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Spec problems WTF

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Old Mar 15, 2008 | 04:24 PM
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Default Spec problems WTF

Listen to my story (I'VE HAD NOTHING BUT PROBLEMS).
I just spent $900 on a new spec 3+ clutch and steel flywheel + $350 for the install. The fist time i started the car with the new clutch and flywheel, all we could hear was grinding.The flywheel wasn't centering up to the starter, and the starter drive was ruined. So I bought another flywheel from centerforce (alum) and a new starter that cost me $930 including install, picked the car up friday. When I first get in the car everthing is ok (kinda jumpy) when I drive down the road a little ways, when the car warms up it make noise. Everytime I engauge the clutch (push the clutch to the floor) i hear a chattering, and It's louder than it should be. When I let the clutch out it stops. It doesn't matter what gear I'm in, when the clutch is pushed in it makes the chattering sound. The noise gets louder when I'm driving and have to shift, but if i'm not shifting and I'm riding there's no noise. Whats going on?? Now The transmission shop has to pull my transmission for the third time. I Have to send the brand new flywheel back to spec, so I can get my money back, and a refund for the installation.
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Old Mar 15, 2008 | 07:15 PM
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Yeah, that sucks. The "chattering" is a typical thing among many aftermarket clutches, and I've seen it pretty bad before. My Spec 3 chatter was horrible for the 500 mile break-in period and got better, but never totally went away.

Good luck getting your money back on the install charges, though.
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Old Mar 15, 2008 | 08:08 PM
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Why did you pay for a replacement FW + starter when the installer screwed up the install from the beginning? I would of told them on the spot to fix it.
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Old Mar 15, 2008 | 08:40 PM
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HHHMMMMMMMM. Haven't had any problems out of my Spec 3 except for the chattering for the first 500 or so miles that it took to break in. Good luck on everything.
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Old Mar 15, 2008 | 09:56 PM
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yeah sounds like your paying a bunch of idiots to work on your car.
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Old Mar 16, 2008 | 02:41 AM
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I have to say the idiots are spec they are full of crap my pressure plate failed with 2000 miles and burnt my disk, They came up with all these excuses, why it was not their fault said my stock motor peaks over 800 hp in peaks ( I wish) with a p-1 procharger at 6lbs of boost. They told me it was the stock gears, then it was nittos dr's then it was contaminated the pressure plate was fine would not need a new one so they shaved the fly wheel thinner Thank god I have a adjustable master ( all hydraulics were replaced with the clutch). (GREAT I bought a new fly wheel one to start) charged me to rebuild the disk and then without telling sent me a pressure plate no charge. So I called and someone else said I didn't have the proper pressure on my pressure plate, So now I have a bunch of used crap and this one chatters real bad 10x worse than center force, or Mc leod. I expect the 3+ to fail again soon, 300 miles and counting til breakin is done. Also it took them 2 months to fix it. And numerous phone calls to only get the run around by J Auvil. Also they never even offered to make it right even when asked. Even after someone else at spec admitted their plate failed.

Last edited by js2fst; Mar 16, 2008 at 02:52 AM.
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Old Mar 16, 2008 | 07:19 AM
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I have a stage 3+ with OEm flywheel. The chatter was insane making the car nearly underivable for the first 50 miles. It started getting much better and had mild chatter till around 400 miles or so. It is still even improving a bit and now I would say the feel is 90% stock bearing in mind this is a performance clutch.

This disk will make a little more noise due to the friction material used and It may be worse on an aluminum flywheel that has not been broken in. I can hear a faint scuffing sound from mine when backing in the garage.

Regarding Spec I have heard many horror stories where it is never their fault.

How did the pressure plate fail?
How can you not have proper pressure on the pressure plate?
Spec only stands by their 90 day warranty.
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Old Mar 16, 2008 | 07:37 AM
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Originally Posted by Biggin'89
yeah sounds like your paying a bunch of idiots to work on your car.

We'll the guys are really know for good work where I live.(And they sponsered my familys monster truck) so I have some trust in them. The only reason he didn't back up the cost for the new starter, flywheel and install is becasue I didn't buy the clutch and flywheel from them. I bought it from another company thats been good to me in the past. The trans. shop would have backed it up if they would have bought it. Now because i bought the new flywheel and starter and install, that trans. shop will back it up all the way. How could you intall a flywheel wrong anyways, (it only bolts on one way). As long as you bolt it down to the proper torque specs, how could the install go wrong??? AND the reason I bought a new flywheel is because my car has been down for 3 WEEKS and it's my DD. I NEED my car back, plus I don't want to put another defective flywheel i my car, and have to deal with this crap again! I really don't even want the spec 3 + clutch in my car b/c of the bullcrap I've dealt with and the problems I've heard about them.
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Old Mar 16, 2008 | 07:38 AM
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I've had two Spec3 clutches and always run stock flywheels, the first one i put 35k hard miles on with no issues, the second clutch on the other hand has no more then 3k miles and is almost wiped out, the pressure plate seemed ok, I'll just replace the disk and flywheel and see how it goes
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Old Mar 16, 2008 | 08:01 AM
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I'm really getting woried now...
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Old Mar 16, 2008 | 10:31 AM
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Originally Posted by js2fst
I have to say the idiots are spec they are full of crap my pressure plate failed with 2000 miles and burnt my disk, They came up with all these excuses, why it was not their fault said my stock motor peaks over 800 hp in peaks ( I wish) with a p-1 procharger at 6lbs of boost. They told me it was the stock gears, then it was nittos dr's then it was contaminated the pressure plate was fine would not need a new one so they shaved the fly wheel thinner Thank god I have a adjustable master ( all hydraulics were replaced with the clutch). (GREAT I bought a new fly wheel one to start) charged me to rebuild the disk and then without telling sent me a pressure plate no charge. So I called and someone else said I didn't have the proper pressure on my pressure plate, So now I have a bunch of used crap and this one chatters real bad 10x worse than center force, or Mc leod. I expect the 3+ to fail again soon, 300 miles and counting til breakin is done. Also it took them 2 months to fix it. And numerous phone calls to only get the run around by J Auvil. Also they never even offered to make it right even when asked. Even after someone else at spec admitted their plate failed.
Haha, yeah, because when you buy a Spec, they give you all those warnings about how you're not supposed to run certain gears with the clutch, or run Nittos, or....I don't know.......actually drive the car with the clutch in it.....

Oh wait, no, they don't tell you any of that stuff, because it's all BS. They told my brother the same things after the fact when his Stage 3 went. Nittos, gearing, blah, blah, blah. Perhaps they should just put a big sticky at the top of their website and warnings on all the product pages of the companies who sell them stating all of the standard issue things you CAN'T do with your car when using one of their clutches that you CAN do with every other clutch out there....
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Old Mar 16, 2008 | 11:50 AM
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Thats funny
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