REVIEWS
At a red light in your QX60, a buzz rises into the seat and the steering wheel while your foot holds the brake in Drive. If you've slipped the shifter into Neutral at a long Dublin light, the buzz fades and then comes back as soon as you return to Drive. That change between two shifter positions is where we start at our San Ramon shop.
In a QX60 built from 2014 through 2020, the V6 engine sits on several rubber mounts plus a torque strut that stops it rocking forward and back. An engine mount is a rubber block that holds the engine to the body and soaks up the shake of its firing. The torque strut is a short bar with rubber at each end, and it keeps the engine from tipping as it pulls the car away.
Why the Seat Shakes in Drive
A V6 at idle fires three times for every turn of the crankshaft, and healthy rubber absorbs most of that shake before it reaches the body. In Drive with the brake held, the transmission puts a steady load on the engine, so the engine leans against its mounts and stays there. Once the rubber has cracked or pulled away from its metal plate, that vibration passes straight through. Shift to Neutral and the load comes off, and a shake from a worn mount drops sharply or goes away.
Engine misfires can shake a QX60 at idle too, and from behind the wheel the feel comes close to a mount shake. A cylinder that stops firing makes the engine run unevenly, and that roughness reaches the cabin even through good mounts. Because a misfire comes from the engine's own firing, shifting to Neutral changes it far less than it changes a mount shake. We read the misfire counts on a scan tool, and those counts separate the two causes.
The Clunk When You Shift Into Reverse
The second sign comes when you move the shifter. On the 2014-2020 QX60, a clunk as you select Drive or Reverse signals a torn mount, the same tear that lets the red-light buzz through. Each time a gear engages, the engine twists against its mounts. Sound rubber keeps that twist small and silent. Once a mount or the torque strut has torn, the engine swings farther until metal meets metal with a thump you hear and feel. That thump can sound like a transmission problem to the person at the wheel. The two part ways in how far the engine moves under load, and with the hood up that movement is plain to see.
Finding the Torn Mount Under Load
With the hood up and the brakes held hard, we shift between Drive and Reverse and watch the engine. On a healthy setup, the V6 rocks a small amount and settles. At a torn mount, the engine keeps on going. It lifts or swings well past that point, and the rubber opens a gap where it should stay closed. On the QX60, the gap can open at one of the main mounts or at the torque strut, and the one that moved is the one we replace. For a QX60 from 2022 on, the same test covers the torque rod that works beside the front and side mounts. After the new mount goes in, we repeat the same test and confirm the V6 rocks a small amount and settles, the same as a healthy setup.
The repair protects more than your comfort at a stop. An engine that moves too far pulls on the hoses and wiring attached to it each time you pull away or shift between gears. A new mount restores the normal limit on how far the engine moves.
A Look at the Mount That Moved
Call Driven Auto Care of San Ramon at (925) 830-4701 and let us know whether the Dublin red-light buzz fades in Neutral. At our San Ramon shop, we identify the mount that moved and review it with you before any work begins. We replace that mount and run the brake-held test again before you drive home.
