Just installed the Stillen dampener today. It was a pretty tight fit trying to get things aligned and in place with the limited space and all the hoses. Took me about 3 hours going at a slow pace including a trip to buy an 8mm hex wrench. No modification to the bracket was necessary as some have reported.

Yes it was probably a more difficult install compared to other dampeners, but I think Stillen made a good choice on the overall install, especially the bracket locations and resulting angle of the dampener, both very well thought out and effective. I definitely noticed smoother shifting after the install, and the problem I had with my cats rubbing on the underbody while in reverse went away. Overall I'm happy with it and would do this mod again for sure.

 

copbait, did you notice any additional vibrations transmitted to the cabin after the damper intallation? Thanks.

 

Copbait........I considered a dampner to provide more torque to the wheels as you hit WOT.........but read in other threads the stock motor mounts were good enough and this mod would not provide much of an improvement........did you feel this mod provided smoother shifting because it augmented the motor mounts and does it feel stronger? how much and where did you buy? Can you snap a few pictures? Thanks

 

There may be some very small vibrations that were not there before, but they are pretty hard to detect unless you are listening for it so I'm not really sure. Basically a non-factor for me.

I know that my engine was moving/twisting around quite a bit, and I believe that to be because of the softer mounts used on these cars. The fact that my shifting is smoother and my cat rubbing problem is gone it is pretty clear that the dampener was an effective mod for my car.

BTW my hi-flo cats have about 1/4" of space between them and the underbody so things were twisting enough to close that gap and then some. I think most people claiming this engine does not twist or move around are merely guessing or think they can tell just by looking at the engine on a dyno, while I'm sitting here with two issues that were solved by simply stiffening things up.

I will snap a few pics today and get them up...

 

Here are a few pics. As you can see it's hard to get a decent pic of the whole thing because of all the lines and hoses in that area, which of course also makes the install more difficult, but anyway...

Pic of the top bracket and adjustable end of the dampener:



Pic from above:



Pic showing the bottom bracket and non-adjustable end of the dampener:



The hardest part of the install was trying to get the hex key down into that cubbyhole to tighten the bottom horizontal dampener bolt. Also took me a bit to figure out what the instructions were talking about on mounting the top bracket, because the pics they send really suck. That first pic I took makes it pretty clear what you need to do though

 

thanks copbait..............good pics.........does ur butt dyno notice any improved torque at the low end?

 

I just put mine in yesterday as well. What a PITA. My big fat fingers do not work well in that confined area. Best thing I did was remove the coolant overflow resevoir from it's bracket and put it aside while I worked down there. Still difficult.

Worth it, though, I think. Everything seems a bit smoother.

Dave

 

I don't know if I can really tell a difference in torque, I'm hoping it helps a little in that area, but just the improved shifting and stability definitely makes this a worthwhile mod for me

 

How much $??

 

Well....let's see....

Stillen is a site sponsor, so....there at the top of the main page is a direct link to their website...

and amazing as it may seem.....bam.

It says $129.95. So that would be my guess.

(sorry for the smartazz answer...I'm PMS'n)

 

Would this damper provide any benefit for a 5AT?

 

I should have mine installed by the end of the week. I'll let you know.

 

Thanks, I look forward to reading your review. Take care.

 

The benefits of the dampner could possibly be substituted by brake torquing the motor. 5-60 runs may be better with the dampner. I would think it benefits the MT much more.

 

sixfive,

curious as to how you ran 14.2 with the list of mods you have in a sedan. i have ztube/pop charger, 3/8'' plenum spacer, Y pipe, 'grounding kit' (as if it makes any diff) and doubt I can run that in my coupe (although ive never ran on track and have yet to get the car to 100mph for 1/4 mile on my 'Gtech (o ya so accurate!)). I am trying to get into the 13s staying NA and ur pretty close....