Printable View
I have a stock 2000 firebird formula with Ls1 & 6 spd manual transmission my clutch is starting to wear out. I'm pretty hard on my car and I am looking to put a clutch kit in it that will handle my abuse and taking it to the drag strip. not sure what i might do to the car or what power gains i might acheive in the near future but nothing too extreme. any recomendations on what clutch kit to buy?? I honestly have no idea :help:
I would also like to know, subscribed.
i dont know a whole lot about diff. clutches..but have done a little research on the spec clutches and from what i know..the stage 1 is pretty much like the stock clutch, stage 2 can handle a lot more power and isnt too bad for daily driving which is probably what you would want to go with..and the stage 3 kit is for hard core horsepower and abuse..so i would say something like a stage 2 kit...hopefully someone with a little more understanding on the topic can reassure me on this.
I would recommend the LS7 clutch kit from KYSPEED who is a Sponsor on this site. It can handle up to around 450rwhp and feels like the stock OEM clutch. If you don't plan on putting more than that down and doing 5500-6000K RPM clutch dumps, this is the clutch for you.
I have a Spec Stage 3+ which is rated at 850 lb-ft of torque. I hate it. It chatters on take-off almost every time regardless of how I let it out. Many other users of the Spec clutches will tell you the same. I would recommend the LS7 or a Monster clutch before I would consider a Spec.
I have spec stage 2, and no chatter here. I resurfaced the flywheel. I need to try that drill mod.
heard good things about the ram powergrip. Heard a few complaints about slight chatter but its supposed to be a very nice clutch
Spec clutches suck. Plain and simple. LS7 is not much better than a stock LS6. I've had a Mcleod kevlar in mine for about 38,000 miles. Still holds 6,000+ dumps on slicks and leaves rubber on the road in 4th. Never had any chatter. I've also heard good things about RAM clutches too.
Mcleod has had very good reviews as well
Can I get price ranges for these clutches?
Check KYSpeed for prices.Quote:
Originally Posted by innerchi89
http://www.ls1.com/phpadsnew/banners/ls1kyspeed.jpg
Thanks!
the monster 3 seems to be a damn good clutch one of my buddys have it think thats what im going with no chatter an holds good.. another on of my buddy have the spec 3 an it chatters
spec is typically a hit or miss and mine was a miss lmao i had the spec 3+ and it crapped the bed, it does kinda depend on your final goals of the vehicle cuz ive spent too must on clutches that would get me by. Now i wish i would of bought a nice one right away, and i hear good things about Monster and McLoud as well!!!
i just put the ls7 setup in mine,i had the spec 3 and i did not like it at all.love the ls7 setup though.
When my Spec takes a shit..and I know it probably will...I'm getting a Textralia.
thanks for the input guys, i'm gonna check prices and research the clutches you all have suggested
I've had my WS6 since it was new in 1998. I think my stock clutch was made with cardboard paper. It was total toast after 8,000 miles. I poured over all the after-market brands that werel reviewed here on this forum and all of them seemed to have shortcomings. Of all the reviews, the 2000 Vette Clutch with the master cylinder from a truck was the most favorable. I've been using this same clutch and have had absolutely no regrets. I have 57,000 hard torturous miles on the odometer.
To give an idea of what this clutch has been put through, I've had my 6-speed rebuilt once and I trashed 2 sets of 4.10 gears with it before I moved up to A MOSER 9-inch setup with Richmond 4.11 on a Detroit Locker. With my other mods, I turn mid 12's on street tires. My best 60-footer has been 1.95 during which that clutch never uttered a wimper.
I haven't heard of some of these newer clutch setups mentioned here today so I have no reference for comparison. But I'm pretty certain I would stay with my original choice if I needed to change clutches today.
Are you going to put that 9" to use and get some DR's or Slicks and then see how well that clutch holds up at 6K clutch dumps?Quote:
Originally Posted by midnitejam
I've thought lots about DR's. The sticky point for me has always been circumference and overall drive ratio. I am now running 4.11 gears with stock tires (stock circumference) I'm under the asumption that the DRs are taller tires than stock tires. I have a set of 16 x 8 rims with snow tires from when I drove the car in the winter. If I mounted DR's on the 16-inchers I could probably keep the same overall drive ratio. But the 16-inch rims don't match the stock WS6 rims. I've already trashed the transmission once and haven't much faith left in its ability to survive DR's.
my spec is taking a dump ! stage 3 it aint worth shit! the rating on it cant be right ? Imo the customer service there sucks too! clutch probably dont have 20k on it? 550hp on juice and dr it starting to slip bad?
my opinion is a Diamond Clutch from Texas Drivetrain and Performance. I went through a Centerforce in 6 months with a H/C combo, a SPEC 3+ in less than a month with the same H/C combo. Put in a stage 3 Diamond clutch (3 years, 30,000 miles ago) and drove it hard with the H/C combo, then made it a H/C/I combo, broke a stock rear end with slicks on about 2 years ago dumping at 6K at the track, installed a 9" spun a cam bearing a year later, installed bigger cubes last year, and still no problems to date. So mine has withstood 470-650 flywheel HP and still grabs like no other at the track and on the street. And price wise, Jason has made this clutch very affordable. And he is a great guy to do business with.
And also, while you are in there, be extra safe and go ahead and change your slave cylinder. Especially if you have a 2000 or older model.
Quote:
Originally Posted by 1SSWFO
I feel your pain. I have heads, cam, exhaust, and tune and my stage two SPEC is slipping after a little over a year. I going with the LS7 and hope to have better luck
yea my slave cylinder is leaking internally so I have to replace it
so you put a ford 9" rear end in yours? how hard was that to do? did you have to do much fabricating?
Quote:
Originally Posted by innerchi89
I have a heads, cam, exhaust, and tune that makes 364 hp/370 trq (on a stingy dyno) to the wheels. Bought a stage two SPEC that is now slipping after a little over a year. Recently I have read bad things about SPEC, particularly in the customer service department. Contacted Scoggin Dickey who are always helpful and who recommended the cam profile (220/224 114 LSA) for my combo. Was pointed to the LS7 clutch even after I told them of plans to port my LS2 heads, install a more aggressive cam, and a 383 stroker kit that will hopefully make about 100 hp more to the wheels. Haven't heard anything negative about the LS7 so that's where I'm going...
install is not that bad. just remember to get longer wheel studs if you get the 9" as the standard studs only allow the lugnut to grab a few threads. No fabricating required.Quote:
Originally Posted by 00blackfirebirdform
google Texas Drivetrain and Performance in Dallas, Texas and check out the Diamond Clutch. Do NOT buy a Monster clutch, as TDP is the original designer and actually made the Diamond clutch better than the Monster. I would post the website but TDP is not a sponsor and the admins will edit my post. I recommend the Diamond above all others unless you plan to go twin disk.Quote:
Originally Posted by ddmfla
i just bought a level 4 monster clutch and its really nice, at first its pretty grabby but it mellows out a little bit. Its been great so far.
Might take your advice after all... Found a good deal on an 402 LS2 stroker. Probably can't get it 'til next year so might as well get a high quality clutch now.Quote:
Originally Posted by TACE02
ive been hearing alot of good stuff about diamond clutches so i think thats the direction that im gonna go, not bad prices either....
you know a good place to look for a 9"? my rear end was rebuilt like 7k ago and it is already starting to whine again and its slowly getting louder so i might put a 9" in it cuz ive heard those things are nearly indestructableQuote:
Originally Posted by TACE02
dittoQuote:
Originally Posted by 00blackfirebirdform
I think Mark on this site (www.kyspeed.com) who is a sponsor is a Moser distributor now if Moser is what you were looking at. The Wavetrac is supposed to be a nice unit.Quote:
Originally Posted by 00blackfirebirdform
If you have the coin, I'd look at Midwest for a 9". Heard lots of good things about them.
I bought mine from Bob at Exotic Performance Plus. Can't remember what I paid, but it was a little over $3K. Of course I opted for 4 channel ABS, Powder coating, relocation brackets, and aluminum center section. Just remember those studs, don't get stock size-they are too short. O and if you get one, be sure and do a good break in, otherwise it will whine...experience :-(.
I bought mine from Bob at EPP also. Same options as you just about. Brett left to work at another company though and since then, Bob has become only a distributor. Last I checked though, he wasn't even receiving PMs on Tech. Not sure about them as this point. Bob is a great guy, but I would buy from someone else IMO.Quote:
Originally Posted by TACE02
