Method of manufacturing fluid-filled elastic mount having pressure-receiving and equilibrium chambers

A method of manufacturing a fluid-filled elastic mount which includes an elastic body flexibly connecting an inner and an outer sleeve which are radially spaced apart from each other, means for defining a pressure-receiving chamber and a variable-volume equilibrium chamber which are formed between the inner and outer sleeves and which are filled with a non-compressible fluid, and means for defining an orifice for fluid connection between the pressure-receiving and equilibrium chambers, said equilibrium chamber being at least partially defined by a flexible diaphragm, comprising the steps of:

• preparing an inner unit including said inner sleeve and an intermediate sleeve disposed radially outwardly of the inner sleeve, such that said inner and intermediate sleeves are flexibly connected to each other by said elastic body formed therebetween, and such that a pocket is formed in said elastic body such that said pocket is open on an outer circumferential surface of said inner unit through said intermediate sleeve and such that an axial dimension of said pocket in an axial direction of the elastic mount is defined by opposite side walls of the elastic body which are opposed to each other in said axial direction;
• placing said inner unit within a mass of said non-compressible fluid, and press-fitting said outer sleeve on said inner unit so as to fill said pocket with said fluid and fluid-tightly close said pocket for thereby providing said pressure-receiving chamber, while applying an axial force to at least one of said opposite side walls of said elastic body in said axial direction, to thereby cause elastic deformation of said at least one side wall so as to expand into said pocket;
• and
• removing said axial force from said at least one side wall, to permit said at least one side wall to elastically deform so as to increase a volume of said pressure-receiving chamber, thereby reducing a volume of said equilibrium chamber.