Hi im new to the forums here....
Well my tranny went out and is being replaced and the clutch is pretty much gone and I need to replace it. I was wondering which clutch i should get. im looking at the centerforce dual friction clutch, is this worth getting or should i just get the basic Centerforce I clutch or maybe another brand.?? Im looking for a clutch that will make my tranny last longer since i am pretty hard on it...

 

DO NOT get the Centerforce. I have heard very bad things about these clutches. If anything I would go w/ a McLeod or a Spec. 3. I installed a McLeod single disc in my car a few weeks ago and I love it. IMO, it has the perfect pedal pressure and doesn't slip at all.

Ryan

 

Centerforce does not have a good reputation for LS1 cars Spec is top of the line for the $$ as there are much more expensive clutches out there plus they are having group purchases on them all the time you can get the clutch kit from a sponsor for ~$370~ and get a new stock flywheel or buy their billet steel flywheel for $225 i belive....if you dont have many miles resurface your old flywheels, since you have a 2000 you will need an upgraded slave cylinder which has the throwout bearing on it, i would also recommend gettin the McLeod Adjustable master cylinder but is not necessary, it flows twice the stock amount of clutch fluid but you can do the drill mod to the stock master to flow more fluid this allows the clutch to grab faster thus less slippage and you get more life out of your clutch, spec offers their clutches in stages 1-5 on your application not much power you would be fine going with the spec stage 2 but mind as well get the 3 which is very streetable for most people(i have the new X pad design and have bad chatter even after thousands of miles(spec stage 3)) look on ls1.com or in this section for info on this clutch and make your decision on that.

 

go with a SPEC 3 X pad a great set up

 

I hear the Mcleod is a good set-up, and the new design SPECs are good too, but in my opinion RAM is the best out there. RAM has the BEST customer service BAR NONE! RAM has two different ways to go: just a clutch(pressure plate, disk, flywheel, and throw-out bearing) OR the VDS system(pressure plate, clutch disk, throw out bearing, flywheel, brand new slave cylinder, and brand new ADJUSTABLE MASTER CYLINDER). No matter what anyone says(especially SPEC), you NEED an adjustable master cylinder. The adjustable master will extend the distance the slave can travel allowing for complete disengagement of the clutch disk AND it will make it possible to make the point of engagement on the pedal adjustable. On a stock clutch or an aftermarket clutch without the adjustable master; the pedal gets closer to the floor as the clutch wears and eventually when the clutch is completely shot the pedal will be useless. With the adjustable master you can bring the pedal height back up to where it was when the clutch was new. Most of the people out there that have clutch problems like grinding while shifting or not being able to shift is caused by either A) hydraulics not bled properly- air in the line or B) lack of a quality ADJUSTABLE master cylinder or C) malfunctioning slave cylinder. Personally, I would get the RAM 402/910 VDS system. The 402 pressure plate holds GREAT and only makes for a little more pedal pressure then stock(at first you will think it's a lot harder to push the clutch in but you will get used to it really quickly). RAM has several different clutch disks available too, for different intentions: 300 series, 6000 series(6130), and 900 series(910) . The 300 series is basically a stock type replacement: soft engagement and low torque with NO poweradders! The 6130 is a GREAT disk in my opinion(this is what I have). The 6130 bites hard. When the disk begins to engage from a stop, like leaving from a stop sign, with little throttle you will get some chatter(where the car seems to shake a bit). The chatter is from the aggressive disk biting into the flywheel, its completely normal and can be limited with a bit more throttle, and if you plan to swap in some 4.10s that will help A LOT. I have 315 BFGs on my SS and I can bark the tires easily shifting to 4th. My 3rd gear shift is as hard as my WS6's 2nd gear(it has an original design SPEC stage 3 carbon). I don't just get a chirp shifting to 3rd, I spin the tires. I DO NOT POWER-SHIFT, I only speed-shift. When I was at my local track(crap track by the way) I managed to get a 1.6 60ft on 26x10.5 ET STREETS at 12PSI and when I grabbed 2nd I broke the slicks loose and spun through 2nd, shifted to 3rd and continued to spin until 5000rpm and it hooked...I was shocked at how good the clutch was grabbing. The 6130 sin't good for any power-adders though! When RAM released this set-up(6130 was the launch disk they used) there were several people out there that had an issue of the disk fusing(melting) to the flywheel. There were MAINLY two main reasons for this: A) improper installation B) use of a power adder(mainly N2O). Ram didn't know the nitrous would cause this at first; so they were upgrading the customers to the new 910 for free or for a huge discount- parts only. The 910 is also very aggressive but will handle poweradders just fine. You will need the billet flywheel with either the 6130 or 910 because they will chew up the stock flywheel. I plan to upgrade to a 910 eventually, but not till my 6130 wears out. There are several guys out there that have gotten over 20k out of their RAM clutches. Call either Mikey at Rapid Motorsports or Allan at Futral Motorsports. They both will give you ALL the info you want/need and have GREAT prices. You will also want someone with LS1 clutch experience to install this. Good luck!

 

Do not get the centerforce, I have also heard very bad things about them. I would get either a Mcleod or Ram. I just bought a Mcleod and I am weighting to recieve it so I can install it.

 

What are your thoughts on the Cartek clutch? I have it, but it's time for a new clutch, and I don't really feel like I got the full life out of it, which I sort of expected. I'm not running high numbers, but I do like to drive pretty aggressively. Would some of you please add your input. Thanks!

 

Do not get Centerforce!!

 

No one mentions ClutchMasters, but it's an awesome clutch too. I had a RAM980, lasted 10K miles, I did not change flywheels and that was a big mistake. With ClutchMasters, it's carbon-kevlar, and I get ZERO chatter out of it, feels like stock and can be slipped. Also bites very hard, rubber in all 4 gears. Expensive though, like $800 without a flywheel, but it's awesome.

 

get your self the spec x-pad call eastside perf they got good prices

 

Spec Stage 3

 

So the Spec for LT1s is ****, but it is "da bomb" for LS1s, or what? I am confused.. Will someone explain why it is so much better.

 

I've had a spec stg3 X-Pad in my car for about 1000 miles now, and it is a kick *** clutch. Chattered a bit for the first 200 miles and slowely started to wear in. At the 500 mile mark if i tried i could get it to chatter a bit, but pretty much felt like a stock clutch. Took the car to the track a couple times in the last two weeks and i have pounded on the clutch and no signs of giving up what so ever. I can confirm what everyone says, you need to baby it for about 400-500 miles, then pound on it to fully break it now. Now there is ZERO chatter, drives like a stock clutch, but grips hard. I was able to cut 1.7x short times my first time out on the ET Streets. I do have a 12-bolt, and i would not recommend dumping this clutch on sticky tires if you have a stock rear.