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steveespo

Lord knows I'm a Voodoo Child
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Guys
As you may know I had a throw out bearing failure last week. I had previously purchased a lo mile take off transmission and clutch from one of our members as a potential back up. I plan on changing the clutch and trans even though I believe my stock stuff is OK, just want to be sure. My question is; I'm gonna use the Boss clutch and flywheel along with the CJ pulse ring, I would love to put an aftermarket clutch but the budget just isn't there for another $1000, since I've gone 24000 miles with 6000 of them on track with my factory clutch/trans, would you feel good running the Boss clutch?
Thanks
Steve
 

OLOABoss

AKA OLOABoss
NO ;) Change the clutch as it is a weak link and you got really lucky with the OEM working that long.

McLeod was my choice after the RAM Clutch debacle :( and it was the best mod I did.

Peter
 
Steve - Here is the data on my car with the stock clutches. I had 3 failures during this period before I upgraded to the Exedy Twin Disc. Two failures were springs dislodging from the clutch disc. One failure was a slave cylinder which is not replaced with a clutch upgrade so is independent of your decision.

Timeline March, 2011 - July 2013

Vehicle Miles - 14,503
Track Miles on stock clutches - 4,201
Track Hours on stock clutches - 50

Timeline August, 2013 - September 2013

Vehicle Miles - 1,421
Track Miles on Exedy clutch - 225
Track Hours on Exedy clutch - 3

Now, the Boss redlines at 7,500 so there's probably a little more strain on the clutch than on a GT. I also tend to drive with my hair on fire most of the time, so that's also a consideration. Personally, I decided it wasn't worth the probability of traveling to a track event and coming home early to continue with the stock clutch.
 

ArizonaBOSS

Because racecar.
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Arizona, USA
TBH the stock clutch is not track-worthy. I know an aftermarket clutch is a $1K plus hit at this point, but it's better to do it now while the trans is already coming out of the car than to have it out again later (plus all the frustration that goes along with another clutch-related failure).

Furthermore if you have shifting issues caused by the stock clutch it could cause accelerated wear on the synchros etc in your "new" transmission as well.

FWIW I didn't have any clutch catastrophic failures but when we replaced mine with an aftermarket unit, I found a washer from part of the clutch had come loose and was slowly machining away a certain diameter of the flywheel--it was only going to be a matter of time.

My 0.02.
 

steveespo

Lord knows I'm a Voodoo Child
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OK OK, I'll get divorced and spend more loot on a new Clutch. Now which one? I like the idea of a twin disc but blacksheep-1 advised against it. More surface area and lower pressure plate loads are the advantages, more parts to fail ar the only disadvantage I can think of.
Steve

PS I spin to 7500 too.
 
steveespo said:
OK OK, I'll get divorced and spend more loot on a new Clutch. Now which one? I like the idea of a twin disc but blacksheep-1 advised against it. More surface area and lower pressure plate loads are the advantages, more parts to fail ar the only disadvantage I can think of.
Steve

PS I spin to 7500 too.
FWIW MW told me Exedy so I called Rehagen and ordered it. The only Exedy that works with the MT-82 is a twin disc but it's rated to 847 hp so pretty hard to see it failing with our use. Unfortunately it's $1950 vs. $1000 so that means you have less money for the retainer on a divorce lawyer. Exedy does make a single disc for the Tremec.
 

OLOABoss

AKA OLOABoss
Twin Disc Mcleod RXT worked for me the short time I kept the car. Overrated for the power but easy to use and no real increase in effort over the stock unit. Exedy is the only other clutch I would consider for this application.

Peter
 
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8,184
Every Grand Am GS mustang that I know of runs a single disc clutch, they beat the crap out of those clutches weekend after weekend, including bonzaing it out of the pits..I'm sure there has been, but I'm unaware of, any failures whatsoever, I think ours has been in for about 50 hours and 4 different drivers now.
 
blacksheep-1 said:
Every Grand Am GS mustang that I know of runs a single disc clutch, they beat the crap out of those clutches weekend after weekend, including bonzaing it out of the pits..I'm sure there has been, but I'm unaware of, any failures whatsoever, I think ours has been in for about 50 hours and 4 different drivers now.
Yea I would have opted for the single disc Exedy if they had one that worked with the MT-82. The alternative would have been to spend another 4k-5k to upgrade the transmission and driveshaft so I just went with the twin disc.
 

steveespo

Lord knows I'm a Voodoo Child
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Cookeville TN
Went with the McLeod RST 800HP rated twin disc with new SFI billet steel Lightweight flywheel. 7 pounds lighter than stock setup. Also the proper accessories CJ pulse ring and ARP 2000 flywheel bolts. Got a salvage starter off ebay for 44 bucks in case mine has damaged teeth or anything. Go big or go home, will be digging in starting tomorrow, I'll post some shots.
Steve
 
steveespo said:
Went with the McLeod RST 800HP rated twin disc with new SFI billet steel Lightweight flywheel. 7 pounds lighter than stock setup. Also the proper accessories CJ pulse ring and ARP 2000 flywheel bolts. Got a salvage starter off ebay for 44 bucks in case mine has damaged teeth or anything. Go big or go home, will be digging in starting tomorrow, I'll post some shots.
Steve
Lol nice! Well at least you'll have that to keep you company while sleeping in the garage.
 
cloud9 said:
Yea I would have opted for the single disc Exedy if they had one that worked with the MT-82. The alternative would have been to spend another 4k-5k to upgrade the transmission and driveshaft so I just went with the twin disc.

Yea too bad they don't have a single disc for the MT-82. Had months of problems with the twin disc in the Tremec but now with the single it works great on the street and track. Glad yours is working well with the factory trans. Like Rob said almost every team is running the Exedy, even with the problem I had I still stuck with the brand.
 
YellowBoss said:
Yea too bad they don't have a single disc for the MT-82. Had months of problems with the twin disc in the Tremec but now with the single it works great on the street and track. Glad yours is working well with the factory trans. Like Rob said almost every team is running the Exedy, even with the problem I had I still stuck with the brand.
Yea it's a little "touchy" on the street but works great on the track.
 

unrealford

Mustang owner since 84
521
0
I went to a McLeod RXT twin disc clutch rated at 1,000 hp. Pedal effort is easier and I can honestly say shifting is effortless and a joy now. I bought the McLeod Lightened steel flywheel.
The only thing I don't like is, about 2 inches up I can slightly feel clutch engagement and then a full engagement at 75 percent to the top of the pedal throw. This in turns, makes it hard to stage at the light at drag strip.
 

ArizonaBOSS

Because racecar.
Moderator
8,730
2,734
Arizona, USA
steveespo said:
Went with the McLeod RST 800HP rated twin disc with new SFI billet steel Lightweight flywheel. 7 pounds lighter than stock setup. Also the proper accessories CJ pulse ring and ARP 2000 flywheel bolts. Got a salvage starter off ebay for 44 bucks in case mine has damaged teeth or anything. Go big or go home, will be digging in starting tomorrow, I'll post some shots.
Steve

Steve:

If you ever had any problems with misfire CELs on-track, now would also be a great time to replace your crank position sensor and/or install the O-Ring TSB. The CPS is ~$33 from Ford (Tousley). Doesn't get any easier than when the trans is out of the way.
 
blacksheep-1 said:
Every Grand Am GS mustang that I know of runs a single disc clutch, they beat the crap out of those clutches weekend after weekend, including bonzaing it out of the pits..I'm sure there has been, but I'm unaware of, any failures whatsoever, I think ours has been in for about 50 hours and 4 different drivers now.
They're not using a MT82. The only viable option for the MT82 is a twin disc clutch.

Since I've installed the RXT I've had no issues with shifting on track. Thanks for the tip Peter!
 
cloud9 said:
Yea it's a little "touchy" on the street but works great on the track.

Even after I figured out the spacing issue the twin grabbed very high in pedal travel and grabbed quickly. The single catches normally, about midway on the pedal travel and some travel until it catches completely. This is why I turned the car sideways a few times at the track because the twin grabbed so fast with little travel, on-off like a light switch. On the street it was better since I was not shifting so fast and using full throttle, opposite from what you are feeling.

As long as I do not break any more throwout bearing I think I am good with this setup.
 

steveespo

Lord knows I'm a Voodoo Child
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Cookeville TN
ArizonaGT said:
Wow that was a quick change of mind! :)
Was actually my original idea. Since I had the clutch and flywheel bought with the trans and how good they look considered saving money. The advantage of the lighter and stronger setup make sense for performance and durability reasons. Lighter mass means the trans synchros work less to slow and speed up the countershaft speed during shifts, has to mean less wear and better shift feel. Same weight loss means better acceleration similar to an aluminum driveshaft or lighter wheels. The diaphragm spring has slightly less rate than stock which reduces effort and also load against the hydraulic TOB, which is what failed on me to begin with.
Flywheel is billet steel and SFI rated so less likely to explode at high rpm shock loads than the stock modular iron piece.

Downsides are the cost, starting the car off with less mass means more slipping to get going as the inertia is less. More noise due to the 3 friction plates being sandwiched. Possibly different pedal feel and engagement which could require adjusting driving style.

I think it should work out for the better.
Thanks for the input all.
Steve
 

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