80 Duro Trilogy Installed

[breakfstincluded]

Installation Notes:

RMM: A snap, NATORNW team did it for me. Not having the easiest time re-checking torque on the long bolt and nut alone with my 120lb 5'5" body though.

TMM: Would have been the easiest if I used the scissor jack like recommended under instructions instead of a floor jack which gave me leveling issues. No fuss or elbow grease even with a 25" breaker bar. Had to go buy extensions to fit my 1/2" torque wrench to get in there that I did not have beforehand.

PMM: Easiest, I used some archaic needle nose pliers to bend the ground wire though, and had to bend it more to avoid other hosing after putting it in place. Had to very slightly play with my Floor Jack + Phone Book to get oem and jbr PMM in/out of place. A flat head with a shop rag folded around it twice worked very well in moving the JBR PMM into place + maintaining the 3/16th" gap without marking anything.

Impressions:

1. 80RMM: Most dramatic change in NVH, of course however, I also did it first. Engine more connected, but what I noticed the most was vibration around my crotch and thighs. As people says it feels less like your engine is cartoonishly keeping up with the rest of the car on acceleration. I thought it created some windshield rattle, but if it did... 1000 miles later it's not there anymore.

2. 80TMM: Mickey Mouse is whistling inside my engine bay like he does on the steam boat. Much racecar, I started driving like when I drove a car with a BOV for the first time. It sounds awesome, kinda reminds of a Prius on regenerative braking also, except it gets louder, not quieter. Tranny feels very connected now, and I feel much less disadvantaged when shifting. The feedback really helps.

With JBR STS + Bushings + Knob + Fomoco Oil, shifting is now like this...





3. 80PMM: Installed today, motor is louder. It sounds like something much roudier than a 2.3T in there now. Throws off my shift points a little, at 3K I swear I'm at 4K. There has been rattle going on and off in very certain areas I haven't been able to feel and pinpoint while driving just yet. I think it's sometimes the ashtray, and something around the OBD port. I expected rear view to shake enough to become dysfunctional, but I couldn't even tell looking at it, I can feel it vibrate on touch though, maybe I'm just blind.

Overall Observations:

1. There is no new rattle louder than the spontaneous annoyance from the E-Brake/Button, including the PMM ones. (Unless you count point 3 below)

2. I can't believe this shit still needs to break-in, it's fine as it is.

3. The NVH people complain about must be moving from a stop and low RPM. I find this pretty negligible since our gearbox shifts aren't the smoothest in the world to start with. And I find the feedback very very useful in developing my shifting, particularly getting off the clutch quicker and smoother to battle the low-rpm shakes with more initiative. Now I feel like the issue has just been un-muted, and I can now better tell how to shift in a healthier manner. Not that we have glass trannys.

4. I've been asked by friends and family about what they've been calling the sneezer (HKS BPV) but no one seems to notice the MM effects. One friend has mentioned after the TMM that my car engine like a tractor now.

5. Installed Autotech Internals from JP@EA about 3K ago. It makes a sound when increasing RPM's, like two small magnetic balls connecting and vibrating off each other for a second. It either died down, or engine noise just makes it very hard to hear, though I can find it if I turn off any music and accelerate from a stop very slowly.

Conclusion: I'm sure someone has said it before, but this really is how the car should've came. I suppose the low-rpm shakes wouldn't be acceptable on a new car but boy... I feel like this car would get even more praise in reviews for the much much increased feel and connection. (Except for those gay ass pro-GTI comparisons maybe)

If I was on a budget though, I'd say the RMM and TMM have put the most smiles on my face. I clearly haven't driven around on the PMM much or really hooned on these mods in general, but the oem PMM did look like it was the best shape out of the 3. (The TMM looked mostly fine but I was wondering if this little rubber that fell out was supposed to be loosely connected) I'm very happy with the increased connection and sound track of all 3 mounts, the NVH definitely is no worse than a 1980's Volvo.

Do it, at least the RMM and TMM, it just makes shifting so much more fun, eliminating any wariness or anxiety you might've had before. The PMM is fine too, but I've experienced the least dramatic changes with it.

Go JBR! I hear you're considering a FMM (:

Next JBR: RSB and camber links if I can figure out I might benefit from them with Koni FSD's and stock springs and wheels. On that note how about a FSB, I'm pretty hesitant about doing install on any available right now, I'm traumatized by pics of metal snapping.

Background:

- Since 88 Duro is the most hardcore, went with 80's all around because although I'd liked to in the future, I don't track or launch my car. I just block people from cutting me off on I-5 and try to see how high mpg I can get on a tank (26 so far).

- Was quite anxious about mounts because I have a girlfriend, non-enthusiast friends, and a buddy who praises german schteel, but got the E46 in convertible form and was contemplating the SMG sem-auto transmission if that tells you what cliche he falls under... All of which I'd like to give the impression that Mazda's are awesome and not an obscure Japanese brand (Not Toyota, Nissan or Honda).

- In conclusion, pretty conservative about my car and it appearing stock and sleepy. Just to give you an idea of how to weigh my opinion on NVH, I'm mid-20's, and the rest of my family grew around Lexus, since I have an uncle at the dealer.

Last thing, if anyone wanted to see how JBR 80 Trilogy feels and is around Portland, come to Cobb's First Thursday meet or Cascade Cars and Coffee setup by @triplejumper18

[breakfstincluded]

Correction on Rear View Mirror Shake:

I noticed it on the freeway today, every other german car looked like it had 2x as many DRL's.

I first when a Lexys IS was close behind me at 60mph.

The rear view mirror itself doesen't look like it's shaking and makes no noise, but the image is definitly distorted. Can't read licence plates, not sure if I remember being able to before. Side views unaffected by MM's thankfully.

Got off the freeway, at idle and speeds at least under 30mph, looked completely normal

[Dizzy Turbo]

Thanks for the write up! I been trying to decide between what should be first the tmm or pmm, pretty much summed that up for me nicely

Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk

[JBR]

Well written. Thank you very much.

[TriO]

Nice writeup. And as dizzy said I now know that my next mount should prob be the tmm...

Cheers

[breakfstincluded]

Re-torqued everything.

Only the 4 TMM bolts could be tightened anymore back to the instructed Torque Specs.

[Manny3]

Need to get TMM and PMM, love the 80RMM, good write up

[kabobulate]

I have been rocking a solid TRZ mount for a while and my wife finds it kind of harsh at low speeds. I used to have a TRZ tmm also, but that was out of control. I have been thinking about getting multiple JBR 70 duro mounts instead of a single delrin TRZ rmm lately, and this really helped in my decision. I think I'll go for it. Thanks.

TRZ RMM for sale!

[JBR]

Originally Posted by kabobulate I have been rocking a solid TRZ mount for a while and my wife finds it kind of harsh at low speeds. I used to have a TRZ tmm also, but that was out of control. I have been thinking about getting multiple JBR 70 duro mounts instead of a single delrin TRZ rmm lately, and this really helped in my decision. I think I'll go for it. Thanks. TRZ RMM for sale!

If you're planning to do 70's I would recommend doing them all or the 88 rear and 70 sides.

Thanks,
Jamie