Stock Flywheel
Best way to make a choice on flywheel is to listen to as many, ride in as many, and if you can manage to have the confidence of other enthusiasts, drive as many as you can.
The sound is for some people no issue at all, and for others it is the source of concern approaching STD. There stock dual mass flywheel and clutch is a butter smooth and quiet feature of this car. If you want to toodle around town with a feeling of solid shifting and quiet comfort, it is a darn fine piece of engineering and design. The only combo better in this range of cars is the gear box and clutch/flywheel of the Honda S2000 in my opinion, which is about as close to pure honey smooth and tight precision as there could be. But this is close.
The best description of most metal lightweight flywheels is that there is a "cement mixer" sound at idle. Obviously when it is engaged in gear there is not audible sound because there is not the opportunity for it to rattle in free spin in a relatively quiet background, like at a full stop in a suburban neighborhood. If you are used to a stock car with a well insulated passenger compartment, it sounds like "something is grinding against something" and as we all inherently know, that is "bad". It can be suppressed simply by engaging the clutch pedal and you have instant silence. We don't like to "ride the clutch" so typically we just get used to the sound and it almost goes away in our perception...but not to a first time passenger with the hearing of a rabbit. People who do not know machinery or inherently are afraid of or do not trust it, can be easily spooked. Those who do not share your enthusiasm for performance or even care about it, question your judgment not only in choosing the mod, but extrapolate and extend that conclusion to your general state of mind and reasoning ability as it pertains all other issues in the cosmos. Combine it with the other "bad boy" mod, the limited slip differential, and you become eligible for the anti-social register in your neighborhood.
The carbon disc clutches are not as noisy as the metal versions. They are also several multiples more expensive. Therefore, unless you are very much into performance driving, and probably taking the car to the track occasionally, there is really little reason to go with that upgrade. I would certainly prioritize other modifications over a carbon clutch.
The Nismo single mass flywheel and clutch is a much lighter set up than stock, very quiet, and a noticeable improvement. It will not adversely impact resale and would typically be my recommendation for this car, even with a "light" FI application on a stock motor, say up to 350-370 rwhp...the max I would be comfortable with on a daily driver if what you wanted was the grin making additional power of FI, while still maintaining reliability and durability of the platform.
As with all mods, it is the zone of the unknown for us that creates the apprehension that you are going to do something "stupid" that will ruin the experience of your car, and make you bang your head against the wall for wasting your precious money (and it is precious, let us not minimize how hard we have to work and save to buy the car and then make so called "improvements". To screw one up makes us all feel like a total idiot!). What is great for one person could be the biggest dumb move of the year for another. So take your time, read up on the subject voraciously, there is lots to get for free thanks to the internet. And then by all means, "experience" what you are going to get for your money in terms of performance and sound. If you know for certain that you are going to get value for your dough, you will be congratulating yourself and enjoying your decision with every rev matched down shift from that day of installation and after. If you do not know and get something you hate, every stoplight at idle will be giving you the raspberry and you will despise yourself for being foolish.
I like the mod. Take the time to frame your own view and you will not be disappointed. There is not a right answer on this for everyone, only what is right for you.
The sound is for some people no issue at all, and for others it is the source of concern approaching STD. There stock dual mass flywheel and clutch is a butter smooth and quiet feature of this car. If you want to toodle around town with a feeling of solid shifting and quiet comfort, it is a darn fine piece of engineering and design. The only combo better in this range of cars is the gear box and clutch/flywheel of the Honda S2000 in my opinion, which is about as close to pure honey smooth and tight precision as there could be. But this is close.
The best description of most metal lightweight flywheels is that there is a "cement mixer" sound at idle. Obviously when it is engaged in gear there is not audible sound because there is not the opportunity for it to rattle in free spin in a relatively quiet background, like at a full stop in a suburban neighborhood. If you are used to a stock car with a well insulated passenger compartment, it sounds like "something is grinding against something" and as we all inherently know, that is "bad". It can be suppressed simply by engaging the clutch pedal and you have instant silence. We don't like to "ride the clutch" so typically we just get used to the sound and it almost goes away in our perception...but not to a first time passenger with the hearing of a rabbit. People who do not know machinery or inherently are afraid of or do not trust it, can be easily spooked. Those who do not share your enthusiasm for performance or even care about it, question your judgment not only in choosing the mod, but extrapolate and extend that conclusion to your general state of mind and reasoning ability as it pertains all other issues in the cosmos. Combine it with the other "bad boy" mod, the limited slip differential, and you become eligible for the anti-social register in your neighborhood.
The carbon disc clutches are not as noisy as the metal versions. They are also several multiples more expensive. Therefore, unless you are very much into performance driving, and probably taking the car to the track occasionally, there is really little reason to go with that upgrade. I would certainly prioritize other modifications over a carbon clutch.
The Nismo single mass flywheel and clutch is a much lighter set up than stock, very quiet, and a noticeable improvement. It will not adversely impact resale and would typically be my recommendation for this car, even with a "light" FI application on a stock motor, say up to 350-370 rwhp...the max I would be comfortable with on a daily driver if what you wanted was the grin making additional power of FI, while still maintaining reliability and durability of the platform.
As with all mods, it is the zone of the unknown for us that creates the apprehension that you are going to do something "stupid" that will ruin the experience of your car, and make you bang your head against the wall for wasting your precious money (and it is precious, let us not minimize how hard we have to work and save to buy the car and then make so called "improvements". To screw one up makes us all feel like a total idiot!). What is great for one person could be the biggest dumb move of the year for another. So take your time, read up on the subject voraciously, there is lots to get for free thanks to the internet. And then by all means, "experience" what you are going to get for your money in terms of performance and sound. If you know for certain that you are going to get value for your dough, you will be congratulating yourself and enjoying your decision with every rev matched down shift from that day of installation and after. If you do not know and get something you hate, every stoplight at idle will be giving you the raspberry and you will despise yourself for being foolish.
I like the mod. Take the time to frame your own view and you will not be disappointed. There is not a right answer on this for everyone, only what is right for you.
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