New Clutch Went In Today

[MarcSpaz]

Man, I can't believe how much better the car runs. I went with the SPEC stage 3. The car is very streetable. As a matter of fact, I can now tell just how bad the stock one was. But hey, 90 rwhp over stock, 40,000+ miles, and 200+ passes... I can't complain about the stocker too much. LOL

I know I am gonna see some better 60's next time out. R&P, heads, and cams going in by mid April. So stoked!

[2k05gt]

Wow, That was quick.
I wonder if it's going to fix the nose diving Launch?
If it does, Adam will need to get a new Clutch to fix his issue.

[MarcSpaz]

Chris said my R&P is jacked 9 ways to Sunday. I kinda already knew that, but him telling me confirmed it. Once the 4.56's and the TruTrac go in I will be cutting 1.7's NP.

I went for a cruise for a bit tonight. Man I love this clutch. I would recommend a SPEC 3 to any s197 owner who is looking for an aggresive response to gear shifts. Even the pedal is way easier to press and takes less effor to hold it down at lights, etc.

Hey, you know I think you were the one who said my car sounded like it had a small exhaust leak. I am pretty sure that was the case. After the exhaust got removed and replaced it is much quiter now and sounds really good.

[boss281]

I have the SpecII+, and while the first one I put in was a POS, the replacement I received from Spec seems to be doing the trick. Despite the well known problems with SpecII+ clutch, if I ever had to replace it I would go with the III+. I haven't seen any complaints, and nothing but accolades...

If you're willing to dump the clutch a bit higher, 1.6 sixty foots are in there.

[chad05gt]

Have you powershifted around 63-6500 yet?

If so, is it 'sticky'?

I had to get away from those paddle clutches... powershifting was a PITA. I ended up going w/ Powergrip HD pressure plate w/ 310 clutch.

If it works, maybe next time Ill look into spec.

[MarcSpaz]

I haven't power shifted yet. With it being a DD I need to put about 500 miles on it before I pound on it so it sets up right for the street. The mile I drive, that should be about a week.

I'll let you know how it goes.

[Deimos]

I'll be watching to see how your car performs at the track Marc.

To be honest, the thought of changing out my clutch before it is worn out does not excite me. I have other paces that I want to put my money first.

[2k05gt]

I'll be watching to see how your car performs at the track Marc.

To be honest, the thought of changing out my clutch before it is worn out does not excite me. I have other paces that I want to put my money first.
Adam, How many miles on your car? I wonder since the Car had the Turbos on it before how much of a beating did the clutch take? You don't know.

What if Marc fixes the nose dive issue? and he picks up 3 or 4/10th and starts cutting 1.7 60 foots then it much be worth changing out.

I would Call Excessive and at least get a price..

[chad05gt]

Adam, How many miles on your car? I wonder since the Car had the Turbos on it before how much of a beating did the clutch take? You don't know.

What if Marc fixes the nose dive issue? and he picks up 3 or 4/10th and starts cutting 1.7 60 foots then it much be worth changing out.

I would Call Excessive and at least get a price..

or spend a cold/rainy day w/ buds and BUD and make a day of it :)

[ArtQ]

Personal opinion on the nose dive....The car is bogging. The only way to solve the problem is more torque or get the "slip" off the line down. Keeping the RPM's up during the first critical phase of launch is the key to a solid 60 foot. If you can just dump the clutch with out physically trying to slip it and get no bog the clutch its self is slipping. Keep in mind this applies to our N/A power levels. With a fresh clutch I have to physically give it a quick slip to keep the power up off the line. One of the ways I can tell if it's worn and slipping is I no longer have to "slip it out" on my own, and my 60's stay the same or get better. However I do notice a loss of MPH and lose a few tenths during the rest of the run. Marc, that stage 3 is going to be tricky to get off the line clean. Most of the happy customers with that set-up have gobs of power to bring it out. Those Kevlar discs are tough to control off the line when you need to "control" them. Most guys here know how I feel about Spec, but in this case I have tried a different Kevlar set up in the Zoom and found the same problem with lauch control. So far the best clutch set-up I have found for our power level is an organic disc. Right now I'm running the stock combo again and it is completely controllable, the RPS was a dream but they stopped making them. I do have a few other options that I will most likely try soon as the stock clutch does not react quick enough to allow good reaction times, although I have had more than a few low 1.62/.63 60's out of it.

[Deimos]

Personal opinion on the nose dive....The car is bogging. The only way to solve the problem is more torque or get the "slip" off the line down. Keeping the RPM's up during the first critical phase of launch is the key to a solid 60 foot. If you can just dump the clutch with out physically trying to slip it and get no bog the clutch its self is slipping. Keep in mind this applies to our N/A power levels. With a fresh clutch I have to physically give it a quick slip to keep the power up off the line. One of the ways I can tell if it's worn and slipping is I no longer have to "slip it out" on my own, and my 60's stay the same or get better. However I do notice a loss of MPH and lose a few tenths during the rest of the run. Marc, that stage 3 is going to be tricky to get off the line clean. Most of the happy customers with that set-up have gobs of power to bring it out. Those Kevlar discs are tough to control off the line when you need to "control" them. Most guys here know how I feel about Spec, but in this case I have tried a different Kevlar set up in the Zoom and found the same problem with lauch control. So far the best clutch set-up I have found for our power level is an organic disc. Right now I'm running the stock combo again and it is completely controllable, the RPS was a dream but they stopped making them. I do have a few other options that I will most likely try soon as the stock clutch does not react quick enough to allow good reaction times, although I have had more than a few low 1.62/.63 60's out of it.

So what I am getting out of this is that it's not soo much that the clutch is the problem but more that I as the driver need to learn how to work with the clutch I have. Either that or get a clutch that works with my driving style. That makes sense to me.

Scott,
Yes I have thought about how much wear my clutch got when the turbo system was installed. But I don't want to change the clutch until I know that it is giving out. With enough track time, it could be before the end of the season.

Recently I got a new tune from doug with reduced throttle response. With this new tune I can actually hold an rpm which will make it easier for me to gauge how to launch my car. Last season when I was nosediving, I was gunning the engine right before launch meaning that I was not ever at the same PRM from one run to the next. Basically I floored the gas at the second amber, dropped the clutch on the third and prayed to god the whole way down the track. Not a very good way to be consistent. That having been said, with this new tune and some relocation brackets I would like to see how I do first. If last week was any indication, I think I should see an improvement already.

[boss281]

"Basically I floored the gas at the second amber, dropped the clutch on the third and prayed to god the whole way down the track"

LMAO! I know that feeling man, I know that feeling!

[chad05gt]

Personal opinion on the nose dive....The car is bogging. The only way to solve the problem is more torque or get the "slip" off the line down. Keeping the RPM's up during the first critical phase of launch is the key to a solid 60 foot. If you can just dump the clutch with out physically trying to slip it and get no bog the clutch its self is slipping. Keep in mind this applies to our N/A power levels. With a fresh clutch I have to physically give it a quick slip to keep the power up off the line. One of the ways I can tell if it's worn and slipping is I no longer have to "slip it out" on my own, and my 60's stay the same or get better. However I do notice a loss of MPH and lose a few tenths during the rest of the run. Marc, that stage 3 is going to be tricky to get off the line clean. Most of the happy customers with that set-up have gobs of power to bring it out. Those Kevlar discs are tough to control off the line when you need to "control" them. Most guys here know how I feel about Spec, but in this case I have tried a different Kevlar set up in the Zoom and found the same problem with lauch control. So far the best clutch set-up I have found for our power level is an organic disc. Right now I'm running the stock combo again and it is completely controllable, the RPS was a dream but they stopped making them. I do have a few other options that I will most likely try soon as the stock clutch does not react quick enough to allow good reaction times, although I have had more than a few low 1.62/.63 60's out of it.

I think you PM'd me nearly this same statement about 6 months ego... did I listen ... NO... did I weld a clutch to my flywheel 'trying' to slip a paddle POS... YES.
I bought an organic ( #310 ) clutch to go with Powergrip HD pressure plate and forgot how fun it was to drive a non-sticky clutch... and dropped 2 tenths.


welded clutch and new clutch pics below...

[rygen]

Nice to see you got it sorted out. Let me know the next time you take a trip to excessive. I want to talk to Torey about doing a Mach1 motor swap on the wifes stang. When are you hitting the track next? I won't be able to go until the 22nd.

[2k05gt]

Nice to see you got it sorted out. Let me know the next time you take a trip to excessive. I want to talk to Torey about doing a Mach1 motor swap on the wifes stang. When are you hitting the track next? I won't be able to go until the 22nd.

Todd,
Performance by Jax (http://www.performancebyjax.com/) has a Mach 1 Motor in his window for Sale, complete with PCM and Wiring harness. Last time I talked to him (For My Sons V6)
he said he would sell it to me for 3K It's brand new straight from Ford.

[firestang70]

Congrats on the new clutch Marc, I will be adding the same to mine soon as I get it installed. The way I launched my car it "nose dived" but I refused to slip it. It was a DD and keeping the clutch in one piece was key. I loke forward to running this clutch with the Whipple installed.

[MarcSpaz]

LOL, I hear you there man. Got to get to work with this thing every day...

[rygen]

Todd,
Performance by Jax (http://www.performancebyjax.com/) has a Mach 1 Motor in his window for Sale, complete with PCM and Wiring harness. Last time I talked to him (For My Sons V6)
he said he would sell it to me for 3K It's brand new straight from Ford.

Thanks Scott. I will check it out. Stock internals I assume? I was planning on changing out the pistons and going with a higher CR since she does not want to boost her stang.