The clutch pedal is definitely much stiffer than the stock, and there is quite a bit of chatter in first gear. Hopefully it will go away once it's broken in. And for some reasons, the transmission rattle noise (throw-out bearing???) during idle is much, much louder now than before. It is so anoying that I have to hold down the clutch pedal at stoplight or crank up the radio to maskout the noise.

But on a positive note, the clutch grabs like crazy. :crazy: Can't wait until it's broken in so I can take it to the track. But until then, I probably get my as$ whopped by ricers and stangs. So don't be surpise to see a bunch of trolls :troll :troll :troll under the kill section over the next few weeks. :lol: :lol: :lol:

Currently, the clutch engagement point is way too low on pedal. But when I spoke with the tech @ MTI to get it re-adjusted, he said he can't because the master that came with the Cartek clutch is non-adjustable. :mad Isn't the Cartek clutch suppose to come with the adjustable master? :confused:

-Tuan

 

this definitely discourages me from buying a cartek clutch. sure, it will grab nice...any new clutch will. the clutch needs to perform flawlessly imho.

 

I'm with you. It's like buying shoes, and the salesperson says "yeah, but they'll loosen up". Then you feel really stupid six months later when they are still uncomfortable, but it's too late to return them.

 

Tuan Le,
The clutch has two master cylinder options...you pay a core charge and they modify your master cylinder to be adjustible or they sell you a new master cylinder that is adjustible and you keep your original.
I have not heard of MTI selling anyone a Cartek setup without the adjustable master cylinder...from all the post that I have read it is a neccessity to have the adjustabilty. Most owners have had to adjust the clutch through numerous times to get it where they want it both during and after break-in.
Not sure what to think about your non adjustable master cylinder :crazy:
Matthew

 

If you don't mind me asking, what did MTI charge you for the install? I was thinking about getting the Cartek clutch too but was wondering what the TOTAL cost would be for the clutch(~$800) and the install. Thanks!

 

Hi: I've got the Cartek Package and mine has an adjustable master which I've adjusted twice to get it where I like it. No problems such as you describe except maybe a small chatter once in a while when starting out. Very happy with mine. My tuner charged me $350 for the install after I bought the parts from Dave at Cartek. Sounds like maybe you've got some kind of problem that your tuner should be willing to diagnose and fix if it's his fault. I know the Cartek folks stand behind their products 100% IMHO. Good Luck. :D :D :D

 

Dave,

I bought this clutch back (brand new, never been installed) from another forum member here. It came with the new master & slave (not modified). And according to the receipt, he paid eight hundred something so it should include the new adjustable. :confused: :confused: :confused: Let me give Cartek a call to double-check.

-Tuan


[Modified by Tuan Le, 1:35 PM 1/26/2002]

 

I paid $450 for the install.

 

Tuan, this IS the FIRST, ONE & ONLY thread about ANYTHING "MTI", has touched that was a negative................
Something doesn't jibe here..............
MTI.............can you address this issue.....................you're house is burning........lets make sure it's not a total loss..............

 

:rolleyes: Don't be so naive. MTI does good work, but EVERYONE makes a mistake every once in a while. I'm sure MTI will admit to a few every now and then. Tuan, good luck with your clutch. :cheers:

 

Jw, not naive.........just come from the old school........if you don't have time to do it right the first time, what makes you think you will have it the second??.
These guy's are a CLASS ACT, and I figure they will do what's neccessary to do it right,,,,,,, :yesnod:

 

Tuan Le provided the entire clutch package to us at MTI. I had a discussion with him prior to the installation that we do not sell Cartek clutches nor will we warranty the install if something goes wrong with the kit. He understood the risks and proceeded to have it installed anyway.

With ANY aftermarket clutch installs here at MTI, we always use an adjustable master cylinder as part of the installation. It just so turned out that the kit Tuan supplied us did not include an adjustable master. I'm not sure how we could get flamed for an install of supplied parts that we do not carry? We performed the installation as we normally do with all C5 clutch installs and followed the directions as per the Cartek clutch installation instructions.

I'm sure the Cartek clutches work great as I know several cars personally that are running them without incident.

Please understand that the aftermarket is exactly that, "the aftermarket". You must always have to give up something to gain something especially when it comes to performance. Clutches WILL chatter, cams WILL cause loss of gas mileage, etc...

My sales staff have spoken with Tuan just this morning. He will be bringing the vehicle in for us to take a second look at the install. Without all the facts no one can make any judgement at this time.

Customer satisfaction has always been our highest goal at MTI. All of us here hope to have ANY issue resolved as soon as possible.

Jayson - MTI

 

I have the CARTEK clutch with adjustable MS. I have experienced none of the problems that you have discribed. Mine has been flawlesss from day-one. Only needed to make one full turn adjusment after install. This is the very best clutch on the market. I have had the Spec and the twin disc McLeoad. The only clutch that held the power is the CARTEK. I am sure the folks at MTI will seek to remedy the situation for you. They are very good at customer support.

 

Hey guys,

Let me clarify a few things so everyone will be on the same page. The intention of my post is NOT to flame MTI or Cartek. I just want to share my personal experience on the aftermarket clutch. Going into it, I am fully aware of all possible issues (chattering, stiff pedal and etc.). Since I will be running nitrous, I am willing to accept the drivability trade-off. Once again, I am NOT complaining about the trade-off!!! I just want to share my personal experience to help all forum members in making the right decisions when it's time to replace the clutch.

As always, Jayson was very helpful with several of my clutch questions weeks prior to the install. I can say nothing but the best regarding to the customer service I've received from MTI. As expected, the install was done on time and they did a perfect install with all the parts given to them.

The issue here is NOT about the install or the clutch, but rather for some reasons I ended up with a non-adjustable master when I should have the adjustable one. As Jayson has mentioned, I did not buy this clutch directly from MTI or even Cartek. I bought it back (brand new) from a SENIOR forum member here.

I will take my car back to MTI now to double check the master-cylinder one more time. I have no doubt about the reputation at both MTI and Cartek.

:cheers:
-Tuan

 

Like I said..............something doesn't jibe............. :D
Now ALL the facts are in......
And as always, MTI is good to go :yesnod: :yesnod: :cheers:
Thanks Jayson, you're da' man!!!!!!!

 

Tuan, our clutch has to be installed with our adjustable master cylinder or it will not work properly. This is why we sell our clutch as a kit and the adjustable MC is included.

Contact us at 908-317-4496 and we can sell you an adjustable MC if you don't have one.


Julio

 

Not to flame anyone, just comment on the facts. There have been several posts over the past six months concerning Cartek clutches. Several have had problems. And those with problems before were not installed by MTI. This leads me to believe that the Cartek clutch either has inconsistent quality, or they are a real bear to put in correctly.

Anyone wants to disagree with me, my feelings won't be hurt, you'll just force me to "search" previous posts and provide links to them.

Jayson, MTI has a great reputation, and I don't think this will effect it at all. But I do think you are a class act to get on the Forum and show that you are standing behind your install. Also, it is worth noting that Tuan was not complaining, just stating how it felt to him and that he thought it may need breaking in or some adjustment. I know Tuan, and he is also a class act as well.

 

No offence taken but what part of "Tuan, our clutch has to be installed with our adjustable master cylinder or it will not work properly. This is why we sell our clutch as a kit and the adjustable MC is included." didn't you understand? :confused:


My reply here is to point out that if you don't install our clutch with the provided adjustable master it will not work properly and apparently Tuan never got it from the person he bought it from. I'm in no way implying that MTI is at fault. :bs


Keep in mind that we have over 400 of our clutches in the field and there will be some that don't work properly and some are just installed incorrectly. For the few complaints that we get, I think we have an excellent track record. No matter how good of a product anyone makes, there will always be complaints of one type or another.

Not to long ago there wasn't a single clutch for the LS1 that would take any serious power, that's why we made our own.

Julio

 

I also have Cartek clutch and happy with it. :yesnod:

Tuan Le, Sounds like somehow you ended up with a stock master cylinder. Not sure how it happened :confused: , but just buy Cartek adj. Master, have it installed (~1hr) and adjusted and your problems should be solved. :yesnod: Case closed! :cheers:

 

Ditto from me. :yesnod: