A while back, i bought the street inserts from howell. They charged me as street on my invoice, but opening the box and finding red and VERY hard inserts, they definatly didnt feel like the streets. Well, I put them in anyways just to see if i would like them. Installation was very simple and didnt take much time at all. Remove the bolt, push the insert in (goes in well after a good push) and bolt it back up with washer. Must be pretty dumb to mess this install up...
After i sold the red race ones, i ordered the street blacks. DESPITE what is writen, race = red and black = street. The colors DO matter on the neon sets and everybody i talked to has confirmed this. Modern got it right and sent me the rights ones. Installation, once again was very simple. No differance.
Now, to compare:
Feel of the MM inserts: The physical feel of the insert differance is definatly noticable. Holding the red race in your hands feels like a hard and solid plastic. Very hard to flex and bend. The black streets on the other hand, felt more like a hard rubber VS the hard plastic. More flexible, but not quite a rubber band softness.
Idle:
Street - Not much more vibration or noise compared to stock. If noticable at all, but since i deal with audio quite a bit and i train my ears, i could hear a bit of extra motor noise in the cab. But it would be a very small decible gain. Vibration at idle is no more than stock though.
Race - A noticable differance in vibration and noise. Its not horrible, but definatly noticable. Vibration is definatly tolerable as it doesnt quite shake the neon. But noise is much more noticable in the ambient sound of the car.
Taking off (below idle):
Street - Below idle, while taking off, gives the car a noticable more shaking and vibration within the cab. Anything below 700RPM seems to put the shaking motor to the chasis. It isnt anything untollarable, just noticable.
Race - When taking off, it feels like an old washing machine on wheels. The shaking seems to just grab you and wake you up. Somewhat scared me when i first took off and had this shake. As a daily driver and aiming for comfort, definatly not quite acceptable for me. But it does seem to bounce out of the sloppy vibration much quicker... which brings up the next topic...
Wheel hop:
Street - Wheel hop is definatly still there. It is weakened a bit, but definatly didnt kill the wheel hop off as much as i hoped for. The hopping is lessened, but far from dead.
Race - Wheel hop is nearly killed. The race inserts really shine when killing off wheel hop. Not completely dead, but definatly a big differance.
Cruising:
Street - Not much differant from stock. Very mild more amount of noise, but easily covered by standard roadnoise. Have not tested with AC yet (its 40*F outside!), but guessing AC isnt going to make a huge differance.
Race - Driving around had noticably more noise until hitting high speeds on the highway where roadnoise is louder. But once you turn on the AC, the engine goes surround sound and is untollerable for me.
Finaly...
I feel that the street inserts are great for anybody who wants a tad bit more performance but doesnt want to give up ride quality, especaily for a daily driver. The race, on the other hand, isnt great for daily driving, but perfect for the power hungry enthusiant.
And that, my friends, is my opinion
Sam-I-Am
