What clutch should I get? Or keep stock?
 

I searched, but I know so little about clutches that I'm still confused.

MSM, approx. 230 rwhp (my educated guess), maybe up to 260-ish someday if I ever upgrade the turbo or intake manifold. Only street driving, never going to track it.

Currently on the stock clutch (supposedly stronger than regular NB clutch) at 96K miles.

It works well, but I'm going to replace the trans soon with a 5-speed (yes, THAT decision is final :) ) so the next decision is whether to keep the stock clutch or upgrade while I'm in there anyhow.

So whaddaya'll think? Stick with stock? Or upgrade???

If I upgrade, then budget is VERY important. What do MTers think is a good non-expensive upgraded clutch vs. stock? Should I trust ebay shit? Or does anyone have a non-abused, low-mileage aftermarket clutch for sale?

Check out the FM offerings, I'm very happy so far with their level 2. Or you could just keep what you have and change it out later when you grenade the 5-speed.

Some have trusted the ebay stuff with mixed results, but I would go with a name brand like ACT. I have the ACT HD and I think it was rated up to ~240TQ and I paid something like $400 after shipping. For $75 more you can get the Extreme Duty ACT which is rated over 300TQ. Mine has not much more pedal pressure than stock, and engages smoothly with no jerky take-offs in traffic. I haven't tested under boost yet, but will soon.

Eh ... for those prices I'll keep the stocker.

get the ebay and you will be fine its the same shit you buy from anyone else realy just dont expect more than 250 lb ft from it.

if 260 is truly your limit, get whatever.

but if it's above that, 949 twins. that's pretty much all I'll ever recommend.

Thanks, but if I'm bitching about FM prices, then the 949 is way out of my league.

My trans swap is still a few weeks away so I don't have to decide right now.

Revised question: what's good / bad / ugly from ebay clutches? Can anyone recommend or warn about specific brands / sellers? What's this stage 1 / 2 / 3 mean?

The FM clutches I believe are semi-reverse-engineered from the MSM design. The Stg1 will hold all the power you can make on the stock MSM turbo, so there's a no-brainer solution for $350.

I believe common wisdom says the MSM clutch will hold up to about 250whp, but for how long... so you can save up while you see what it will actually hold.

If you can't swing $350 for what some say is the most critical part of the drivetrain, then how are you gonna justify the expense of what it will take to make 260whp? Just sayin.

For a DD, stay away from puck'd clutches, so that eliminates about 50% of the ebay offerings. The other 50% as said has had mixed reviews... some early failures, some long-lasting. I guarantee you those clutches won't have the feel and modulation of the new FM clutches.

Egay F1 Racing stage 3. Been about 2 years. No idea on hp or tq, definitely over 200.
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Hmm. Learning something new everyday.

I said "someday" ... like if I ever get a job again. Got laid off in January this year. For now I'm quite happy around 230. :)

Thanks.