Just curious if anybody is runnin a new MB Black Death 4500. Wonderin what the gains are over a modded 35.

Thats what it is- a modded 35 with heads, carb, roller rockers, and exhaust. Has a built in 4300 rev limiter.

Yeah, i realize that. I guess what i was tryin to say is how does it compare to the regular modded Vanguard engines. Is it worth it to buy that vs gettin a 35 & adding a few things to it? With carb & exhaust, i can run high 20s to low 30's. How much better is the CDI Black Death?

Advance the timing and you do not need the CDI.

I've read the differences between the motors' parts. I'm lookin for somebody who can actually give me a first hand opinion on it, somebody that has had both tillers in their hand and can tell me the differences performance wise. I'm not tryin to be an azz, and thanks for the responses anyhow. I was just more or less tryin to get a performance review on it.

I have a buddy who has the 5500 on order. When you price out the individual mods and add it to the 35 you will see the 4500 and the 5500 are a good deal based on price. i assume they will perform exactly the same as a 35 with the same mods. Also, they come with a warranty. Keep in mind I am a PD guy, so a lot of this info is second hand.

Maybe we should come up wit fancy names to call our modded PD's and GTR's.

Nevermind, shoulda known better than to ask a serious question in a room full of self-righteous douche bags.


SP, you are correct, they're the same thing, and are a good price for a completed pkg with a warranty. Thanks for the input, but like I said before, I was tryin to find someone that has run them both for a 1st hand comparison.

Camo, DB8 has run both. He has tons of info on both motors on this website and on the mb site. The biggest advantage seems to be the charging system. Other than that the power you can make with them should be the same. Takes a lil more ingenuity with the gears and props to keep her under 4300 with the cdi, but they should make about the same power with the same mods...

here is the way i see it....

a black death is a modded cdi 35 which means you are limited to around 4300rpms...

I am sure MB did their research and got everything they could out of the motors at the lower rpm range... you will have a lower idle and the CDI has advancing timing that helps with the power curve...

in my opinion... i do not think they would hang with the motors that have the same mods that are allowed to turn up to 4800-5000 which are the original modded 35s....

want my honest opinion... get a Generac... hahahahaha... cheaper to begin with and potentially more power to get out of it...

Thanks, CB. That's the kind of info I was lookin for. For the record, I wasn't talkin about Gary, I know he knows his chit. So the only advantage to the BD is the charging system? If that's the case, why not just do like Mike said & advance the timimg? Startin to think maybe I should just tweek mine a lil more.

you just confused yourself.... charging system and timing advance are two totally different things...

Yep- run both and added more.

The idle on the CDI motor is much smoother, will tool around at 680 RPM solid with the mikuni. Never could do that with the other coils. 50A charging system is cool- it outputs at idle. Fuel pump seems to be much better than the cam driven one. The stock CDI motor is like a hot stock 35 with that smooth low idle.

Performance wise- like was stated above you have to 'spend' your RPM wisely because of the built in rev limiter. I took the CDI from stock with exhaust to carb, heads, rockers, and cam. Add and take down with gears and prop. I am still on the rev limiter until I really load it down and am running the lowest gear ratio and a prop with 2" of pitch added. Its a project to get the most out of 4300 RPM. I know there is more top end above the rev limiter.

I had a set of stock coils to try on the motor but the wiring harness is different (no diodes to the coils). I will probably try it again after the season.

That deal they had on the BD motors with the carb/heads/rockers was sweet but I think its over now.

Thanks, Gary. That's what I was lookin for. Yeah, that deal is over, but I'm still a long way out on this project. Thanks again.

To make it all simple. The BD motor is just a fancy name. There is really nothign specific about it. The 2 major motor differences are the Older style engines and the newer CDI engines. Black death is a fancy term dat is all. I fi wanted to be all cool n shit I could say I got the Camo Death GTR.

hey Camo the black death motor has black paint and a cool little grim reaper on it it just looks faster

The BD is a package of performance parts on a CDI base engine. They are also coming out with a trim package (black paint and stainless cut outs).

BD 4500- HSR42 with new style split feed intake adapter, IM heads w/ stainless valves, Roller Rockers, Push Rods
BD 5500- Twin Mikunis, IM heads w/ stainless valves, Roller Rockers, Push Rods
Both motors have a different gear ratio than the stock motor. Performance exhaust is an add on option.