98 clutch

[mustang50v8]

my G/f is in the market for a new clutch. her stoch one is startng to take a crap. everyone who i of her talk to says it would be a good idea to upgrade to a higher performence one. the only problem is i dont know where to find such a product. i can find a ton of gt and cobra clutch kits but none for the sixer. and websites or brands would be greatly appreciated.

 

[GREENBIOCH]

Get a stage 1 SPEC or Centreforce clutch, I have the Centreforce and it works great, I got mine at the local autoparts store, online I don't really know maybe someone else can help you out there.

 

[JBlaw22]

Yes, the Stage 1 Centerforce is an excellent Clutch for the V6. I just installed mine 2 weeks ago and it is awesome. I too found mine at local autosupply (check you phone book). I bout separate Baur bearings since they are the best bearings you can get. Good Luck!

 

[mustang50v8]

now she is sold on this clutch. but now we need to know if she should buy a new flywheel to go with it or if she should just have her resurfaced. also what makes baur t.o. bearing better than the centerforce one and is it a highly recomended thing? thanks all

 

[GREENBIOCH]

I just got the TOB with the clutch, I know nothing of the different bearings.

As far as the flywheel, if you can, get it resurfaced I would go that route, its like $20 bucks as opposed to $400+ for a new flywheel. There like your rotors when you do breaks, resurface until you can't do it anymore because the material is too thin. Unless you want an aluminum flywheel, which will help you rev the car faster.

 

[75player]

If you go with a SPEC, just make sure the throw out bearing that comes with it is good. Mine was bad out of the box and I didn't realize it until it f-d up the SPEC. Ending up having to replace it a day later with a FMS clutch....

 

[95BLBLVert]

SPEC makes an excellent clutch and they now use Timken bearings which are better than the Federal Mogul bearings Ford uses.
I personally would not machine a flywheel because it results in a loss of material integrity.
Brake rotors are a different animal all together. I wouldn't want my flywheel exploding under me.

 

[GREENBIOCH]

I had mine machined, still working no boom yet. If that heavy ass'd flywheels integrity is comprimised from .01mm of metal shaved off I would be surprised. Seriously though, how does that affect the integrity of it, Cause I just don't see it??

 

[95BLBLVert]

.01 mm? Well, you're right. If the flywheel is in great shape and simply needs a few atoms taken off of the surface, then fine. You have to think in terms of the kind of hell the flywheel goes through during its life cycle. Constant thrust forces, torsional forces, heat/cooling cycles. All of this can and does cause micro-fractures and warping. Then you take off a hundreth or two to save a few bucks. Do you rebalance or leave it be? Do you replace the ring gear or is it okay? It may last 5 years or 5 minutes. I'd rather be on the safe side and put in a new one or maybe even an aluminum one with a replaceable friction surface.

 

[75player]

This is the first time I've ever heard anyone say NOT to resurface a steel flywheel. You're taking so little off the flywheel you're not going to compromise its integrity. Now if we're talking about an aluminum flywheel, I agrre 100% with you. Aluminum flywheels are very prone to the type of stress fractures you're talking about.

 

[95BLBLVert]

I guess I should clarify now that I've been jumped on. I've had my flywheel resurfaced once and that will be it. I don't think it's wise to do on a stock flywheel but this is simply my opinion. I'd rather have the assurance of a new billet steel flywheel. My point was that machining (flywheels, rotors, engine blocks) thins the material. A flywheel will warp as a result of heat cycling and when you resurface it, various areas of the material will be more thin than others. For example, if you took something flexible, say a thick piece of foam and made it "warp" in the middle. Then took a knife and shaved the surface until the warpage was gone and you had a flat surface again. Well there are a few areas now that are thinner than others.

No biggie here. If someone wants to resurface their flywheel 2, 3, 4 times....that's fine with me. Just putting my .02 in like everyone else.

 

[GREENBIOCH]

I get your point, but unless your made of money, it is a cheaper route, although cheaper isn't always the best route as it can cause you to spend more in the long run!

I could see it being a problem with high torque racing vehicles, but our V6's are not monsters that stress the crap out of the flywheel.

 

[75player]

I guess I should clarify now that I've been jumped on. I've had my flywheel resurfaced once and that will be it. I don't think it's wise to do on a stock flywheel but this is simply my opinion. I'd rather have the assurance of a new billet steel flywheel. My point was that machining (flywheels, rotors, engine blocks) thins the material. A flywheel will warp as a result of heat cycling and when you resurface it, various areas of the material will be more thin than others. For example, if you took something flexible, say a thick piece of foam and made it "warp" in the middle. Then took a knife and shaved the surface until the warpage was gone and you had a flat surface again. Well there are a few areas now that are thinner than others.

No biggie here. If someone wants to resurface their flywheel 2, 3, 4 times....that's fine with me. Just putting my .02 in like everyone else.

That's cool man.... I wasn't jumping on ya, just responding to something I'd never heard before..... Beleive me, I would have replaced mine rather than resurfacing if I could have afforded it....

 

[mustang50v8]

alright now she is seriously looking into getting a new flywheel. my question is this. which one is a good choice. she (and i) want to rev up and down faster, closer to that of a grand prix with a 3.8, which i would assume in turn would allow the car to run faster. which ones should we look at and which ones are crap?

 

[GREENBIOCH]

If you want a new one and you want to rev up and down quicker, do the aluminum one where to get the best price on one I'm not to sure??