83 Freightliner with 400 cummins left side engine mount

[coastlogger]

I have this unit to move tow my excavator trailer around the island i work live on.. No DOT no highway etc. Never gets over 5 miles from home.Probably does 200 miles a year tops.Anyhow I recently noticed the gearshift hops to right a bit on extreme startups etc. Investigated and itd seem the rubber pads are gone between the engine mount and frame mount,on left side,allowing engine to lift up a half inch or so when torque is at max.. This mount happens to be in a real sweet spot with steering box, hoses, and corner of cab all nicely intersecting right where the bolts are.I can kind of get a wrench on the heads and nuts,so far havent got any movement.
I wonder if this is even worth dealing with given the parameters I listed above. Seems to me the biggest risk is an exhaust pullapart.
If I do deal with it what is best way to access. Looks like I should at least consider undoing front cab mount bolts and lifting front of cab a few inches to gain room to get at bolts with some real wrenches.
Ideas apreciated. I can take some pics but Im not sure just how much theyll show its so crowded in there.

 

[crane operator]

If it can rock up and down, on start, its doing the same thing with torque uphill and downhill both. It will end up loosening the bolts in the mount or breaking ears off. You'll have to jack up the motor/ trans to slide the bushing in and out, and you may need to take the motor or frame side off if you can't slide the bushing in.

They are just rubber mounts with a metal insert usually. Any truck parts place will have them, and you can get rubber or polyurethane.

https://www.truckspring.com/heavy-duty-truck-parts/under-hood/motor-mount.aspx

 

[coastlogger]

Having a terrible time getting the vertical bolts out. Nuts stuck and almost impossible to get at with a torch without melting or burning up some important stuff.Made up some fancy offset type sockets and crowsfoots and will try again tomorrow. It is just a horrible location. Yes the rubber is gone between the mounts and engine does hop up and down on the mount. Thinking that metal mount on metal mount might be ok for my limited use ? and I could try and take the movement out by driving some spacers, sort of u shaped washers, under the bolt heads and tack welding them in place. Thatd be kind of a last resort if I cannot get nuts to come free.

 

[petepilot]

can you get an electric heat gun in real close to the bolt-nut- can get 1200 deg. out of one right on to the bolt- no flame

 

[Truck Shop]

Uh-believe it or not Freightliner in those years didn't have a rubber insulator on rear mounts only a a piece of aluminum sandwiched between frame support and bellhousing mount.
It just depends on which type of mount Freightliner used/or spec'ed for that particular truck. Does it have a rubber mount on right side?

Really need a photo-get one of right side.

 

[coastlogger]

Yep it has rubber on right and I blv there was rubber on left too. Remains are there. Anyhow with an unbelievable amount of time and effort Ive got both sides cut loose,engine jacked up about an inch and a half and have removed both brackets off frame. On lh side I need to take mount off engine in order to get enough access. In retrospect I could have left the mount on the frame on that side. Oh well. Progress. Getting rubber mounts tomorrow. There was a broken bolt on one of theframe mounted brackets so I can see how not dealing with this issue was going to go badly .

 

[DMiller]

Check your rails REALLY close in that area, old Freight shakers were known for cracking there.