Cracked engine mount

[JKING]

Hi
I have known that the right side (off side) engine mount, the part welded to the frame, on my S1 had a crack in it but, until I just recently pulled the engine out, I didn't realize how severe it is. This mount had been cracked before on the very top of it quite a few years ago and I closed the crack by welding. Now it is cracked again but more extenively. I would insert a picture but I don't know how to do that.
The crack starts at the top and proceeds right down through the two bolt holes to about 3 or 4 mm from the bottom.
I plan on welding in a reinforcing plate of about 3 mm thickness in back of the mount with an additional member welded to the top of that plate over to the frame.
There appears to be a large amount of torque trying to rotate the mount in its vertical plane about its lower extremity inducing a large tensile stress on the top of the mount. I guess this is a result of the vertical load produced by the engine weight and torque reaction, and the flexible part of the mount on the engine which allows the mount to rotate.
Anyone have any thoughts on this?
(BTW, How do you do pictures? How do I store a picture on a public web server?)

[Foxie]

John,

When replacing the engine/refitting the mounts, care should be taken that the engine weight should not be on the bolts when they are tightened, otherwise the mount is twisted, resulting in the type of stresses you mention.

It may not be a good idea to reinforce 16 gauge with 3mm, this will cause worse stress concentrations at the join, better to use 16 gauge for the"patch"

You will be welding the cracks with MIG and grinding clean before reinforcing ?

Sean Murray

[JKING]

Hi Sean
Thanks for your comments.
Regarding your comment on the thickness of the reinforcing patch I wondered if I had misread my micrometer. I finally got back to it and dropped the mic on the engine mount and confirmed my original reading of the thickness as 0.11 in. or approximately 3 mm. For sheet metal on the SWG or Mfg. std. gage scales, this is between 11 and 12 gage. 16 gage would be rather light. I don't know what is readily available in the local shops but I'll use something close to 11.
I would like to weld the patch, yes, MIG of course, to the back of the mount but with the body on the frame that is too inaccessable to do a proper job. So I will have to place it on the front of the mount which means that the engine will live about 3 mm farther forward than it normally does. I don't see any problem with this but I may be missing something. I don't think the output shaft spline will care and the rear mount under the transmission should have sufficient flexibility to accomodate it.