OK, first off, my stock clutch acted like junk so early into its life. 30k miles and it felt like it was slipping badly. So I thought I'd order a new clutch, and while I was at it, I might as well get a new flywheel too!
I installed a Stage 1 SPEC clutch (
www.specclutch.com), and an EXEDY Racing Flywheel (
www.prostreetonline.com). I have to say, that I really like the setup so far, although I haven't been able to push it to the limits yet. The break-in period is 450 miles according to SPEC, and during the break in period, you're not allowed to do full throttle engagements, race starts, etc. Basically baby the clutch. That's what I'm doing.
With the stock clutch equipped, I'm sure you guys have noticed the slight resistance when pushing down the clutch pedal. With this Stage 1 Clutch, the resistance is cut in half. I was surprised at how little effort was needed to disengage the clutch. I went into the car and stepped on the pedal, thinking not much resistance was removed/added. I was wrong when my foot went right to the floor with that mentality (lol).
Being as light as it is, it was really odd getting used to the engagement point of the clutch. There was lots of guesswork, but this clutch was EXTREMELY forgiving. Even as I over-revved and tried to adjust to the new engagement point, the clutch was very smooth. Only the TINIEST bit of chatter when your revs were too low, and if you were too high, the clutch handled it as smooth as butter.
Now the EXEDY flywheel was a definite improvement. It wasn't very drastic, and doesn't rev like a mofo as i had hoped, because it's only 5 lbs lighter than stock (12lbs vs. 17 lbs). Still, 5 pounds is a lot of centrifugal force taken from the flywheel when spinning. Meaning that the car can rev slightly quicker with smaller effort, reducing gas mileage (i would think)
I don't have any long term impressions on the clutch or flywheel as of yet; since I'm still in that break-in period, I don't want to overdo things and push the car to the max for now. When I hit 450 miles (I'm at like 25 miles as of this writing), I'll take it for a good drive and post my later impressions.
Personally, I would recommend this mod to everyone. EXEDY's flywheel for this car is good, in the sense that it takes heat abuse better than the 9 pound aluminum flywheels. Sure it's a little heavy, and doesn't rev as quick as you'd probably like, but it has its advantages. However, the aluminum flywheels that are out (SR motorsports and Fidanza i think) are twin plate flywheels, so that if one plate dies, you can have it replaced for cheaper than the EXEDY. the EXEDY is a one-piece chromoly, so if it dies, you have to spend 350 on the flywheel. AGAIN.
But yeah, you'll notice the difference once you drive with this mod. If nothing else convinces you about this mod (quick revving, better holding power), then maybe consider getting this if a turbo/supercharger is in your car's future.
POST BREAK-IN IMPRESSIONS: I hit the magic 450 this morning. Later in the day, after some additional break-in (just in case), I took the car for a run as crazy as the day I first got my Umnitza SRI. First off, for the sake of your passengers' comfort, do NOT do full throttle engagements (at least not immediately, I'll explain in a sec). On the stock clutch, I found out I was able to run through all 5 gears rather quickly on a 45mph zone by either being off the gas (when braking/shifting) or completely on the gas (engagement/speeding up). With the Stage 1 clutch, this isn't the case. If you still wanna do full throttle engagements, you're gonna have to stay on the clutch for a little bit longer so that the revs drop to the required RPMs. If you don't, youre gonna get a HUGE buck from the car (as opposed to the stock clutch's several spurts of light chatter). If you're alone, and don't care about comfort, then by all means go for it. That's what I did when I took the car for it's big run.
The clutch + flywheel combo is most noticable in the upper RPM range. As I mentioned before, the lighter flywheel made it a B!TCH to take off on an incline. However, once your car gets going, especially above 4k RPM, the car will FLY. The burst of power comes out of nowhere, and at the same time, you can feel how stable the clutch is, regardless of how much you're punishing the car. It's really a a good feeling, almost scary I'd say. But unless you're a super rich person, I'd avoid straining the engine that much on a performance clutch. Sure it'll hold power and torque much better, but it'll also greatly decrease the life of your clutch. That's only from what I've heard though, many say that a stock clutch (while having weaker clamping force) can last much longer (up to at least 100k miles). I don't know what the hell happened to my first clutch, but I don't want that to happen to this new clutch.
UPDATE: Instead of posting numerous posts about my nightly break-in updates, I'll just add to this initial post to help keep things small and clean.
Day 1 - 60 miles driven today. I have to baby the clutch (no full throttle engagements, high revving, etc.) through the whole 450 miles to ensure a properly working clutch. The clutch only requires half the pedal effort of stock, and engages much smoother than stock as well. However, if you let it slip, the burning smell comes MUCH faster.
Day 2 - 160 miles driven today, which brings me up to 220 miles total so far. Even with quicker revving, rev matching is not a problem. But launching on a hill sucks badly because the reduced inertia on the lighter flywheel tends to nearly stall the engine. It's very hard not to burn the clutch with this flywheel when starting on a hill. Otherwise, there's less chatter, smoother engagement, and have long since adjusted to the lessened resistance in the pedal.
Day 3 - 40 miles driven today (much less than I thought I would drive), bringing me up to 260 miles. The clutch burns very easily if slipped (probably because of the lighter fly), I hope this doesn't greatly hurt my clutch life in the long run. However, I should note that the improved throttle response is noticeable, even when cruising at speed limit. How should I say it, it's more peppy now. Yeah, there you go.
Day 4 - 20 miles driven today, bringing me up to 280 miles. Again, not much time on the road tonight. Taking off in first gear on a flat/downgrade has gotten much easier and smoother as well. After some less-than-half-throttle engagement on the freeway, I was able to take 4th gear up to 4000 rpm and not notice any lack of power or anything. You just get this strong feeling the clutch won't let go of the flywheel. Hoping that driving to school and other things will bring me up to that magic 450.
Day 5 - After driving like 80 miles, I now stand at 360 miles. Meaning 90 more miles until I hit 450. Nothing really new, aside from the fact that a CEL came on. I am really starting to think this is a problem with the PSV (purge solenoid valve), as the symptoms of a faulty valve match the problems I've had in the past (violent bucking when taking off, big throttle lag at random times). I need to find a dealer that will replace this for me, as they my local dealer says that the only two recalls on my car (O2 sensor and crash zone sensor) have already been done, and they aren't too friendly dealing with TSBs...
Day 6 - 450 miles has arrived 8)
Here are some pictures of the clutch, flywheel, and stock fly as well.
SPEC Stage 1 Clutch Cover (frontside)
SPEC Stage 1 Clutch Cover (backside)
SPEC Stage 1 Clutch Disc
EXEDY Racing Flywheel
Stock Flywheel
