Camaro5 Chevy Camaro Forum / Camaro ZL1, SS and V6 Forums - Camaro5.com - View Single Post

hapisok · 03-27-2012, 05:41 PM

ok folks...here it is. something a lot of you have been waiting patiently for.

as a lot of you know, i was previously running with MACE's 25mm insulator. Tracy was kind enough to send me a Black ICE to do a comparison test and i finally managed to get some dyno time this afternoon. this write up will give factual data and comparison data (aka: butt dyno).

3wks ago i made the switch to the Black ICE so i could run it through its course for comparison purposes. i was a bit skeptical, but it did perform as Tracy claims by reducing the heat soak. heat soak temps weren't taken during this test with a thermometer, but after sitting, heat temps on the IM climbed faster over time vs the MACE-o-lator, can probably contribute that mostly to the thickness of the insulators in comparison.

so...today i reset the tune as i didn't want the ECU to have any learn value of one insulator over the other. 1mi drive to the dyno shop and the Black ICE was up first and pulled 279HP. marilyn (the camaro's given name) sat on the dyno while the insulators were swapped out and the MACE-o-lator was dyno'ed about 1hr 20min later. one thing i've noticed, is this motor pulls better as it warms up as all the consecutive pulls continue to gain 2-3HP. if i had the dyno for the day, then i would have swapped out parts and let the ECU relearn, but nobody got paid other than the dyno shop. the comparison was done this way so there could be no disputing of weather (temp, baro, humidity) or different dyno's, or any other factor that might skew the results. obviously, resetting the tune and driving exactly 50mi's for each insulator would provide more drastic results but i don't have the time or money to foot that bill. just a simple side by side comparison.

Black ICE = 279 HP / 250 TQ green line
MACE-o-lator = 276 HP / 255 TQ pinkish/grey line

TEMP: awaiting update
HUMIDITY: "
BARO: "
FUEL: E85

those were the facts...

here's what my butt dyno tells me...

after making the swap to the Black ICE and putting some good miles on it is when i started to pay attention to my butt dyno. there was a bit more pep in the step, but didn't really set in till around 4K RPM. it was noticeable, but just not the same as with the MACE-o-lator. MACE's 25mm starts around 2500ish RPM and pulls hard up till redline. this is where i believe putting more miles on the car between pulls would have been the most beneficial. the increase in runner length is also evident with the shift of the HP band to the left by about 250 RPM.

conclusion:

both products are a must, especially when it comes to bang for the buck, for the price, you can't go wrong with either. both are top quality backed by great customer service and support. both install easily, a true DIY install.

one thing i like about the MACE-o-lator is the ease to port match it to both the IM and heads (pre-matched during production).

Black ICE bolts up using OEM bolts.

My personal unbiased preference (simply based on performance) is the MACE 25mm as its a night and day difference on the road. for those with the vararam, you know what im talking about.

thanks goes to both Tracy and Steve for the opportunity to be involved with product development and their contribution to the C5 community...

03-27-2012, 05:41 PM	#1
hapisok crazier than a coconut Drives: 2010 2SS/RS LS3 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: virginia Posts: 1,547	Black ICE vs MACE 25mm ok folks...here it is. something a lot of you have been waiting patiently for. as a lot of you know, i was previously running with MACE's 25mm insulator. Tracy was kind enough to send me a Black ICE to do a comparison test and i finally managed to get some dyno time this afternoon. this write up will give factual data and comparison data (aka: butt dyno). 3wks ago i made the switch to the Black ICE so i could run it through its course for comparison purposes. i was a bit skeptical, but it did perform as Tracy claims by reducing the heat soak. heat soak temps weren't taken during this test with a thermometer, but after sitting, heat temps on the IM climbed faster over time vs the MACE-o-lator, can probably contribute that mostly to the thickness of the insulators in comparison. so...today i reset the tune as i didn't want the ECU to have any learn value of one insulator over the other. 1mi drive to the dyno shop and the Black ICE was up first and pulled 279HP. marilyn (the camaro's given name) sat on the dyno while the insulators were swapped out and the MACE-o-lator was dyno'ed about 1hr 20min later. one thing i've noticed, is this motor pulls better as it warms up as all the consecutive pulls continue to gain 2-3HP. if i had the dyno for the day, then i would have swapped out parts and let the ECU relearn, but nobody got paid other than the dyno shop. the comparison was done this way so there could be no disputing of weather (temp, baro, humidity) or different dyno's, or any other factor that might skew the results. obviously, resetting the tune and driving exactly 50mi's for each insulator would provide more drastic results but i don't have the time or money to foot that bill. just a simple side by side comparison. Black ICE = 279 HP / 250 TQ green line MACE-o-lator = 276 HP / 255 TQ pinkish/grey line TEMP: awaiting update HUMIDITY: " BARO: " FUEL: E85 those were the facts... here's what my butt dyno tells me... after making the swap to the Black ICE and putting some good miles on it is when i started to pay attention to my butt dyno. there was a bit more pep in the step, but didn't really set in till around 4K RPM. it was noticeable, but just not the same as with the MACE-o-lator. MACE's 25mm starts around 2500ish RPM and pulls hard up till redline. this is where i believe putting more miles on the car between pulls would have been the most beneficial. the increase in runner length is also evident with the shift of the HP band to the left by about 250 RPM. conclusion: both products are a must, especially when it comes to bang for the buck, for the price, you can't go wrong with either. both are top quality backed by great customer service and support. both install easily, a true DIY install. one thing i like about the MACE-o-lator is the ease to port match it to both the IM and heads (pre-matched during production). Black ICE bolts up using OEM bolts. My personal unbiased preference (simply based on performance) is the MACE 25mm as its a night and day difference on the road. for those with the vararam, you know what im talking about. thanks goes to both Tracy and Steve for the opportunity to be involved with product development and their contribution to the C5 community... Attached Images __________________ Last edited by hapisok; 03-30-2012 at 07:50 PM.