Clutch Questions
 

Well It has come to be that I hafto get a new clutch. Unfortunatly after 16k miles of when it was installed. I thought these clutches are supposed to last a decent amount of time? That is..when you know how to drive the car right? Well anyways, I've decided for the price...the King Kobra assembly is gonna be best for me. And I've decided that I'm going to replace the Clutch cable anyways, considering it's never been replaced and it has 110k on it. Well I'm not really sure what I should consider? I'm thinking about getting an adjustable one. You guys have any comments on what you think I should go with and where I could get it from for a decent price? Thanks alot

I use the adjustable linkage from FRPP. You can get it from Summit for $99.95. I like it. I hear good things about Steeda's Quadrant, but the cable stretches easily. (That's what I've read and heard.) Summit also carries the BBK set up for $99.95, and the Summit brand for $89.69. I haven't heard anything on either of these.

ive been using the summit quad and cable since i swaped from AOD to T-5. Working gread so far and 10$ cheaper

Centerforce
 

Yeah, well as of now I've had the Centerforce II clutch in there. For some reason, I don't really know why, but it's out already in 16k miles, under normal driving conditions? Oh well, in my budget..the Centerforce Dual Friction doesn't really fit in right now. Next time though, I will deffinitly go with that.

How many miles did you put on the car before the clutch went? If it's a fair amount, I'd suggest replacing every component between the flywheel and the tranny, including the flywheel. One little problem somewhere in there can cause uneven wear and premature failure.


As for the clutch itself, I just got a FRPP pressure plate, throwout bearing, clutch disc, cable, and fork. Total, after tax, was about $280. On a stock engine, I see no need for anything beefier than the Ford unit. If you don't need the holding power, you're just putting more stress on your tranny and rear-end. Remember, the clutch acts as a damper. If it grabs too abruptly, it absorbs none of the shock when you pop it, and you might end up damaging something.

Shameless plug for my Fotki site. :p

Well, the clutch was replaced by the previous owner at the Dealership. The clutch now has, i'd like to say close to 16K miles on it. And it's still wearing down...getting worse day by day. Well I'm gonna get it replaced at the dealership as well. Suprisingly they have the cheapest replacement cost out of any place I've talked to so far. I'm gonna have the flywheel re-surfaced no matter what, and everything is pretty much going to get replaced. I was thinking anyways, just to let them install the new clutch cable anyways. I'm gonna be getting an adjustable one, i'm just not sure what kind yet. Where exactly do you adjust them at?

Is this all because of the engagement inconsistancies? That's usually caused by the cablt stretching or the quadrant being broken or out of adjustment.

Yeah, see that's my problem. The previous owner, who I went to school with, actually he gratuated 1 year before me. It was his fathers, but he was the one to drive it all the time. And he honestly told me that, he never knew what they replaced, he just knew his dad paid for it then he drove it. So i'm not really sure if it was well broken in or if the cable was replaced. The shop I stopped at before said it was the original cable still in there. Well, tonight you can really notice the clutch going. Other then having to push the clutch in completely now, you can feel it starting to slip while driving, it basically feels like you gotta give it more gas to get to the speeds you want. I would assume that means it's gotta be something to do with the clutch itself.

1Bad89....does Jegs carry the BBK adjustable? or where do I look to buy that? I saw one in Jegs, but i don't think it was the BBK adjustable.

Thanks! Alright, well tomorrow I will commence with ordering everything. I'm stopping down at the dealership today to have them take a quick look at it so they can deffinitly tell me what's going on. Oh yeah, I was wondering, do you guys think I should just buy a new flywheel instead of having it resurfaced? They can resurface it for $85 which is pricey, I got quote of $32 from a local machine shop, but I don't think they'd let me take it somewhere else to get it done. I can pick up a new ford flywheel for my car for $106. Anyone know of anyplace cheaper?

Final Diagnosis
 

Well, I took it to the dealership today, and let some guy drive it. He does own 4 mustangs, 2 of which are Fox bodies. Also he does all his own work on his car. He told me it's not the cable, because the pawl would be self adjusting (it's set right about in the middle right now), and he said you can feel the pressure plate. So it's the whole clutch assembly. Thank god it's finally gonna get replaced next week. Thanks everyone for all the help!

But...sometimes the pawl breaks, and you end up with a cable out of adjustment.

Oh, I agree. If you're going to start replacing parts, do the entire clutch setup at the same time. But it sounds to me like your pawl broke, or your cable suddenly stretched. I don't see how a properly-installed clutch will go bad at only 16K.

Well, actually What I found out I'm going to do is replace the flywheel (98.95), new clutch kit (either the king kobra 199.99, a model down from that 160.99, or I might be able to get a centerforce II kit for 163.99), rear main seal (stupid rubber stuff). I was thinking about a new cable, but now I really don't want to go with an adjustable one, maybe just a HD replacement. No matter how I look at it, I'm gonna be paying $250 for labor which includes removing the tranny, replacing the clutch, pulling the flywheel, and removing the rear main seal, and re-installing everything. I was also wondering If i should replace the pilot bearing? I've been looking all over for one of these, and I'm now thinking it might be a Dealership only part.

Well see...that's just it..it is adjustable, but the cable is already self adjusting so there's not really a need for it. I can get a HD one with a clutch fork for like $70. Hmmm...wait a second....ok...is the throw-out bearing also known as the pilot bearing? Heh, i'm sorta confused now..I was looking at some website for some prices and they had a list of stuff you should change when you install a new clutch.....And one of the things was a Pilot Bearing.. Any ideas?

The pilot and throwout bearings are two different things. the pilot bearing is pressed into the end of the crankshaft and the throwout bearing slides on the input shaft when you push the clutch to disengage the clutch. You WILL need to have both replaced. You SHOULD replace your quadrant and cable with new ones. the stock plastic quadrant and pawl have a nasty habbit of breaking and so does the stock cable. summit sells an aluminum quadrant and an adjustable cable together for under 100$. Replacing these parts will save you a headache in the long run. I dont know why the shop that does your clutch shouldnt get the bearings for you. They are avalible at most auto parts stores.
I wish you lived in Oklahoma i would do it for you for 100$ + parts.

Yeah, I wish I lived down there so you could do it for $100 too :D well in the Clutch Kit i'm going to buy it comes with the throw-out bearing, not the pilot bearing. Thats why I was just wondering about the pilot bearing itself. Well that said and Done I best get going so I can order those parts and get everything replaced asap.

Hey, you should take a trip up to NY and you could do the work up here for me :D umm...I'd give ya an extra $50 for the small drive up :D

Need answer ASAP before I order!! I need to order before 6pm!!
 

Alright...I'm looking in Summit and there's 2 different clutch kits. One's the King kobra and the other is just a HD one. But there is a difference between these two, although it says they both fit my '91. Look between the stars.....

Ford: 4.6L, 5.0L Mustang, 10 1/2 in. disc, **1 1/6 in. input shaft x 10 spline**, heavy duty clutch kit

Ford: 1979-98 4.6L (SOHC and DOHC), 5.0L Mustang, with 10 1/2 in. disc, **1 1/16 in. input shaft x 10 spline**, heavy duty King Cobra clutch kit

Ok..is that just a typo? Or what's the difference between the 1 1/6in and the 1/16 input shaft? Please hurry! I need to order this before 6pm

this is so that they can give you the correct throwout bearing. you need to find out which size you need. talk to the tech guys at summit, or a ford dealership or maybe a performance shop. I think the dealership should know.

Well in those kits from summit, I am assuming that the right throw-out bearing comes with the kit? because there is a throw-out bearing that does come with it. So it should be the right size correct? I mean, the information says that both clutches fit the 87-93 5.0's. So that input shaft thing just determines what throw-out bearing you need, or is there something else to it?

I had the bbk cable and quad and it broke in less then 5k miles and I have the frpp and it has been great no probs at all and my clutch is the ford racing hd and it has 12k of beating and still holds strong as when new.

As far as rapid clutch wear goes, I had the same problem with a king cobra clutch. If you don't adjust your clutch correctly and you have your cable just a bit too tight, it will start to slip at times when you don't really notice it. A clutch doesn't really wear out when it is fully engaged or disengaged. It wears when it's allowed to slip. You really need to get under the car to see if your cable is properly adjusted. When it is, you should have about 1/4" of play in the clutch fork when you move it back and forth. If you don't have that play, your clutch will slip. If you have more than that, you'll probably have shifting problems. Another thing to remember is that as the clutch wears out, you need to loosen the cable to maintain that play.

I have about 50k on my CF dual friction clutch and only needed to adjust it once. It does not slip. :)