I've posted several times concerning the clutch disengagement problems I am having. Many good suggestions have been posted and tried, but none have solved my problem. To recap: last July I had a Quaife LSD, ACT clutch kit, pressure plate and flywheel installed by a supposedly qualified Euro only garage. From the get go, the clutch would operate properly until I had driven 5 to 10 minutes in stop and go traffic. At that point, the clutch stopped fully disengaging. The only way to get back into 1st was to kill the engine, put trans in neutral and then 1st. Restart engine and off I would go until the next needed down shift. Clutch action is like stiff mush. Grabs early but feels funky. Garage claims they did nothing wrong - yea right. No good recommendations from me. I'm at the point that pulling the trans and redoing the work seems like the only viable option. I can't do my own work anymore due to health problems and Way isn't doing much in Indy anymore. Don't trust the dealership and can't afford their hourly rate even if I did trust them. At this point I would trailer Fizzgig to wherever if I thought someone could fix it. HELP!!!!! Not being able to drive Fizzgig for a year is killing me.

Kevin

 

drive it to Way, you dont need to downshift on the highway lol

 

LOL - I've considered doing just that. Only problem is I haven't been able to drive it long enough to determine if anything else they did is f'ed up.

Kevin

 

when using aftermarket parts. Anyway, you can do some searching to find out what others had happen and what the fix was. Call Way and ask him....

Matt

 

I'm guessing you went with an aftermarket, single weight (conventional solid flywheel)....if you do this, I think the clutch must be of the sprung type...check with a shop....
OR maybe you have had the throw-out bearing fail...did you get a clutch pack with a new preassure plate, or did you re-use the old one?
My local MINI guys says MOST of the clutches he replaces, still has useful life on the friction surface, but often has a failed bearing, that sometimes has melted to the guide tube, or otherwise failed.....it is just a cheap hunk of plastic on a MINI....I wish somebody would make a metal one!!!
I second the suggestion to call WAY..I bet he would recommend a good shop to you too if he is too busy to go to Indy...and he might have some good deals on clutches!!

 

Told Way I would like to be on his list when he is in Indy. Hopefully he will have time to work me in or at least look at it. The entire clutch package was replaced - clutch disc, pressure plate, flywheel, bearing etc. What really has me confused is having no problem for 5 to 10 minutes then boom, the disengagement problems start. Let it sit for an hour or 2, and every thing works ok for 5 or 10 minutes. Begining to think an exorcist might be needed.

Kevin

 

That's contradictory.

The first thing to look at is the clutch slave. It may have been OK yesterday, but that doesn't mean it's healthy today. If there is no fluid in the dust boot, perform a slave bleed. Hydraulics are the easy thing to rule out.

There are many reasons why a clutch will not release beyond hydraulic problems, but until you physically inspect, more threads on the subject won't fix it.

 

I feel your pain....I am 99.99% sure i could fix your issues. As mentioned, it is more than likely in the hydrolic system. Start with bleeding the system. The easiest and quickest way is to bleed it the way the manual says, to pressurize the system. Here is a link to the bleeder I use.
http://store.vacmotorsports.com/moti...rce=googlebase

if that improves your disengauging issues, but doesnt completely desolve the issue, then the next step would be to replace the slave cylinder, bleed again and see if it improves. If not, then you could replaced the master cylinder. This one is a bit tougher to do as it is in the cockpit. If you replace both of those and it still doesnt aleviate your issues, you will need to pull your transmission. If you do this, the areas you will need to address are in this order. Once the tranny is out, inspect the play you have in the arm/shaft. There are two plastic bushings that the shaft runs through. This should be replaced each time you replace a clutch. You should also replace the guide tube and update to the new revision throwout bearing (ACT sends the old one). At this, point since its out, remove the pressure plate and inspect the fingers and make sure they are all even when it's bolted down and also when it's unbolted. I had an issue with my ACT pressure plate fingers getting messed up from my poor condition of the mechanics in the bell housing. You can send it to ACT and have them inspect the entire setup for peace of mind if you like (I would advise). They only have a 90 day warrenty, but if you talk to them nicely they may work with you.

Also one thing I found out is that ACT ships M8 bolts with the pressure plate, but their flywheel is tapped for the stock size which is the impossible to find anywhere but the dealer M9 bolts. The M8 bolts will thread in, but have .5mm less grip in the thread the entire way around. The stock bolts are unique and require a torx sock to torque down. Ask the shop as they would remember something like that. That could be a possible issue if a few of the bolts popped out. I had 2 pop out while torquing them down and that is how I found out they ship the wrong size bolts as I verified with ACT.

If you cover these basis, you will have a fixed car, trust me, I went 2 years fighting it and this is what resolved all my issues.