ECS Stage 1 Clutch kit?

[mark_sargeant19]

hey there guys, had a bit of a sad moment at santa pod this weekend,

my clutch slipped all the way up the strip :mad::thumbdwn::thumbdwn:

it doesnt do it when nailing it on normal roads, (only up to the speed limit obviously )

i know there is a shed load more grip on the track due to all the rubber laid down by other cars and the fact they spray that layer or glue or whatever it is on the track (dam it smells good that stuff)

anyway back on point, ive decided to upgrade my clutch before it starts slipping, the car has 111,000 on it anyway, and ive had a friend at my skoda stealership offer to fit it for £80:)

does anyone on here have any experience with the ECS stage 1 clutch? it seems to claim to do quite alot, "more bhp and faster spool up"? how does that all work?

i dont really know alot about a flywheels, whats the advantages of having a single mass flighwheel as opposed to a dual one?

also what difference does a lightened flywheel make?

wow now that was a long bit of text for me.

mark

[oggy]

Well Mark. It replaces the heavy dual mass flywheel with a lighter flywheeel & with the lesser weight will reduce the rotating mass, which as It is lighter will reduce the energy needed to turn & so It turns quicker & Is more efficient. Hope I'm not talking dribble here:D

I was told It improves mid range spool up. I can't comment as I haven't one fitted:rolleyes:

The only problem I'm told, with a single mass flywheel you will feel more vibration/chatter from the gearbox.

[jmf]

Hah, I just got my ECS Stage 1 kit today in the mail

What I can tell you from looking at it is that except the flywheel (I got the 20.5lbs one, not the lightened version, so there's "no vibration") it seems to be made up of various stock parts, for example the disc seems to be a standard VR6 one (looked up the code in a parts catalog). However, it claims to be good up to "200-275 wheel horsepower"... I certainly hope so as I'm putting out around 250bhp Other than that parts are Sachs, flywheel is "I don't know" and there's also an ECS branded alignment tool in the box. Oh, and the screws are nicely packaged each one in its own plastic bag

Various people on the net said it's good and didn't actually read of any problems with it anywhere. Maybe Sarah can shed some light on it as they are a reseller of this kit afaik.

Anyway, I'll get back with news after it's on the car, which should be in about 2-3 weeks.

In the meantime if anyone knows: after installation, is there a "grace" period where you have to drive gently, like 500km or so?

Regarding the flywheel, as Oggy said, a single mass is prone to vibrations. That's why I got the heaviest one they have, as that shouldn't be so bad. Also, if you go for a lighter flywheel you will have faster spool-ups when hitting the throttle, but also slower (and very annoying, at least to me) spool-downs...

[AwesomeSarah]

Hi

The petrol ones dont suffer as much with the chatter

Diesel`s do quite a bit , that is why a heavier flywheel was done to stop some of the chatter

We have sold loads of these and have been a very good seller

The DMF is problematic and then if you replace it with a SMF then you dont have issues with that again

The clutches are rated quite high on these too

Sarah

[oggy]

However, it claims to be good up to "200-275 wheel horsepower"... I certainly hope so as I'm putting out around 250bhp

I was told when finding information on choosing which clutch, that the engine torque Is the important factor not the bhp.

if you go for a lighter flywheel you will have faster spool-ups when hitting the throttle, but also slower (and very annoying, at least to me) spool-downs...

Quite right:thumbup:

[David 8]

What is a spool down, and why is a slow one annoying ???

I guess its the turbo slowing down, but what difference would that make ????

I'm a noob lol !!!!

[cloverleaf]

He'll be meaning engine braking effect.

[amateurstuntman]

More like the engine slowing down.

When you lift off the gas it takes longer for the revs to drop down.

[andy68]

Had a Vectra V6 which comes with a 15kg flywheel swapped it for a 5.6kg one, made the engine more responsive whether changing up or down gear, with the old flywheel it always felt as if the engine was just dawdling along. The mapping had to be tweeked to increase tickover from 600rpm to 750rpm to compensate for the the lighter flywheel, don't know if this affects the 1.8T though.

[David 8]

More like the engine slowing down.

When you lift off the gas it takes longer for the revs to drop down.

He'll be meaning engine braking effect.

It was the spooling that was throwing me lol.

Cheers :D

[mark_sargeant19]

what the hell is gearbox chatter as well?

do they all get together in the local starbucks for a coffee?

[David 8]

what the hell is gearbox chatter as well?

do they all get together in the local starbucks for a coffee?

Something like that :confused::confused:

[oggy]

what the hell is gearbox chatter as well?

It sounded better than rattle:rofl:

[Steevie Wonder]

what the hell is gearbox chatter?

Vibration caused from a lack of rotating resistance from the shafts in the gearbox.

If it does make any excess noise it stops as soon as the clutch is pressed. It can make them easy to stall too as there is less engine momentum.

Hope that helps.

Steve:)

[mark_sargeant19]

Cheers guys, I'm thinking I'll go for the heavier of the 2 flywheels then

[Steevie Wonder]

Cheers guys, I'm thinking I'll go for the heavier of the 2 flywheels then

No don't get the big fat heffer of a flywheel!

It is fine to run the SMF without any problems!! I have a SMF on mine, you would never know!

Steve:)

[mark_sargeant19]

No don't get the big fat heffer of a flywheel!

It is fine to run the SMF without any problems!! I have a SMF on mine, you would never know!

Steve:)

oh ok sweet, i wont be ordering it until october anyway, gota take the blooming missus on holiday 1st :(

[jmf]

I think all flywheels in the ECS kits are single-mass. So I would go for the heavier one from the single mass ones...

[AwesomeSarah]

Yes , they are all SMF`s , but as has been said , the heavier one , was more for the diesel`s as they seem to get more of the chatter than petrol`s

Sarah

[jmf]

Clutch is up. Fitted perfectly. I'm still doing the recommended 500miles gentle driving thing, so I can't say much about clamping force, but what I can say is that the pedal feels 5 times lighter than before, so driving around is really a pleasure now. Btw: the old clutch disc was completely and utterly burnt-out, there was practically nothing left on it

I'll come back with more info once the 500miles are gone.

[AwesomeSarah]

Nice one

Did you fit it yourself?

Yes , it is nice to hear that you are bedding it in too

Have fun when it is bedded in

Sarah

[jmf]

No, not myself, although I "assisted" the whole operation. I'd say it's a lengthy process (about 4hrs total), but not that complicated. It was done at a garage, so having the tools clearly helped

[Lloyd55vrs]

so is thet the 14lb flywheel you got with it?

how does it drive? stock? snatchy? on/off?

any rattle? any? any at all? an rattle that could get a strange picky persons attention that would drive him even further nuts and towards a white jacket

[jmf]

Nah, I got the 20.5lbs flywheel. No. Rattle. At. All.

Although I do have the feeling it revs just a little faster...Also, even though I haven't driven it really hard yet I can tell the clamping force of the clutch is really great. For example switching from 2nd to 3rd, before it was kind of smooth transition, now it's BANG! there! flies! That said, I don't have any on/off feeling, I just kind of feel the clamping power, but can drive away smoothly and all. Very happy with it so far.

[billy2981]

not wantin my std one to go but when it does I think ill have one of these,

will the lighter fly be better or should I go for the 20.5 lb one?

I have noticed a slight knockin sound on mine when changing gears 1st - 2nd - 3rd??? been doin it for a few month now????

glad you like it, whebn you say the clutch is lighter? is it much lighter than std? I like the std feel, not as light as the mk4 astra or as heavy as a ford, I think its a great mix of the 2.

billy