milty60 Posted September 30, 2017 Share Posted September 30, 2017 A few months ago I bought two rear struts and mounts from RockAuto. Mounts were low priced. The left rear mount/strut working great. The right rear mount's mounting hole has broken free from the surrounding rubber mount causing the strut to push up about an inch above the top of the mount. I assumed it was defective. I replaced it a month ago - same mount off RockAuto site. It is broke same as last time after a month of use. Hard too believe I had two defective mounts. If low price was the reason why hasn't the left rear given out? I also thought maybe a plate or washer should site on top of the strut rod lip immediately under the mount but the left rear does not have a washer or plate - did I get the struts and both were missing this washer plate? Or do I purchase a more expensive mount and that solves my problem? Looking for thoughts on missing parts? washer/plate or just a case of buying a cheap mount? Or is the strut rod shaft somehow binding and eventually pushing its way through the mount? ....Milty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fairtax4me Posted September 30, 2017 Share Posted September 30, 2017 (edited) What kind of struts? Are your springs old? Sagging? Drive anywhere that makes the rear of the car bottom out over a driveway entrance/ pothole/ rough road/ etc? If the strut is bottoming out or overextending it can break the mount. Cheap mounts are usually not great quality, but I would expect them to last longer than a month. Another thought, often the rear mounts are side specific. What brand and part numbers did you order? They also have to be installed in correct orientation, might have an arrow on the mount that indicates which direction the mount should face when installed. Edited September 30, 2017 by Fairtax4me 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milty60 Posted September 30, 2017 Author Share Posted September 30, 2017 Rear struts - hydraulic oil I don't have the "brand" name/part number at the moment - off RockAuto online I believe middle of the pack for cost. Springs are original. I had the first mount replaced at a car shop - no mention of any spring issues or strut issues. Not sagging. Avoid all bad road conditions. The bottoming out or overextending would be all related to the coil springs remaining capability? Or a defective strut. Prior to mount breaking I have bounced the car up and down multiple times via the bumper and driven bumpy country roads and it it seems to do its job. ...Milty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted September 30, 2017 Share Posted September 30, 2017 Don't buy cheap mounts. I've had them fail completely in less than a week. Including rear passengers side 95-99 EJ strut mounts. Others have had similar failures and issues. Another forum has a picture posted of how badly they bulged upwards atbthe cushion he replaced them before they failed but the pics were awfully funny. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted September 30, 2017 Share Posted September 30, 2017 (edited) Here's my options to avoid wasting time: Reuse originals Used Subaru New KYB or Subaru I'm not wasting my time. I had a bunch of brand new MOOGs, probably good parts, and I didn't even want to try them. sold my last one yesterday thank goodness I won't be tempted to use them now. LOL Edited September 30, 2017 by idosubaru 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike104 Posted September 30, 2017 Share Posted September 30, 2017 You get what you pay for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milty60 Posted October 1, 2017 Author Share Posted October 1, 2017 I agree - not 100% sure its entirely the mount that is the root cause but it was a cheap one - I will spend money on the replacement mount - and once the strut/coil is out - going to look it over as best I can to determine if the coil or strut are part of the issue. ...Milty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heartless Posted October 1, 2017 Share Posted October 1, 2017 as already said... either OEM or NGK... and no, there are NOT supposed to be washers under the mount - there is a lip in the strut rod that mates to the mount. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted October 1, 2017 Share Posted October 1, 2017 Right on. Hard to say for certain but it's well known cheap mounts *can* be problematic, but that's not to say they *always* are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milty60 Posted October 5, 2017 Author Share Posted October 5, 2017 I plan to replace mount this weekend - bought a Moog - beyond visually inspecting the coil and strut for any defects or binding either compressed or extended - any other methods to detect a bad original coil or newly purchased strut? ...Milty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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