mdwsta4â„¢uroslut

i plan on upgrading my clutch mid to late spring and am now debating whether or not i should get a lightweight flywheel at the same time. its pretty much double the cost of the clutch, so i'd like to know exactly what benefits/drawbacks i will be receiving. anyone have any experience w/ any of the kits? or have a suggestion on another one?
i was originally looking at a SPEC stage 2 clutch, but am now cosidering the AWE or WOA stage 3 clutch/flywheel combo.
this is part of an email i received from juan earlier....'i am not sure if you have done a research on AWE or APR clutch kits they used a kit that had 1800psi pressure with a flywheel that was like 10lbs. With the light weight it spins up very rapidly which does not allow the disk to grab. 2+ is 2800psi i tested this and it does grab but at some Drag launches it will slip at times. Stage 3 will not slip on you that's why i make the 3000psi my minimum specifications to run a flywheel that is 7lb, 10lb, or 12lb.'
i guess i really dont know anything about clutches, so i'm just looking for some answers on what i should be looking for.
as far as driving goes, i'm just at stage 2 with plans within the year to go stage 3. i try to do at least one track/auto-x related event a month spring-fall, drag strips a few times a year, and some spirited road driving.

thanks!
matt

cdoug3

lightweight clutch = less rotating mass so you have quicker revs. downside is that you have less torque off the line because the flywheel with less rotating mass is easier to stop. I have the APR clutch and lightweight flywheel and I love it. It is harder to drive around town but you will get used to it and if you are planning stg 3 with track time definetly go for it! I Have heard good things about Juan's clutches and many of the stg 3 people have them so I am sure they will speek up here.

Carl

xr4tic

I love the flywheel, but the clutch doesn't grab very well at the dragstrip. The flywheel is ~12 lbs.

I ordered the clutch from Juan almost a year ago, before anyone found out they don't grab that well. I'm not sure what my pressure plate spec is, I think around 2500.

Maybe I should try upgrading the pressure plate while the trans is out. Can you send me Juan's email address?

AXE

<a href="https://forums.audiworld.com/performance/msgs/48759.phtml">https://forums.audiworld.com/performance/msgs/48759.phtml</a>

Audi2ptzero

When you use a lighter flywheel that can spin up faster then a stock one you will need a much higher amount of clamping pressure to grab that fywheel. I used to run the very first WOA clutch which was only rated at 2000 lbs (stage1+) with a kevlar disk and had no problem launching the car at 6K rpms with a lightend stock flywheel while making 330-350 hp.

I have tried launching another car that had a 12 lbs flywheel, WOA pressure plate and someone elses disk and I could not launch the car at over 4k rpms without it slipping.

squidix9

But a lighter flywheel will get you off faster at the strip.

Yes, you need a higher rated pressure plate the lighter the flywheel.

The biggest downside is the lighter you go the less friendly it gets to drive "around". The low mass can't dampen the variations you encounter "on the road", and it gets very jerky as you just motor around.

Unless you stay on it, it feels like you're always bucking, and eventually you'll end up warping the flywheel, and all H$|| breaks loose.

My flywheel is as light as you can go, there's no more material to take off, but it isn't very street driveable. This is just made worse by the cams and other mods to the engine.

That said, it'll stand on end off the line and yes it has torque AND horsepower. In the attached article it talks about the push back into the seat, it's right!<ul><li><a href="http://vettenet.org/torquehp.html">Torque</a></li></ul>

CMC

Nice writeup.

cdoug3

You get off quicker at the line because the car accelerates quicker but you have to rev higher to start off because of less mass. The thing that makes it harder to drive around town is the lack of rotating mass which makes the car easier to stall and stumble. if you look at a dyno of a car with a lightened flywheel it will have less low end torque than the car without.

squidix9

I just hit the gas and go, eventually when your eyeballs stop bleeding and you pry your head off the headrest, then you shift.

I launch much quicker with the lighter flywheel, stop over some time, I'll show you first hand.

You're absolutely right on the mass vs. stumble, that is exactly what happens. I have to stay on the gas always or it is undriveable on the street.

AXE

remember u will get chatter, and people may look at you funny because of the strange noises coming from your car while u wait at the lights.