Exedy Stage 1 vs. South Bend DXC clutch

[rayu]

After wading through seemingly endless (and often confusing) threads I have narrowed down my choice for a new clutch to the Exedy Stage 1 with a WRX OEM flywheel or the South Bend DXC Stage 1 Rally or Stage 2 TZ, also with a WRX OEM flywheel. My 05 LGT wagon with 53,000 miles has a stock engine but I do use it for towing a good size boat and it has seen a fair amount of driving by my two sons, now 17 and 20. Parts cost is about the same.

 

My 99 stage 1 Passat wagon has a South Bend Stage 1 clutch. It went in at 130,000 miles to replace a HD Sachs. That HD Sachs, with 90,000 miles on it, had an additional 30,000 miles to go, but the heavier spring had over time bent the release fork. The South Bend Stage 1 that went in had an astonishingly light feel, like a Honda Accord. Intuitively one thinks that it must be weak, but with 55,000 miles on it now (It is my son's ski car in Colorado), including some towing, it actually holds very strongly.

 

Has anyone here installed a South Bend in a Legacy? I know a number of you are running the Exedy Stage 1 with a WRX OEM flywheel. How does that compare to stock? Since Exedy makes the stock clutch, does the Exedy Stage 1 stink?

 

FYI, my dealer (Patrick Subaru in Shrewsbury, MA) wanted $1950 for a stock new clutch. With a little dickering, they came down to $1710. Needless to say, I'm having it done elsewhere. The going rate at private shops around here seems to be about $500 for labor.

 

Thanks for any input,

 

RayU