MT-82 Improvements

[Hilfloskind]

About the clutch spring, I'm looking at Steeda's description, and it seems to me it's noticeably weaker than the factory one. So, my understanding is that the original setup is too hard (i.e. it requires too much effort to depress the clutch pedal, and/or to release it slowly), and this custom spring is supposed to make it softer. Is this correct?

Yes, the spring has a much lower lb/in rating. The stock spring is an absurdly tense 185 lb/in vs the Steeda, which is a much less ridiculous 35 lb/in.

The spring being so tense adds a lot of resistance to the clutch feel. When releasing, it almost feels like it's pushing your foot/leg back up. Finding the bite point is basically a guessing game. I had to basically try to memorize the engagement point.

The Steeda spring essentially removes this tension and tendency to fight against your leg/foot when coming off the pedal. By doing this, you have a much more natural feel and can clearly detect the clutch bite. It actually feels like the best of both worlds to me: the crisp, short and tight shifter of the Mustang; along with the clear and smooth clutch feel of the VW. I'm extremely satisfied now. Definitely the best bang for your buck mod for anyone with a MT.

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[Vlad Soare]

I see. That makes sense. Thanks.

 

[Hilfloskind]

I see. That makes sense. Thanks.

Sure thing! I definitely recommend buying and testing it out. The install is incredibly simple and only requires a bit of elbow grease and a set of needle nose vice grips to compress the factory spring (this was the only difficult part and definitely requires some strength to do). The Steeda spring doesn't require anything but your bare hands to compress and reinstall the perch assembly.

 

[geep81]

I test drove an Ecoboost with the manual transmission, and it seemed OK to me. That's why I ordered mine with a manual. I had no reason to expect any issues until I started browsing these forums and found that people bashed it and called it a piece of crap. So, naturally, I got worried and thought I'd investigate a bit.

I have a 2020 GT and I came from a 2019 GT both manual, and in both the manual was great imo. I did do the Steeda clutch spring - basically the stock spring is 185lb and makes things seem more vague when you swing the clutch pedal up to engage. The Steeda spring is 35lb which puts a little more weight on your leg but also lets you feel that engagement a bit better. I like this change a lot.

 

[Vlad Soare]

OK, I ordered the Steeda spring and their heavy-duty perch. The perch might not necessarily need replacement, but if I'm going to be messing with the spring anyway... I might as well do the whole job.

One thing I'm a bit uncertain about is whether it's really safe to put a softer spring in there. Ford must be aware that a hard spring makes clutch operation vague and tiring. I'm sure they have fully qualified engineers, who know all about making cars and know how a clutch pedal should feel. If they choose to install a hard spring that everyone hates, they must do that for a reason. And the only reason I can think of is that they feel that this high tension is necessary to ensure that the pedal returns to its upmost position each time, no matter what, and does that consistently for many years, under all possible circumstances.
Steeda says that the soft spring is perfectly safe. But is it really? They say the spring, albeit soft, is strong enough to push the pedal up all the way. Maybe it is now, but how about a few years from now, when the clutch will have aged a bit? How about when the clutch and the clutch fluid are extremely hot after a very sporty drive? How about when it's -30 degrees outside?
Am I worrying for nothing?

 

[cosmic charlie]

OK, I ordered the Steeda spring and their heavy-duty perch. The perch might not necessarily need replacement, but if I'm going to be messing with the spring anyway... I might as well do the whole job.

One thing I'm a bit uncertain about is whether it's really safe to put a softer spring in there. Ford must be aware that a hard spring makes clutch operation vague and tiring. I'm sure they have fully qualified engineers, who know all about making cars and know how a clutch pedal should feel. If they choose to install a hard spring that everyone hates, they must do that for a reason. And the only reason I can think of is that they feel that this high tension is necessary to ensure that the pedal returns to its upmost position each time, no matter what, and does that consistently for many years, under all possible circumstances.
Steeda says that the soft spring is perfectly safe. But is it really? They say the spring, albeit soft, is strong enough to push the pedal up all the way. Maybe it is now, but how about a few years from now, when the clutch will have aged a bit? How about when the clutch and the clutch fluid are extremely hot after a very sporty drive? How about when it's -30 degrees outside?
Am I worrying for nothing?

Yes you are.

 

[Vlad Soare]

Probably. But I would still love to hear some arguments, just to put my mind at rest.

 

[FreePenguin]

Use stock perch takes 20 sexonds. 20k miles not a hitch

I did it at 1k miles

 

[Hilfloskind]

Yeah I didn't feel the Steeda perch provided any extra benefit. Considering the lower tensile strength of their spring, it seems like even less stress is being put on the stock perch once you install it, making the upgraded perch even less important. Could be wrong though...

 

[tom_sprecher]

I thought that due to the clutch pedal hanger leverage geometry, the stiffer OEM spring was used to provide a lighter clutch pedal pressure to actuate it, and this gave the clutch a vague feeling we all disliked. The lighter Steeda spring required more pressure, and provided a level of resistance we could all feel.

The Steeda heavy duty perch was later offered because guys were breaking the hard to source OEM perch while installing the Steeda spring.

 

[WD Pro]

I thought that due to the clutch pedal hanger leverage geometry, the stiffer OEM spring was used to provide a lighter clutch pedal pressure to actuate it, and this gave the clutch a vague feeling we all disliked. The lighter Steeda spring required more pressure, and provided a level of resistance we could all feel.

The Steeda heavy duty perch was later offered because guys were breaking the hard to source OEM perch while installing the Steeda spring.

To be fair, that was my understanding too - but you took the time write it up

WD

 

[Greystang17]

hey guys. I have a 2017 gt that i did the steeda spring, bg fluid change, and steeda tri-ax short throw shifter. While the shifts are pretty precise and way less sloppy than the stock it still has that disconnected feel from the trans. I like the pull up reverse is why i went steeda. Can the blowfish bracket still be used with the tri-ax?

 

[Hadelson]

hey guys. I have a 2017 gt that i did the steeda spring, bg fluid change, and steeda tri-ax short throw shifter. While the shifts are pretty precise and way less sloppy than the stock it still has that disconnected feel from the trans. I like the pull up reverse is why i went steeda. Can the blowfish bracket still be used with the tri-ax?

Two 2019 GT's: 1st was PP1 car and went MGW route. Precise, smooth, no lockout and no NVH. 2nd Mustang and current is 19 RS3 Roush with Steeda Tri-ax and blow fish bracket. Precise, but lots of NVH. Have yet to see any lock-out.

If I did it again, will go with the MGW over the Steeda.

 

[Greystang17]

Do you think the bracket would increase the nvh a lot more also or did you feel it mostly came from the tri-ax? I did notice a good bit more with the triax install but i chalked that up to the stiffer mounts it uses and is still worth it over the sloppy stock.

 

[Hadelson]

Do you think the bracket would increase the nvh a lot more also or did you feel it mostly came from the tri-ax? I did notice a good bit more with the triax install but i chalked that up to the stiffer mounts it uses and is still worth it over the sloppy stock.

The Tri-Axe has the stiffer mount and this is part of the increase NVH. Again, in the end, would go the MGW Route

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