M60 Engine Mounts

Every DIY’er who owns a V8 E34 has heard the horror stories, the hour-and-a-half to get one nut loose off of these mounts; losing sockets and extensions because the were not taped together. It is a job that demands patience. If you have some, and I suppose one must when you own one of these beasts, it can be done completely in less than two hours.

I purchased new transmission & engine mounts from AutohausAZ.com. Ordered on Tuesday and received on Friday. I paid extra for 3 day shipping because I wanted to do this job this weekend. These mounts are stamped “Made in Germany”. I assume this is both true, and a good thing.

Procedure:

1) Jack up the front of the car and place on jack stands; or drive it up on ramps. I use ramps because they provide me more room to work and I feel safer. Make sure that the engine is cold, as you will be working near the exhaust manifolds.
2) You might want to pre-treat the fasteners with WD-40. I did not, as they were not rusty or corroded looking.
3) Remove the splash shield
4) If you have heat shields, remove those, too. (I don’t have them).
5) Gather the following tools:
a. 17mm socket
b. 13mm socket
c. At least 24” of extensions in varying sizes, including a 3” one
d. U-Joint/Swivel
e. Breaker Bar
f. Duct or electrical tape
g. Floor jack
h. One or two pieces of 2x4 lumber, at least 12” long
6) Loosen the top nut on the passenger side mount (17mm). It is clearly visible from the top.
7) Loosen the top nut on the driver side mount. I had read a couple of earlier experiences on this, fishing around from the top, removing the brake fluid reservoir. I tried fishing, but no bites. I didn’t want to fool with removing the reservoir. After trying a few other things, I did this and it worked great:
a. Tape the 17mm socket to the U-Joint
b. Tape the U-Joint to the 3” extension
c. With this assembly in hand and underneath the car, reach around behind the engine mount and slip the socket onto the nut. You cannot go in from the front because of the P/S & oil lines.
d. Important: Keep the 3” extension at a 45 degree angle, pointing up and aligned with the light from above (assumes working in daylight or a well-lit garage).
e. Crawl out from under the car and peer down to where the mount should be. You should be seeing the square end of the extension sticking up between the P/S hoses. If you don’t see it, go back underneath and fiddle with it until you can see it from up top.
f. Guide the remaining extensions down to the one on the mount. Take your time and you can hit it on the first or second try.
g. Wrench it loose, but not all the way off. It might fall out of the socket and become lost in a black hole. (Ask me how I know this!)
h. Back under the car, remove the nut with your fingers.
8) Wrench off the remaining 13mm & 17mm nuts from the bottoms of both of the mounts.
9) Note the orientation of the 17mm stud, the pin, & the 13mm stud. There are more holes in the cross member than there are studs on your mounts.
10) Start jacking up the engine. I put two 2x4 pieces, lengthwise, under the oil pan, right behind the bolts. A nice, flat area with the support of the engine block right above it.
11) For me, again, the passenger side was a breeze. A few cranks on the jack and the engine was up and the mount removed. I had to raise the engine higher to get the driver side off.
12) My mounts were trashed – the driver side in two pieces. No wonder my drive shaft center bearing was wasted (replaced last week). They were compressed about 3/4 of an inch.
13) Install the driver side first. Put the mount in place and carefully align it with the holes. You will have to experiment with the height of the engine somewhat so that you can get it into place.
14) Lower the engine just a little bit, then put in the passenger side mount. Remember the orientation!
15) Now, lower the engine SLOWLY, adjusting the mounts so that the studs align with the holes.
16) With the engine now resting solely on its new mounts, it’s time to put the nuts back on. Being a glutton for punishment, I started with the driver side:
a. Reach around behind the mount, just as you did with the socket assembly and put the washer back on the stud
b. Do the same with the nut. Take your time, because if you drop it, it will be next to impossible to get it out without lifting the engine again (Ask me how I know this, too!)
c. Spin it down finger tight, then put the socket assembly back on just like you did to get the nut off
d. Bentley’s does not provide torque specifications for M60 mounts that I could find, so I just cranked it down hard with a breaker bar.
17) Reinstall the two underside nuts.
18) Again, passenger side goes on easy, reverse of removal.
19) Reattach the splash & heat shields. Drive off ramps.

My 540i now feels smoother on acceleration, and the idle feels better in traffic; it would get a kind of “buzzing” at traffic lights. I am still having some vibration at 20 & 35 MPH, though it is much less, and will be doing the trans mounts tomorrow to finish the job. New center bearing, trans and engine mounts. Fortunately, my flex disc is still holding up.