chuckd71

iTrader: (23)

I know virtually nothing about manual transmissions but am picking up bits here and there as time passes. Looking to go M6 in my car next summer and recently came across this clutch, but as mentioned I have no idea how to tell if it's good, bad, decent or whatever. Any thoughts on whether it is useable for daily driver purposes?



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Not really sure what to look for in a clutch, but was hoping that if nothing else I could at least trade the aluminum flywheel for a steel one. Any input is appreciated.

SSCamaro99_3

iTrader: (1)

Buying a used clutch is almost always a bad idea. I would save up and buy a new one.

Video

That thing looks absolutely toasted. Just kidding...sort of.

I cant see by the pictures, but what you really want to look for is tiny little cracks throughout the surface of the pressure plate. If there are any...its trash. If there are none you can get it resurfaced i believe. As for the clutch disc itself...by the pictures it seems it still has some meat left on it. You can use the rivets as an indication oh how worn it is. A completely shot disc will be worn all the way down to the rivets. It also seems to be worn evenly all the way around which is good too.

So as long as there arent any cracks in it, i would say good to go! I would grade it based on the pictures as decent.

Edit: on another note, that clutch doesnt seem to be anything special by the looks. You can buy a decent clutch kit for about $280 - $300 online and save yourself the trouble. Swapping out a clutch is a shitty job...def dont wanna have to do it twice.

Bacon

That thing looks like poo. I've never seen a new spec clutch, but all this color variations seem to indicate that it was burnt.

redbird555

iTrader: (14)

agreed the disc looks worn down not to mention you can see the hot spots on the flywheel and burn marks on the disc indicating it saw high temps and possibly slipped... I would stay away

flintwrench69

iTrader: (11)

This is the best advice. This is a stage 2 style clutch & the discoloration on the clutch disc is because of the metallic material. It has some wear along with everything else, normal for a clutch. Biggest thing I would be concerned about is the hot spots on the flywheel. I wouldnt install it without either resurfacing or replacing it.

chuckd71

iTrader: (23)

Okay, thanks for the info. I actually bought it, didn't pay much for it so I'll just shelf it and save it for a super-budget shitty truck build in a couple years. Redoing things certainly does suck and I need this car to be solid so I'll just get a new one. Thanks for the help.

HoLLo

iTrader: (17)

It looks like it has some life left, but I guarantee it won't hold any high HP. If you had the flywheel and the pressure plate resurfaced, you could get by by replacing the disc for a long time. I've done this exact same thing before. I had a SPEC stage 2, and the disc was ruined, so I just resurfaced the PP & FW, and replaced the disc. Drove fine for years before I sold the LT1/T56 out of it..

Everyone on the internet says you can't resurface a pressure plate, but I had one of the oldest transmission shops in business back home tell me they do it all the time with great results. Here's what I ended up with: .007" off the PP.

BlackLS1Bird

iTrader: (2)

I would get the pressure plate resurfaced. It should only take about .015" or so to clean it up. You do not need an entirely new flywheel. You can see in the pic that the engagement area has tapered head bolts in it. The spec flywheels like that have replaceable friction rings. Pick up a new friction ring for the flywheel and a new friction disc and have the pressure plate resurfaced and it will save you a little coin over a new setup and should hold just as much power as a new one.

BlackLS1Bird

iTrader: (2)

Here is one piece:
http://www.ws6project.com/user_stor/...center-insert/
it is listed at $74.99 and can also be found on the spec website. That is a huge savings over almost $400 for a new aluminum flywheel and almost $300 for a steel one. The hard part will be finding just the friction disc. Im sure if you call spec they would be able to get you one. If you so desire, the stage 2 kit comes with a friction disc and pressure plate and alignment tool for under $400. Get that and the flywheel insert and the entire assembly is as good as new and you save a few hundred bucks over an entirely new setup in the process. Hope this helps.

BlackLS1Bird

iTrader: (2)

I just found the disc.
http://www.lmperformance.com/518188/1.html
At $215 for that you are looking at $290 for the disc and flywheel insert plus the resurface for the pressure plate. Overall you will probably spend about the same amount as buying a new pressure plate/disc combo but save the cost of a new flywheel which is $300-$450 depending on material and where you buy. Still a deal in my book. Hope this helps you make a decision.

chuckd71

iTrader: (23)

Just saw these replies. Thanks for the info.

SNLPerformance

iTrader: (15)

I don't recommend resurfacing a pressure plate as it changes dimensions. You can't actually say a pressure plate is good just looking at, you would have to plateload test it and check for engagement/disengagement issues to ensure the diaphragm springs are working correctly. I can't comment on any of the specs (ie disc thickness) as that is a Spec clutch, but maybe they can help you to know so you can make an educated decision. Also I'd check to make sure the disc isn't bent.

SPEC-01

iTrader: (2)

That is actually an older Stage 3+ kit, not a Stage 2. The plate shows in the pics has not been used in about 4 years. Additionally, it is clear that the clutch has not been fully seated (seen on all surfaces). I hesitate to ever recommend a used clutch as they may have other underlying issues that aren't immediately visible. But, these parts shown really don't look terrible...they just look used and they are not current. Let me know if you have any further questions. Thanks!