I'm installing my engine torque brace (finally), but there's something in the way.. what is this thing, and can I unscrew the bracket and move the whole thing down (letting it flop around)?

 

nevermind... found a pic of another car with the brace and he just bent it down... duhh.

http://gt3540.com/pics/dyno/ryan_motor2.JPG
(nice car, ryan)

 

hehe, got to love the duct tape! on a more serious note that car is nice, if the owner is on this, what all has been done/ gotten rid of?
Thanks

 

what's the purpose of a torque brace?

 

It reduces engine torqueing under hard driving. In other words it helps deliver more power to the wheels because less is used up by the engine flexing and it also said to fix the misallignment that leads to missing 3rd gear.

 

are you planning to put any write up on your website?

 

It look like some kind of sensor wire or something for the hood, possibly airbag? anyone know?

 

How hard is it to install a torque brace? I am thinking about getting one. What all is involved in the install.

 

air bag plug.

 

well, I can tell you first hand, it's pretty easy. You need to get a 12mm wrench... I was thinking that I could do it with a socket, or some channel locks, but nope - the wrench was necessary (I got a set from Sears for $25). You have to remove the engine hoist mount (I think that's what it is) from the UIM and replace it with the torque brace mount, then screw the other side of the mount into the fender (there are threaded holes there from the factory - who knows what for)... the brace itself goes in between the two and it's just a matter of getting the right length (which isn't difficult).

impressions -
the good: oh man, it makes the car feel SO much more solid... a bigger difference even than a strut bar as far as overall feel goes. shifts are super crisp and there's a good feel of what the engine is doing through the steering wheel.

the bad: the bar resonates at idle and makes a horrible vibrating sound - very annoying. I'm thinking that if I load up the brace a little bit, this may go away, I'll try it next time I drive the car. Outside of that, there's very little bad. You can deffinitely feel more vibration through the wheel, but it's not much more & easily tollerable.

 

I made one just like Ryans. In fact he supplied the home depot l bracket. Mine only vibrates bad with the A.C. running. I thought perhaps two rubber grommets between the l bracket and the fender would clear this up. I haven't done it yet. I tore up the trans thursday night! It's ok though, my baby is under warranty and will be home by thursday.

twstd

 

Agreed. At real-idle (750 rpm) it's perfectly smooth, but if the lights are on, or fans on above 3, bumping the rpms up to 850-900, the car feels like it's grinding the hell out of itself with all the shaking and noise it makes. I've tried pre-loading the brace, but it didn't help at all.

Speaking of pre-loading, which direction is "better" and for what reasons? I tried to get it as close to center as possible just to be safe, but it's hard to tell. Any input?
~Tom

 

Overall though, wouldn't you say it's worth it? It even feels different when you start the car. Anyone have one of those with the shock absorber built into it? I wonder if they work as well and if so, do they have the vibration trouble we seem to have?

twstd

 

Thats what I did from the start and no vibrations what-so-ever!

 

I have the big rubber pads installed, maybe it's just overtightened, but it still vibrates a lot. With the hood popped, i see everything shaking EXCEPT the engine

But i'd still say it was a good investment overall.
~Tom

 

yeah, see, that's the thing, I always have the fans on 3 or the lights on (makes the radiator fans turn on sooner), so it really kinda sucks... it's almost embarrasing sitting a stop light with all that racket coming from under the hood... and I have rubber pading between the fender and mount & it doesn't help at all... I'd bet that the noise comes from joint on the mount(s).

hmmm... I'd really like to keep this thing (it does feel great), but I probably won't if I can't get that noise gone.

 

Brian if you dont end up keeping it I will take it off your hands, I am looking for one right now.

 

Try adjusting the idle to "tune out" the vibrations. That's what i'm gonna do when i get a chance. I'm also going to try loosening the bolts on the fender. Any insight into which direction of pre-loading is best?
~Tom