96fd3s

Hi everyone, so my clutch has been on its way out for some time now.

Iv been babying it, driving at low rpms, accelerating slowly etc in a bid to make it last a little longer while i got the money together for a new one.

At the moment its not too bad in 1st and 2nd if you accelerate slowly, but if you give it any gas in 3rd gear + from low rpm it slips pretty bad e.g. accelerate in 3rd gear from 2k rpm and it will slip.
Its a bit depressing when a civic or something floors it past me and i cant put him to shame because my clutch slips.

Im going to buy a clutch kit and am going to install it myself. Iv got a couple of options.
I only use my FD as a weekend fun car, i dont track it. Its pretty standard engine wise, just has an intake, exhaust & 3mm seals and very minor porting.

its a JDM series 7 type RS, and runs hard. so with my mods i guess its approx 300 rwhp.

First option i can get a Exedy stock replacement clutch kit for what i think is a very reasonable $502 NZ (about $300 usd i spose) or my seond option is to get a exedy heavy duty clutch which will set me back about $900-1000 NZ.

Basically i want to know if you guys think it would be worth spending the extra money on the stronger clutch considering how stock my car is. Is the heavy duty clutch worth twice the cost considering im not pushing much power and only drive the car on the road? Im also not planning on doing any power mods in the near future...
cheers

Mahjik

iTrader: (1)

The Exedy Stage I would work for what you are currently doing:

http://www.raceinspired.com/ps-10572...1993-1995.aspx

Now, I'm not suggesting you buy from this place, just using the link for the product. You'll notice that clutch kits are rated by torque. The Exedy is basically a OEM clutch so I would recommend something along these lines:

http://www.raceinspired.com/ps-8621-...1993-1999.aspx

That will work just fine on the street and also give you some wiggle room should you decided to modify your car more later.

96fd3s

thanks for that,
ill see if i can find anyone who supplies ACT products locally.

zanthrax

I was surprised by how expensive ACT and Exedy clutches can be, especially since I needed my new clutch to be shipped to Europe.
I finally went with a Spec Stage 3 clutch, rated for 700nms of torque
I've only got it installed a week ago so I only have 200 miles on it, so I can't comment on durability but it still grabs hard and doesn't bust your knee when releasing it.
http://www.specclutch.com/

alexdimen

iTrader: (13)

I'm a huge fan of stock clutches on stock rx-7's. The exedy/daiken (OEM) clutches have a great linear feel to them and last a long time.

Aftermarket clutchs with a higher spring pressure put more strain on the fork, which is prone to failing if it's the original.

If you buy the exedy components off ebay you can get a killer deal.

4CN A1R

iTrader: (6)

another great clutch that maintains stock feel in the Centerforce Duel Friction

great clutch

96fd3s

thanks for the replies,
im leaning towards the exedy stock replacement with a slightly upgraded clutch plate.
I can get it for about half the price of a tougher one, and i cant see a tougher one lasting twice as long.
I looked into ACT clutches locally, but didnt turn up much other then the ACT extreme heavy duty clutch which is a bit over the top for me (and too expensive).
Those Spec clutches do look good and i would consider one if our exchage rate wasent so crap at the moment.
I should have my new clutch mid next week, hopefully swapping it out goes smoothly!

Mahjik

iTrader: (1)

Keep in mind that it's not necessarily the clutch disc itself which is rated for torque, but the pressure plate. i.e. the ACT clutch kits typically use a standard OEM clutch disc, but with a heavy duty pressure plate.

96fd3s

thanks for the info, ill ring the company and see if they can put something together for me with a stronger pressure plate at the right price

96fd3s

I just spoke with the company, they tell me they can overhaul & uprate my current pressure plate up to 4000lb clamp pressure, although that wouldent be needed for my applications and they would want to uprate it to around 2400lb
Im obviously no clutch expert, so is this worth doing? It will cost $385..

I also looked at ebay and can get a stock replacement kit for $290 US + $70 US shipping...
whats the best option!?? thanks

cheers

Pungo

to start, im not thread hijacking. ive got the same problem with my clutch. It just started about a month ago and it has progressively gotten worse.

I dont know about the OP but I thought I would ask, is there anything that can be done without spending the $400 to replace the clutch?

Pungo

for example.... is it possible just to fix the throw out bearings and not have this issue?

GoodfellaFD3S

iTrader: (213)

Not to be a jerk, but it's kind of like asking, 'my tires are bald, can I get away with driving in a rainstorm? can I just raise the tire pressure?'

Btw, you have only one throwout bearing, and it has absolutely nothing to do with the problem you're experiencing. If the clutch is slipping, it's because the disc is worn down and not serviceable any longer.

a clutch is a wear item. how many miles are on yours?

Pungo

i honestly dont know. When I bought it I was unaware of any mods/changes from the original (if there ever was any.)

is it possible to simply replace the disc? i was on ebay looking at parts and I saw that you could buy just the disc. In this situation would it simply be better to replace the whole clutch?

GoodfellaFD3S

iTrader: (213)

How many miles are on your chassis? The car is completely stock? If so, there are some mods you should look into for the sake of reliability, such as a downpipe, aluminum AST, and aftermarket radiator.

You might be able to just change the disc, it all depends what everything looks like when you get in there.

Pungo

the car has 67k original miles on it.... heres what I have on the car that I am aware of:

Suspension:
-Brembo drilled and slotted rotars
-Pillow ball bushings
-Greddy Grex strut tower brace
-Tokico Illumina 5-way shocks, with new OEM top and bottom spring mounts, 2000 miles
-Tein H-Tech springs, 2000 miles
-Kosei K3 Rims 18x8.5 ET40
-Conti Extreme Contact Tires, Hi-Performance All Season, 235/40R18, 2000miles

Interior:
-Kenwood DDX-8017 CD/MP3/DVD/NAV 6.5 inch touch screen head unit
-Diamond door speakers
-Subwoofer driving stock Bose Acoustic Wave Sub
-Re-upholstered black/laguna blue leather seats
-Fly Rx-7 triple guage pod (rare and sought after item)
-Defi-D: boost guage, oil pressure guage, temp guage
-Mazdaspeed short throw shifter
-JDM Armrest pocket replacing ash-tray
-Fan Mod switch (allows driver to turn on the cooling fans with switch as well as have fans run for 10 minutes after car is shut down)

Body:
- Window tint: 50% side, 35% rear
-AeroFiber "Feed" Type 2 CF adjustable wing
-RE Hood Struts (eliminates hood support rod, very cool)
-Clear turn lamps
-99' spec front lower lip

Engine:
-Silicone vacuum hoses.
-Silicone radiator hoses, Samco
-NGK spark plugs
-Fighter's Garage Intake with heat shield
-Racing Beat stainless steel dual tip exhaust
-Bonex 3 inch stainless steel high flow catalytic converter
-Bonex 3 inch stainless steel downpipe
- HKS ground kit
- NGK Plug wire set
-Damean transmission brace
- Turbojeff battery tray
-Apexi AVC-R Boost Controller
-Apexi Power FC with Controller and Datalogic (not yet tuned. Currently running the conservative base-mod map)
-Greddy RS BOV
-Greddy Elbow and pipe

Pungo

best thing would be just to take it apart and figure out everything thats wrong huh?

BC-FD3S

iTrader: (2)

if you're handy you can have the transmission out in a few hours. then take a look at what needs replacing. Most likely you will need your flywheel replaced or resurfaced, a new disk, new pressure plate, new TO bearing and new seals. I would also HIGHLY suggest replacing your rear main seal and re-torquing your engine studs. I didn't replace mine and 2 months later got a leak and had to pull everything back out.

Jarsky

hey bro,
just to let you know that noone supplies ACT products locally in NZ (except for the real high grade stuff that costs a fortune). best bet is to pickup a Exedy from somewhere like nzperformance, he does good prices

I just picked up an ACT clutch while im in the US - but for the clutch, flywheel & counterweight you're looking at about NZ$1500 + shipping

staticguitar313

iTrader: (2)

I have a spec stage 2, cannot complain at all, it has plentiful clamping force for the amount of power i want to run. (ie. under 400ft/lbs)

Jarsky

Have to be careful with that changing of the downpipe though. While sure it removes that nasty old cat restricting your flow and making your engine very hot, it also flows more boost and if you haven't got an aftermarket ecu or at least a boost controller you can be at risk of popping your engine. Have seen this done a couple of times by adding a big exhaust system onto a rotary.

Kinda a Catch22 mod - it improves reliability, but it doesn't.



96fd3s - before you go doing the clutch, realise that it is quite a big job compared to some other cars like skylines, cefiros, etc...and make sure you have all the parts before you go just replacing the clutch itself.

You'll need
the clutch assembly (pressure plate & disc)
throwout bearing
pilot bearing & seal
transmission oil
new flywheel nut
rear oil seal

You might also want:
lightened flywheel (increase your acceleration)
a flywheel counterweight

tools needed:
13b turbo flywheel stopper (much easier than trying to jam it)
pilot bearing removal tool
alignment tool (keeps clutch straight while fitting the pressure plate)
all the normal tools needed for this type of job
loctite (for the flywheel nuts)

make sure if you take it to a shop that they have the tools so they dont f**k it up (somwhere like rx7heaven, rotaryenginespecialists, etc...) also get them to torque the rear engine housing bolts while they have it all out, and change the transmission fluid in the gearbox.

mine all up is costing me about NZ$2000 which includes all the parts
ACT Stage 3 Heavy Duty clutch
ACT Prolite Flywheel
ACT Flywheel Counterweight
Pilotbearing & Seal, Throwout Bearing, Alignment tool (all came with my clutch)
and mates rates on fitting it all - generally though expect to pay around NZ$1200-1500 labour charges in shop + parts

Also once you've got the new clutch in - nana it for about 1000km to break it in.

GoodfellaFD3S

iTrader: (213)

he's since mentioned in the thread that he already has a downpipe......my post was directed to a completely stock car, you can safely add a downpipe in that case

Pungo

Ive been doing some research on buying a new clutch but frankly, there is still a lot to learn.

I am buying a clutch finally.... but because i dont know much about these cars, I am seeking your help. Will this work in my car or is the kit missing parts? Is it a good clutch?

***ebay link removed***


i got a 94 twin turbo touring

any advice would be rad.


thanks

GoodfellaFD3S

iTrader: (213)

That puck-style clutch is horrible for a street-driven FD, stick with an organic disc.

Call up rx7.com at 972 530 3335 and speak to either Chris or Ari. I recommend the first clutch listed in this link, it's perfect for FDs with the stock twins (which I'm assuming you have):

http://www.rx7.com/store/rx7/fddrivetrain_clutch.html

mono4lamar

iTrader: (32)

Okay, here's a question I've always wanted to know the answer to. Does anyone have and idea on how to distinguish the difference between the Xtreme and Heavy Duty pressure plates? I can't figure out what one I have left over... lol