Sachs SRE Clutch Kit Review - GTI

[gx33]

A little background - my car is a 2015 GTI. I have had the APR Stage 1 Lo Output tune since 10k miles, my car currently has 35k miles on it. I drive it normally most of the time, but enjoy spirited back road runs and highway pulls when appropriate.

So after a year of having the tune, the stock clutch started giving me problems. A few months of occasional slippage in 5th/6th gear at low RPMs, I decided to bite the bullet and buy the Sachs SRE clutch kit for the MK7 GTI. (Purchased from Emmanuele Design, super fast shipping from Germany). I wanted to retain the DMF and keep the car drivable.

I just got the car back today and drove it around for an hour or so after picking it up.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS

FEEL- Wow, the clutch pedal is like an on/off switch right now. It was SUPER stiff and springy when I first started driving it, but after driving for an hour it I am already executing perfect shifts again and the pedal has softened up a tiny tiny bit. Still a big change - and still going to make sitting in traffic a bit more cumbersome unless it softens up a bit more.

PERFORMANCE- Still in the break-in period, so I haven't given it the full beans yet. But man oh man, if you want lightning fast shifts and perfect downshifts, this clutch is a willing dance partner.

NOISE- Zero, zip, nada. No different than stock. If anything, my stock clutch was a little more chattery. VERY PLEASED AT THIS.

VIBRATION- refer to "noise"

Overall, I am very pleased so far. When I first got in the car I was a bit shocked at how fast/stiff the pedal action was - but after driving it for a while I found that I was shifting the car faster and cleaner than I did with the stock clutch.


Will update this thread after I have put some real mileage on it.

 

[defcon5]

Sounds good so far. Looking forward to your next update. I am still considering clutch options for when I go to stage 1

 

[Yagadan]

I've had my SRE for about 2000kms now. Pedal feel does settle a lot, it's just a touch heavier than stock now which is perfect for me.

Otherwise it's just like the normal clutch just holds power done!


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[2015WhiteGTI]

I have 1,000 miles on my Sachs SRE clutch and it lightens up a lot. Now, I'm not sure how much "heavier" the pedal effort is vs. stock. I'm just used to it.

I like the clutch a lot. It is holding really well, but only time will tell. I also love the fact that I don't have to deal with the SMF chatter.

 

[gx33]

I have 1,000 miles on my Sachs SRE clutch and it lightens up a lot. Now, I'm not sure how much "heavier" the pedal effort is vs. stock. I'm just used to it.

I like the clutch a lot. It is holding really well, but only time will tell. I also love the fact that I don't have to deal with the SMF chatter.

Yeah I drove it some more last night and this morning, I really like how the car doesn't feel stressed out anymore. It feels really responsive.

 

[IceBerg4k1]

I can also confirm that the pedal does soften up. 5k miles after install it settled as about 15%+/- stiffer than stock. I love this clutch so much. Still as quiet as stock and still feels great.

 

[gx33]

Okay so I have an update after 500 miles on the new clutch:

Pedal has softened up significantly, it's still stiffer than stock but its still good for a daily driver. Noise/Vibration still at stock levels. I've been babying it for the first 500miles but I finally opened it up this morning and I can confirm that it grabs really hard in every gear/RPM.

 

[Ghawkins]

I have about 3,000 miles on my Sachs SRE clutch. There is no clutch slip with my Stage 1 tune. The clutch grabs very smoothly and positively. After break in clutch effort has settled at about 50% more than stock. Still very usable without issue at long lights. At least that is my perception. I did not want the rattle associated with the single mass flywheel.

 

[2Germans]

Good to hear all the positive feedback. I plan on APR Stage 1 Ht tune and Sachs SRE clutch!

 

[iliveoncaffiene]

I have about 3,000 miles on my Sachs SRE clutch. There is no clutch slip with my Stage 1 tune. The clutch grabs very smoothly and positively. After break in clutch effort has settled at about 50% more than stock. Still very usable without issue at long lights. At least that is my perception. I did not want the rattle associated with the single mass flywheel.

I cringe at actually holding the clutch in while sitting at a light... I know it's a matter of preference but there is a thing called neutral

 

[MacaN]

Does anyone using bms clutch stop with this clutch?

 

[Hotfart]

After the clutch is all broken in, where has everyone's engagement points ended up? I had mine installed a couple days ago so I'm still breaking it in. As of now, the engagement point is actually a fair bit higher than the stock clutch. I would have expected the opposite, with it grabbing closer to the firewall. Who knows, perhaps the bite point will move down a bit once broken in? I have a BMS clutch stop with all the spacers as well. If the bite point doesn't move down once broken in, I'll probably just grab more spacers for the clutch stop and call it a day.

I'm guessing that removing the clutch stop and re-bleeding the clutch would not have any effect on the bite point? In any case, it's not a big deal or a concern, and was just curious what other people's experiences have been.

 

[Ital]

any updates on the SRE clutch? would like to know how it is holding after a year or so.

Thanks

 

[N2fastcars]

I've got about 5 months and 3000 miles and it seems to be pretty good so far. The initial pedal pressure was about 75% heavier than stock. I questioned my choice the first few hundred miles. After the initial 500-1000 miles it was about 50% over stock and now I would say it's 30-35% over stock pedal pressure. I would recommend this clutch to anyone who thinks the stock clutch feels too light and wants to upgrade the stock one or the stock one is slipping.

The engagement point does seem a little higher than stock I would say about an inch and a half from the top of the pedal travel. I asked the tech to remove the little yellow bleeder block too and now the clutch feels like it engages at the exact same spot every time. With the stock clutch and bleeder block it seemed like the engagement point was always slightly different.

 

[wy2sl0]

Got mine installed on Wednesday (and bleeder block removed), put around 200km on it so far.

Everything you read about it is correct. Extremely stiff at first, slowly getting softer. I couldn't believe how stiff it was when I picked up the car.
The engagement point is razor thin compared to stock. Shifts are extremely crisp.

I will be going to the track in the next week or two (1/4) so I will update everyone with how it grabs on slicks.