Q: Really bad vibration

asked by on September 14, 2016

Really bad vibration at idle and when accelerating. Replaced top and bottom motor mounts

My car has 120701 miles.
My car has an automatic transmission.

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Hello...The vibration problem that you are having can be resolved and your question is a good first step toward resolving it. There appears to be four (4) mounts in your application. Presumably you replaced all four if you suspected the mount(s) had failed. If installing new motor mounts didn’t resolve the issue, there are only two general areas wherein a "cause" of the vibration could be found:

1) Engine mechanical failure leading to poor running condition (e.g., valves, poor or unequal compression, slipped timing chain/belt etc.) including failure of the harmonic balancer and perhaps even issues with the flywheel and/or torque converter.

2) Poor engine running condition due to ignition, fuel or air induction malfunctions and this includes all of the relevant sensors. Some of these issues are more quickly ruled in or out than others and some might be dealt with anyway (as overlooked maintenance) as the Mechanic gives your car its initial exam. After a quick compression and ignition timing check are done, the Mechanic will make sure that all maintenance related to the engine is up to date. For instance, if your spark plug wires and plugs are original, those have to be replaced anyway so you would want to see if that helps. Address those simple and obvious possibilities first (just the Factory maintenance that relates to the engine...don’t fix up the whole car yet til you get the engine running smoothly!) because you have to do them anyway. YourMechanic could both bring you up to date on maintenance and if such does not resolve your issue, give you guidance as to what additional repairs are necessary to address the vibration issue.

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