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My wife's Camry went in to the shop 2 months ago for a rough idle. We bought the car used in February with 72K miles. We've put on 10K and decided to have a mechanic look it over and tell us what it needed. The shop noted the engine left and right engine mounts were broken and suggested we change them (for $600). I decided I could do this job and save a few bucks.

So, yesterday I replaced the three mounts underneath the engine with toyota factory parts from the dealer. Also replaced the dogbone up top. Four mounts replaced. The problem now is that the vibration has changed. The car used to have a pretty steady vibration, most notable at idle in gear. It would also lurch when accelerating from a stop. Now the lurch is gone and the car feels smoother while driving and the lurching from a stop is gone.

But, I only have vibration when at a stop and the car is in drive. Putting it in reverse, neutral or park and no vibration. I can also kind of feel the same frequency vibration when I turn the car to the left. It makes no sense to me. Tonight I cleaned the throttle body as detailed here: DIY 2AZFE Throttle Cleaning Gen 5, Gen 5.5, Gen 6 - no change on the idle.

I pulled the wheels off and jacked it up and got under it and looked everywhere while having my wife put it in drive and hold the brake. Engine is vibrating a good bit, but the mounts look fine.

I can't figure out if it has anything to do with the engine mounts now... Did I do something wrong or is something making the engine run rough at low speed? Did I get a defective mount? How can I troubleshoot this? I'm scared to take it to the mechanic and go on an expensive goose chase after already spending $400 on mounts alone. Any suggestions are welcome!

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  • BTW - anyone reading this in the future. Listen to the internet and buy factory motor mounts. OEMs off the internet do not fit right. I made this mistake and it was simply a waste of time for me. Factory mounts are >2X more expensive, but they fit...
    – caddymob
    Commented Dec 7, 2012 at 3:22
  • i have a 2009 camry also does same thing and after reading so much about how other camry drivers expierence same thing i have to accept its some type of flaw in the production of theses cars
    – user3118
    Commented May 5, 2013 at 17:28
  • my 2009 camry is doing the same thing, i put new motor mounts on, loosened them and retightened them and also cleaned the throttle body. still have vibration coming from the engine. any suggestions from anyone, tks
    – james stroud
    Commented Jun 24, 2014 at 1:48
  • You're going to have more luck asking a new question.
    – Captain Kenpachi
    Commented Jun 24, 2014 at 7:03

4 Answers 4

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Most likely, one of the engine mounts are 'torqued'. You can try and neutralize the mounts. Loosen the through bolts of all mounts several (4-5) turns. Then start the car, and drive back and forth several feet (using quick taps on the gas and not just idling) over and over, and let it rest at idle a few seconds before turning off the engine. Now tighten all mounts being careful not to rock the motor, and don't pry or push anything to reach the bolts! (This is where swivels come in handy)

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  • This is pretty much the conclusion I had come to, but this is really helpful, thanks for the detailed instructions. Will be trying this out tonight for sure!
    – caddymob
    Commented Dec 4, 2012 at 23:01
  • No problem! Glad i could help.
    – Drake Clarris
    Commented Dec 5, 2012 at 18:59
  • My 2007 Camry is doing the EXACT same thing!! In spirit of frugalness, any suggestions on which mount to replace first?
    – user3056
    Commented Apr 22, 2013 at 14:18
  • You can usually see one that's torn. Sometimes, it can help to have some one power brake the motor (with the drive wheels of the ground!) back and forth from drive to reverse to see it.
    – Drake Clarris
    Commented Apr 23, 2013 at 15:42
  • It's usually the left or right side that needs it, but you really should do all three of the mounts at the same time. It could even just be the dogbone which is really easy and cheaper. Do what Drake said, figure out which one is bad first...
    – caddymob
    Commented May 6, 2013 at 21:45
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I fixed the vibration problem I had for 1 year on my 2007 toyota camry after I cleaned the throttle body and air control valve (iac) the car is driving perfect. I can not believe it was so easy to fix...

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  • Could you give the procedure you used to clean the air control valve ? Did you completely removed the throttle body ? I am a bit worried by the fact that the coolant line runs inside the throttle body in the ACV40 model at least, and could use some directions.
    – Bertrand Caron
    Commented Feb 10, 2016 at 12:04
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I read that one man said his problem was the exhaust hanger grauments. you can get them online really cheap. but he said the dealer will charge you an arm and leg to change them. Im going to try this first. he said he changed all motor mounts and it was the same then he changed the exhaust hangers and the vib was 100% gone. let me know.

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  • Wow mine is doing the same thing. Mechanic changed one mount and now the vibration is worse. It's like really rough now. I have already had the throttle body cleaned as well a couple times. We serviced the transmission and I was just wondering what it was. Will have to find out about the exhaust hanger things!
    – user9216
    Commented Jan 25, 2015 at 23:11
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My 2010 Corolla had a similar issue with the idle. Most noticeably when I would come to stop signs or stop lights, the idle would dip way down, it would stutter for a second or two, then raise back up. I replaced my spark plugs with factory Toyota plugs and it resolved the issue COMPLETELY! The idle no longer dips, and it stays running smooth every time I come to a stop.

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