Securing the 4.9L
Obviously this V-8 is gonna put out a touch more power than the stock 2.8L, so I have to make sure to mount it securely or lots of damage will occur if it starts jumping around the crowded engine bay !!
This is the fluid motor mount from the Cadillac, see the "Prepping Cradle" section for provisions to mount it on a Citation cradle. I kept this stock mount because it's easily installed, it's a sturdy mount & absorbs vibration. After installing the cradle & motor into my X it was apparent this mount made the side of the engine sit too high to close the hood.
Provisions were made with this Poly mount, it is readily available at AutoZone for motor/tranny mount replacement. This mount made the engine sit just a bit too low, so it was shimmed to make it a workable height.
This is the stock Cadillac front tranny mount. I have it here in order to mount the power-train & await the stronger more durable West Coast Fiero mounts & brackets.
These are the WCF front tranny bracket & mount. The mount is polyurethane so it should not wear out.
Shown here, the WCF front tranny bracket & mount provide a much more solid connection - the weight is pushing straight down, unlike the stock mount which some of the weight pushes outward at an angle.
Here is the stock rear tranny bracket sitting on a WCF mount.
I decide to use this WCF rear tranny bracket instead. As you can see it appears a lot stronger.
WCF rear tranny bracket & mount installed. Once again, using the WCF mounts applies more of the weight straight down on the mount. After changing out the tranny mounts the motor sits much more securely on the cradle - doesn't move when I tug on it.
Here I used the 2.8L engine mount bracket turned sideways. The top of the bracket needed to be cut down & the holes drilled on the side. Here the bolts are going in the stock holes from the 2.8L, but the engine sits too high. In conjunction with changing the front motor mount to a poly mount, I re-drilled holes lower on the bracket so it lets the engine sit a bit lower & uses the stock 2.8L front motor mount.
The bracket mounts sideways on the 4.9L, so only one side of the mount makes contact. This mount doesn't provide a major portion of the restraint for the motor, it just adds a little in a good spot.
View from front.
This is a bracket for a "Dog bone" mount used in the Cadillac El Dorado. It mounts on the end of the engine block & connects to the cars front end. The Citation uses a dog bone mount as well, so I will use this bracket and relocate the front end bracket to compensate for the different engine sizes.
This is the location the bracket will be installed.
The Dog bone bracket is quite thick so new longer bolts were needed.
The Dog bone bracket installed. The wrap around pipe is to illustrate the difference in exhaust paths.
Here is the bracket for the dog bone mount. I had to drill & tap new holes to mount in this new spot, in order to line up with the bracket on the motor.