Another Motiv Clutch Review- First impressions + Pics

Fishayyy · 05-10-2015, 01:22 AM

So I met up with Payam (@fastgti69) and his friend Jr. today to get my clutch installed along with a few other things.

So to start here is a list of all the parts that went in:

-Motiv Twin Disc Clutch (Two 6 puck discs with one sprung disc) w/ SMFW
-Rogue Tranny Mounts
-Redline MTL Transmission Fluid
-Bronze Clutch Fork Pivot Pin from Ireland Engineering
-Steel Transmission bolts

Some specs on my car:
-2008 E92 335i
-47.8k Miles
-Charge Pipe w/ BOV
-JB4 G5

First Impressions:
Compared to the stock clutch I would say the peddle pressure is about 25%-30% heavier and for reference Payam's clutch (which I believe is a Spec 2+, could be wrong) was about 50% heavier compared to stock. Both were very manageable weights. Now this was probably the most controversial decision of the day but we chose to install the TOB at the low setting. This worried me because it seemed everyone else was using the high setting, but it turns out that it worked just fine. The engagement point of the stock clutch is pretty high up (I'd say roughly 2 inches of travel to disengage), while the Motiv Clutch on the low setting is about 1-2 inches away from the floor. With break in this will raise higher up and I will chime in from time to time to comment on that.

Luckily, on my first try I didn't stall my car, but the clutch definitely has a pretty rough engagement compared to stock, albeit it's obviously still breaking in and it has 6-puck discs. With the stock clutch you could easily keep the throttle steady and slowly release the clutch to get the car to inch forward whereas with this clutch you need to pretty much just release the clutch quickly and let it pop and jerk into place otherwise it will shudder and fight you. This eases up and gets smoother as the gears get higher, but I do expect all of this to calm down with time and miles. Lastly, while the clutch is engaged it is definitely smoother in acceleration and deceleration. Previously, I was having "accordion" issues where I would let off the gas, at almost any given speed, in gears 1-2 and my car would jerk back and forth more so than in other manual cars I have driven. With the SMFW when I let off the gas the car will slow down as expected without jerking back and forth violently which is a huuuge plus in my book.

P.S. I'm not experiencing any terrible clutch rattle, although it is there. During the day I can't hear rattling that much unless I blast the AC, but during cold nights you can definitely hear it, but its easy to drown out with the radio.

Here's a few simple pictures of the disc and car:
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Other Impressions:
I'm going to elaborate on these more as time goes on, namely because I haven't had a chance to drive the car hard in the turns, but as for the Rogue tranny mounts, they don't seem to add very much NVH; shifter vibrates a little bit more, but that's no big deal/could be caused by the clutch. I am also noticing a slightly more pleasant shift with the Redline MTL in there. It's not a whole new world type of difference, but it did get rid of pretty much all the annoying and unwanted resistance and notchiness from my shifts that used to be there previously.

Payam should be chiming in later on some of the install details and decisions, but for now let me know if you have any questions. Here's to another Motiv clutch!

glachhman2 · 05-10-2015, 02:30 AM

Subscribed, please update on the engagement later on. I wanted to daily my car after single turbo with motiv clutch. If you throttle more and ride the clutch does that help>

Fishayyy · 05-10-2015, 01:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by glachhman2

Subscribed, please update on the engagement later on. I wanted to daily my car after single turbo with motiv clutch. If you throttle more and ride the clutch does that help>

Yea, I've been playing with it a little more here and there and higher rpm engagement helps, but Payam told me it's gonna feel like shit for a while and then after a few hundred miles it gets better.

Nitrousbird · 05-10-2015, 01:43 PM

Are you planning to go to a big single turbo soon? Why this over the 335is clutch?

Fishayyy · 05-10-2015, 03:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nitrousbird

Are you planning to go to a big single turbo soon? Why this over the 335is clutch?

Big turbo dreams haha

Waiting for the Steed Speed Manifolds and the VM Bottom mounts to come out later this year and I'm gonna see if I can fit a big EFR turbo in there. Or possibly trying a bi-turbo setup. In the mean while I'm getting a 1000 Whp FMIC built and doing a custom oil cooling solution.

Fishayyy · 05-10-2015, 03:47 PM

If you want a smooth enjoyable clutch and you dont plan on going much over 500whp. Get the 335is clutch. I cannot stress that enough.

Fishayyy · 07-05-2015, 05:24 PM

So as a follow up on my review now that the clutch is fully broken in with 1000 miles on it. Here are my different ratings for the clutch.

Stop and Go: 5/10

The clutch could be worse, I feel like depending on the amount of people in my car and the temperature of the clutch the engagement into first gear changes. I still stall my car from time to time when I have more people in my car. When I'm by my self the engagement is fairly easy unless I'm on an upward incline. The reverse gear is horrid. There is no slipping it and it will jerk around until it's in gear. The reverse gear fully engaged with no gas is actually pretty fast too and you can't use the brake or it will start to kill the engine.

Shifting while moving: 9/10

For the most part the car shifts like stock when moving. When going WOT or just driving hard in general the gears will jolt into place, but that's fine by me. Another thing is that I feel like it's much much easier to downshift. Finally I feel like the car is much smoother in first gear, but that's most likely because I was having jerky 1st gear issues on the stock clutch.

Pedal height and feel: 10/10

As I mentioned in the initial review I feel like the pedal feel is close to stock (about 125%) and with time you barely even notice that it feels any different from stock. Pedal heigh at first was pretty close to the ground but I feel like now the clutch engages and disengages at around the middle of it's travel. This was with the TOB installed in the low position.

Clutch Noises: 6/10

This clutch gives me new noises every once in a while, but for the most part they are all very livable. Clutch chatter when the car is in neutral is very quiet unless you have the AC on. When the AC is on it's very easy to drown out the noise with music and when there is no music, the chatter doesn't drown out conversation. When in gear I've been having weird resonance issues (which I have been told is normal) under 2800 rpm. They were very annoying at first but with time they have settled down a very small amount. Finally, a new noise that has appeared recently (only when engaging into 1st gear and very rarely 2nd gear) I hear a weird chirping noise coming from the clutch. It doesn't happen all the time, just usually when trying to slip the clutch from any rpm over 3k. I'm not sure what the issue could be or if it's even an issue, but it didn't happen until just recently. If anyone has any ideas I would like to hear them.

RE Tranny Mounts

Shifting in turns has improved marginally. I don't feel much NVH difference from stock which is good and when I took my car through the canyons to test it I felt like the gears were much easier to find and engage.

Redline MTL Tranny Fluid

I really like the feel of this fluid. It's difficult to describe but the shifts feel like they have more weight to them. The shifter definitely has more resistance and notchiness on cold days but once the transmission has warmed up the shifter feels better than stock in my opinion.

Final Thoughts

Over all I would not recommend this clutch style to anyone who is driving their car daily. I have very high tolerance for things, but this clutch can even get on my nerves from time to time. I love this car for it's purpose, which is racing, but for the street it can be a handful. Personally I like the challenge of driving a clutch that is more difficult, and don't get me wrong it is manageable even in stop and go traffic. However, this clutch will i test your patience from time to time. You will stall it and it is hard to get the hang of it because there is no consistent rpm/pedal release speed that will work every time. You have to feel for it and it will jerk you around if you get the wrong combination. Unless you plan on making this a dedicated race car or just a weekend car that you drive hard I would recommend getting a full face clutch or a SMFW with a 550i clutch.

glachhman2 · 07-05-2015, 10:04 PM

I just got their latest full face disks, I will have a review once its in!

Fishayyy · 07-06-2015, 05:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by glachhman2

I just got their latest full face disks, I will have a review once its in!

Very cool, I know a few people that would be interested in a review. Are you a memeber of any of the other forums or Facebook groups?

glachhman2 · 07-06-2015, 09:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fishayyy

Very cool, I know a few people that would be interested in a review. Are you a memeber of any of the other forums or Facebook groups?

I'm in N54tech, official e90post tristate, bmw 335i, bmw 135i on fb
and n54tech

Fishayyy · 07-06-2015, 02:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by glachhman2

I'm in N54tech, official e90post tristate, bmw 335i, bmw 135i on fb
and n54tech

Alright cool, I was just checking because I'm not on this forum or N54Tech very often. I'm on N5X Enthusiast Facebook page and another forum I'm not allowed to mention here.

glachhman2 · 07-11-2015, 01:06 AM

Got this bad boy installed today and its sweeet!!!
Pedal is slightly firmer than stock and the engagement is pretty smooth.
I drove my friends car with pucked discs and stalled 3 times in a row. I haven't come close to stalling with the full faces.

Fishayyy · 07-14-2015, 04:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by glachhman2

Got this bad boy installed today and its sweeet!!!
Pedal is slightly firmer than stock and the engagement is pretty smooth.
I drove my friends car with pucked discs and stalled 3 times in a row. I haven't come close to stalling with the full faces.

I'd really love to get the full faced discs, but I'd have to bug spec then take my tranny out again lol

05-10-2015, 01:22 AM	#1
Fishayyy Second Lieutenant 17 Rep 199 Posts Drives: 2008 E92 335i (Space Grey) Join Date: Nov 2014 Location: California iTrader: (0)	Another Motiv Clutch Review- First impressions + Pics So I met up with Payam (@fastgti69) and his friend Jr. today to get my clutch installed along with a few other things. So to start here is a list of all the parts that went in: -Motiv Twin Disc Clutch (Two 6 puck discs with one sprung disc) w/ SMFW -Rogue Tranny Mounts -Redline MTL Transmission Fluid -Bronze Clutch Fork Pivot Pin from Ireland Engineering -Steel Transmission bolts Some specs on my car: -2008 E92 335i -47.8k Miles -Charge Pipe w/ BOV -JB4 G5 First Impressions: Compared to the stock clutch I would say the peddle pressure is about 25%-30% heavier and for reference Payam's clutch (which I believe is a Spec 2+, could be wrong) was about 50% heavier compared to stock. Both were very manageable weights. Now this was probably the most controversial decision of the day but we chose to install the TOB at the low setting. This worried me because it seemed everyone else was using the high setting, but it turns out that it worked just fine. The engagement point of the stock clutch is pretty high up (I'd say roughly 2 inches of travel to disengage), while the Motiv Clutch on the low setting is about 1-2 inches away from the floor. With break in this will raise higher up and I will chime in from time to time to comment on that. Luckily, on my first try I didn't stall my car, but the clutch definitely has a pretty rough engagement compared to stock, albeit it's obviously still breaking in and it has 6-puck discs. With the stock clutch you could easily keep the throttle steady and slowly release the clutch to get the car to inch forward whereas with this clutch you need to pretty much just release the clutch quickly and let it pop and jerk into place otherwise it will shudder and fight you. This eases up and gets smoother as the gears get higher, but I do expect all of this to calm down with time and miles. Lastly, while the clutch is engaged it is definitely smoother in acceleration and deceleration. Previously, I was having "accordion" issues where I would let off the gas, at almost any given speed, in gears 1-2 and my car would jerk back and forth more so than in other manual cars I have driven. With the SMFW when I let off the gas the car will slow down as expected without jerking back and forth violently which is a huuuge plus in my book. P.S. I'm not experiencing any terrible clutch rattle, although it is there. During the day I can't hear rattling that much unless I blast the AC, but during cold nights you can definitely hear it, but its easy to drown out with the radio. Here's a few simple pictures of the disc and car: Other Impressions: I'm going to elaborate on these more as time goes on, namely because I haven't had a chance to drive the car hard in the turns, but as for the Rogue tranny mounts, they don't seem to add very much NVH; shifter vibrates a little bit more, but that's no big deal/could be caused by the clutch. I am also noticing a slightly more pleasant shift with the Redline MTL in there. It's not a whole new world type of difference, but it did get rid of pretty much all the annoying and unwanted resistance and notchiness from my shifts that used to be there previously. Payam should be chiming in later on some of the install details and decisions, but for now let me know if you have any questions. Here's to another Motiv clutch! Last edited by Fishayyy; 05-10-2015 at 01:06 PM.. Reason: Updated rattling comments.
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05-10-2015, 02:30 AM	#2
glachhman2 Banned 45 Rep 303 Posts Drives: 2007 335i Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: Queens, NY iTrader: (0)	Subscribed, please update on the engagement later on. I wanted to daily my car after single turbo with motiv clutch. If you throttle more and ride the clutch does that help>
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05-10-2015, 01:43 PM	#4
Nitrousbird Banned 438 Rep 1,602 Posts Drives: '07 E92 335i 6MT Join Date: Dec 2014 Location: Powell, OH iTrader: (2)	Are you planning to go to a big single turbo soon? Why this over the 335is clutch?
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05-10-2015, 03:47 PM	#6
Fishayyy Second Lieutenant 17 Rep 199 Posts Drives: 2008 E92 335i (Space Grey) Join Date: Nov 2014 Location: California iTrader: (0)	If you want a smooth enjoyable clutch and you dont plan on going much over 500whp. Get the 335is clutch. I cannot stress that enough.
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07-05-2015, 05:24 PM	#7
Fishayyy Second Lieutenant 17 Rep 199 Posts Drives: 2008 E92 335i (Space Grey) Join Date: Nov 2014 Location: California iTrader: (0)	So as a follow up on my review now that the clutch is fully broken in with 1000 miles on it. Here are my different ratings for the clutch. Stop and Go: 5/10 The clutch could be worse, I feel like depending on the amount of people in my car and the temperature of the clutch the engagement into first gear changes. I still stall my car from time to time when I have more people in my car. When I'm by my self the engagement is fairly easy unless I'm on an upward incline. The reverse gear is horrid. There is no slipping it and it will jerk around until it's in gear. The reverse gear fully engaged with no gas is actually pretty fast too and you can't use the brake or it will start to kill the engine. Shifting while moving: 9/10 For the most part the car shifts like stock when moving. When going WOT or just driving hard in general the gears will jolt into place, but that's fine by me. Another thing is that I feel like it's much much easier to downshift. Finally I feel like the car is much smoother in first gear, but that's most likely because I was having jerky 1st gear issues on the stock clutch. Pedal height and feel: 10/10 As I mentioned in the initial review I feel like the pedal feel is close to stock (about 125%) and with time you barely even notice that it feels any different from stock. Pedal heigh at first was pretty close to the ground but I feel like now the clutch engages and disengages at around the middle of it's travel. This was with the TOB installed in the low position. Clutch Noises: 6/10 This clutch gives me new noises every once in a while, but for the most part they are all very livable. Clutch chatter when the car is in neutral is very quiet unless you have the AC on. When the AC is on it's very easy to drown out the noise with music and when there is no music, the chatter doesn't drown out conversation. When in gear I've been having weird resonance issues (which I have been told is normal) under 2800 rpm. They were very annoying at first but with time they have settled down a very small amount. Finally, a new noise that has appeared recently (only when engaging into 1st gear and very rarely 2nd gear) I hear a weird chirping noise coming from the clutch. It doesn't happen all the time, just usually when trying to slip the clutch from any rpm over 3k. I'm not sure what the issue could be or if it's even an issue, but it didn't happen until just recently. If anyone has any ideas I would like to hear them. RE Tranny Mounts Shifting in turns has improved marginally. I don't feel much NVH difference from stock which is good and when I took my car through the canyons to test it I felt like the gears were much easier to find and engage. Redline MTL Tranny Fluid I really like the feel of this fluid. It's difficult to describe but the shifts feel like they have more weight to them. The shifter definitely has more resistance and notchiness on cold days but once the transmission has warmed up the shifter feels better than stock in my opinion. Final Thoughts Over all I would not recommend this clutch style to anyone who is driving their car daily. I have very high tolerance for things, but this clutch can even get on my nerves from time to time. I love this car for it's purpose, which is racing, but for the street it can be a handful. Personally I like the challenge of driving a clutch that is more difficult, and don't get me wrong it is manageable even in stop and go traffic. However, this clutch will i test your patience from time to time. You will stall it and it is hard to get the hang of it because there is no consistent rpm/pedal release speed that will work every time. You have to feel for it and it will jerk you around if you get the wrong combination. Unless you plan on making this a dedicated race car or just a weekend car that you drive hard I would recommend getting a full face clutch or a SMFW with a 550i clutch. Last edited by Fishayyy; 07-05-2015 at 07:02 PM..
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07-05-2015, 10:04 PM	#8
glachhman2 Banned 45 Rep 303 Posts Drives: 2007 335i Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: Queens, NY iTrader: (0)	I just got their latest full face disks, I will have a review once its in!
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07-11-2015, 01:06 AM	#12
glachhman2 Banned 45 Rep 303 Posts Drives: 2007 335i Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: Queens, NY iTrader: (0)	Got this bad boy installed today and its sweeet!!! Pedal is slightly firmer than stock and the engagement is pretty smooth. I drove my friends car with pucked discs and stalled 3 times in a row. I haven't come close to stalling with the full faces.
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