I'm looking for information, teach me if you will.

I'm curious what gives a clutch it's feel under foot. Meaning, what give it it's pressure, it's feel, its release, its grab.
For example. I drove a Suzuki SX4 manual, and the clutch felt literally like a limp spaghetti noodle. No feel, couldn't tell when it was grabbing, when it wasn't. Actually stalled it the first time because the clutch had absolutely no feel.
Now, today for the hell of it, I went down to a local used car lot and looked at a Cobalt SS briefly. Got in it, pushed the clutch in, and I was really surprised at the lack of pressure/feel to it. Now I'm not saying the clutch was bad, it had pressure, grabbed when it was supposed to, let go when it was supposed to, but it felt soft.
Compared to my cavalier, which releases high on the pedal travel, feels stiffer, has more pressure, feels more sporty. I like a rougher engagement feel, feels better I guess.

I've noticed, and I may be wrong, but german car's clutches feel more sporty, harder, better/rougher engagement. This is just a general statement though I haven't driven EVERY german car.
Also, Japanese clutches in their cheaper cars are closer to the suzuki, soft, sloppy, limp noodle feel. Again, haven't driven all of them, so general statement, sure there are ones out there that don't feel that way.
And american clutches for the MOST part feel "better" to me, but this is subjective. Some Ford clutches feel soft, while others don't. newer GM feels softer and older not as much. Chrysler's seem to be consistant to me, good feel, pressure, good engagement, but haven't driven them all.

So my question is, what gives a clutch it's feel? Feel free to get technical about it, I'm very curious.
Also, if can this be changed in a car? Say what gives a clutch its feel is the springs in the hub. If you changed them out for stiffer springs, this would give it a stiffer feel? How would that affect clutch/flywheel wear?
If you feel like it, go into aftermarket clutches too, what makes them feel stiffer? Like 6 puck clutches is like banging your head against a wall after every shift, while a stage 1 clutch just gives you more holding power, but its still relatively smooth, and streetable.

Thanks for the info.

I guess what gives a clutch its "feel" is the pressure coming back through the pedal when the slave is pushed back in by the thrust bearing via the clutch arms/springs, this goes into what type of clutch you have a stock clutch for stock power will have a pretty basic clutch disc with springs matched for holding power, as you up the stage to get more grip for higher power the springs also have to be upgraded to hold the disc to the flywheel. This shouldn't be that noticeable through the clutch pedal though, the hydraulic system should make it just as easy to push a stage 5 vs a stock, the grab of the clutch would be the only difference. I can tell when my car is going to engage, just from driving it for a long time I know by where the clutch pedal is, and in turn with that I know when to give it some gas. I know a guy that drives a Dodge 2500 w/ a Cummins and he has a ceramic clutch put in it and that thing grabs!

I have driven quite a few other clutches, the worst I have found were in some 97 ford rangers, about 7 of them, all low miles 40-60k, they were Iowa DNR soil testing vehicles, so they did a lot of stop and go stuff, probably ruined the clutches, but the same as what you said, the clutch felt like nothing was there. Personally I like the feel of a mechanical clutch the best, I really miss driving the 51 chevy truck my dad had, still have my 64 ford fairlane, 3 on the tree, one wheel wonder allllll day long lol

So say you got a car witha softer feeling clutch, how would you go about giving it more pressure?

a grabbier clutch. if you really want something more responsive yet harder to drive, get a stage 2+ or higher 6puck or something. definitely not a 'ease off the clutch to go' kind of feel.
id imagine the pressure you feel is mostly how the clutch actually engages with the flywheel...which is why a higher stage clutch grabs much faster. the compound of the clutch and type can make a difference too, but racing clutches are designed to be fast and grabby in order to be the most responsive and have the shortest duration between shifts.

I noticed it too, even when id drive even 3 different cavaliers, everyone has a different clutch setup and some are a PITA to drive, cause Im on a stock clutch. But the new one Im getting will be pretty grabby and take some practice to drive daily.


04 Cav. 2dr. 5spd. My DD. 'Nuff said.