Review of Motordyne Plenum Spacer
I received my 3/8" plenum spacer last Thursday. I bought it on the group buy last Friday. The packaging was beyond professional. I wish big companies would take the time and care Tony does with his product. Thanks Tony! I would recommend that the 4mm posts in the lower plenum be removed, then replaced finger tight. When it come time to drop the upper plenum on the spacer and gaskets, the two posts allow you to line everything up properly. Then I removed the posts and replaced with the new bolts. I used my new in/lbs torque wrench to tighten all bolts to 8 ft/lbs. I did a pedal ECU reset before taking a test drive. Wow! I can feel the extra Torque/Hp in the lower rpm range, a real nice kick in the a** around 3500-3000 rpm, just where I wanted to feel it. This is most definitly my best mod.
Yes, Tony is definitely a great guy. I received my 3/8" spacer last Wednesday and installed it immediatley. The install was straightforward, and my only problem was getting those little inner spacers to stick to the upper plenum without falling off.
Once installed, I took a drive and noticed an immediate gain, even without resetting the ECU. Unfortunately, I had to remove the spacer, becuase I was troubleshooting a new and annoying rasp that popped up out of nowhere (thankfully, it's not the spacer since the noise still exists without the spacer on, it's the Helix Cats most likely). After pulling the spacer off, those rubbery gaskets for the inner spacers were toast. I contected Tony to buy a new set, and he offered to replace them at no charge. That's going above and beyond for customer service IMO. Once I get the new gaskets, I'll be reinstalling the spacer and ditching the cats.
Once installed, I took a drive and noticed an immediate gain, even without resetting the ECU. Unfortunately, I had to remove the spacer, becuase I was troubleshooting a new and annoying rasp that popped up out of nowhere (thankfully, it's not the spacer since the noise still exists without the spacer on, it's the Helix Cats most likely). After pulling the spacer off, those rubbery gaskets for the inner spacers were toast. I contected Tony to buy a new set, and he offered to replace them at no charge. That's going above and beyond for customer service IMO. Once I get the new gaskets, I'll be reinstalling the spacer and ditching the cats.
Once I stuck the spacer stickies to the inner posts, it bacame apparant that
they would come off if scraped across the lower plenum when trying to line
up the upper and lower plenum halves. That is when I realized the two 4mm
posts could be used to line everyting up! Brilliant! That is just what I did and
had no difficulties lining things up. I was scared to death of having all the
inner post extensions falling off and not being able to stick them back on.
Damn this sedan is fast!
they would come off if scraped across the lower plenum when trying to line
up the upper and lower plenum halves. That is when I realized the two 4mm
posts could be used to line everyting up! Brilliant! That is just what I did and
had no difficulties lining things up. I was scared to death of having all the
inner post extensions falling off and not being able to stick them back on.
Damn this sedan is fast!
I also received the 1/2 spacer from Tony. The install took about an hour and a half. To save me a little money Tony allowed me to pick the spacer up from his house. I'm glad I got to meet him, he has some great ideas. I could really feel the car pull hard after 3000rpm. The install is really easy if you have a friend to help you. Just unbolt plenum have a friend lift it up, and slide the spacer underneath it. It was that easy.
I just had the 1/4" installed on my Z. The install took about 1.5 hrs and was relatively straight forward. The package was indeed very professional.
I've driven my car several times since and I must say that I don't feel a significant difference, unlike the posters above. Low end torque feels the same, but then I have a few mods already. But above 5.5k rpm, the car does pull a little quicker with more growl.
I done some timing tests before and after my mods.
1) After I installed the HF cats and y-pipe, 60-90mph in 4th gear dropped from 7.2 to 6.5sec.
2) After I installed the 1/4" spacer, 60-90 in 4th dropped just slightly from 6.5 to 6.3sec. I also removed 60lbs of weight from my car during this stage as well.
As you can see, the improvement in that rev range was just marginal. I will drive the car more and see what happens. Perhaps the gains from the 1/4" spacer is less than the thicker spacers?
Some of the posters above commented that the spacers would not stick to the post. I just cleaned the surfaces with alcohol and there was no problem with sticking.
I've driven my car several times since and I must say that I don't feel a significant difference, unlike the posters above. Low end torque feels the same, but then I have a few mods already. But above 5.5k rpm, the car does pull a little quicker with more growl.
I done some timing tests before and after my mods.
1) After I installed the HF cats and y-pipe, 60-90mph in 4th gear dropped from 7.2 to 6.5sec.
2) After I installed the 1/4" spacer, 60-90 in 4th dropped just slightly from 6.5 to 6.3sec. I also removed 60lbs of weight from my car during this stage as well.
As you can see, the improvement in that rev range was just marginal. I will drive the car more and see what happens. Perhaps the gains from the 1/4" spacer is less than the thicker spacers?
Some of the posters above commented that the spacers would not stick to the post. I just cleaned the surfaces with alcohol and there was no problem with sticking.
Last edited by baron; May 4, 2005 at 12:46 PM.
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well I finally got my 1/4 spacer and was about to finish the install when....... One of the spacer post spacer is 3/8 instead of 1/4.
They are sending the correct spacer post tomorrow. I just wish I would have caught this BEFORE going through the install 21/2 hours into it.
They are sending the correct spacer post tomorrow. I just wish I would have caught this BEFORE going through the install 21/2 hours into it.
Originally Posted by BlueDragonZ
well I finally got my 1/4 spacer and was about to finish the install when....... One of the spacer post spacer is 3/8 instead of 1/4.
They are sending the correct spacer post tomorrow. I just wish I would have caught this BEFORE going through the install 21/2 hours into it.
They are sending the correct spacer post tomorrow. I just wish I would have caught this BEFORE going through the install 21/2 hours into it.
Originally Posted by cato
Oh that really sucks! Sorry to hear about the packaging screwup. 
Motordyne has a great product, and the kit could not be more complete. The service from Tony is outstanding at the least.
I own a 2003 G35 Sedan, K&N FILTER, and Z Tube, 3/8 inch Spacer. After the Z tube and K&N for the G35 it is the best bang for the buck.
Discussions and Dynos aside for a bit it flat works on the older models, there is alot of dicussion on the 05, so there may be something to the story. I Haven't done the ECU reset but I'm happy.
Between y'all here and the G35 group the information you have supplied made the purchase a whole lot easier, thanks to both groups for the information
Ed
I own a 2003 G35 Sedan, K&N FILTER, and Z Tube, 3/8 inch Spacer. After the Z tube and K&N for the G35 it is the best bang for the buck.
Discussions and Dynos aside for a bit it flat works on the older models, there is alot of dicussion on the 05, so there may be something to the story. I Haven't done the ECU reset but I'm happy.
Between y'all here and the G35 group the information you have supplied made the purchase a whole lot easier, thanks to both groups for the information
Ed
How many different sizes do they offer? It seems like I've seen at least three different sizes in this post... 1/4", 3/8", and 1/2". Is there an optimal size to go with or is bigger better?
Armitage
The different sizes are for different applications.
The 1/4" spacer is designed for the 350Z. It keeps the stock strut bar and engine cover on and is totally stealth. You could bring it to the dealership or smog shop and they would never know it was there unless you pointed it out, or if they took apart your plenum for some reason.
The 3/8" spacer is specifically designed for the G35. It allows you to keep the engine cover and it also looks totally stock when installed.
The XL 1/2" spacer provides maximum gains for either the Z or the G. In the case of the Z, you would need an aftermarket strutbar such as the Crawford or Stillen strut bars, and the engine cover still fits. In the case of the G, you would have to take the plastic engine cover off.
itsjoshufocker
Different dynos on different days will have variations, but the gains among the different mods generally are fairly similar. Combining the mods may or may not fit under the hood and will only provide more gains at rapidly diminishing returns.
The different sizes are for different applications.
The 1/4" spacer is designed for the 350Z. It keeps the stock strut bar and engine cover on and is totally stealth. You could bring it to the dealership or smog shop and they would never know it was there unless you pointed it out, or if they took apart your plenum for some reason.
The 3/8" spacer is specifically designed for the G35. It allows you to keep the engine cover and it also looks totally stock when installed.
The XL 1/2" spacer provides maximum gains for either the Z or the G. In the case of the Z, you would need an aftermarket strutbar such as the Crawford or Stillen strut bars, and the engine cover still fits. In the case of the G, you would have to take the plastic engine cover off.
itsjoshufocker
Different dynos on different days will have variations, but the gains among the different mods generally are fairly similar. Combining the mods may or may not fit under the hood and will only provide more gains at rapidly diminishing returns.
Originally Posted by brendone
My 1/4" spacer should be waiting for me when I get home
Can't wait!
Can't wait!
Originally Posted by Hydrazine
Armitage
The different sizes are for different applications.
The 1/4" spacer is designed for the 350Z. It keeps the stock strut bar and engine cover on and is totally stealth. You could bring it to the dealership or smog shop and they would never know it was there unless you pointed it out, or if they took apart your plenum for some reason.
The 3/8" spacer is specifically designed for the G35. It allows you to keep the engine cover and it also looks totally stock when installed.
The XL 1/2" spacer provides maximum gains for either the Z or the G. In the case of the Z, you would need an aftermarket strutbar such as the Crawford or Stillen strut bars, and the engine cover still fits. In the case of the G, you would have to take the plastic engine cover off.
The different sizes are for different applications.
The 1/4" spacer is designed for the 350Z. It keeps the stock strut bar and engine cover on and is totally stealth. You could bring it to the dealership or smog shop and they would never know it was there unless you pointed it out, or if they took apart your plenum for some reason.
The 3/8" spacer is specifically designed for the G35. It allows you to keep the engine cover and it also looks totally stock when installed.
The XL 1/2" spacer provides maximum gains for either the Z or the G. In the case of the Z, you would need an aftermarket strutbar such as the Crawford or Stillen strut bars, and the engine cover still fits. In the case of the G, you would have to take the plastic engine cover off.
Originally Posted by bio911
Yeah until you open the box and it doesn not have a spacer! Thats what happened to me.. I called and they took care of it but it seems like they need to fire who ever is packaging these up because i only got my bolts and gasket... NO SPACER... come on now! Owell... everything will be here monday including some test pipes...
Running a 100+ GB over a period of about a week is incredibly hard work.
Tony
Went to install my spacer yesterday and I had an incredibly hard time getting the gaskets to adhere to the plenum posts. I had cleaned the posts but thought it might have had something to do with the 50 degree temperature we're having here. I didn't want to risk dropping those spacers when lowering the plenum so I held off for now. 
Anyone have same problem or know where I could find replacements? Is there an alternative method?
Delivery, packing and material quality (other than those damn stickies) was great!
Anyone have same problem or know where I could find replacements? Is there an alternative method?
Delivery, packing and material quality (other than those damn stickies) was great!



