2013 2.5L Engine Groan

[mvftw]

68k Miles. Engine has a groan for many years. Took it as normal for this car. No issues with car. Groan is getting a little worse, but not terrible. My Googling seems to suspect the right side mounts. P/S seems quiet. When I put engine in gear, I see the Torque mount move from side to side. I do Not see any cracks. I raised the engine a little and did not seem to change the groan. Is this normal or should I replace both right side mounts?

[VStar650CL]

Generally about 1/4" of rocking under load is normal, anything more than that means one or more mounts are shot. It's common for those dog-bone mounts to look okay but have a lot of movement, but first make sure it isn't the lower torque mount or one of the other mounts stretching it out. You'll need an assistant to check where the movement is, have them change gear repeatedly D->R->D->R and tap the gas after each change. That will put a rotational load on the mounts and make anything loose very visible. See EM-83 here for the mount layout:
https://www.nicoclub.com/service-manual ... 3%2FEM.pdf

Note that the QR25 only has a 2-point cradle, nose and transmission, with upper and lower torque mounts to keep it from rotating. That means either torque mount can cause excessive rotation and stretch the other to its limits. If you look carefully while testing, worn nose or trans mounts will usually cause front-to-back movement along with rotating.

[mvftw]

I should say that the groan is start up, at idle. I'm thinking that a little 2.5l groan is normal...lol

[VStar650CL]

There are a lot of things on a gen5 that can make noise, most of them in the exhaust system and mostly just nuisances. Maybe you can post a vid or recording so we can hear it?

[Smagegy]

There are a lot of things on a gen5 that can make noise, most of them in the exhaust system and mostly just nuisances. Maybe you can post a vid or recording so we can hear it?

Good idea... you can use a phone app like 'Voice Recorder' -- picks up the slightest noise.