ACT SB8-HDG6 6 puck sprung hub clutch review of sorts

[MrSir]

Here we go,

Initially, it stunk. Literally and figuratively. I thought I made a huge mistake during the break-in period. Living in beautiful socal, driving in beautiful socal traffic, it was honestly agonizing, and I thought I was going to cry. Juddering, nearly stalling, can't creep, and it STUNK LIKE SCHEISSE.

I think it's officially broken in now, and engagement is smooth-ish but still insane. Up and down shifts are very nice with the light flywheel, and it's way easier to skip gears in town because the revs sink like a stone. Low rpm modulation is basically nonexistent, but it is fairly easy to nail a really good 4-5K launch with confidence. Smell is only there if you launch like you're actually racing, other than that its gone.

In traffic at 6:30 in the morning, it's psychologically taxing. While it's not unbearable, it will wake up your bones. Especially with the mild judder that's still there when you take off on a hill and slip off the line (real high performance clutches judder and rattle).

Which brings me to my least favorite thing..... The rattle at idle, especially with the AC on. The gears in the trans are high fiving every time the engine fires. It's annoying, and bench racers think you need to "adjust your valves", or that you "have" rod knock...... But it's a badge of honor that I wear proudly.

Would I do it again? Probably not for a daily. But it's a hell of a lot of fun. I'm enjoying it for what it is, it's gnarly.

[mav1178]

You could pretty much sum this up for any puck-type clutch setup.

Full face is preferred for daily driving. If you get a properly designed full face clutch, you can have performance benefits without sacrificing drivability.

[venturaII]

I have a dual pattern clutch disk on a Beetle with a Type 4 motor...full face on one side and 6 pucks on the other. It's grabby, but manageable. Not something I'd want on a daily car though.

[MrSir]

Originally Posted by mav1178

You could pretty much sum this up for any puck-type clutch setup.

Full face is preferred for daily driving. If you get a properly designed full face clutch, you can have performance benefits without sacrificing drivability.

I agree 100%. It's overkill for a DD, but I do plan on doing some road courses. I figure next time, I'll go with a full face. First time I've had to daily a pucked clutch, and I'm enjoying it. It makes you feel like you're really doing something. Lol

[mav1178]

Originally Posted by MrSir

I agree 100%. It's overkill for a DD, but I do plan on doing some road courses. I figure next time, I'll go with a full face. First time I've had to daily a pucked clutch, and I'm enjoying it. It makes you feel like you're really doing something. Lol

Wait till you drive a proper clutch/flywheel single plate setup. You'd think you were a GT300 racer...

Full face single plate metal clutches (like ORC, OS Giken, Exedy Hyper, etc) are what I'm referring to.

[MrSir]

Originally Posted by venturaII

I have a dual pattern clutch disk on a Beetle with a Type 4 motor...full face on one side and 6 pucks on the other. It's grabby, but manageable. Not something I'd want on a daily car though.

I had one on my first car. Centerforce dual friction on a lifted 2000 Nissan frontier with a KA24DE back in 2012. It was pretty rough with only 140 hp. Lol

[MrSir]

Originally Posted by mav1178

Wait till you drive a proper clutch/flywheel single plate setup. You'd think you were a GT300 racer...

Full face single plate metal clutches (like ORC, OS Giken, Exedy Hyper, etc) are what I'm referring to.

I wish I could pull something like that. This is my main car. Lol

[DarkPira7e]

Just so you know, a pucked clutch will wear out much faster than a full face clutch in day to day traffic. Other than that, to each his own; I like daily driving cars with stripped interiors, so who am I to judge.

[MrSir]

Originally Posted by DarkPira7e

Just so you know, a pucked clutch will wear out much faster than a full face clutch in day to day traffic. Other than that, to each his own; I like daily driving cars with stripped interiors, so who am I to judge.

The trans weighs less than my girlfriend, and an oem exedy is cheeeeaaaaappppp. I come from the euro world, so I feel like a kid in a candy store with this car. Wctw I'll buy an oem clutch and a 6 pack. Lol

[MrSir]

So I’m about 15k miles into this setup (I drive a shit ton), and it’s still good. Pretty much all hard drives up and down the mountain, and in LA traffic. Save for the occasional stink after launch (I powerbrake into my launches), it works excellent. I don’t expect it to last forever though, due to design. It is an aggressive design, and a candle that burns twice as bright, lasts half as long.

As far as friction is concerned, my next choice will probably be the lwfw, and XT PP with a street disc. It seems like the right compromise between balls out and stock, mainly due to it being a FF organic disc.

The lightweight flywheel is something I love and hate. Response is great, but it doesn’t quite have the inertia for smooth takeoffs and high rpm 1-2 shifts on steep hills (if you aren’t experienced in high performance clutch setups, it will be livable, but you aren’t going to like it). Once you’re actually moving, it’s great. The enjoyment I get out of it is definitely worth the jerking in traffic on hills. Lol

Some extra info.....

The car is on stock wheels with 225-45-17 BFG g force sport comp2s at the moment.

I rerouted my CAI to the wheel well to get rid of a heat soak issue that I had with the stock intake and the unmodified CAI. So off the line, my engine responds very well in heavy traffic. This made the clutch setup much easier to live with on a daily basis.

My car has STOCK ENGINE MOUNTS. Probably the biggest source of annoyance with this setup, is the fact that drivetrain flex is amplified at low speeds.

TL;DR: This setup is seriously great, but you need to know what you’re getting yourself into.