This engine has no timing belt, the engine mount bolts to the timing chain cover. Replacing the timing chain cover will be the most expensive part of the repair, perhaps it could be repaired by a different shop.
This engine mount may have been replaced before the vehicle was purchased, if the car was bought used. If this engine mount is found on a recent invoice, perhaps with the other mount that was replaced I would show the service department this and expect it repaired at no cost.
Yeah, Iām familiar with that kind of engine mount
We have several Focuses in our fleet, Iāve replaced a few
About a month back, I had to remove such a mount, in order to gain clearance to replace an accessory drive belt, on a Chevy Malibu. I used a jack underneath the pan, to support the engine. I had the car on the lift, as well.
The reason I had the car on the lift . . . my back was hurting too much, so raising the entire car literally took a load off. You others with bad backs will know EXACTLY what I 'm talking about
Anyways, removing the mount on that Malibu . . . same design, otherwise I wouldnāt be mentioning it . . . was easy, and it only took the blink of an eye. I threaded every bolt and nut by hand first, before doing the final tightening
@Nevada_545 Now that I think about it, I believe I had the engine mount replaced; however, that was more than a year ago. The dealer was trying to tell me that if it was something they did, it would have broke sooner than this.
I am the sole owner and bought it brand new in Oct 2008. I donāt have the repair orders with me that are prior to Dec 2015 as I have a bunch of things in storage. I do have the repair orders from Dec 2015 till now scanned, but it has my personal info on there. I will remove my personal info and share those with you guys.
Thank you to everyone who has provided feedback and their input, much appreciated!
Edit: Here is the link to all of my repair orders, much easier than uploading the images one by one as I am limited to one image per upload. Also, I am limited to the # of replies as a new user: https://drive.google.com/open?id=0By_wpAivGOhSSERZZWwtT3hQYk0
I am really suspicious of the situation re the failed mount after reading that work order. The shop recommended replacing the dog bone mount on the engine but the customer declined and now some months later the front mount fails with indications that it was improperly installed. If the dog bone had failed it is very unlikely to have caused the failure of the front motor mount as is indicated in the photo. A failed dog bone would have caused the rubber isolator on the front mount and rear mount to be severly deteriorated and the engine would have been swinging front to rear severely enough that most owners would have the problem taken care of.
Knowing nothing other than what I have read here I strongly suspect that the mechanic who recommended replacing the dog bone saw to it that the owner regretted not taking his adviceā¦ But what do I know? DUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUH.
You are suggesting the mechanic SABOTAGED the engine, so that the motor mount would fail
Iāve known some shady mechanics in my time, and they did some interesting stuff . . .
cheat warranty
get paid for work they didnāt do
double dipping
But I havenāt personally seen anybody intentionally sabotage a vehicle . . . sure, Iāve heard of it, but Iāve never SEEN anybody do it
I think unintentional cross-threading is more likely
Maybe cynicism is overwhelming me in old age @db4690 ā¦ But then I have seen a few cases of spitefull āadjustmentsā done to automobiles by professionals. And while all I know of the situation is what I have read here I can only let my imagination lead me to whatever possible conclusions that come to mind.
@Rod_Knox I declined Dec 1st but had it replaced later. I never thought of them intentionally messing with my car. Or not really replacing the part.
Let me assure you that while the photos do indicate the likelyhood that the mount failed due to innept or intentionally poor work I have no way to way of knowing the circumstances. I am just throwing grist into the mill for the sake of discussion. But for yourself and anyone unfamiliar with the situation I for one feel somewhat certain that the failure in your first photo is the failure of the bolts that attached the āfrontā mount to the engine and that failure is somewhat certainly the result of those bolts being cross threaded and/or excessively over tightened and my opinion is based on an above average hands on knowledge of the situation. And I would suggest that you get the opinion of several independent mechanics in your area and if their opinion is similar to mine you might do well to contact a lawyer. And while sabotage is a rather strong word in such a situation I canāt really think of a better description.
To be sure there may be a great deal more to this story than is posted here. But so far it seems a troubling situation.
@Rod_Knox Yes, I figured as much, which I mentioned to the dealership that it had to have been something they did as I only went there for repairs/maintenance on the car the past four years, not to mention I brought up issues multiple times.
My next step is to talk to a lawyer as I feel I have case here.
I appreciate everyone taking the time to look this over and providing me insight/recommendations.
That doesnāt prove anything, things break.
You have got to be direct, āyour technician stripped the bolt out when replacing the engine mount resulting in this damageā.
With the lock nuts used on those studs, the studs will sometimes unscrew from the front engine cover when removing the nuts. The nut on the front stud is screwed on too far down on the stud, because of that the stud did not screw into the front engine cover as far as it should have. The nut should have been backed off before installing the stud in the front engine cover. With the stud screwed only half way into the front engine cover the threads easily pulled out, stripped. The weight of the engine was on the other stud that eventually broke, one stud isnāt enough to support the engine.
I was just checking back for any updates on this thread and while here Iāll mention that the front motor mount on this and similarly situated engines are often installed from the bottom with the transmission attached and the front mounting studs are long enough and have an unthreadded tapered end to be easily aligned with the motor mount as the engine is lifted into place.
Quite often posts here seem to indicate that the OP is the victim of incomtetent and/or unethical shops but the photographs that @jamierdoyle has attached with a coherent explanation of the situation is especially telling if true. And as often occurs I am curious as to the outcome of this situation.
Good shops pay a terrible price for the incompetent and crooked shops.
@Rod_Knox As I mentioned before, the inital insurance guy suggested I open another/new claim citing road debris. The new insurance adjuster looked at it this past Tuesday and approved the claim due to road debris.
I initally wasnāt going to have the dealership fix the car but after talking over everything with a few trusted friends and family, I decided to just have the dealership fix my broken car thru the insurance. I know I had a few options from this situation, as I could have taken the check (less the $500 deductible) to get a newer used vehichle but that would have all needed to happen this past weekend. Not enough time to research a car I want and it was causing me so much stress. And on top of that I would have needed to do something with the broken car and it might have needed another tow which I would have to pay for out of pocket (insurance only covers one tow and Basic level AAA only covers 3 miles). Plus I want to buy a condo in the next few months, so financing a vehicle would not look that great on my credit report.
I still strongly feel that the dealership is to blame after telling my story to multiple people, as well as everyone here via the Car Talk forum. Going the insurance route seemed to be my best option, as getting a lawyer involved and trying to fight this might have been worth more heartache in the end.
Thank you again!
Well, it sounds like youāve found an acceptable resolution
The dealer is probably pleased to be going through the insurance, as per āroad debrisā because they wonāt be assigned any blame, even though many of us feel itās quite likely they did have some hand in the failure
Now as for that claim, will your premiums increase, now that youāve filed a claim . . . ?
You made the right call, in regards to fixing your car, versus taking the check. Yeah, you donāt want to make too many decisions right now, which might affect your credit score.
Good luck on that upcoming condo 
In any case, we canāt wait to hear about the final outcome 
Donāt know where you are in the process, but did you try to use the leverage you had to get the dealer to pay the $500 deductible for you?
It looked like you had leverage at least based on letting them do the work and based on the real possibility that they made past mistake(s) that led to the damage.
Iām certainly glad that you found some relief in your $ituation. Best of luck with the car and the condo.
@Waterbuff I am going to bring that up when I go to pick up my car and have to pay them. I didnāt want to bring it up prior just in case they get the inclination to sabotage the repairs (again?). So we shall see what they say.
I just know that once I buy a condo, I am trading this car in and going to a reputable place that has great customer service.
I think that once youāre a homeowner, youāll need to keep driving that car for awhile
Iām just saying that, because Iām a homeowner, and repairs always come up, and you donāt want to be stretched too thin, because of a car payment, or because you drained your bank account to buy a car
Iām not saying the Focus is a great car, but properly maintained, theyāre acceptable transportation
Maybe the real problem is not the car, but the shop
Iām a firm believer in the following-
Never ascribe to malice that which is adequately explained by incompetence
Incompetence, negligence, passive aggressive retaliationā¦ How can anyone know? But then there is the need for professional responsibility.
We canāt know. But that is the point. Itās far more likely that it results from ignorance, incompetence or just plain old laziness than some attempt at malice. After all, the failure is not guaranteed to occur because of this type of shoddy work. If youāre bent on retaliation, there are far better choices to ensure that the person experiences some sort of loss than this approach. Cross threaded and over tightened bolts may never fail. They may also fail WHILE your attempting to sabotage the work and then it backfires on you. Slicing a hose or belt, dumping stuff into reservoirs that doesnāt belong there, those are difficult to prove. A cross-threaded bolt that fails is obvious and youāre the last to touch it, leading directly back to you. Not the brightest bulb in theā¦place where they keep the bulbs.