Can't answer the question on the MS6's but the MS3 doesn't have a factory strut tower brace and it really doesn't need it either.
HOW TO: MS3 Engine Torque Damper Install
- Thread starter Captain KRM P5
- Start date
Can't answer the question on the MS6's but the MS3 doesn't have a factory strut tower brace and it really doesn't need it either.
to say the least.
sunday morning i had my first cold start and had forgotten about the ETD. the car idles high when cold and i thought 'omg wtf is going on?!?!' then i laughed.
when i let the clutch out in first gear i can hear EVERYTHING. lol
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- 2002 BJFW, 2007 BK3P, 1979 SA22C, 2005 BK3P
i don't think it will mate to the engine mount on a speed6
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- 2002 BJFW, 2007 BK3P, 1979 SA22C, 2005 BK3P
vibes and noise from the damper alone are minimal
ZoomZoomPSSH
Member
Etd Thoughts
First off I would like to thank Ken for the great how to.
Now, I'd like to put in my 2 cents.
Overall install was more of a pain than expected. Engine of course as Ken stated needs to be supported well. Block of wood on the oil pan should be enough. To be safe a friend and I threw another an extra jack under there too. The engine mount nuts were on really tight. The engine sagged a little and just like Ken the stock mount studs came out by hand. I'm assuming it was due to the engine sagging. We jacked the engine up until everything was lined up then we got the bracket in. Things are a little tight and I had to move some lines to the side temporarily. Then came the headache. We thought ok the hard part is over. We removed the bolts from the strut tower and the damn thing shifted under. We kept messing with it and it would not budge. Finally, we took out the wheel and I pulled on the damn spring, of course without messing anything up and it finally lined up. When time came for the final bolt to be put in, my friend ended up stripping the damn thread on the inside. Now we made a trip to autozone, of course in his car not mine. Luckily there is one by my house and we had to rethread the damn thing. Finally we got the final bolt on the strut tower to go in. Install the damper was fairly easy at the end. We then took it for a test drive.
Thoughts:
OMG it suprised me how much of a difference this piece made. No vibes. Engine noise some people complain about is minimal under normal driving. When you drive it hard it sounds loud, in a good way! (ricer)
Makes your engine sound like it's coming to life. No more wheel hop and shifting is so much smoother. Traction gain is AMAZING. Under normal driving engine lash is basically eliminated and under hard driving it's improved alot.
DEFINATELY WORTH THE MONEY
First off I would like to thank Ken for the great how to.
Now, I'd like to put in my 2 cents.
Overall install was more of a pain than expected. Engine of course as Ken stated needs to be supported well. Block of wood on the oil pan should be enough. To be safe a friend and I threw another an extra jack under there too. The engine mount nuts were on really tight. The engine sagged a little and just like Ken the stock mount studs came out by hand. I'm assuming it was due to the engine sagging. We jacked the engine up until everything was lined up then we got the bracket in. Things are a little tight and I had to move some lines to the side temporarily. Then came the headache. We thought ok the hard part is over. We removed the bolts from the strut tower and the damn thing shifted under. We kept messing with it and it would not budge. Finally, we took out the wheel and I pulled on the damn spring, of course without messing anything up and it finally lined up. When time came for the final bolt to be put in, my friend ended up stripping the damn thread on the inside. Now we made a trip to autozone, of course in his car not mine. Luckily there is one by my house and we had to rethread the damn thing. Finally we got the final bolt on the strut tower to go in. Install the damper was fairly easy at the end. We then took it for a test drive.
Thoughts:
OMG it suprised me how much of a difference this piece made. No vibes. Engine noise some people complain about is minimal under normal driving. When you drive it hard it sounds loud, in a good way! (ricer)
Makes your engine sound like it's coming to life. No more wheel hop and shifting is so much smoother. Traction gain is AMAZING. Under normal driving engine lash is basically eliminated and under hard driving it's improved alot.
DEFINATELY WORTH THE MONEY
ZoomZoomPSSH
Member
your damper may be making contact with the ac line. mine is very close to it but it has enough clearance. just to make sure u have the mazda3mods damper right?
mine is absolutely fine under normal driving. minimal increase in cabin noise. u can hear the belts cranking and the injecters working. its very minimal and have no problems when im on my hands free phone. under wot its more pronounced. but in a good way. friend asked me, "when did you put in exhaust?" lol. nothing too too bad. personally i like it under wot.
recheck your clearance between the damper, brackets and ac lines. that may be making your noise as excessive as you say it is.
either way like i said the benefits are +++!
considering i was the first to post a review of the m3m damper (topic=142532.0 on "that other forum"), yes, i am quite certain i have a m3m damper.
considering i was also the first to mention clearance of the AC line, and moved the AC line to prevent contact, I am quite certain it is not making contact with the AC line. if it touches the AC line, it rattles like **** and you will know it immediately.
i guess some people have different opinions of loud. a lot of people won't like the noise, other people (like you, i guess) enjoy it. some noise under normal driving and FUCKLOAD under WOT -- sounds like the inside of a rally car LOL.
that said, there is virtually no vibration. me? i'd take some vibes as a tradeoff for the noise.
with the m3m etd, your strut tower is now basically directly connected to your engine, which is a structure right up against the cabin. noise? you betcha. you can't defy physics. sorry.
yes it is a massive performance upgrade, wish it wasnt so loud.
oh yeah, the increased traction you get from the etd also means increased torquesteer....
worth the money? yes. just dont buy one expecting a 'minimal increase in cabin noise'.
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- 2007 Mazdaspeed 6 Sport
Sounds fantastic. I wish they made an adapter to use it on the Speed6... I've emailed them about the possibility, but haven't gotten a response.
ZoomZoomPSSH
Member
considering i was the first to post a review of the m3m damper (topic=142532.0 on "that other forum"), yes, i am quite certain i have a m3m damper.
considering i was also the first to mention clearance of the AC line, and moved the AC line to prevent contact, I am quite certain it is not making contact with the AC line. if it touches the AC line, it rattles like **** and you will know it immediately.
i guess some people have different opinions of loud. a lot of people won't like the noise, other people (like you, i guess) enjoy it. some noise under normal driving and FUCKLOAD under WOT -- sounds like the inside of a rally car LOL.
that said, there is virtually no vibration. me? i'd take some vibes as a tradeoff for the noise.
with the m3m etd, your strut tower is now basically directly connected to your engine, which is a structure right up against the cabin. noise? you betcha. you can't defy physics. sorry.
yes it is a massive performance upgrade, wish it wasnt so loud.
oh yeah, the increased traction you get from the etd also means increased torquesteer....
worth the money? yes. just dont buy one expecting a 'minimal increase in cabin noise'.
not trying to call you a liar buddy. just trying to help out b/c you seemed really frustrated about the noise. of course one cant defy physics. i am not saying there was no increase in noise. i know that the strut tower is what is bracing the engine basically and therefore will transmit noise inside the cabin. i guess how you put it, it boils down to one's personal tolerance. personally, at least in my set up, the cai is louder than the noise transmitted from the damper, under normal driving of course. but yet, even under wot i dont see how you wouldnt be able to talk handsfree. again im saying that based on my set up. i've never been in ur car so im not calling u a liar or anything. when i drive my gf around she noticed little difference in noise. u know women are picky so apparantly it wasnt enough to bug her. then i hit the gas. now she noticed the difference (evil)
as far as the torque steer...yea i kinda learned that the hard way lol...took off a lil too hard one time after just installing the damper and damn thing caught me by suprise...
maybe some nylon/rubber washers inbetween the strut tower and the tower bracket could cut back on some of the noise? dunno worth a shot...
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- 2002 BJFW, 2007 BK3P, 1979 SA22C, 2005 BK3P
its fine alone
This ETD seems a ton easier to install than the weapon-R one. i got the WR one from PG and had to do quite a bit of custom stuff to get it on right. had to grind a corner off the tower brace, add some washers next to the eye bolt on the etd at the engine mount, and had to relocate my a/c line bracket off the power steering brace (cut off a section of pipe hanging strip for that one lol). if anyone's interested in pics on what i did, let me know, i'll post them up (i guess on a WR etd write-up/tips maybe)
migueleitor
Member
Yes, can you post the picture?
How is the noise inside?
what is the dif between the ETD and WRD?
Thank you.
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- 2002 BJFW, 2007 BK3P, 1979 SA22C, 2005 BK3P
it is listed on our website
cool thx. looking thr now.
