djradam

hello, before flaming begins, i searched about five pages of "clutch".

ok, here goes

1. is my clutch (clutch plate of whatever) slipping? all i can describe is that it feels like an automatic when an auto delays. let's say i'm driving in 4th or 5th gear, cruising. i step on it a little and the revs increase a lot in a shor period of time, then they go down as the plate catches -- or that's what it feels like. if that makes sense, i think it's slipping.

2. should i get it checked out? i think i will, and if i do, should i take it to dealer or private? again, this is just to check it out. i may install it myself with the help of a friend. i hate the dealer around here. they tend to "lie" to me and then my dad.

2b. or i could just buy the clutch kit and get it installed.

3. anyone have approximate cost to doing this? i ask before calling shops around here. my dad says that if i buy a clutch kit, and have a shop install it, they probably won't warranty the parts (which makes sense), but then says they could do a hack job and not care since it's not really warrented.



oh well, my friend was a mechanic for several years, so i don't think it'd be that hard to install, plus, i have a copy of the service manual.

any help is appreciated. thanks!

Pedrolies

i just did this last week. your clutch is slipping, buy a new one. if your planning on doing mods like me, get a better one. i bought a stage II clutch from ACT that holds 333 ft lbs for $420 shipped. they have cheaper ones, but whatever. they give you a new pilot bushing too. if you have any more specific questions just ask.

djradam

thanks for the reply. i was looking on ********** and they seem to have a nice tutorial. did you ahve to take off your exhaust?

i tried making it slip today and no luck. so i dunno. i might drive it safe for a while until it gets warmer....

oh, did you have to resurface your flywheel? i heard you had to. i saw a place that had an ACT clutch and idigo flywheel for 360 shipped. seemed like a reputable place (i'm lazy, i have the url though)....

i read yo ushould get your flywheel resurfaced (i think that's the word), but i don't want much downtime. i guess friday night i could disconnect everything, take flywheel to a shop on saturday, but hope they get it done in time. so maybe just get a new one might be easier .......

but again, thanks for the reply!

oh, you didn't find it super hard to do, right? maybe 6-8 hours?

Pedrolies

it all depends on how good you are at mechanic work. it took me three weeks, but then again i didnt have anyone to help me lift the tranny. you can do it with two people but its easier with two people and a jack or three people and a jack. i did not remove the exhaust, you dont really need to. theres one bracket that gets in the way a lot, but you can work around it. most definitely resurface your flywheel though. you should be able to get it done the same day. i know O'Reilly's does it in like 30 min. also i lightened my flywheel instead of getting a new one. you can do either. i just took mine to a machine shop and had them shave some off the back side. make sure they get it off the back side. only one machine shop in the kansas city area will do it though, so you might have to look around a bit. they should be able to resurface it when they lighten it too. it cost about 50 bucks to lighten and about 25 to resurface.
oh and btw, there are 9 transmission bolts, two starter bolts, four driveshaft bolts, and 2 U joint bolts and thats about it. just disconnect anything attached to the tranny before you drop it. ESPECIALLY THE CRANSHAFT POSITION SENSOR. i didnt take mine of and broke it when i dropped the tranny. theyre really hard to find and they cost 50 bucks. let me know if you have any questions though

djradam

alright, looks like i WILL be doing this... i really should search these forums ... did you have to do anything special like remove your starter or remove your slave cylinder? i found an install on ********** that said they did that....

Driftmonster

YES, get your flywheel resurfaced!!!!!!

djradam

i forgot to mention i purchased a flywheel, fidanza, so that shouldn't be a problem

twofortyessex

I put a new clutch in last spring, it took me about 6 or 7 hours total time. I had two other people helping me off and on as well, and it was my first time doing that work.

no you dont have to remove the starter, and yes you do have to remove the slave cylinder. its only held on by two bolts, so its not a problem. there are, if I recall, 4 sensors that are attached to the transmission, and you need to disconnect all of them to drop it, otherwise they will just snap off. that = no good. and I didnt have to do anything with the exhaust.

good luck

djradam

thank you again for the reply!