New clutch in ... HELP?

[that1mexguy]

ok the new flywheel and clutch are in... based on what i've heard in the past, it's supposed to be stiffer, aint it? It's supposed to be a stage 3, and it's my understanding that it's supposed to be a bit stiffer than stock, but as soon as I jumped in my car, the clutch goes in eaaaaasy, way too soft and unlike the stock clutch, when letting go, it immediately kicks it out. I was afraid of the car taking off too quick and hit someone in front of me... is that normal? Also, during 1st, 2nd and 3rd gear it takes off quiiiiiiiiiick, but on 4th and 5th it slips if i gun it.... which I think would make sense. As i cruised along the highway and I was in 4th gear, i punched it and after 4K RPMs it slipped, i was going over 80mph at the time. Same with 5th gear. Back on the streets, I take off and I was shifting quick and got to 3rd gear and i could feel the wheel spinning out, so yeah i felt the power... i mean, it feels good, but the slipping after 4K rpms kinda worry me. And lastly, about an hr later after driving back home I stopped by to get some gas and when i started my car back up, the engine light came on so, based on the symptoms, do you guys think this is normal and i just have to get used to it? or is this just not a good performance clutch? and do you guys think i blew a sensor or something, or just didnt put the gas cap back on correctly.

[SC V6]

r u sure it was slipping after 4k rpms? did you smell it? What type of stage 3 did you get?

[that1mexguy]

im pretty sure it was slipping and no i didnt smell anything. It's the South Bend clutch.

[Russian Mafia]

From my expirience with new clutch not in the solara but another car, what you described seems to be alright. The stifness in this case is not how hard you have to push it in, but rather how quick it engages the engine and the transmission. Just like you said you car accelerates to quickly... and if you dont give it enough gas it'll stall. It should be harded to go through gears smoothly cuz you have to rev much better, while with old clutch it would just slip more.

Honestly, I have no idea how come it slips in 4th gear. Maybe there is something wrong with you engine since the engine light came on.

I hope i'm correct and this helps

[hskrsolara]

did you break it in for 600+ miles? my stage 2+ is REALLY jumpy, absolutely no slippin at all. the pedal pushed in a tad harder, but barely noticable. slippin at 4k is weird, i punch mine all the time at high rpms, granted i dont have as much hp as you, but it engages fast and has never slipped. hmm, makes me wonder. you have the flywheel also? i know that contributed to the tough startup from a dead stop, gotta wind up the rpms a little more than usual.

try putting it in reverse and just dumping the clutch, not to extreme, but let it out fast. if it slips the slightest bit here, i would be asking some major questions to the south bend guys. this is where i noticed the biggest difference between my two clutches. my new one chatters all the time in reverse, always trying to hook up. that may also be due to the kevlar backing on the pressure plate, but its worth a shot.

[dgdtech1072]

the check eng light would not be on because of the gas cap. the gas cap thing only happens when the car is cold and is just warming up. when the car is cold the ldp (leak detection pump) or nvld (natural vaccum leak detection) system (depends on which sys it has) runs a self test to see if there is any leaks in the evap sys. after the car is warmed up it will not run the test again so unless the light didnt come on untill the next morning i would say the light is not a gas cap issue.

[Ian]

I have a stage 3 clutch, and:

1. You need to break it in before you start gunning it.

2. The pedal pushes in really easy for the first couple of weeks, but eventually it tightens up a little bit. Even after it settles in it is still similar to stock.

3. The clutch is grippy, so the jerking makes sense and it will always be like that because it is transferring all that torque.

4. I don't know about the slipping that you are experiencing, but I would say be normal with the clutch until it is properly broken in.

[Fletch]

My SPEC stage III felt stout and the same from the 1st day I drove on it. That is, it did not have a different feel from brand new to being broke in. It had a much smaller friction window than stock and had a little chatter at times from a dead stop. Also required a tad more engine speed from a dead stop. That is to be expected though, with a puck style clutch especially mated to the lightweight flywheel.

[that1mexguy]

i see, wooops... i didnt wait to break it in. And i have a feeling a blew an O2 sensor, which is no biggie since I think it was bound to happen, I'll know later today for sure. I didnt get a chance to talk to the shop yesterday when I picked up the car because I didnt get a chance to go get it til late but I talked to them this morning and they told me to take it easy for at at least 1000 miles. The car feels good, even with the engine light on so that is why I think it's the O2, and I'm close to 120K miles in it, which i know it's a major service... anyway, I'll keep you guys updated and let you know more about the clutch once I break it in. Thanks for your advice!!!

[SC V6]

o2 sensors just go bad naturally.. id run the code to make sure it isn't something else

[Fratsgotasolara]

yeah o2 sensors can just go bad but its only one of four normal diag problems with a solara shouldn't be anything too major though, another thing i may know the owner of south bend clutch through some other people i am waiting for an answer from my friend as to whether or not it is south bend if it is i can try to get some more info.

[that1mexguy]

yeah o2 sensors can just go bad but its only one of four normal diag problems with a solara shouldn't be anything too major though, another thing i may know the owner of south bend clutch through some other people i am waiting for an answer from my friend as to whether or not it is south bend if it is i can try to get some more info.

funny that you mention that, only 1 other guy here has South Bend but I know of a few others interested in getting this brand, pending my results. If it's all good then I was looking into getting a GB for the rest of the guys here, and I'd like some sponsorship too but again.... gotta see how it turns out. I'm like the guinea pig hehe... For now Im going to take it easy and get the code and then i'll take it from there, just gotta find an AutoZone or Advance Autoparts so they scan it, we'll see.