I am looking for some feedback from people that have actually HAD the Quartermaster 7.25" clutch. I know there are threads on this but it would be nice to have a thread from the actual people who have or had it. Instead of just pure opinion on the clutches driveability and wear characteristics.

My Exedy Twin finally took a crap (est. 16,000 miles, 5,000 miles of my ownership) and I am inbetween rebuilding it or making the switch to the Quartermaster. Of course my major concerns with the Quartermaster from a couple people who have had it and alot of "I heard's". From the info the major downfalls of the Quartermaster are that it is very hard to drive daily and that it wears out very quickly.

So before I just go ordering a rebuild I would like to get some honest feedback from the people that actually have or had the Quartermaster. So guys, what is driveability like for you guys and how many miles are you getting from this clutch? Thanks!

 

rebuild the exedy. I have experience with both.
or get the spec twin. likely the nicest clutch out for the price. just came out so its not popular yet

 

This is what to expect from a QM (or Tilton) 7.25" dual disc metallic unit as compared to the clutch you have presently:

Reduced Off-Idle Torque - the light mass and small diameter make getting away from a stop more challenging and demanding of your attention. If you come to a stop sign with the car pointed uphill, you will find it very easy to stall.

Grabby - the clutch does not allow any engagement slippage, and becomes very grabby when hot. It feels like it is either in or out, and nothing in between.

Noisy - When the car sits at idle, you will hear the discs rattling quite clearly from both inside and outside the car. When decelerating in gear, you will hear a loud buzzing that sounds like an exhaust pipe rattling outside the car.

Life - this depends upon driving habits and forcing the clutch to slip in everyday driving will contribute the greatest wear in the shortest time. A good friend of mine had the QM and I had the Tilton. They were virtually the same clutch in all aspects (we've driven and are familiar with each others cars). We both got out of these clutches (<5k miles) before we could determine overall clutch life.

In short, I found the clutch to detract from the driving experience, and IMO, the noise was bad enough to devalue the car. In return, I didn't observe any real street advantage. If you're not bothered by a noisy, rattling clutch that makes the car somewhat more difficult to drive cleanly, then YMMV.

 

For a DD car I'd rebuild the exedy. The QM is a bit harder to drive, especially if you're in any kind of traffic. The QM is also noisier. If you thought the exedy made some noise, the QM is worse. Don't get me wrong, the QM is awsome. If you were driving the car only a couple time a week and tracking the car then go for QM. I went from exedy twin to QM and wouldn't go back. But I don't drive the car every day. I have only about 4k on the QM so I can't really comment on wear yet.

 

I have had both the Exedy triple and the quarter master twin.

the quarter master twin is definetly the more aggressive of the 2 clutches.

Pros of the Quartermaster

1. Cheap initial price
2. Cheap to rebuild
3. lightweight (I feel you might make more HP because of decrease in rotational mass but maybe a loss in torque)
4. VERY grabby but still slippable on the track ( good for track 60 ft times)
5. Push style hydrolic throw out bearing comes standard
6. Can basically handle any power/torque level you throw at it.

CONS

1. Not the best street manners. Major hills are hard with this clutch, the clutch is like an on off switch.
2. Life - BAD if you daily drive. Daily drving seems to be harder on this clutch than track driving is!
3. Noisey, Usually only while pulling out from a complete stop though. or while coasting in gear downhill you will get drivetrain noise. (no biggie IMO if I wanted a quiet car I woulda bought a BMW 135)

those are the best I can think of off the top of my head. please note that some of the Pros I listed can also be cons though such as the light weight and grabby.

IMO if you can install a clutch yourself and don't mind doing it....then the quartermaster is a good clutch. because it will wear out quick if you daily drive it.

If you have to pay someone to do the labor for you/hate doing the labor .....get another clutch...

 

I agree with the above...you can get 20,000 miles out of a QM when daily driving..thats the only thing I have to add.

 

...This is exactly what I would say I too have the QM Twin and I have driven it on the street but I rather not unless I knew that where I was going had all flat streets and don't have any inclines it does become a pain. I don't drive it too much but as for the reduced off idle torque I love the clutch at the track except for when we are packing it up and putting the car back on the trailor really hard to get her going on any type of incline lol.

 

OMG I would hate to drive in the bay area with a QM lol!!!

 

Man, this topic has been covered so many times already.
Very quick and simple.
QM twin=awesome clutch for the track and will last forever when only drag racing, but sucks daily driving it as it's like an on off switch, in heavy traffic they are a SOB to drive, noisy, and just irritating on a daily driver. Not to mention they wear really fast on a daily driven car, I've seen some last 20k miles while others last 10-15k miles, it's all how you drive it really.

I love the QM clutch, but I would never put one on my daily driver, no way, no how. For a daily driver I would do the exedy twin HD or the exedy triple. Both of those clutches are very easy to drive on the street and are not nearly as loud and last a bit longer at 25k-30k miles if you don't launch it too much. You can launch it a ton but it's a hit or miss since everyone has different driving/launching styles.

 

^^^All of that. I will stay with the QM but only because my evo will not be my primary and/or only mode of transportation. If that were not the case, and this was my only car, I too would go with probably and Exedy tripple cerametalic.

 

Jake and Ted pretty much sum'd it up. BTW jake, i have dan 06 rs, the QM is kinda nutty for daily drive, i just hope it last. dan said he had put up 15-20k on it already, so we'll see where i'll go with it.

 

Yeah like I said, it's a hit or miss. Some QM clutched evo's I can drive very easily, but once the owner of the car gets in the car they have a completely different driving habit and tend to try to slip the clutch too much. It's all in how you drive it really. I'm really used to it as I had it in my talon for a long time, so it came natural to me when driving a QM clutched car. There is little to no margin for error when driving a QM clutched car. It's really an on or off style clutch and that is the sole reason why they wear down so fast.

Dan has been driving QM clutched cars for a very long time, so he has learned how to manipulate the clutch pedal to make them last.

Good to hear you got Dan's evo 9. I bet your enjoying it!! That car is very nice and I almost considered buying it before I bought my black evo

 

Haha, yeah. I am still trying the best a can to figure out a way to drive it without making any noise. Its a little tricky, you even have to rev match it sometimes eh.

Yeah, I've heard good things from Dan about you, how you tune his drag evo and etc. Haha you should of, how many evo9 rs in red is there out there?! not much, so i couldn't resist.

 

I know, that's what I was thinking when I was in vegas helping him with his drag car, "man a red evo 9 RS?" haha. you don't see those too often. It is a nice car. Did you get the rims that were on it? Or does it have the stock rims on it now? It's been awhile since I seen that car but the black rims he had on it before just looked sick on that car!

 

Dan was being a little too nice and gave it to me with the purchase. Speaking of purchase, the price he sold it for was unbelievable. I remember when he had it up on craigs, i asked him if it was sold yet, he said it is about to be sold the next day; he already had some people with cash in hand ready to purchase it. Then a couple of week later, i sent him an email saying if he sold it, he told me he still have it, so i went down to his house, checked it out. A week later, its sitting in my garage, cant be any more happy.