Fitted an Engine Torque Damper to my Ep3 tonite

[traffman]

Just sharing my thought's.

The benefits of not having one outweigh the benefits of having one. It seem's to tighten / dampen engine movement and smooth out wheel hop.

But....it feel's harsher and i am worried in the long term that it will harm other components due to the harsher nature .

So least i tried it , however its coming off and going back in the box. I prefer the smoothness of the standard setup. Old age is creeping up on me.

[integra1799]

I never went for one of those for my DC5 however i had the engine mount inserts fitted except for the gearbox mount. That stiffens it up and you do get a few vibrations initially until they bed in.

[traffman]

UPDATE!

After giving the torque damper another chance , i left it fitted. i feel i needed to adjust to the difference. The cars noticeably smoother through the gearchanges.

There is some vibration , however not enough to warrant a proper moan. Yet to try the wheelspin and witness any tramping of the wheels.

I must admit now to the car feeling altogether a bit more "tight" .

So it stays. I just need to sort the rattle , my fault , i took out the jam nut as the clearance with it was only a couple of mil. I will purchase/source a thinner hex nut to fit , hopefully eradicating the minor rattle.

I have heard engine mounts are a good option . I am sort of experimenting with various things and i may go that route one day. One thing is i cannot fit a strut bar without it fouling the bracket for the torque damper because the strut top is used to fit the etd bracket.

[MyVTECGoesBwaaah]

Tegiwa do a front strut with a torque damper mount, you can see the extra bit on the left side

https://www.tegiwaimports.com/tegiwa-front-strut-b...

It is a replica of the Js Racing one which also has it but is £90 dearer, mad JDM scene points though

http://www.sumopower.com/product/tb-p3-f

[krismccloy]

Thanks for sharing your experience, I fitted a J's Racing ETD to my EK4 and it felt good, I fitted a J's racing one to my 98 Spec DC2 and it made it sound like the bottom end had a knock/rattle, I was genuinely worried at first, I removed it and upgraded the engine mounts in the end.

I have the 3 Poly inserts in my EP3 and they have definitely made positive difference albeit with considerably higher NVH levels.

[traffman]

Many postive comments have been heard about the engine mounts. I was just going the easier to install route , initially. Like ive mentioned i seem to have fitted it okay , albeit theres a small rattle , i am still going to install a jam nut . The etd will stay on my car in the meantime. Next mod will be a lsd. I believe the best and most noticeable improvement to the Ep3.

[krismccloy]

traffman said:

Many postive comments have been heard about the engine mounts. I was just going the easier to install route , initially. Like ive mentioned i seem to have fitted it okay , albeit theres a small rattle , i am still going to install a jam nut . The etd will stay on my car in the meantime. Next mod will be a lsd. I believe the best and most noticeable improvement to the Ep3.

I can confirm that the Wavetrac LSD I have installed has transformed the car in my pursuit for steering feel and traction, Something the UKDM EP3 definitely lacks from factory. A new SHG steering slider and +2 degrees caster from the superpro caster bushes have made it a much better steer with what feels like a very active steering wheel compared to before.

[100hp]

Hi, why did you chose the wavetrac lsd over the others?

[traffman]

krismccloy said:

traffman said:

Many postive comments have been heard about the engine mounts. I was just going the easier to install route , initially. Like ive mentioned i seem to have fitted it okay , albeit theres a small rattle , i am still going to install a jam nut . The etd will stay on my car in the meantime. Next mod will be a lsd. I believe the best and most noticeable improvement to the Ep3.

I can confirm that the Wavetrac LSD I have installed has transformed the car in my pursuit for steering feel and traction, Something the UKDM EP3 definitely lacks from factory. A new SHG steering slider and +2 degrees caster from the superpro caster bushes have made it a much better steer with what feels like a very active steering wheel compared to before.[/quote

After taking leaf out of your book , i have ordered the Superpro bushes from Area Motorsport. I will book my car into Progrip and have them fitted along with camber correction/wheel alignment aswell.

I will purchase a lsd eventually aswell. In the meantime i will just purchase bits here and there.

Cheers P.

[krismccloy]

100hp said:

Hi, why did you chose the wavetrac lsd over the others?

I use my car on track and with a Wavetrac, When both wheels will always be powered even if one of the front wheels gets light or lifts off the ground completely (A traditional helical would only send power to one wheel at this point), Like a plated diff in that sense, But it has the maintenance free attribute of a traditional helical.

It turns in that well now you feel yourself actually steering away from a public apex, Will test it on track this month at Cadwell.

[krismccloy]

traffman said:

I can confirm that the Wavetrac LSD I have installed has transformed the car in my pursuit for steering feel and traction, Something the UKDM EP3 definitely lacks from factory. A new SHG steering slider and +2 degrees caster from the superpro caster bushes have made it a much better steer with what feels like a very active steering wheel compared to before.[/quote

After taking leaf out of your book , i have ordered the Superpro bushes from Area Motorsport. I will book my car into Progrip and have them fitted along with camber correction/wheel alignment aswell.

I will purchase a lsd eventually aswell. In the meantime i will just purchase bits here and there.

Cheers P.

Caster bushes definitely improves self centering of the front wheels, You won't be disappointed with them a good setup. Try get some negative camber on the front maybe 1-1.5 degrees if it's a road car. It gets expensive rather quickly, After fully refreshing front ball joints, bushes and suspension my car still has a knock which I've traced to the rack, It's going to need a refurbed one of those at some point too.

[traffman]

Removed the Etd , fitted the strut brace , also having the Superpro bushes installed by Automek on the 8th May along with the Ap Brake conversion.

[chrismc1977]

Never felt tempted with my DC2

Engine mount inserts do the same job & settle in after a short while to only give negligible gains in NVH

In something like a DC2 the pro's far outweigh the cons for me...should have been fitted from the factory!

[Butter Face]

How you getting on with the ETD traffman?

Just fitted one to my car and I'm not sure if it's just psychological but it feels 'tighter' if you know what I mean?

[Mccoy420]

traffman said:

UPDATE!

After giving the torque damper another chance , i left it fitted. i feel i needed to adjust to the difference. The cars noticeably smoother through the gearchanges.

There is some vibration , however not enough to warrant a proper moan. Yet to try the wheelspin and witness any tramping of the wheels.

I must admit now to the car feeling altogether a bit more "tight" .

So it stays. I just need to sort the rattle , my fault , i took out the jam nut as the clearance with it was only a couple of mil. I will purchase/source a thinner hex nut to fit , hopefully eradicating the minor rattle.

I have heard engine mounts are a good option . I am sort of experimenting with various things and i may go that route one day. One thing is i cannot fit a strut bar without it fouling the bracket for the torque damper because the strut top is used to fit the etd bracket.

I am currently having the exact same problem, fitted the damper to eliminate wheel hop, dont mind the vibrations too much they can be annoying pulling off, but i seem to be getting a rattle aswell pulling through gears that wasnt there before fitting. So im guessing its the damper causing the small rattle, tempted to take it off again as its doing my head in