Boss Transmission/Clutch Issues Poll Discussion Thread

[VoodooBoss]

Re: Boss Transmission Issues Poll Discussion Thread

FWIW, I've been going wild researching this issue.
I stumbled across another thread on an alternate forum (which I will reference below) which highlights the issue a little more. Turns out, a gentleman with a 2012 boss had some clutch problems. He returned it to the dealer and it was repaired under warranty. They key findings were:

1) His car came with a non-Boss specific clutch. Infact, the part number was identical to the GT (PN: CR3Z-7B546-C). The entire plate/assembly is from the 2012 GT.
2) Like others here, the cause of the issues were weak return springs
3) The technician was infact able to order Boss specific parts (!!!) based on the car's VIN. The said owner now has a boss specific clutch assembly in there!

So far, he reports no troubles since the warranty work. I wonder if this issue primarily affects 2012 cars, or if it also affects 2013? My suspicion is that 2012 was equipped with GT clutch parts, and 2013 had revised, Boss specific parts....but I have no basis for this suspicion.

The thread I'm referencing for those interested could be found here: http://www.boss302forum.com/topic/15124-clutch-assembly-replacement-4000-miles/

What's funny is that I swear I read somewhere in one of the earlier magazine articles about the Boss...that the Boss did come with a unique clutch

The Boss does have a unique clutch. It's possible the wrong clutch was installed in that car from the factory but it's not a systemic problem. Mine was removed and reinstalled and it was a Boss clutch. Still having clutch problems though.

 

[Domestic Product]

Re: Boss Transmission Issues Poll Discussion Thread

OK so mine has been at the dealer, for various problems as posted earlier. Ford has decided they want to rebuild not replace the trans to see what is going wrong! I was hoping for a new trans but it is what it is.
I will think positive that Ford wants to try and see what is going on with these instead of just throwing new trans at the cars. At this point you can not put the car into 5th gear at any speed with out major grinding! So I now have a 5 speed. Ford will begin the trans rebuild in a week or so. I will up date as we go. Looking at all new syncros, bearings, slave and whatever else we see. The tech I have is great and he will see that it is like a new trans or better.
I do not think that the clutch system that Ford put in this car is up to the task at hand. So while we are at it I have decided that I will throw some money at the problem. Along with the transmission rebuild from Ford we will add the following.
*McLeod rst twin disk street clutch good for 800hp.
*McLeod Boss specific steel lightened flywheel about 4 lbs. less then stock.
*McLeod high flow clutch line with bleeder.
*Ford stock slave cylinder.
*Ford racing (Barton) shift kit with bracket and shift knob. ( I think the Ford Racing Knob is good for 2hp)
*Red line in the gear box.
So after this most excellent adventure outlined above, if the car still has shifting issue's....... its time to trade it in! I love my Boss but like a hot girl friend that treats you bad, enough is enough. So Ford if you are listening it will not be a Ford that replaces the Boss if this continues and that makes me sad.

 

[VoodooBoss]

Re: Boss Transmission Issues Poll Discussion Thread

OK so mine has been at the dealer, for various problems as posted earlier. Ford has decided they want to rebuild not replace the trans to see what is going wrong! I was hoping for a new trans but it is what it is.
I will think positive that Ford wants to try and see what is going on with these instead of just throwing new trans at the cars. At this point you can not put the car into 5th gear at any speed with out major grinding! So I now have a 5 speed. Ford will begin the trans rebuild in a week or so. I will up date as we go. Looking at all new syncros, bearings, slave and whatever else we see. The tech I have is great and he will see that it is like a new trans or better.
I do not think that the clutch system that Ford put in this car is up to the task at hand. So while we are at it I have decided that I will throw some money at the problem. Along with the transmission rebuild from Ford we will add the following.
*McLeod rst twin disk street clutch good for 800hp.
*McLeod Boss specific steel lightened flywheel about 4 lbs. less then stock.
*McLeod high flow clutch line with bleeder.
*Ford stock slave cylinder.
*Ford racing (Barton) shift kit with bracket and shift knob. ( I think the Ford Racing Knob is good for 2hp)
*Red line in the gear box.
So after this most excellent adventure outlined above, if the car still has shifting issue's....... its time to trade it in! I love my Boss but like a hot girl friend that treats you bad, enough is enough. So Ford if you are listening it will not be a Ford that replaces the Boss if this continues and that makes me sad.

Got any thoughts on the RST vs RXT? I'm about to order one.

https://trackmustangsonline.com/index.php?topic=4851.0

 

[Domestic Product]

Re: Boss Transmission Issues Poll Discussion Thread

NFSBOSS hello, my thoughts on the McLeod Clutches. They are the next level, way above stock. The RST rated at 800hp with the RXT at 1000hp and made in the USA. I wanted to keep mine easy to drive streetable and up to track days. I have a buddy who runs a speed shop here in the greater Seattle area. I run all my thoughts past him before I do anything with the car. I started out wanting the RXT and my buddy is saying I don't need it to just get the RST. I do not have any plans to add much HP to the Boss so I will never see anything close 800hp. He was more interested in the complete package, clutch ,flywheel and clutch line. I called Mcleod and talked with their tech he was helpful and let me know of a authorized dealer in my area. He also let me know that all their stuff is made to order. The fly wheel specific to the Boss is not listed on their products. You have to call in and ask. So if you drive your car much on the street the RXT might be a little much. I was worried it would be to grabby so I went with The RST. I will have the package in the car in about two weeks. I'm thinking its going to be awesome and be as the car should have been from the start. Cant wait to get it and I will post my impressions after driving.

 

[VoodooBoss]

Re: Boss Transmission Issues Poll Discussion Thread

NFSBOSS hello, my thoughts on the McLeod Clutches. They are the next level, way above stock. The RST rated at 800hp with the RXT at 1000hp and made in the USA. I wanted to keep mine easy to drive streetable and up to track days. I have a buddy who runs a speed shop here in the greater Seattle area. I run all my thoughts past him before I do anything with the car. I started out wanting the RXT and my buddy is saying I don't need it to just get the RST. I do not have any plans to add much HP to the Boss so I will never see anything close 800hp. He was more interested in the complete package, clutch ,flywheel and clutch line. I called Mcleod and talked with their tech he was helpful and let me know of a authorized dealer in my area. He also let me know that all their stuff is made to order. The fly wheel specific to the Boss is not listed on their products. You have to call in and ask. So if you drive your car much on the street the RXT might be a little much. I was worried it would be to grabby so I went with The RST. I will have the package in the car in about two weeks. I'm thinking its going to be awesome and be as the car should have been from the start. Cant wait to get it and I will post my impressions after driving.

DP do you have the part numbers for what you ordered? I've talked to McLeod twice and a couple of vendors and nobody has mentioned anything about Boss specific parts. All parts are interchangeable with a 5.0. Here are the parts I'm going with which are the part numbers given to me by McLeod:

McLeod Twin Disc Ceramic Clutch RXT 6932-25

McLeod Steel Flywheel 463458

http://www.lethalperformance.com/mcleod-2011-2012-mustang-5-0l-rxt-twin-disc-clutch-kit-w-steel-flywheel.html

And while I'm in there:

Ford Racing CJ Competition Pulse Ring

http://www.lethalperformance.com/ford-racing-5-0l-ti-vct-high-rpm-competition-pulse-ring.html

 

[Domestic Product]

Re: Boss Transmission Issues Poll Discussion Thread

NFSBOSS, I do not have part numbers. I am going off what I was told by my parts guy at Warehouse West over here in Seattle. They are a authorized McLeod dealer so I just went with it . I'm sure your parts will work just fine. My parts guy most likely exaggerated the boss specific part. If you would like I can call and get the part numbers for McLeod from warehouse west as the summit part numbers will not cross reference will they? we need McLeod #s. I like your list , do you have a high flow clutch line? My gut feeling is the clutch line and good fluid will hide a multitude of sins . To bad the Boss has some.

 

[VoodooBoss]

Re: Boss Transmission Issues Poll Discussion Thread

I have the high flow clutch line but it doesn't do anything. The reason why FR has that part is to protect the line from burning when headers are installed. No other reason. The bleeder valve is probably useless as well since you can't really get to it. I installed DOT 4 fluid weeks after I took delivery of my Boss. The Summit part numbers are the McLeod part numbers. I got the numbers from McLeod and used them to search on the Summit site. Also see:

https://trackmustangsonline.com/index.php?topic=4851.0

 

[unrealford]

Re: Boss Transmission Issues Poll Discussion Thread

I thought I came across a post @SVT or somewhere that mentioned our pressure plate wasent up to participate with the high RPMs the Boss has. It can't release pedal until RPMs drop and sometimes won't release at all.

 

[Justin]

Re: Boss Transmission Issues Poll Discussion Thread

I can tell you from my own experience. it started out that it would not come all the way up. This was when I first bought the car. Then a few thousand miles pass and it randomly will stick to the floor and "pop" back up once the rpm came back down. Then at the end it would just stick to the floor and stay there till I pulled it back up with my foot or hand. it progressively got worse till it got so bad that I couldnt take it past 6k without it sticking to the floor. that was when I decided to order a new clutch.

 

[VoodooBoss]

Re: Boss Transmission Issues Poll Discussion Thread

I can tell you from my own experience. it started out that it would not come all the way up. This was when I first bought the car. Then a few thousand miles pass and it randomly will stick to the floor and "pop" back up once the rpm came back down. Then at the end it would just stick to the floor and stay there till I pulled it back up with my foot or hand. it progressively got worse till it got so bad that I couldn't take it past 6k without it sticking to the floor. that was when I decided to order a new clutch.

This is similar to my experience.

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

Re: Boss Transmission Issues Poll Discussion Thread

I am really looking forward to installing this new clutch soon. I just hope that the stock gears and synchros aren't fragged already in the trans.

 

[cloud9]

Re: Boss Transmission Issues Poll Discussion Thread

I am really looking forward to installing this new clutch soon. I just hope that the stock gears and synchros aren't fragged already in the trans.

I'm looking forward to your review of it as I'm assuming I won't be far behind if the snow ever melts and I can get on track Remind me what one you ordered again Drew?

 

[zzyzx]

Re: Boss Transmission Issues Poll Discussion Thread

It will be interesting to see how the twin-disc installs go.

My current theory on the issue is that:

1) The clutch return spring is weak (relative to the pressure needed to return the pedal to its extended position).

2) The hydraulic system has an issue at high RPM, leading to a diminished capacity for the clutch return spring to "push" the pedal back to the extended position. It's possibly a slave cylinder issue, or an inability for the system to be bled completely/correctly or both. Worst case, air could be entering the system at high RPM due to vibrations which then needs to be bled out. This is consistent what owners are doing: pumping the pedal to get it to start working again. That is certainly not return spring issue - pumping a spring doesn't make it "stronger".

Given the above, I personally would be leery of going the twin-disc route for the simple reason that they use far weaker return springs than a single disc does due to the increased surface area of the discs.

In support of item #2 above I can tell you that the Exedy I just had installed, though it has a far stronger return spring, when I got it it was clear that the system wasn't bled - I could simply rev the engine to 5-6k RPM and with my foot on the clutch feel the drop is pedal pressure. I've religiously "pumped" the pedal far more times (at stoplights, etc) to bleed it and now that sensation is all but gone at those RPMs. Still a little bit of a drop in resistance, but nothing obvious.

Steve

 

[VoodooBoss]

Re: Boss Transmission Issues Poll Discussion Thread

I just posted this in another thread.

I don't know but I received mine today and besides looking like a used part from a sealed FR envelope the part number does not match what's on the envelope. Does anyone know if this is the correct part #? The FR part # is M-12A227-CJ13. The number stamped on the CPR is BR3E-12A227-AC.

 

[VoodooBoss]

Re: Boss Transmission Issues Poll Discussion Thread

It will be interesting to see how the twin-disc installs go.

My current theory on the issue is that:

1) The clutch return spring is weak (relative to the pressure needed to return the pedal to its extended position).

2) The hydraulic system has an issue at high RPM, leading to a diminished capacity for the clutch return spring to "push" the pedal back to the extended position. It's possibly a slave cylinder issue, or an inability for the system to be bled completely/correctly or both. Worst case, air could be entering the system at high RPM due to vibrations which then needs to be bled out. This is consistent what owners are doing: pumping the pedal to get it to start working again. That is certainly not return spring issue - pumping a spring doesn't make it "stronger".

Given the above, I personally would be leery of going the twin-disc route for the simple reason that they use far weaker return springs than a single disc does due to the increased surface area of the discs.

In support of item #2 above I can tell you that the Exedy I just had installed, though it has a far stronger return spring, when I got it it was clear that the system wasn't bled - I could simply rev the engine to 5-6k RPM and with my foot on the clutch feel the drop is pedal pressure. I've religiously "pumped" the pedal far more times (at stoplights, etc) to bleed it and now that sensation is all but gone at those RPMs. Still a little bit of a drop in resistance, but nothing obvious.

Steve

You should watch the video in post #7. I've talked to McLeod a few times and they think the centrifical force at high RPM's is the issue and their clutch has the pressure plate springs much closer to the center line. It could be complete BS too.

https://trackmustangsonline.com/index.php?topic=4851.new#new

 

[zzyzx]

Re: Boss Transmission Issues Poll Discussion Thread

You should watch the video in post #7. I've talked to McLeod a few times and they think the centrifical force at high RPM's is the issue and their clutch has the pressure plate springs much closer to the center line. It could be complete BS too.

I watched the video and I agree with them and I don't think it's BS.

However, the symptom we face is that after you lose pedal pressure, you can "pump up" the clutch system with repeated pumping to bring back the pressure - effectively bleeding the system. And this is at idle or with the engine not running at all. This to me is a clean sign of a hydraulic issue, irrespective of the inherent advantages of the twin-disc setup.

 

[VoodooBoss]

Re: Boss Transmission Issues Poll Discussion Thread

I watched the video and I agree with them and I don't think it's BS.

However, the symptom we face is that after you lose pedal pressure, you can "pump up" the clutch system with repeated pumping to bring back the pressure - effectively bleeding the system. And this is at idle or with the engine not running at all. This to me is a clean sign of a hydraulic issue, irrespective of the inherent advantages of the twin-disc setup.

Mine can't be pumped up when it's stuck to the floor. Only lower revs help. I sure hope the clutch fixes it and it wasn't cheap. I should have my car back by Saturday and have a track day on May 10th so I'll find out soon enough.

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

Re: Boss Transmission Issues Poll Discussion Thread

I'm looking forward to your review of it as I'm assuming I won't be far behind if the snow ever melts and I can get on track Remind me what one you ordered again Drew?

McLeod RXT, same as what Chris had in his car at Chuckwalla, although I ordered the aluminum flywheel. His car had no issues shifting at 8300 rpm on AED's tune. I was sold almost instantly. Mine goes in on May 4th.

Rick: You will like the RXT, but the grab point is a bit higher up than the stock clutch, so that will take some getting used-to. PM Chris for a detailed review.

 

[Justin]

Re: Boss Transmission Issues Poll Discussion Thread

It will be interesting to see how the twin-disc installs go.

My current theory on the issue is that:

1) The clutch return spring is weak (relative to the pressure needed to return the pedal to its extended position).

2) The hydraulic system has an issue at high RPM, leading to a diminished capacity for the clutch return spring to "push" the pedal back to the extended position. It's possibly a slave cylinder issue, or an inability for the system to be bled completely/correctly or both. Worst case, air could be entering the system at high RPM due to vibrations which then needs to be bled out. This is consistent what owners are doing: pumping the pedal to get it to start working again. That is certainly not return spring issue - pumping a spring doesn't make it "stronger".

Given the above, I personally would be leery of going the twin-disc route for the simple reason that they use far weaker return springs than a single disc does due to the increased surface area of the discs.

In support of item #2 above I can tell you that the Exedy I just had installed, though it has a far stronger return spring, when I got it it was clear that the system wasn't bled - I could simply rev the engine to 5-6k RPM and with my foot on the clutch feel the drop is pedal pressure. I've religiously "pumped" the pedal far more times (at stoplights, etc) to bleed it and now that sensation is all but gone at those RPMs. Still a little bit of a drop in resistance, but nothing obvious.

Steve

I can tell you with 100% certainty that a centerforce DYAD twin disc fixed my problem. I am not therorizing I have tried all the other band aid fixes prior to the clutch (even some I knew wouldnt fix the problem). since I have had the centerforce I can spin my car to 8200 without fear. I have over 6k miles on the clutch with out the slightest hint that will stick to the floor again. the stock one started to do it almost the as soon as I bought the car just got progressively worse with mileage.

mine was really bad before the clutch it would stick to the floor every time. no amount of bleeding the clutch or running dot 4 fluid would fix this. I would pump the clutch to get the smoothness back in the pedal. I think this had to do with the diaphragm fingers binding in the stock pressure plate.

 

[zzyzx]

Re: Boss Transmission Issues Poll Discussion Thread

I think this had to do with the diaphragm fingers binding in the stock pressure plate.

You may be on to something there, Justin! Sounds like a plausible theory. That actually makes more sense than my theory on the hydraulics.

I didn't know your clutch was a twin disc, and also from what posted above it looks like others are having luck with the RXT. So that's good news all around.

Steve