XK120 Motor Mount Misallignment

Hello, I’m Mark. Back in 2014 we acquired a 1954 XK120 OTS #S676095. The car had been sitting for quite a long time and had the typical fuel system issues, rotten fuel and rust in the tank, nasty gummed up carbs etc. After working through those issues, I got her on the road. This last fall, I started going through the brake system. 4 of the 6 wheel cylinders were siezed up, but thankfully were sleeved with stainless. I rebuilt all the wheel cylinders and the master cylinder. The fluid reservoir had DOT 5 fluid in it (purple) and when I blew the brake lines out, there was DOT 3 or 4 fluid in them (clearish).All the shoes and drums showed very little wear. I also replaced the front shocks.
While I was doing this work, I saw that the motor mount rubber components were in terrible condition and ordered replacements for the fronts and rear tranny mounts. When I started to replace the front mounts, I noticed that only one of the bolts that holds the mount to the frame was actually installed through the frame. The other frame bolt, was not lined up with its hole, and had a large diameter washer on it to hold down the “ear” of the mount. Both the left and right side were the same. It’s as if the whole engine had moved back. The frame has no signs of damage from a collision. The replacement mount alignment is the same. Very strange. Has anyone ever seen this before? I will try and attach some photos.
Thank all of you admirers and lovers of these beautiful classic vehicles!

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Is the engine original to the car, or is it known to be an XK120, or its era? Do the numbers stamped on the head and block match those on the commission plate? The brackets that bolt to engine are not the same across models.

i can’t quite get your orientation straight in my mind, so have attached a few images of the mounts on mine before strip down.

Hi Mike, yes the engine number on the block and head match the data plate engine number. The chassis number on the frame matches the data plate as well.(quite happy about that!).The torque arm rubber mount on the right side appears misaligned towards the aft end, and the tranny mounts are towards the rear of their elongated holes. I will submit some more photos.
Thanks, Mark

Thanks Phil, yours look like I expected mine to look. A picture surely is worth many words.

Here’s a few more photos.

I have the early rectangular mounts, so the only thing I can contribute to this discussion is that I fitted my front and rear mounts first, then found that I had to bend the torque arm forward to get it to meet the side mount. You probably should do the same. But check the clearance on your radiator fan of course. And look around for some reason the PO might have done that on purpose, like wrong fan or something.
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yes definitely remove the rear torque arm and see if you can get alignment

Thanks Rob, everything helps in trying solve these mysteries from the past…My plan at this point, is loosen up all the fixed engine/tranny mounts and lever and or jack the prime mover forward, untill the appropriate hardware can find its home.

I had to do that with an aftermarket torque arm, but I found the genuine article already had the needed bend built in.

I wonder if someone along the line shoved the engine back an inch to change the water pump then left it that way?

I hadn’t thought about the water pump theory. That’s the only thing that makes sense so far. I’ve got all the mounts loose and now I just need to get along enough lever try to move everything forward a bit…

I was able to move the engine and gearbox foward just enough to get the new forward rubber mounts and new torque arm rubber mount lined up. The new challenge is to get enough clearance to get the new gearbox mounts installed. Then I was thinking I would establish the centerline with a string, and get everything as centered up as possible before torquing the whole works down tight.

yup mine had to bent also