Engine Damper

[tollboothwilley]

Where does the engine damper connect?

PROBLEM with install: missing bracket.
Modified by tollboothwilley at 11:55 AM 12/21/2008

[4drmadness]

http://www.stillen.com/product...t.pdf

these are the instructions from stillen. some pics as well. did u buy the brake mc as well? gl with the install.

[pae9132]

there are different connecting points depending on what brand it is....do a search on the brand of engine damper for instructions...good luck!

[tollboothwilley]

Its the STILLEN

so, here's my problem

you know the brackets underneath the power steering reservoir that part of it mounts to? I DO NOT HAVE THIS BRACKET. WTF??

Where the bracket should be are 3 holes (well, there are actually 4) The one in the middle is threaded but the other 3 are not. Also, because the factory brackets are non-existant the bracket for the STILLEN damper doesn't sit flush...

HELP.

Looks like i either need factory brackets (if they connect up) or else I will have to weld something in. I don't have the equipment to weld, so I really don't want to do that.

[pae9132]

damn...i am seriously sorry to hear that...the only thing i could think of is to try finding it at a dealership...it might have it's own part #....good luck!

[tollboothwilley]

Ya, I'm hoping that the brackets alone will fix the issue...

And I'm hoping that the brackets are available

[JeromeS13]

I just snapped some pictures of mine. I remember that it was an EXTREMELY tight working space, but it was pretty straight forward. All of those holes should be threaded.

Hope this helps.

-Jerome

[tollboothwilley]

I know how tight the working space is. I was down there. Only 1 of the holes was threaded. The 2 bigger holes were much larger than the provided bolt and were NOT threaded. Thats the problem. I think that the bracket must be there in order for the bolts to thread through.

[JeromeS13]

On mine, the bolts thread straight into the frame.

-Jerome

[Tampa G35 Sedan 6MT]

what does an engine damper do?

DJ

[JeromeS13]

Straight from Stillen's website:

"When an engine moves excessively in its mounts, energy is wasted. Stillen's engine stabilizer converts this wasted motion into forward momentum. An isolastic mount acts as a shock absorber and dampens unwanted motion. With no hydraulic parts to wear or fade in use, this is a long term solution. Easy mounting uses existing holes and complete instructions are provided."

-Jerome

[smockers83]

In other words, it basically keeps the engine in place so that it's not moving around in the engine bay. When the engine is moving around, it's wasting power, so the damper converts the wasted energy into usable energy by keeping the engine in place, therefore more torque/power going to the wheels.

[4drmadness]

did u but the bracket yet?

[tollboothwilley]

i dunno if its possible to buy the bracket

i called stillen and they said that not all sedans are compatible, WTF? it says nothing about that on their website.

[4drmadness]

yea i did it my self. if the bolts dont thread right onto the frame, then u might have a problem. i had the wholes on there already. if it doesnt workout just return it to them, and get the weapon R Damper

[tollboothwilley]

I'm probably gonna have to sell it...

only one of the 3 holes is threaded

was there no "bracket" existing that is removable? Did you have to remove bolts from that location?

[4drmadness]

there was no bracket there, the stillen damper just came with one, also there was no bolts that you had to move. wont stillen take it back?

[tollboothwilley]

i didnt buy it directly through Stillen, so no...

[tollboothwilley]

I'm going to see if there is a way I can attach it through the holes using a nut on the back side at all. It looks like I am going to need some washers to keep the bracket mounted firmly down as well...

what a PITA

[4drmadness]

hmm i guess the engine damper doesnot fit the 03. thts so weird

[tollboothwilley]

its not that it doesnt fit 2003's

it just doesnt fit MINE

they just recently were made "aware" of this issue and thats why its not listed on their website they tell me

I'll find a way to make it work, I just know that its going to require a LOT MORE work than anybody else had to do.

[4drmadness]

yea i think you should be able to find out a way. just donate a couple hours on a sunny day with some pizza and beer and you should be fine.

[tollboothwilley]

I'm in salt lake city...

I dont think I'll find another "sunny" day thats warm enough to work on cars outside for 4-5 months. haha

I'll just pull it into the garage on a day that I'm not melting snow all over and figure it out. Probably will end up drilling a hole through the frame so I can attach a nut to the bottom of the bolts...

[4drmadness]

yea dude. that shouldnt be too bad.

[JeromeS13]

I don't think you'll have easy access to the bottom portion of that frame rail. You might be able to drill and tap that hole. But, I'm not sure how strong that is going to be...

[pae9132]

you got any junk yards around? i know it's an infiniti but it is an 03 now...my 03 sedan had it luckily...but i also paid someone to do the install...just wanted to make sure it was correct...but yeah...since it's an 03 you might have some luck at a wreckage yard....worth a shot...

[tollboothwilley]

The thought of replacing the frame rail would require way too much work.

The bottom of the frame rail is the where the front sway bar brace bolts up. I'm going to drill in through the side of the frame and leave enough space to get a wrench in there to hold a nut. It will probably take some effort and I'm sure I'll get pissed off in the process. haha

I'll take pics of my install through the process so you can see what I end up working out.

[BrandAidDesignG35]

Wow~

Unfortunate you're having such difficulty... even me, who will run to the tech with the slightest hiccup was able to install my damper with ease...

Real shame.... I bought mine on ebay, where did you purchase yours? They should be able either replace the part, or refund/exchange their faulty product... unless you're having specific problems because it's an 03.

Good luck, sorry to hear man, I too hate the recent weather, can't get anything done on the G. But I pride myself in the fact that my car is super clean this time of year... I don't even take her out if it's nasty.

[tollboothwilley]

Seriously!

We've had so much snow in the past few weeks here that the garage floor is horribly wet and the wheel wells are always covered in snow. I haven't driven my car in over a week. Its just resting..

[BrandAidDesignG35]

I don't have a garage so I just keep it clean of snow as best I can... As soon as the roads are dry, I take her for a good rip.

It's amazing how nice the modded VQ35DE engine sounds compared to the slightly tuned KA24DE Altima...

Like a beautiful reunion each time I take the wheel... but yeah, watching it "rest" in the snow is really unsettling... Would anyone recommend a car cover? Those things scare me too.

Hey John, Any proggress on the damper? It's a really sweet mod, you'll love it.

You can feel the engine communicate with you through the pedal, steering wheel, etc... and it has better pickup in lower rpm. A must have mod. keep us posted.