The Pressure plate is the clamping part of the clutch, the clutch disc is the floating disc that the pressure plate presses up against the flywheel...

The stronger the pressure plate, the harder the clutch will grab...

The materials that the clutch disc is made of will determine the amount of friction the pressure plate will apply to the flywheel...Higher Friction Materials like Ceramics and Sintered Iron are known to wear faster than Organic Materials because they create a higher friction pad and are much more aggressive...

DSM's and other AWD Drag Cars use a 2600lb Pressure Plate with a stock organic Clutch Disc to get the clamping force they need with as minimum amount of stress as possible...

Zee