flywheels in general - yay or nay

[ToFuBoi]

ive read arguments for and against the use of flywheels and brand vs brand etc but at the end of the day what i want to know is it worth the money you are putting in to the car?

im about to put a b16a in to my eg sedan and want a lil bit of go when i need it.. future mods will be i/h/e and just tuned... (the only reason why i am thinking of getting it is because installation will be free since the engine is already out with the swap happening).. im thinking of the exedy organic clutch + toda 4.whatever kg flywheel

end of the day with these mods in mind isit worth putting that 500 or so in to the flywheel or should i just jump to the i/h/e??

thanks guys hope u can give me a nudge in the right direction

[nugget666]

If your are putting a clutch in go for it.

as you dont want to put hte clutch in then your engine in. 2 months later.
you want the fly wheel.

[Zilli]

ive heard its actually one of the best bang for your buck mods you could get

[ToFuBoi]

like would someone be able to tell me the differences you can feel by changing the flywheel?...isit a bit more pressure 'pinning u into the seat' kinda increase in acceleration?

[destrukshn]

revs out quicker, and revs down quicker.

[destrukshn]

apparenlty it's a similar mod to the lightened crank pulley.

[aaronng]

it's like putting lightweight rims too

If you are doing your clutch, DO THE flywheel if you want it. If your engine is out and you plan to do your clutch and flywheel later on, do it now!

If it was me, I'd go for the flywheel. But you'll have to change your driving style to suit.

[destrukshn]

do the flywheel, it's already out, might as well!

[mugeneration]

Id suggest getting a flywheel, especially if you;re getting your clutch done. When I had mine done I passed on a good flywheel, coz i thought mine was fine. When they replaced the clutch they machined the flywheel as well and charged me for it :thumbdwn: REGRETS lol

[dsp26]

i've driven a few cars with one now after enquiring about them for so long.

it'd be awesome for vtec simply because it will get you to vtec point quicker as it revs out that much quicker.

i've also seen a clip of a car with a JUN flywheel. the dude was in neutral of course and revved the car to redline in literally less than a second!!!! and this car had lumpy idle top end kinda cams...

***EDIT*** i also think its the most useless mod on cars with power at lower rpms such as V8s and small turbo cars as you will get nothing but wheelspin especially in the wet. put it on a turbo car that spools at say 4krpm and you will love it!!! same thing with vtec

[LowEk]

you just get better accel responce from your clutch cos it does not have to spin so much weight. very good mod to be done.

[Eclipsor]

When I got my clutch replaced I got a lightweight cromoly flywheel put in aswell. I definitely felt the difference when I first drove it. However, just like most things it's been nearly a year now and I can't remember what it was like before hand. The other thing was that I needed to replace the flywheel anyway and the lightweight was about the same price as the standard.

[ToFuBoi]

great cheers guys.. thanks alot for the input..

DSP26 wrote "it'd be awesome for vtec simply because it will get you to vtec point quicker as it revs out that much quicker."

this means revs go up quicker---> meaning wheels spin faster ---> meaning car is quicker?? :) thats all i need to know haha

[bennjamin]

i've also seen a clip of a car with a JUN flywheel. the dude was in neutral of course and revved the car to redline in literally less than a second!!!! and this car had lumpy idle top end kinda cams...


I have a TODA flywheel in my otherwise stock d16a8 ~ and yes , in neutral the engine does hit redline in about 1 second lol. Impresses the ladies.
Still , the idea is that it should make upshifting and downshifting quicker...
it reduces engine braking tho. BTW its a useless mod if you are running big rims or stero etc.

[saxman]

personally, I don't like light flywheels on street cars. Yes, it'll unleash a bit of power, I won't deny that, but it does put a bit of a damper on drivability. You'll rev higher than you want to get into gear, the engine will want to lose revs as much as it wants to gain them, etc.

Great for a track car, not so much for a street car imo.

[EGB16A]

I put an exedy lightened flywheel in my car recently, and would highly recommend it to anyone. I've read about the toda and jun flywheels being very light, and crap to drive on the street, so i was a little worried about puting in a lightened flywheel. Anyway, the response you get from your car is improved, acceleration is improved (mainly mid range i noticed).
The only *negative* effect i've encountered so far, is that you have to rev a little higher on take off, because the revs drop off quicker (BIG DEAL:cool: )

*note: the exedy isn't as light as the toda or jun etc etc AFAIK

I say do it, you'll love it!! its the best mod i've done to my car yet.

[dsp26]

true. you WILL have to change driving style even take offs and gear shifting. kinda like driving a mates car that you aint used to. but its also better to practice heel toe-ing on...

but to answer one of the original questions... GET IT before the exhaust.

- because labour is free/ a given
- it will make noticeable difference regardless of engine mods... you can get your full exhaust anytime at the same price later anyway. its not like cams where it won't have its full potential coz you have a stock engine/exhaust...

bennjamin: not sure how Honda rev limits work but Nissan is fuel cut... knowing that all rev limits are electrical it can be bypassed mechanically ie relining 3rd and downshifting 2nd by accident. my question is with yours, when you do the 1sec redline.. did yours somewhat exceed your redline when you floored it in neutral? did it give some sort of backlash from rev limiter cutting in too late??

***EDIT***
after so much research.. the lightest i've seen is 3.9Kg/9lb. most of the big brands like TODA/JUN have these.... at a price!!

also to mention, coming from a Nissan forum (cant remember if its Aus/US) there were reports of a fairly stockish B16 delsol/civic that improve 0.5 sec in 1/4 mile time just from a Light Flywheel putting the car well into the 14s... however, please note this is also heavily dependent of driver so take this indication lightly...

perhaps people who have run the 1/4 with before/after of just a flywheel can chime in??

[EGB18CT]

ive just put on my spoon fly and exedy sports organic when i did my engine conversion, it was a great mod doing this and if you have the chance do it as it is a pleasure to drive, driving on the street is a tad trickey as it will rev quicker and clutch will grip way better, for normal street sensible driving say shifting at 3k, you will reach that in a blink of any eye, but i love it and is well worth it...

[ToFuBoi]

thanks alot for the info guys.. muchly appreciated and will definitely end up getting one :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

[DreadAngel]

Sounds interesting cause my clutch needs to be replaced in about 6mths... Sounds like a good idea, any recommendations for something thats 1 up on the OEM parts? Cause I've only got a D16Y, so I don't need something super, nor do I want indrivability cause it's my daily ride.

[DOHCTR Coopz!]

ok this may sound stupid but, when u guys say deceleration is quicker.. how quick is it compared to oem flyhweel! noticeably quick like.. uMm.. eg. is it similar speeds as engine braking? i got a spoon LWFW waiting to go in when i can afford the labour!! :)

[Rico]

on the topic of flywheels and clutches, would anyone recommened a exedy stage 2 clutch and a FIDANZA flywheel over TODA's apparel?

[ToFuBoi]

where u pickin up a fidanza flywheel from?

[Rico]

US ebay, their quite cheap compared to australian distributers..but I hear JUN flywheels are just as good

[blk_shadow]

apparenlty it's a similar mod to the lightened crank pulley.

someone said that you might damage ur engine if u lighten the pulley, is this right?

[dsp26]

^^^yes its true. got something to do with the counterweight on the crank

[Dylanamus]

A friend of mine is having his engine rebuilt and is actually removing a lightweight flywheel after having it in for a year to replace it with the stock one again. It's all down to personal preference. It will affect drivability. Whether or not that suits your driving is something you'll have to find out yourself.

It will probably make slow traffic and carpark style driving a pain in the arse - the reason why my friend abandoned his setup. If you're enough of a boy racer, the sacrifice might be worth it for you. I know I'd be prepared to put up with a bit of bunnyhopping and less friendly driving for faster spooling. I love acceleration. :)

[92DELSOL]

i got a lightweight flywheel fitted yesterday on my eg si with d16a8. stock weighed 8.4kg and the exedy lightweight flywheel weighed 6.2.
this is nowhere near as light as some but still a big improvement in accelleration - with less of the side effects i guess (still pretty good for daily driving) however, the revs dropping quickly becomes aparent in carparks and traffic.
but i'd deffinitely recommend a light flywheel to anyone! it is worth all the money!
(i'd prob go even lighter if i could go back in time - for better acceleration!)

[z3lda]

i thought all exedy flywheels are the same weight. 4.1kg ?

mines 4.1kg....hrms

[blk_shadow]

so what's the price comparison between pulley and flywheel?

[Rico]

i thought all exedy flywheels are the same weight. 4.1kg ?

mines 4.1kg....hrms

hmm I thought they where different weights...
the fidanza one I was mentioning weighs 3.6kg

[dsp26]

so what's the price comparison between pulley and flywheel?

full pulley set (get one with timing marks) = ~$300ish
light fly = ~$400+

but for the extra hundred or so light fly makes a far bigger difference. trust me though you'll screw your engine over time with pulleys starting with the seals... i'll dig up some threads as proof.

[bennjamin]

full pulley set (get one with timing marks) = ~$300ish
light fly = ~$400+

but for the extra hundred or so light fly makes a far bigger difference. trust me though you'll screw your engine over time with pulleys starting with the seals... i'll dig up some threads as proof.

it also depends on what engine application for a "lightened pulley"...afaik cars with the pulley used as a harmonic balancer ~ they are most suseptable to premature engine wear. But later hondas such as
Jazz's etc ive been told dont have this issue ? (someone clarify please)
Overall a lightweight flywheel is a good mod which IMO is a good addition to every clutch change.

[dsp26]

it also depends on what engine application for a "lightened pulley"...afaik cars with the pulley used as a harmonic balancer ~ they are most suseptable to premature engine wear.

thats what i was getting at but couldn't remember what it was called :thumbsup: and i didn't think about the Jazz's.. no offence to owners but when i think of Honda performance i think of B/K/F motors.... *flame suit on* :p

[92DELSOL]

i think u forgot d in there :thumbsup:

[Dxs]

dont forget c

[dsp26]

lol :thumbsup: but you guys get the drift....

but yes obviously in price difference flywheels are better up front especially if your getting something done to your tranny like clutch you save on labour. pulleys are piss easy to install depending on which one and which car... can get a bit tight around the belt areas...

i know this is off-topic but installing an electric waterpump such as the Davies Craig unit far ouutweights getting pulleys.
- 1 less drive
- better cooling control
- cheaper

***EDIT***
^^^i haven't got one myself but i have spoken to many people who use the setup and swear by it. and specs on the Davies Craig site don't lie...

[Dylanamus]

haha If you find flywheels under 4kg then double check they're not for a D-series engine. I personally haven't found any flys for a B series anywhere near 3.1kg, but I know they're out there for Ds.

[blk_shadow]

here's what I found from a guy who owns a prelude with an underdrive pulley.

"Preludes are close to us in N/A power and 1/4 mile times so I thought it might be more relevant to our engine conditions. The guy was very excited about his new pulley. He put it on and instantly noticed gains and was very happy with his purchase. He did however do an update about a year later. When he started the mod he had 25K miles on his car. A year later, he had 45K miles, just 20K miles later. They took apart the engine to check for wear. The tech found that the bearings that rotate the crank shaft had a "hard life" and were heavily scratched and damaged.

So, here are my conclusions about the underdrive pulley. Its a terrific mod for the money and the HP and torque gains are real. However, long term use of a light weight pulley forces the drive shaft to take the brunt of all the engine vibrations and in turn, passes it on to the bearings. The result? Premature engine death.
As for how long until that happens, I don't know. I just know that it does wear the engine down alot quicker. I put a ton of miles on my car from my work day commute so at high speeds, I woudn't see the benefit of the pulley at high speeds and the way I put miles on, I would be just hurting the engine. Now, if I start to do autocross or drag racing, I might buy one and put it on for the summer and then take it off when I'm done. Luckily its an easy mod with good instructions and isn't very time consuming."

[blk_shadow]

I found another article on http://www.machv.com/tip11cranpul.html

let me know what u guys think
:thumbsup:

[Limbo]

that's right the pulleys reduce the harmoinc balance of the crank pully which is use to cushion vibrations from harsh driving! That's why you got a harmonic balancer also in you cam gear area.