Need some advice for the clutch
11-24-2008, 09:43 AM
#1
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Need some advice for the clutch
Well i was going to put up a thread celebrating an end to my four month long hell with the clutch .
short recap is that i bought the car last june from chevy after a couple test drives and i fell in love with it. an 07 cobalt ss/sc with the stage 2 sc kit and a spec stage 2+ clutch kit. needless to say it was a big upgrade over my 01 ford focus zx3. after i bought it i had no clutch problems but i was in the service department every week for three weeks about my check engine light. and the third time i took it in i complained about the car shifting wierd and not grabbing. slight slippage.
well chevy finally fixed the check engine light problem but told me my clutch needed replacing and theyd do it for 1800 bucks.
fast forward to now and im still driving on said slipped clutch and its still on its last leg. its my daily driver so parking it is not an option and money is tight as hell (in the good ol air force and i only have two stripes) i bought the stock clutch and fly wheel from the previous owner for two hundred bucks and thought that itd be fine since he only had a couple hundred miles on it.
they mustve been some hard miles. a couple of mechanics recommend that i dont reinstall the stock clutch saying that the heat spots on it are too bad and ill end up tearing up the whole transmission but my funds cant back a new replacement. the heat spots are about an inch to an inch and a half long and there is only two that big. the rest is just speckled. the disk is in fine condition so that seems promising to me but i dont know if i should risk turning my slightly expensive problem in to a never to be afforded to fix problem.
what do you guys think? should i be fine with the stock clutch? only engine mods are the stage 2 kit and an injen cold air intake. i really need to know. i was excited to throw in the clutch this weekend and show up after thanksgiving break with the car i fell in love with and not the one now im embarressed to drive.
short recap is that i bought the car last june from chevy after a couple test drives and i fell in love with it. an 07 cobalt ss/sc with the stage 2 sc kit and a spec stage 2+ clutch kit. needless to say it was a big upgrade over my 01 ford focus zx3. after i bought it i had no clutch problems but i was in the service department every week for three weeks about my check engine light. and the third time i took it in i complained about the car shifting wierd and not grabbing. slight slippage.
well chevy finally fixed the check engine light problem but told me my clutch needed replacing and theyd do it for 1800 bucks.
fast forward to now and im still driving on said slipped clutch and its still on its last leg. its my daily driver so parking it is not an option and money is tight as hell (in the good ol air force and i only have two stripes) i bought the stock clutch and fly wheel from the previous owner for two hundred bucks and thought that itd be fine since he only had a couple hundred miles on it.
they mustve been some hard miles. a couple of mechanics recommend that i dont reinstall the stock clutch saying that the heat spots on it are too bad and ill end up tearing up the whole transmission but my funds cant back a new replacement. the heat spots are about an inch to an inch and a half long and there is only two that big. the rest is just speckled. the disk is in fine condition so that seems promising to me but i dont know if i should risk turning my slightly expensive problem in to a never to be afforded to fix problem.
what do you guys think? should i be fine with the stock clutch? only engine mods are the stage 2 kit and an injen cold air intake. i really need to know. i was excited to throw in the clutch this weekend and show up after thanksgiving break with the car i fell in love with and not the one now im embarressed to drive.
11-24-2008, 09:51 AM
#3
if thats all you can afford you really have no choice but to put the stock one in, it better than slipping and no clutch, they might just be telling you that the stock ones bad,because gm is just as hard for money as you if not worse, i say just put the stock one in and take it easy on the car for a while and if you think theres something wrong after the old ones in dont drive it thill you can afford a new clutch i would recommend spec+3 to be honest but its not cheap. but i know its cheaper than the gm stock one, spec+3 is 1,085 and www.bwoodyperformance.com thats the cheapest place for clutches
11-24-2008, 10:50 AM
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yeah thats more to what im leaning to. i was told theres a chance itd be fine and i could drive around no problem till i could afford a permanent fix but the chances of it being a major break is abit more. lookin at the clutch kit it appears fine and so i feel my chances are good. i want to post some pics of it tonight to get yalls opinion. the guy whos going to help me put it in is very apprehensive and is not sure he feels comfortable puttin it in only to have my tranny blow and im even more **** outta luck
as far as another spec clutch i highly doubt i will. my car only has 20k miles on it 5k of which i put on it. for the clutch to go out this quickly makes me feel like either the guy who owned it before me either broke it in wrong, installed it wrong, was overly aggressive with it, or spec just makes a bad product. now ive read both rave reviews and ive read reviews that spec makes the worst product out there but i dont wanna bet all my solutions or problems on spec. for a replacement im going to do some serious research on all the brands and styles available for my driving style and performance requirements.
as far as another spec clutch i highly doubt i will. my car only has 20k miles on it 5k of which i put on it. for the clutch to go out this quickly makes me feel like either the guy who owned it before me either broke it in wrong, installed it wrong, was overly aggressive with it, or spec just makes a bad product. now ive read both rave reviews and ive read reviews that spec makes the worst product out there but i dont wanna bet all my solutions or problems on spec. for a replacement im going to do some serious research on all the brands and styles available for my driving style and performance requirements.
if thats all you can afford you really have no choice but to put the stock one in, it better than slipping and no clutch, they might just be telling you that the stock ones bad,because gm is just as hard for money as you if not worse, i say just put the stock one in and take it easy on the car for a while and if you think theres something wrong after the old ones in dont drive it thill you can afford a new clutch i would recommend spec+3 to be honest but its not cheap. but i know its cheaper than the gm stock one, spec+3 is 1,085 and www.bwoodyperformance.com thats the cheapest place for clutches
11-24-2008, 11:29 AM
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i have the same exact set up man. here's the deal. i got the stg II SPEC clutch and since our cars have the springs in the clutch plate all you have to do is resurface the fly wheel. reason: it is a one piece flywheel. if it were a 2 piece than you would prolly have to replace it. the way it was explained to me was there are push systems and pull systems when it comes to clutches and we have a pull one. that is the reason for the 1 pcs flywheel. it all has to do with how the clutch lets out. some cars the clutch engages as you are letting the pedal out and others engage when pushing it in. i do have to say after pulling the flywheel out and holding it, that is a heavy bitch. it weighted at least 20-30lbs. eventually i will replace it with a lighter one but for now i am not because of cash restrictions. i should have my car back today and i am excited to see how much difference the new clutch and tranny make while driving. i have heard when you go over a stage II clutch it gets harder to drive. i have a friend that has some stg4 clutch kit and it is really sensative, compared to the stock one i used to have.
hopefully this makes sense, i'm not a mechanic but i do alot of my own work with help. also beware of tranny issues. i had to replace my tranny because there were damage to the gears and the pins that held the shifter rods on top of the tranny sheared right off. if you notice your shifter getting really loose and you have dificulty getting into 2nd and reverse you maybe having the same trouble as I. gm tranny's have to have a special press to get the housing apart and the dealerships around here dont have the tools. i also heard the new tc's fielded 8 different trannies to see which one will work the best so expect tranny issues in the future on those especially if they are driven hard...
hopefully this makes sense, i'm not a mechanic but i do alot of my own work with help. also beware of tranny issues. i had to replace my tranny because there were damage to the gears and the pins that held the shifter rods on top of the tranny sheared right off. if you notice your shifter getting really loose and you have dificulty getting into 2nd and reverse you maybe having the same trouble as I. gm tranny's have to have a special press to get the housing apart and the dealerships around here dont have the tools. i also heard the new tc's fielded 8 different trannies to see which one will work the best so expect tranny issues in the future on those especially if they are driven hard...
11-24-2008, 03:10 PM
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yeah that helps alot and ill keep a sharp eye and ear on my tranny. the guys whos lettin me use his shop and is gonna help me with the install gave me the green light so this friday im gonna be shoulder deep in my balt so im excited as hell. i cant wait to get my car back to the way it used to be
i have the same exact set up man. here's the deal. i got the stg II SPEC clutch and since our cars have the springs in the clutch plate all you have to do is resurface the fly wheel. reason: it is a one piece flywheel. if it were a 2 piece than you would prolly have to replace it. the way it was explained to me was there are push systems and pull systems when it comes to clutches and we have a pull one. that is the reason for the 1 pcs flywheel. it all has to do with how the clutch lets out. some cars the clutch engages as you are letting the pedal out and others engage when pushing it in. i do have to say after pulling the flywheel out and holding it, that is a heavy bitch. it weighted at least 20-30lbs. eventually i will replace it with a lighter one but for now i am not because of cash restrictions. i should have my car back today and i am excited to see how much difference the new clutch and tranny make while driving. i have heard when you go over a stage II clutch it gets harder to drive. i have a friend that has some stg4 clutch kit and it is really sensative, compared to the stock one i used to have.
hopefully this makes sense, i'm not a mechanic but i do alot of my own work with help. also beware of tranny issues. i had to replace my tranny because there were damage to the gears and the pins that held the shifter rods on top of the tranny sheared right off. if you notice your shifter getting really loose and you have dificulty getting into 2nd and reverse you maybe having the same trouble as I. gm tranny's have to have a special press to get the housing apart and the dealerships around here dont have the tools. i also heard the new tc's fielded 8 different trannies to see which one will work the best so expect tranny issues in the future on those especially if they are driven hard...
hopefully this makes sense, i'm not a mechanic but i do alot of my own work with help. also beware of tranny issues. i had to replace my tranny because there were damage to the gears and the pins that held the shifter rods on top of the tranny sheared right off. if you notice your shifter getting really loose and you have dificulty getting into 2nd and reverse you maybe having the same trouble as I. gm tranny's have to have a special press to get the housing apart and the dealerships around here dont have the tools. i also heard the new tc's fielded 8 different trannies to see which one will work the best so expect tranny issues in the future on those especially if they are driven hard...
11-24-2008, 04:15 PM
#7
that is the reason for the 1 pcs flywheel. it all has to do with how the clutch lets out.
some cars the clutch engages as you are letting the pedal out and others engage when pushing it in.
i do have to say after pulling the flywheel out and holding it, that is a heavy bitch. it weighted at least 20-30lbs. eventually i will replace it with a lighter one
11-24-2008, 04:21 PM
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yeah that helps alot and ill keep a sharp eye and ear on my tranny. the guys whos lettin me use his shop and is gonna help me with the install gave me the green light so this friday im gonna be shoulder deep in my balt so im excited as hell. i cant wait to get my car back to the way it used to be
i have had my car for just under 3 years now and all i have had go wrong with it, well before this is i had an injector go lean on me right before i upgraded to the 42 pounders. so not to bad so far. my tranny went out because i ran the **** out of it and raced on a regular basis...so it was to be expected.
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