Who Needs Engine Mounts?

I rode to work today, and the Ural felt extra harsh. There were more vibrations than I thought was normal. I just figured it was the horrible state all of the roads are in. Frost heaves everywhere make for a rough ride!

I went to leave for an off-site appointment, I looked down at the left engine jug and saw a large hunk of metal sticking out of the bike below! What the?!

This is the hunk of metal aka engine mount bolt AFTER I wrenched it in quite a ways. It was out about eight inches!

I figure, I was about an inch from losing the entire thing. Which might have caused the engine to fall onto the frame. Exciting! There was still one good mount in the back.

Here I am trying to turn it in to tighten it since the bolt is now spinning on the thread. I haven’t seen the other side yet. By the way, it uses a 19mm nut. There are two 19mm wrenches in the stock kit, but my extra sockets only go to 18mm. Time to add another one.

I push on it and it moves in, but it won’t tighten up. I check the other side and it all becomes clear:

The nut and washer both fell off the right side. This is only visible from in front and squatting down. The “bolt” is just a metal rod with threads on both sides. It will slide out either side without a nut to hold it in place.

I didn’t have another nut or washer handy that would fit, so I fixed it with zip ties. One small one wrapped around the bolt head outside of the nut and then a larger one passed through the smaller one and around the frame. This should keep the nut/bolt from coming off the bike.

I made my way to the nearest hardware store a few miles away. I rode as carefully as I could taking it very gingerly. Every bump, pot hole, and frost heave had me holding my breath as images of my engine falling off filled my head.

It was an agonizingly long three miles to the store. I thought for sure my “fix” would come apart. I didn’t realized it at the time, but the engine jugs sticking out would have landed on the frame. The engine wouldn’t have hit the ground or rolled away into the ditch as I imagined. It would have just twisted the driveshaft up and stressed the heads making a big mess.

I arrived at the hardware store. Zip ties have yet again saved the day! I bought two new stainless steel nuts, lock washers, and regular washer. M12 x 1.25 if you’re curious. They are still 19mm outside diameter.

Here is the final repair:

Did I mention moto pants with knee armor make great knee pads for kneeling in the slush to work on the bike?

After the store, I rode to the nearest lake and spent fifteen plus minutes sliding around to blow off the stress and to celebrate my repair.

Red Loctite will be added to these nuts later. I have an extra nut and washer in my spare parts now, and I will be checking these in the future more regularly. A 19mm socket will also be added to my tool roll. The stock wrenches worked fine, but were slow. I also replaced the used zip ties with new ones.

You have zip ties on your bike don’t you?