Another Boss 302 Clutch

[domesticpower]

Long story short, pressure plate broke and bent the slave cylinder and I need a new clutch. A new clutch was never in the works so my budget is really tight. Going through the forums, it seems like the McLeod RST or Exedy Hyper Single are the most popular ones. Don’t want to get people arguing over which is best; I can’t afford either. Is it worth it to get a lower spec clutch from McLeod or Exedy or should I stick with the OEM which already failed and makes me work hard to avoid the shift lock? If I should avoid OEM still, does anyone have any experience with the lower spec clutches and have recommendations? Thanks in advance.

 

[Champale]

Sorry to hear about your clutch! On this and other forums, there has been some talk about some of the lower spec MacLeods not curing the high rpm lockout. Some people say the Spec Stage 2+ cured the issue. I will say this - I initially tried a Spec Stage 1 and it did not cure it at all. Plus, pedal pressure was incredibly high (even tried 2 new slave cylinders). RST cured it 100% and overall it works just fine once you get used to the engagement.

Just FYI, lots of vendors are running sales this week (Team Beefcake, American Muscle, etc) and maybe you can find a bargain.

 

[VoodooBoss]

How many miles did you get out of the oem clutch and are you doing any track days?

 

[Grant 302]

I'd consider another OEM clutch since cost is a concern. Ford often makes (silent) running changes to parts and I've suspected that they did so for the clutches starting in 2013 for MY14 cars. Two reasons I suspect this happened are that the clutch felt different when I drove a friend's 2014 GT/PP and I'm sure Ford didn't want any such problems on the soon to be released MY15 S550 cars that were still using the MT82. Just an educated guess, but very common practice for Ford to upgrade parts quietly. I suspect to avoid the formal recall process and cost to do so.

Best of luck with the fix.

 

[Champale]

I wonder if an OE 2018 GT clutch would work? Those engines rev a lot higher than the older GTs and I haven't heard of high rpm lockout issues yet.

 

[domesticpower]

Sorry to hear about your clutch! On this and other forums, there has been some talk about some of the lower spec MacLeods not curing the high rpm lockout. Some people say the Spec Stage 2+ cured the issue. I will say this - I initially tried a Spec Stage 1 and it did not cure it at all. Plus, pedal pressure was incredibly high (even tried 2 new slave cylinders). RST cured it 100% and overall it works just fine once you get used to the engagement.

Just FYI, lots of vendors are running sales this week (Team Beefcake, American Muscle, etc) and maybe you can find a bargain.

Thanks! I'm considering the McLeod street extreme. Seems to be one step down from the RST. I don't mind if it's only a little better than OEM for lock out, any improvement is better than nothing and the main reason I want to switch is to avoid another premature failure. It's almost $300 less than the RST after exchange rate (Canadian), which is hard to ignore.
Appreciate the tip. I checked a few of the big shops like American Muscle and couldn't find deals on clutches (except for $20, it seems) but completely forgot about Team Beefcake. I might be ordering from them, they're running 15% off McLeod clutches. Next time you order, tell them they owe you a commission lol.

 

[domesticpower]

How many miles did you get out of the oem clutch and are you doing any track days?

I got 20k miles. Yea, I am doing some track days but it's 100% stock power and have been using street tires since day one, never an R comp. Probably even makes less than "stock power" since we only have 91 gas. I'm pretty disappointed to be honest that it doesn't last longer.

 

[domesticpower]

I'd consider another OEM clutch since cost is a concern. Ford often makes (silent) running changes to parts and I've suspected that they did so for the clutches starting in 2013 for MY14 cars. Two reasons I suspect this happened are that the clutch felt different when I drove a friend's 2014 GT/PP and I'm sure Ford didn't want any such problems on the soon to be released MY15 S550 cars that were still using the MT82. Just an educated guess, but very common practice for Ford to upgrade parts quietly. I suspect to avoid the formal recall process and cost to do so.

Best of luck with the fix.

Thanks, I have heard of this before and it is very tempting. My fear is that a friend of mine with a 2013 Boss 302 had the exact same failure, but at under 10k miles, which was covered under warranty.

I wonder if an OE 2018 GT clutch would work? Those engines rev a lot higher than the older GTs and I haven't heard of high rpm lockout issues yet.

Most clutch kits are listed for 11-17 Mustangs, nothing 18 yet. That would definitely be useful. I believe the 2018 GT is 7500 rpm redline, same as the Boss, and makes more power and a lot more torque. I would think it would be a decent upgrade if it fits.

 

[cdnNeal13Boss]

Hey Domesticpower, I'm in Winnipeg. My boss is still newish to me, got it last October and just finished breaking in the Spec stage 2+. FWIW I like it, and shifts great. Also went with MGW race spec shifter, maybe race spec is overkill for shortening the shifts but it's a fantastic shifter. Between those, totally different.