RTS High Performance Clutch Kit
The 1.8 and 2.0 EA888 Gen3 engines used in the Volkswagen Golf Mk7 and 7.5 GTi and R, Polo GTi, Audi S1, S3, Seat Leon FR and Cupra and Skoda Octavia VRS are among the most tunable engines VAG has ever produced. Over 400 hp replacement components and software solutions implemented in Golf R and S3 version 2.0.
For those cars with manual transmissions, this will cause problems where even a good Stage1 software upgrade/remapping (like OEM+ or APR) will exceed the amount of torque the standard clutch can handle.
Historically, high-performance clutches have always required some compromises in road bike use, as the expectation is that you'll experience heavy pedals, the clutch will create friction when it activates, and it's very jarring to feel judder on the single-mass flywheel of the gearbox. Commonly released shifters.
One of the clutch brands Awesome offers is RTS Performance. RTS has a different approach to designing clutches than other clutch manufacturers. They wanted to offer a high-performance clutch without compromise. Something that can handle the extra power with as close to a standard pedal feel as possible.
What they came up with was named "Double Friction". This is a hybrid upgrade clutch kit that includes a drive disc flanked by different high-quality friction materials. The clutch cover is made of ductile iron, not cast iron. Ductile iron covers are more durable than cast versions, and they handle the extra heat and pressure we get when tuning our car better.
Some of the benefits of this design are that it is more resistant than OE to extreme high temperatures caused by high energy loads. Higher torque capacity than conventional high-energy materials. Low material compressibility is a key factor in maintaining piston travel.
In the real world, this means to you that you can install a high-performance clutch with few downsides. Handle all the tinkering you can with the Stage3 before tuning (then you need to pick the paddle version) and the stuff that drives all the stop-start traffic and handles all the extra performance through the hard drive.
The dual friction clutch is designed for highway drivers. If you like track days, or you like starting your car on the street or on the drag strip, double friction shouldn't be your thing, you should go a step further and opt for a paddle clutch.
Additionally, a new feature for the 2022 RTS introduces a new single-mass flywheel conversion for the EA888 Gen3 engine. It takes a cassette that matches the weight of a standard dual-mass cassette and replaces it with a balanced, high-quality cassette, which will eliminate any concerns we had with DMF, and the matched weight means any chatter/gear backlash will be kept to a minimum.