I usually use Penzoil high mileage dino oil in my car, but the last time I had an oil change, I just used whatever the shop had. Using the shop's oil, the engine was noticeably louder. Any suggestions as to which oil would be best? My car's going on 216k miles.

 

I looked into this and I had a couple of questions:

1) Will replacing just the front mount make a noticeable difference? From tutorials I've watched on youtube, the rear mount looks considerably harder to get to than the front so I might only replace the front mount.

2) Is there a difference between aftermarket mounts designed for AT or MT? The parts I saw on Advance are mostly for AT according to the description.

3) Is there a significant difference between $20 mounts and $100 mounts?

 

My car has 245k and I'm on Penzoil dino 5w-30. I'm still working on the leak so I don't want to switch back to hi mileage at this point. I think 5w-30 is the standard weight oil. If the shop put in a different weight oil that could be reponsible for the noise difference. Or did they do anything else to the engine?

I don't know if you have a 6 or 4 cyl engine. I have the F22B1 4cyl ... the left and right side mounts hold up the engine, and the front and rear mounts are "dampers" that reduce vibration. I've already replaced the front damper iwth a new Honda OEM one -- it is by far the cheapest of the four. I fixed the rear mount which had a broken actuator linkage. I would like to replace all mounts, however Honda OEM mounts are very expensive, and there appears to be no info on who is the OEM mfg for their mounts (I suspect NOK but they have no aftermarket Honda mounts for sale). The only reports on aftermarket mounts have been accompanied with warnings that the aftermarket mounts are all garbage, too stiff for comfort, and wear out very quickly. The only mfgs I know that produce good quality rubber mushings and mounts (Lemfoerder, Corteco) don't make Honda mounts.

So, this one is still the million-dollar question ... if you can find a good aftermarket Honda motor mount manufacturer you will be a hero!

 

Thanks for the reply. I use Penzoil 5w-30 High Mileage usually, so now I think I'll stick with it. Not sure what the shop put in the last time and there wasn't any engine work done at the time.

As for motor mounts, I was thinking of using this one by Beck/Arnley. My car has a 4-cyl engine and MT, so the part seems to fit the spec.

Would you say that changing the front damper has a significant effect on the vibration? Currently, my steering wheel vibrates enough that I need to switch hands every now and then, and driving 2+ hrs gets quite tiring on my arms. I'm wondering if I can kill two birds with one stone with this replacement.

 

II don't think the front damper helps a lot. THe rear damper is much larger. However those only seem to be used when you are at idle rpms.

f the engine is vibrating heavily at above idle rpms, then I'm wondering if it could be something else. Have you had the timing belt replaced in the past? Does theengine have a balance shaft? Any possibility that the balance shaft wasn't positioned correctly during the last timing belt change?

Beck Arnley is one those highly debated brands ... I tihink more people feel they are cheap than good. I bought their brand once, ended up replacing with OEM, and personally wouldn't buy it again.

 

Thanks for the reply!

Would you say then that changing either/both the dampers would have minimal impact on reducing vibrations at highway speeds?


Timing belt was replaced a couple of months ago. I wouldn't know how to tell if there was any problems with the balance shaft (or if my car even has one).

Also, to steer this discussion more definitively, what are some good ways to make for a quieter ride at high speeds?

I can definitely hear the engine and muffler quite clearly, but there's also a significant amount of environmental noise. I hear that re-sealing the windshield will help with wind noise, and spraying rubber coating on the wheel wells should reduce road noise. Save plastering my car with Dynamat (the insulation alone would be worth more than my car...), what are some other good (cheap?) ways to keep noise down?


P.S. This noise-reduction escapade that I'm on is mostly a thought experiment. I'm certainly open to trying "experimental" ideas and report back so long as there isn't any safety compromises.

 

My concern now is with the timing belt replacement. Did the engine vibrate as much before the timing belt change?

Also, does the engine vibrate at local traffic speeds (30mph) as well as freeway speeds? In other words, is it dependent on the engine rpm nad not the vehicle speed? Or when stopped, if you rev the engine while in Neutral? If so, then I would suggest taking the car back to the people who changed the timing belt and ask them to check if they set the balance shaft in the wrong position.

That to me is the first step. The engine really shouldn't vibrate a lot at higher rpm.

 

The vibration didn't get noticeably worse after the timing belt change. Perhaps I exaggerated a little. If anything, the vibrations could be coming from a host of other issues in my (beater) car. Right now, noise reduction is my main goal in this endeavor.

 

Well, give the motor mounts a good looking over for torn rubber. If the engine shakes a lot at all rpms my first guess would be the mounts. Again the side mounts should be the ones to hold up the engine and would make the most difference when replaced. If you can stand to replace the mounts a couple of times, first swapping in a cheap but new set would at least let you know quickly if that was a problem. If it was then you could decide if the cheap mounts would suffice for a while before needing to get better quality ones.

 

Are you getting vibration between 1,800 and 2,000 rpm when you step on the gas? I.e. Car is at 1,800 rpm as you cruise towards a hill and you get on the gas and you get a vibration, if so see other threads for fixing the "buzz" which in a gasket and spring bolt replacement for the short A pipe in front of the catalytic converter.

I only add this to the list on things to be looking at after reading the thread posts.

One other thing to look at is the condition of the harmonic balancer. Sometimes with weird engine vibrations where everything else checks out that can be the culprit.