on the road after a bit of midrange acceleration. The car abruptly kicked to the right. I got back home and found this:
As I suspected, the opposing force of the transmission side forced the engine mount insert out.
So to solve this problem, I did this:
I also had to shorten the main insert legs as they pressed hard against the engine side bracket, preventing them from going fully in. The securing tangs therefore had to be cut off, but the 2 x M6 bolts keep the upper insert in place, so it's not a problem.
This remedial action shouldn't be necessary, but hey, it's only a 30 quid mod and the reinforcements do the trick
I haven't checked the gearbox side yet as it's under the battery, so not easy to see without a wifi borescope camera thing but I suspect it will be fine due to the reasons above. If the inserts have walked out, I will apply the same measures.
You can clearly see in this pic how far off the bolt holes are when the mount is restored back to it's correct position with the inserts! The gearbox mount is the worst one for wear and NVH.
So in summary, not that great in my opinion, but the low cost of them makes them worth a shot and the NVH is minimal at best, to acceptable at worst. Just be prepared to modify them if you want them as a long term solution.
