cliffyk

Something is wrong and I doubt it's the combination of clutch and flywheel--if this was a concern why wasn't it mentioned BEFORE he installed the clutch.

I would ask that he pull the flywheel and make sure it's seated properly, check the dowels to make sure not are bent/distorted, and verify that the pressure plate is flat--and make sure it is all clean, Clean, CLEAN--it sounds to me like some sort of contamination on the disc...

StriderTacticaL

Thanks, I was hoping you would reply.

Well as far as the first part...I guess what I meant to say is he told me basically he doesn't think he installed it wrong and so he thinks it is just a grabby clutch. I'm guessing he just didn't mention it because a grabby combo isn't predictable just by looking at the parts list...which obviously is only realized once everything is put in and tested.

So how can I tell if the flywheel is seated properly? The weird thing is I remember back when he installed the flywheel, I remember seeing him using a rubber/plastic mallet or whatever and gently hammering the flywheel around the outside of the middle part where bolts are for some reason.

Also how would I be able to check if the pressure plate is totally flat?

As far as the cleaningless...I did remember him looking pretty surprised when I told him the flywheel had packing oils on it...as if it wasn't a standard thing just like brand new brake rotors. I did see him spray it down with brakecleaner but he didn't seem to wipe it...and I remember being so concerned myself that I actually wiped it down myself right before he put it in.

I can't remember if he cleaned the pressure plate....wiped it down with a clean rag right beore he installed it.

Is a contaminated disc/pressure plate/flywheel reversable?

I guess i'm asking all this because I wanna try and inspect things myself because I can sort of see a "conflict of interest" when he says he will inspect everything once the trans is pulled to see if everything is ok.

cliffyk

This is why I do this stuff myself, certainly not because I like dragging my 62-year old butt around under cars...

If badly contaminated the disc will have obvious darkened patches on it, or if it's a pressure plate/flywheel planar misalignment the disc will have a wavy kind of wear pattern. It was silly of him to feel that protective coatings were not present--of course they were--machined surfaces such as flywheels and pressure plates would rust is a day if not protected.

One other issue is "torque wrench"--if he is not using one then he's doing it improperly. I don't give a rat's hind-side how many years he's been turning wrenches, not torquing the fasteners properly is just plain wrong and stupid; feel free to tell him I said so.

The air wrench should ONLY be used as a convenience to spin the fasteners "home", after that they need to be snugged, staged, and torqued in a cross pattern.

The pressure plate assembly needs to be brought down into contact with the flywheel in 3 or 4 stages; each being a cross-pattern tightening of the bolts by no more than 3 or 4 turns until the flange makes full contact with the flywheel--then you stage and torque the bolts per the spec. The more "clamping force" the clutch offers the more important this is.

Visit the pits at the Gainesville National or Race Week at Daytona and I guaranty you will see more torque wrenches in a day that most people see in a lifetime; and this is certainly NOT because the mechanics lack experience. It is actually the opposite, it's because they HAVE experience and know they WILL get fired and probably never work again, if a lost round get tracked back to something they screwed up.

As to the flywheel pull it and make sure they is no crap on the seating surfaces, also inspect the locating boss on the crank. There should be no ridges or upsets indicating that the f/w may have been canted or "cocked" on the crank. Any uneven patterns of "stuff" or wear on the f/w or PP means something was contaminated/mis-aligned.

Use a bright light and a magnifier if needed. You are attempting to diagnose a problem that should not have happened in the first place; everything is suspect and needs to be thoroughly examined. 0.0005" of upset at the crank boss (a small bit of crud or binding) could be 0.010" or more run out at the outside of the wheel.

Inspect the pilot bearing, from what you described it was a bit of an ordeal getting it out. make sure it is flush with the bore and not damaged.

Place a 12" machinist's rule across the pressure plate, and shine a bright light behind it. Do this a several angular positions about the plate, there should be NO visible light between the rule and the PP surface--same test and results for the flywheel.

If I think of anything else I'll add another post...

StriderTacticaL

Thank you Cliffyk for that very informative post. Seems like you pretty much covered everything.

So it looks like a lengthy and thorough inspection of everything is in order. I'm most concerned about the locating boss on the crank since he left scrape marks on it after he used an air chisel to remove the old pilot bearing. It seems like he probably hit it from the outside of the old pilot bearing since he did manage to get it out halfway before claiming it got stuck. I even saw him use a small file to file down parts of the crank boss in order to seat the flywheel. I also have no idea what the rubber/plastic mallet hammering was all about.

Either way, my TOB will need to be changed which bascially calls for the labor of another clutch job. I'm gonna try to get this done ASAP and i'll keep you posted with the findings.


Thanks,
Brandon