FT86 Aftermarket Clutch Review

[Crystalwhitebrzsti]

Clutch: exedy stage 2 15955
FI: Fullblown stage 1 with 2867
Mi: 20 LOL
Power?? Not sure never dyno (I assume same as other kits)
Lockout: nope
Stiffness: basically stock
DD: yup
Would I buy again: initial impressions are great, but time will tell. I’ll update once broken in.
Review: install super easy. Great clutch feel with interesting engagement. It isn’t jerky but it takes a few times start stop to get used to. So far I’m happy and would recommend.

Update: so far it’s doing well. I’m beyond the break in. It does make noise in the 3k-4K rpm range for some reason? Other than that works great.

[diluzio91]

Clutch: South Bend Clutch Stage 2 (Daily)
SC/T/NA: Supercharged (Edelbrock)
MI/KM: 300 Miles
Power/TQ: 218 FTLBS TQ
Lockout:No Issues yet
Stiffness: Slightly stiffer than stock
DD?: Yes
Would you buy again: Yes
Review: The engagement point is slightly deeper than OEM. The engagements are smooth and aside from the lower engagement point that makes it feel like you have a dead spot until you get used to it it's excellent. Holding the power from the Supercharger makes the car feel much more responsive.

[dynarun55]

Finally found the thread I was looking for. I've run into the dreaded TOB problem after 70k miles. I'm NA stock right now but would definitely doing FI turbo in the future. Considering Excedy Stage 2 right now but I'm scared of that TOB. Would you recommend getting another brand altogether. Also anyone think it's worth getting a stronger fork and pivot once you upgrade your clutch ??

[Amputechture]

Clutch: Exedy Stage 1
SC/T/NA: Turbo - 93 Octane
MI/KM: 20k
Power/TQ: 300/240
Lockout: None
Stiffness: Stock + 10%
DD?: Yes
Would you buy again: Yes
Review: Quiet and extremely easy to drive, completely streetable and feels like an OEM clutch. Just slightly heavier than the stocker, just enough to notice and be confident that the difference is not placebo effect. Engagement point is a **** hair closer to the floor than factory, and you can get going at low rpms. At the power level I'm at right now I have absolutely zero buyer's remorse. Hopefully it will hold up to ethanol, PTuning used it with a 300 wtq car for some time so I might be okay. Will report back when that time comes.

Originally Posted by rocket12

Has anyone used a sachs clutch before? and how does it feel?

Clutch: Sachs Performance
SC/T/NA: HKS SC
MI/KM: 200miles
Power/TQ: 340 HP @ Wheels, 389 TQ/NM @ Wheels
Lockout: nope
Stiffness: Stiffer than OEM.
DD?: It´s possible but I wouldn´t do it, digital feeling like 1 or 0 nothing in between. Also a lot of roar and vibration while down touring between 2500 -3500rpm.
Would you buy again: Yes
Review: Clutch feel is better than stock more tension but only for tracktoy or sunday drives. I feel more control but for daily use not mine, I´m looking for the HKS LA Clutch with flywheel.

[Tomm]

Clutch: South Bend Clutches Stage 2 Daily, new Exedy OEM flywheel
SC/T/NA: N/A
MI/KM: 1.5k miles
Power/TQ: (OFT 2+ with full exhaust)
Lockout: No
Stiffness: OEM if not softer
DD?: Yes
Would you buy again: Absolutely
Review: I installed a lot at once (IRP shifter, verus tob fork, verus pivot ball, exedy oem flywheel, and SBC stage 2 daily), so there were a lot of changes. But the grab is slightly harder than stock - nothing that you can't adjust to after a few days of driving. The clutch pedal feels lighter than stock (might be for other reasons). Overall I love the feel of the clutch for the higher tq rating values. Also the drive-ability comparison from stock is almost unnoticeable. This thread was a big influence on my decision to buy this clutch kit and I couldn't be happier with my decision. I'm new to SBC but I'll definitely be a repeat customer.

[ZZJ]

Clutch: ACT SB8 XTSS
SC/T/NA: Turbo(10k miles) NA(10k miles)
MI/KM: 20k total
Power/TQ: 350/280 and whatever fbo is
Lockout: Nothing for the first 17000 miles, started to lock out of 1st when cold. Turned out shifter was out of adjustment. Fixed it when doing clutch fork and pivot.
Stiffness?: Before clutch fork is HARD. After I'd say medium to stock.
DD?: Break in period is terrible. After break in if tune is not optimized (10% throttle) start and go traffic is a little hard. All things considered it's not too bad you do need to rev it up a little more because of light weight flywheel.
Would you buy again: meh idk
Review: Clutch engagement is a lot more quicker so you don't need to wait a little after shift. A lot easier to heel toe because revs up faster. Takes a bit getting used to but a must do for track car even at stock power!

[kmbkk]

Well my clutch is going out (Comp Clutch Stage 3 w/lightened flywheel), so I'm going to try the Southbend Stage 2 Endurance. I'm dropping my car off at PTuning on Monday to get it done, along with the Verus fork and pivot ball. I'll report back how it compares...

[kmbkk]

Quick follow-up to my clutch install...the SB clutch is MUCH easier to drive than the CC. It’s been almost 4 years since I installed the CC kit but I can tell the pedal is much softer and easier to depress. My CC engagement point had gotten muddy, meaning it wasn’t always the same place. It always took more force to depress the pedal, but it’s a night and day difference comparing the 2 clutches. I only have about 50 miles on it, so I’ll give a more comprehensive review once I get it broken in, but already I can tell I’m really going to enjoy the SB clutch setup!

[scraejtp]

Since I had such a hard time finding reviews of clutches for FI that held power and did not feel awful:

Clutch: Spec Stage 2+
SC/T/NA: Edelbrock supercharger, Flex Fuel
MI/KM: 1000
Power/TQ: 300/250 conservatively
Lockout: No issues yet
Stiffness: OEM
DD?: Yes.
Would you buy again: (Y/N?) Yes, although it was impulse buy after finding it cheap, but I had used a Spec clutch on my Mustang.
Review: I kept the OEM flywheel (new) as I did not want to have drivability issues. I also installed the Verus fork and pivot ball. Engagement window is definitely smaller, but still manageable. Holds power without issue and pedal feels as light as OEM in my memory, but may need another twin for comparison. May return for feedback as I get more miles on the clutch, but am happy thus far.

[AKITA]

Clutch: South Bend Stage 2 DXD racing / 315 ft/lb
SC/T/NA: Edelbrock supercharger
MI/KM: about 500 miles total on clutch (not much with supercharger)
Power/TQ: Don't know yet ..
Lockout: No issues yet
Stiffness: very OEM, I like it a little better actually
DD?: Not really a DD, around 3-5k annual
Would you buy again: (Y/N?) Yes.. I looked over all I could find and almost went ACT.. but a lot of feedback made me think it's more of a track clutch even the tamer ones.. It was threads like this that made me willing to go with South Bend

Review: The clutch itself that came with it is an Exedy clutch full disc, I also mated it with an Exedy OEM flywheel. The pressure plate is their forte and I really like it in a street environment so far (not a lot of miles on it yet). It has as some reviewers have mentioned slightly lower engagment beginning (hardly different than OEM). It also has a broader engagement range before fully disengaged or engaged. Makes it easier to ride the clutch shifting through gears, but that's about it. Beyond that it feels very oem .. can tell it grabs better whether it can really hold 315 ft/lbs idk. I doubt I'll throw that much torque at it. I did it with new Verus clutch fork, pivot, and new oem sleeve retainer. I used the TOB in the kit. I hope it holds up because it feels great and I would install another if it does hold up.

[DarkPira7e]

Clutch: Exedy Stage 1
SC/T/NA: Turbo
MI/KM: 5,000 miles
Power/TQ: 330/260
Lockout: None
Stiffness: Slightly stiffer than stock
DD?: Feels like any sports car from the 90s, definitely doable day to day
Would you buy again: definitely
Review: Feels like stock but with more authority. No noise, no skipping or hopping in traffic, no noise. Used with stock flywheel.

[FR-S2GT86]

This is an excellent thread to read through now that I am shopping around to beef up my drive train. Has anyone had any experience with McLeod dual-disc, or any of their three other clutches that they have available for this platform?

Here is a link to their top-of-the-line Mag Force SE which I am interested in. Quite expensive, but it is rated at 700 HP: https://www.mcleodracing.com/mag-force-se/p40

And here is all of the choices they have available for this platform: https://www.mcleodracing.com/sport-compact/c28

If anyone has ANY experience with this brand on any OTHER platforms, also please let me know.

[ShadowReaper]

Originally Posted by Crystalwhitebrzsti

Clutch: exedy stage 2 15955
FI: Fullblown stage 1 with 2867
Mi: 20 LOL
Power?? Not sure never dyno (I assume same as other kits)
Lockout: nope
Stiffness: basically stock
DD: yup
Would I buy again: initial impressions are great, but time will tell. I’ll update once broken in.
Review: install super easy. Great clutch feel with interesting engagement. It isn’t jerky but it takes a few times start stop to get used to. So far I’m happy and would recommend.

Update: so far it’s doing well. I’m beyond the break in. It does make noise in the 3k-4K rpm range for some reason? Other than that works great.

Just get out lol