Alright, Gents! The review thread you've been waiting for...
Prologue:
This has been in the works for around ~3 months, as I waited on Geoff of Mantic/USA, who waited on Mantic/Australia, and then we all waited on the new C7-style flywheel to be machined... and then waited on my local shop, just so the install could be delayed further and ultimately... I got the car back today! Since I am the first guy to have the opportunity to put a Mantic clutch in the V2, I was given a nice discount on the purchase price to help offset all the typical stuff that can happen with a 1-off build, including delays, hassle, getting additional measurements during the install and the potential of "shit happens."
Thankfully, aside from some extra labor and the rental car, it went relatively smoothly and no shims were needed with the kit that Mantic provided me - this was largely due to the brand-new C7 flywheel that Geoff @ Mantic/USA engineered to deal with some unexpected C7 fitment issues, and serendipitously benefited we V2 owners! Major credit needs to be given to Geoff for catching this issue, and I believe he got me one of the first 4 flywheels produced to help keep this build on track!
My Expectations: I daily drive my M6, and want a clutch that will hold 650-700 RWHP and still drive similar to the OEM clutch. I have been very pleased with the OEM clutch manners (and its durability at almost 200 RWHP over stock!) since buying the car. I have owned both a M6 C6 coupe and a C6 Z06, and I feel all three vehicles have similar, easy-to-drive manners at their respective power levels. The CTS-V clutch has never seen a drag strip, but I drive the Wagon aggressively on the street and have 50+ zero-110+ pulls along with 6-7 dyno sessions on the factory clutch, so it has served me well.
The vehicle: a 2013 CTS-V M6 Unicorn with cam, pullies, headers and ~650 RHWP that idles smooth at 700 RPM. 40K miles on the stock clutch, 20K miles at 620-650 RWHP and obvious clutch slip for the last ~5k miles.
The parts:
(note: the scale was showing an old reading when I took the photo)
The Mantic 9000 Flywheel is - Per Geoff - rated for 1000 ft-lbs of torque at the flywheel, or ~850 RWTQ +/- 40 ft-lbs due to various factors that influence measurements on a chassis dyno. This does not include their tolerance engineered into the unit, but of course this is not going to be advertised or listed in the documentation. NOTE: this assumes you observe a 500 mile break in period of stop-and-go driving to allow the clutch packs to properly mate and wear in. The torque rating increases as the clutch packs break in, so it's imperative to avoid WOT pulls for full capacity.
I was sent a Camaro slave by accident which will not fit inside the bell housing, the CTS-V slave is different and self-bleeding. I expect this will be corrected in "The Kit." Geoff @ Mantic has continued to estimate street price on this kit to be contiguous with their other LS-oriented packages at around $1600-1800 (Clutch, flywheel and slave).
You will want to have a replacement throw-out bearing on hand, part #12557583, which runs around $15 shipped.
Part 1 - Initial driving Impressions:
It's good!
I think the Mantic will be a winner, specifically when compared to the RPS BC2 at almost twice the price. I don't think the Centerforce is going to be much of an alternative based on the majority of V2 users, but some horny internet douche did have good luck with one...
Now we have to allow for the fact that I have a cam, am tuned, and we shaved ~15 pounds of rotating mass off the clutch assembly; not to mention that all of us will have different perspectives on what "good" and "smooth" and so forth really mean. However I think it's fair to say I'm relatively critical of how things should be, and my expectations are likely higher than the Average Bear. I also think it's safe to say that the vast majority of buyers will be guys just like me, guys with cams and pullies and 650+ RWHP!
Initial engagement is actually damn smooth. It feels a LOT like stock, although it will take a few days to get used to the much earlier pedal engagement that Geoff recommended. My stock clutch had a pedal engagement at ~10-20% of pedal movement (meaning I only had to press the pedal in slightly for total release); due to the installation and no spacers, pedal engagement is presently 70-80% of total pedal throw, or perhaps 2-3" from the floor. It's not bad, just different - and Geoff feels this will decrease as the clutch wears in so he wanted plenty of "room" for the first try.
I got zero chatter on the test drive and ride home over 30+ minutes of mixed driving. Yes, I had the windows rolled down and was specifically listening for it... it was factory-quiet! I did get some brief shudder/vibration once that is likely a combination of my tune and trying to re-learn throttle and clutch movements from a dead stop. I would occasionally notice this even on the OEM clutch if something was off with the tune, so I expect to improve on this with some tweaking with HP Tuners (obviously not directly a clutch issue). I never stalled it, and again it behaves very similarly to OEM in my opinion. From a dead stop, I will try to slip the clutch into full engagement over ~1-2 seconds with engine RPM around 1000-1500 RPM and this works very well.
In every gear other than first, it feels exactly like stock, even at low speed such as in a parking lot or going from 1-2 while creeping along at ~10mph. No noise in neutral, at idle or with revs.
Obviously, I plan on observing the break-in period as much as any mortal man can in order to give the Mantic 9000 the most fair and equitable review possible.
Cliff Notes:
Mantic 9000 Clutch for the 2009 - 2015 CTS-V
Talk to Matt (LT1z) on the forums for pricing!
Prologue:
This has been in the works for around ~3 months, as I waited on Geoff of Mantic/USA, who waited on Mantic/Australia, and then we all waited on the new C7-style flywheel to be machined... and then waited on my local shop, just so the install could be delayed further and ultimately... I got the car back today! Since I am the first guy to have the opportunity to put a Mantic clutch in the V2, I was given a nice discount on the purchase price to help offset all the typical stuff that can happen with a 1-off build, including delays, hassle, getting additional measurements during the install and the potential of "shit happens."
Thankfully, aside from some extra labor and the rental car, it went relatively smoothly and no shims were needed with the kit that Mantic provided me - this was largely due to the brand-new C7 flywheel that Geoff @ Mantic/USA engineered to deal with some unexpected C7 fitment issues, and serendipitously benefited we V2 owners! Major credit needs to be given to Geoff for catching this issue, and I believe he got me one of the first 4 flywheels produced to help keep this build on track!
My Expectations: I daily drive my M6, and want a clutch that will hold 650-700 RWHP and still drive similar to the OEM clutch. I have been very pleased with the OEM clutch manners (and its durability at almost 200 RWHP over stock!) since buying the car. I have owned both a M6 C6 coupe and a C6 Z06, and I feel all three vehicles have similar, easy-to-drive manners at their respective power levels. The CTS-V clutch has never seen a drag strip, but I drive the Wagon aggressively on the street and have 50+ zero-110+ pulls along with 6-7 dyno sessions on the factory clutch, so it has served me well.
The vehicle: a 2013 CTS-V M6 Unicorn with cam, pullies, headers and ~650 RHWP that idles smooth at 700 RPM. 40K miles on the stock clutch, 20K miles at 620-650 RWHP and obvious clutch slip for the last ~5k miles.
The parts:
Stock clutch and flywheel: ~65 pounds
Mantic 9000 clutch with C7 flywheel: ~51 pounds (Clutch pack was ~30 pounds, C7 flywheel is 21 pounds)
(note: the scale was showing an old reading when I took the photo)
The Mantic 9000 Flywheel is - Per Geoff - rated for 1000 ft-lbs of torque at the flywheel, or ~850 RWTQ +/- 40 ft-lbs due to various factors that influence measurements on a chassis dyno. This does not include their tolerance engineered into the unit, but of course this is not going to be advertised or listed in the documentation. NOTE: this assumes you observe a 500 mile break in period of stop-and-go driving to allow the clutch packs to properly mate and wear in. The torque rating increases as the clutch packs break in, so it's imperative to avoid WOT pulls for full capacity.
I was sent a Camaro slave by accident which will not fit inside the bell housing, the CTS-V slave is different and self-bleeding. I expect this will be corrected in "The Kit." Geoff @ Mantic has continued to estimate street price on this kit to be contiguous with their other LS-oriented packages at around $1600-1800 (Clutch, flywheel and slave).
You will want to have a replacement throw-out bearing on hand, part #12557583, which runs around $15 shipped.
Part 1 - Initial driving Impressions:
It's good!
I think the Mantic will be a winner, specifically when compared to the RPS BC2 at almost twice the price. I don't think the Centerforce is going to be much of an alternative based on the majority of V2 users, but some horny internet douche did have good luck with one...
Now we have to allow for the fact that I have a cam, am tuned, and we shaved ~15 pounds of rotating mass off the clutch assembly; not to mention that all of us will have different perspectives on what "good" and "smooth" and so forth really mean. However I think it's fair to say I'm relatively critical of how things should be, and my expectations are likely higher than the Average Bear. I also think it's safe to say that the vast majority of buyers will be guys just like me, guys with cams and pullies and 650+ RWHP!
Initial engagement is actually damn smooth. It feels a LOT like stock, although it will take a few days to get used to the much earlier pedal engagement that Geoff recommended. My stock clutch had a pedal engagement at ~10-20% of pedal movement (meaning I only had to press the pedal in slightly for total release); due to the installation and no spacers, pedal engagement is presently 70-80% of total pedal throw, or perhaps 2-3" from the floor. It's not bad, just different - and Geoff feels this will decrease as the clutch wears in so he wanted plenty of "room" for the first try.
I got zero chatter on the test drive and ride home over 30+ minutes of mixed driving. Yes, I had the windows rolled down and was specifically listening for it... it was factory-quiet! I did get some brief shudder/vibration once that is likely a combination of my tune and trying to re-learn throttle and clutch movements from a dead stop. I would occasionally notice this even on the OEM clutch if something was off with the tune, so I expect to improve on this with some tweaking with HP Tuners (obviously not directly a clutch issue). I never stalled it, and again it behaves very similarly to OEM in my opinion. From a dead stop, I will try to slip the clutch into full engagement over ~1-2 seconds with engine RPM around 1000-1500 RPM and this works very well.
In every gear other than first, it feels exactly like stock, even at low speed such as in a parking lot or going from 1-2 while creeping along at ~10mph. No noise in neutral, at idle or with revs.
Obviously, I plan on observing the break-in period as much as any mortal man can in order to give the Mantic 9000 the most fair and equitable review possible.
Cliff Notes:
Mantic 9000 Clutch for the 2009 - 2015 CTS-V
Rated for 1000 flywheel foot-pounds, or ~850 RWTQ
~15 pounds lighter than OEM, and lower rotational inertia
Excellent manners on initial shake-down run
Deeper pedal engagement than stock, but this is installation-dependent
Estimated street price of $1600-1800
Talk to Matt (LT1z) on the forums for pricing!