Just got my 99 GXE back from the shop, had the exedy stage 1 (organic friction material) installed and the original flywheel resurfaced. I haven't been taking it above 3000 RPM shifts because of the break-in period. First impressions:

(1) Clutch grabs more quickly. It feels more "on/off" compared to the stock clutch.
(2) Clutch grabs at a much lower pedal height compared to the stock clutch (which grabbed at a much higher height). I like this a lot because I don't have to feather/baby the clutch pedal or be very careful with how deep I depress the clutch pedal. Instead, all you do is press it all the way and release it a little and the clutch will grab. With the stock clutch, if I did that I would get a shudder because I would gas the car before the clutch had fully grabbed.
(3) Pedal effort is marginally increased, but does not affect drivability. The Exedy feels quite similar to a Centerforce Stage 2 that I had in a previous car, very good grabbing without a whole lot of pedal effort. Taking into account everything, I feel that drivability has neither improved (because of better grabbing) or deteriorated (because of increased pedal effort).

All in all, I'm really happy with the new clutch and I can't wait for the break-in period to end.

 

good stuff is this similar clutch to the ACT HDMM clutch. It grips 37% over stock.?

 

sounds great i might give it a try - report back

 

Yeah, ive been running my Exedy S1 for about 17K miles so far and its a great clutch. Bought it because i fried my stocker spraying. If you have grippy tires when you finish the break-in and you shift going WOT into 2nd you will **** your pants. It literally feels like you broke something. My whole dash shoke (sp?) pretty violenty the first couple times until my tires gave way. Also, its MUCH MUCH harder to launch. Even still sometimes its hard to not dump it since it grabs very fast. Like tonight i went out street racing (in a secluded area people) and i was having a hard time launching it. Its fun. Just remember, keep the *****-to-the-walls shifting for only when your racing. Around town, baby it. Its a pretty grippy clutch that can shatter your tranny if you abuse it. Other than that, have fun!!!



-eric

 

i've had my exedy stage 1 for about 2-3 months and i'm not happy with it. It grips very well, does its job but my clutch pedal is so hard and sometimes the tranny is so hard to get into gear, sometimes almost impossible and other times it feels better than stock. Clutch pedal fluctuates between hard as h0rney b@lls and light as stock. I dont know if its my tranny or clutch but if i could choose again, i would go ACT

 

if you think the exedy is stiff, then the ACT is even worse. I've driven two different 4th gens with both setups.

could it be an installation problem with yours, mecc?

 

what have people said about the exedy stock replacement?

 

I heard the Exedy Stock Replacement is actually like 15% over stock, but haven't been able to confirm it.

I love my Exedy, sounds pretty much exactly like your impression, but since I bought my car with a busted tranny, my first time out I couldnt help myself and did a full run threw mid 3rd with 4 miles on the clutch, lol. Mine has never slipped. I also think its easier to drive the exedy than it is a stock clutch. It's crazy how mellow it can be in the city, but how great it is when your beating on it.

 

Dude, Exedy and ACT are the same clutch



Sounds like a mishap in the install, defective clutch, or bad break-in...






Eric

 

Sounds like your clutch pedal needs adjustment.

 

The OEM-spec Exedy kit (~$120) pretty much feels and behaves like the stock unit. I like it...

 

cool.its not a replica of the key value cheesy nissan one right.its a replacement for the real oem one..

 

They claim it's a 10% greater clamping force version of the stock one. Of course I'm still in the breakin phase but my impression is that it is equal to the stock version. People with key value report poor results right off the bat.

 

whats the break in period? 500 miles? 1 k miles?

 

Usually quoted as 500 miles.

BTW, I believe the "key value" clutch is made by Daiken which is a subsidiary of Exedy. Definitely do NOT buy a clutch kit which says Daiken on the box...you want one that says Exedy (if you are getting OEM-spec).

 

Yea it's always 500 miles.

 

I've got about 12800 mi. on my exedy. So far so good!

 

I'm loving the Exedy Stage 1.

I thought that my OEM clutch was going out, around 97K, which is why I decided to swap it out. The shop gave me back the old one and told me it wasn't in too bad a shape, just a couple of "hot spots." So that original clutch may have lasted until around 125-150K (since the previous owner must have done a lot of highway driving... my car is a 99 with high miles).

The reason I thought it was going out was because it was very slow to grab, and I found it painfully slow to drive from stop lights and pulling out of driveways.

With the Exedy Stage 1 in, I noticed an immediate difference. The clutch has no problem getting the power down, and is not slow to engage like my old stocker. Of course, some of this probably had to do with the age of the stock clutch, since 97K is still a lot of miles even though the clutch was still in good working order.

 

whats the part # on that Exedy Stage 1?

 

I love my Exedy Stage 1, havent had any problems. Feels like stock, but grips like hell. Couldn't be happier

-Nick

 

Stage1 is 06-803A (Maxima 1985-2001)

 

how much does this clutch chatter with the stock flywheel? did you notice a lot less chatter over the oem nissan one? my oem nissan one, if I shift at redline as fast as possible, my whole dash shakes and feels like it is going to take apart my whole front end....with my previous nissan clutch, just my tires broke loose....it's weird, although I only have 3K miles on the new nissan oem clutch....maybe I need new mounts or something...but since then I have added quite a few bolt-ons as well...so now my entire axle and tranny and front end kinda hop into second gear when I shift as fast as possible into 2nd....maybe I need a new flywheel....I had the stock one machined at the install of this clutch...weird...people with flywheel's ever experience this? axle-tramp/wheel hop into second gear at redline?

 

sounds good i may need a clutch soon and exedy was an option.

 

I noticed a great reduction with PolyU filled stock mounts. A LOT less slop that you can easily feel even daily driving.

 

unfortunately i will not be able to try the redline shifts until after the break-in, so I can't answer your question, michaelnyden; hopefully someone else will chime in though, i'm sure there are lots of aggressive 5-speed drivers here with the exedy stage 1.