SV6GUY
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- MANUAL VE SV6 S2
Hey all,
Thought i'd post a review on a set of insulators i bought for my VE SV6 sidi. Initially the plan was to go 25mm but unfortunately the engine won't clear the bonnet
At first i was quite skeptical but at $150 and plenty of good reviews i thought why not. My car is also bone stock in terms of performance.
Installation
Installation was very straightforward it was simply a matter of pulling all the oil lines off, pulling the intake pipe off the throttle body and unbolting the manifold. Supplied with the insulators was a detailed set of visualized instructions that with the right tools anyone can install it. Took about 1 hour to install and an hour to let the gasket sealer cure.
Points that i should mentioned when installing
- 6 bolts hold the manifold down, one bolt at the very back can be accessed easily if the windshield shroud is unclipped and pulled up. About 5 clips hold it in
- I cut part of the shroud to ensure it didn't rub against the top of the engine, about 5 mm and hardly noticeable (optional)
- the engine cover will not go back on, useless garbage imo anyway
Steve who supplied me the insulators was very confident in his product. I called him with the few troubles i had he took the time to make sure i had the right advice and was very supportive.
Performance
As soon as i put my car in first gear it felt different, feeling lighter would be the best way to describe it. Power comes on a lot earlier and pulls from about 1600-1650 rpm rather than 1900-2000 rpm irrespective of the gear i'm in.
After a few days of driving softly i finally gave it some poke and wow! i noticed it pulled earlier in the rev band and has a slightly deeper tone from the engine. Turning into the street for work up a slight hill i put my foot down and to my surprise it chirped all the way up to 6k in first gear. After about 100kms the insulators really started to work, giving the car more power through low-mid range power. Around bends using a higher gear she'll happily pull smoothly through corners.
The greatest benefit; however, would be to daily driver. Through the back streets and around speed humps i don't ever have to leave third gear and the car will happily pull from 1100rpm without sounding like it's labouring. Now i can just sail through the speedhumps next to my house without going 2nd-3rd-2nd-ect. Up a hill in 5th it'll hold 60km/h comfortably and same goes with 80km/h in 6th; whereas, pre-insulators i had to use 4th and 5th respectively to let it rev higher where the torque was.
Hot days the car runs not nearly as bad as it used to. Feeling the manifold i did notice an improvement in heat but i wouldn't say anything drastic (i had high expectations). The manifold used to get very hot but now it's a nice comfortable warmth. I have yet to put it through extreme 36+ degree heat yet.
tl;dr
Awesome mod that works extremely well, 12mm will fit the LLT and installation is very straightforward. Gains are noticeable straightaway and get better as the cars computer relearns.
Kudos to Steve and Mace,
EDIT: I'd also like to add that a peddars/whiteline strut tower brace will still clear the engine with a 12mm insulator with about 5mm of room to spare
Thought i'd post a review on a set of insulators i bought for my VE SV6 sidi. Initially the plan was to go 25mm but unfortunately the engine won't clear the bonnet
At first i was quite skeptical but at $150 and plenty of good reviews i thought why not. My car is also bone stock in terms of performance.
Installation
Installation was very straightforward it was simply a matter of pulling all the oil lines off, pulling the intake pipe off the throttle body and unbolting the manifold. Supplied with the insulators was a detailed set of visualized instructions that with the right tools anyone can install it. Took about 1 hour to install and an hour to let the gasket sealer cure.
Points that i should mentioned when installing
- 6 bolts hold the manifold down, one bolt at the very back can be accessed easily if the windshield shroud is unclipped and pulled up. About 5 clips hold it in
- I cut part of the shroud to ensure it didn't rub against the top of the engine, about 5 mm and hardly noticeable (optional)
- the engine cover will not go back on, useless garbage imo anyway
Steve who supplied me the insulators was very confident in his product. I called him with the few troubles i had he took the time to make sure i had the right advice and was very supportive.
Performance
As soon as i put my car in first gear it felt different, feeling lighter would be the best way to describe it. Power comes on a lot earlier and pulls from about 1600-1650 rpm rather than 1900-2000 rpm irrespective of the gear i'm in.
After a few days of driving softly i finally gave it some poke and wow! i noticed it pulled earlier in the rev band and has a slightly deeper tone from the engine. Turning into the street for work up a slight hill i put my foot down and to my surprise it chirped all the way up to 6k in first gear. After about 100kms the insulators really started to work, giving the car more power through low-mid range power. Around bends using a higher gear she'll happily pull smoothly through corners.
The greatest benefit; however, would be to daily driver. Through the back streets and around speed humps i don't ever have to leave third gear and the car will happily pull from 1100rpm without sounding like it's labouring. Now i can just sail through the speedhumps next to my house without going 2nd-3rd-2nd-ect. Up a hill in 5th it'll hold 60km/h comfortably and same goes with 80km/h in 6th; whereas, pre-insulators i had to use 4th and 5th respectively to let it rev higher where the torque was.
Hot days the car runs not nearly as bad as it used to. Feeling the manifold i did notice an improvement in heat but i wouldn't say anything drastic (i had high expectations). The manifold used to get very hot but now it's a nice comfortable warmth. I have yet to put it through extreme 36+ degree heat yet.
tl;dr
Awesome mod that works extremely well, 12mm will fit the LLT and installation is very straightforward. Gains are noticeable straightaway and get better as the cars computer relearns.
Kudos to Steve and Mace,
EDIT: I'd also like to add that a peddars/whiteline strut tower brace will still clear the engine with a 12mm insulator with about 5mm of room to spare
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