Mister Willie

Hi everyone,

What kind of clutches are you guys using in your manual transmissions?

I was looking at the Marlin Crawler website and the ceramic ones seemed like a good idea, but I wanted to see what you guys were running, and what you'd recommend for a stock 90 4runner with a 3.0

dcg9381

Don't "over clutch" your ride... Makes it a PITA to drive.

Elton

mmm nothing like a really stiff clutch in stop and go traffic

91TPU

you really dont need a ceramic clutch if your just running a stock motor. just find a replacement, or a nice one step up from replacement. a hd clutch setup will be a waste of money and a real pain to drive.

i put an street/strip ACT clutch with a lightweight fidanza flywheel in my 2001 acura integra, it was great, but it wasnt overkill, it was just one up from a stocker, and didnt cost much more, engagement was great, stock feel, and a much more defined pedal feel.

imo, if you really want it get it, but you dont need it, so dont waste your money.

SwampThing

Have a Centerforce Stage 2 in my 89 4Runnner. Was a little stiff at first, but after a month or so it seemed to easy up just a tad. That extra "grab" with a one up from stock clutch feels real nice like when stopped on steep hills, and made crawlin a lot easier. Have had that clutch for over 2 years, and still good so far. But I definitely agree, don't "over-clutch" if it's your daily driver also.

dcg9381

I've done ceramic clutches and lightened flywheels in non-Toyotas.. I've never been happy w/ them on the street.

Ever try ceramic pads? They stop for crap until you get them hot. In stop and go traffic, a clutch that slip and then suddenly grabs gets old real quick.... Necessary with big power, but not with a stock motor.
Lightened flywheel makes it worse.

I've used the centerforce-I in mildly modified 22R's -- works great, good manners, no drivability issues.

91TPU

the lightened flywheel isnt making it worse, its just the ceramic faced clutch plate heating up. i dropped over 25lbs, when i swapped out my fly for a 9lb fidanza on my integra, the only obvious change was it accelerated faster and rpms rose and fell slightly faster. there was no effect on the engagement of the clutch.

dcg9381

No impact on engagement of the clutch, true.. Less rotational mass + a very grabby cluch can make stalling in traffic worse.

91TPU

agreed, but i feel that its more the clutch you choose then the flywheel you choose that effects the driveability of the vehicle. also so long as your motor can handle the clutch, and your not overclutching, you should never have an issue where the clutch actaully causes normal driving to be signficantly difficult. and anyone that is thinking about a hd clutch setup and a lightened flywheel should have a good reason for it. and they should also be a good driver. cuz yes things do change slightly.

i drove my teg for about 50k with the new clutch and fly, and i swear if i were to buy another sport compact with a stock clutch, the first thing i would do would be to swap in another ACT kit with a fidanza fly. i never had any issues with stalling, everyone who drove it loved it, and there was no noise engagement as many said there would be with an aluminum fly and a clutch plate with a higher concentration of copper(?) i cant rememeber all this stuff anymore.

dcg9381

I've done two flywheels:
1970 Z-car, 2.8L, modified NA engine. Normal clutch with organic disc.
That car wasn't bad to drive, it would stall pretty easily if you didn't provide it just the right amount of throttle.. It'd also rev to 6k just lightly touching the throttle.

1995 GM F-body, 425hp. This car got a lightened flywheel and a ceramic clutch good for 400hp. It was awful to drive afterwards. The flywheel wasn't that bad, as the motor put out a lot of torque, but the clutch would slip...slip... slip.. get got and immediately grab. It was pretty much undrivable on the street by most people.


I see lightened flywheels going into 22R/22RE setups every now and then.. I just ask "why" - I'd definitely go to a heavier flywheel for in my 4runner - just to smooth out low RPM crawls and make the truck feel like it has more torque at low RPM.

86SR522REEFI

I have the marlin crawler ceramic clutch and i love it.

tc

A little more detail? Grabby? More tolerant of having to slip it off road?

Mister Willie

So this ceramic clutch doesn't grab until it gets hot? What about wear, does it potentially last longer than a stock clutch?

Does the extra lbs of pressure that the HD clutches have make them grab quicker when releasing the clutch?

thanks for all of the info.

91TPU

ceramic clutches rely on heat to have them grab, just as ceramic brakes do. the hotter the plate gets the harder it grabs, were not talking about serious slippage here, but there is a discernable difference.

as for the extra pressure that the pp puts down, yes it will make a difference, i noticed smooth, more precise engagment with my kit on my acura. it wasnt so much harsher, but if i wanted to just drop it and go, i could with no slippage whatsoever.

anything else you need to know i would be more then welcome to share my advice and my opinions

86SR522REEFI

Its a little heavier, it grabs real well, havent wheeled with it yet. but it helps light the tires up real well.

Just Learning

I have a centerforce dual friction and a 40 lb fly wheel ----ltss greeaat

AUYota

Went to Auto Zone and got the 120 dollar one... works for me. fancy smantcy clutches are good if you are into the aisain compact scene but not so much for us

86SR522REEFI

my autozone clutch lasted 6 months, ill never buy another clutch from them. I would buy a new stock one or a marlin, thats it.

Mister Willie

I'll bet that autozone stuff is made in china anyhow. What other clutch options do I have besides the marlin stuff? I want somehting a little stiffer than stock, but not like a superman clutch.

dcg9381

http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/ lists quite a variety of different clutches.