Pressure plate failures?

[Viper X]

Hi Group,

I have already suffered one pressure plate failure (pre-Paxton). And the clutch disc was OK. Symptoms were low, lower and very low clutch pedal / clutch engagement, difficulty shifting at over 3500 rpm and eventually difficulty getting the transmission in gear.

After bleeding the clutch master and slave, then replacing the clutch master and slave with no improvement, the dealer replaced the pressure plate and clutch disc. This returned the clutch pedal and clutch engagement to their proper points.

According to the dealer, the metal "fingers" on the pressure plate failed. These steel "fingers" actually expanded outward towards the throw-out bearing, perhaps due to heat, poor design or lightening of the weight for "more average driver appeal". This happened to me at about 10,500 miles. Now, about 2,000 miles later, after sitting in slow / go traffic for two hours on Friday while headed to Viper Days in the rain, the same problem is back.

I do have a lightweight RPS flywheel. The dealer kept wanting to blame the flywheel, but try as they might, they admitted that the new pressure plate / clutch disc fixed the problem. Any one else with this issue? Any ideas why? Any technical service bulletins? I missed my Sunday track times at Viper Days this weekend due to this problem reappearing.

Any suggestions on pressure plate / clutch combos? Is this a "mileage thing" or a "stop n' go traffic thing?

 

[redsrt03]

When my clutch started slipping at 4k miles, the dealer also wanted to replace the pressure plate, flywheel, in addition to the disk.

There was some wear on the disk and flywheel, but I couldn't see how my driving could screw up the pressure plate.

I went ahead and had them put in an RPS segmented flywheel, and Turbo Max pressue plate.

The Viper tech, installed it and then took it back out as he thought that even with the clutch fully engaged, the throw out bearing was putting too much pressure on the fingers.

After checking dimensions, he went ahead and installed it. I've only put about 1400 miles on it since the new clutch install (winter in Colorado), but the clutch doesn't quite feel right (sometimes I hear what sounds like metal-to-metal squeal when taking off with the clutch fully engaged.)

Guess I will just have to wait and see. Others have reported problems with both bad slave cylinders and air in the hydralics.

I think it just a design/assembly problem with some of the Vipers, but I don't know that.

Good luck (and I hope you can get it fixed under warranty, I had to pay for mine.)


I would take it back

 

[Cris]

Red I thought you stated on another thread that the clutch wasn't bad after all and that it was a clogged catalyst. Which story is correct? Now you say it was slipping, which without evidence of a manufacturers defect is normally an indication of driver error (very common with clutches and why they are not warrantied). Not saying that is true here but that is what a car company is going to assume as they see it all too frequently. Note also that slipping results in heat damage of the pressure plate and the flywheel so I understand the dealers reasoning in replacing both.

Did the new pressure plate come with a new slave cylinder? If not are you sure it is compatible with the OEM throwout bearing interface? Lots of things can go wrong in the installation or with the aftermarket design. All in all I have not heard of significant problems with the OEM clutch without a lot of added power. It has been quite bullet proof (except for the one or two stories about the pressure plate fasteners backing out). If you are under 600 hp I would stay with OEM.

 

[Bill M]

We had the same problem on an 04 srt. It was the slave cylinder, apparently the slave cylinder is a weak point in the clutch system, and looking at it I can understand why. The second one we put in actually leaked right from the factory. We replaced that and installed a RPS clutch and flywheel everything is good now. The car also has a Paxton kit on it putting down around 690hp.

 

[Cris]

Anyone know if the slave cylinder is the same as previous years? In over 10 years I have heard very little about the slave cylinder.

 

[redsrt03]

Red I thought you stated on another thread that the clutch wasn't bad after all and that it was a clogged catalyst. Which story is correct? Now you say it was slipping, which without evidence of a manufacturers defect is normally an indication of driver error (very common with clutches and why they are not warrantied). Not saying that is true here but that is what a car company is going to assume as they see it all too frequently. Note also that slipping results in heat damage of the pressure plate and the flywheel so I understand the dealers reasoning in replacing both.

Did the new pressure plate come with a new slave cylinder? If not are you sure it is compatible with the OEM throwout bearing interface? Lots of things can go wrong in the installation or with the aftermarket design. All in all I have not heard of significant problems with the OEM clutch without a lot of added power. It has been quite bullet proof (except for the one or two stories about the pressure plate fasteners backing out). If you are under 600 hp I would stay with OEM.

Chris,

In the othe post I stated that I believe the OEM clutch components (pressure plate, flywheel, and disk) could be installed and the car would probably run okay.

There was clutch slippage and both the Viper Tech and I thought that was the primary problem with the car. And pulling the clutch did show abnormal wear on the disk, with some hot spots on tHowever once the new clutch was installed, the car still ran like a dog, and that't when the tech eventually discovered the clogged catalytic converter, fouled plugs, etc.

Some of the more technical types on this forum have opined that the OEM clutch (a relatively cheap one, but I forget the name), is only maringally adequate for the Viper and slippage can occur under hard acceleration, even when the clutch is fully engaged.

The bottom line, is I know I haven't slipped the clutch excessively and I don't ride the clutch. I also know that during that time frame, only two other people drove the car and I was in the passenger seat both times. The car had 40miles on it when I bought it, but there was no sign of clutch slippage at that time.

Personally, I think you would have to abuse the hell out of a clutch to ruin both the flywheel and pressure plate within 4k miles.

 

[Cris]

Okay Red I give up. Why don't you post on the Gen I/II forum a question about the clutch and get a "more technical type" opinion.

You are obviously new to Viperdom. Over time the stock clutch has been stated by the long time tuners as the best option for stock and moderate performance Vipers (up to say 600 hp). The clutch has been one of the strong points for the Viper. Now you come on here and tell us based on your extensive experience that it is a crap design and that Dodge ***** because they did not cover the warranty. But if one reads through your comments they could conclude that the clutch was probably not bad and got replaced for nothing. One could also conclude that the dealer is new to Vipers (just a guess) because a good mechanic that knows these cars would never misdiagnose a slipping clutch for a clogged catalyst.

Over time you will learn who are the people in the know and who can provide good advice versus those who have limited Viper knowledge and spew bs. I say that because your quote "Some of the more technical types on this forum have opined that the OEM clutch (a relatively cheap one, but I forget the name), is only maringally adequate for the Viper and slippage can occur under hard acceleration" is so full of bs. It is a Luk clutch by the way. And by what measure do you say it is a relatively cheap one? By price, by performance or by your engineering opinion? My opinion is that the dealer and zone were correct. It should not have been a warrantied expense as there was no defect. In fact it sounds like there was nothing wrong except the diagnosis.

 

[GR8_ASP]

Red, you really had clutch slippage while the engine was running poorly (if I interpret your comments correctly)? Clutch slippage when nothing is wrong (e.e. loose clutch cover screw, etc) is rare.

Note this is different than slipping during a WOT launch while using drag radials. That is a recognized characteristic of the stock clutch but does not result in immediate excessive wear or long term slipping. My guess is that you misinterpreted the poor performance for a slipping clutch and that the clutch was not slipping abnormally at all. Otherwise I cannot get over the clogged catalyst/poor performance and simultaneously slipping clutch.

Note also I have seen failed cluutches with less than 40 miles (all types of cars). Poor driving behavior with a manual can lead to very quick wearout. Especially with 500 hp on tap. But, on the other side of the coin, how many clutches have you or your mechanic inspected with 4000 miles to determine if any of the characteristics you observed were unusual? I suspect none. Signs of heating and hot spots are quite normal. Even limited surface glazing.

Now I may not be the "technical type person you referred to" but I would put my technical background in these matters, and knowledge of the Viper in general, up against most here.

I also wonder, if this was the primary reason for all of your Dodge/DC/American car bashing, and if it was all based on a poor diagnosis and improper repair. That does not appear to warrant your attacks and statements to buy a Toyota as all Dodges ****. Comments like that, that are weakly supported by the facts, do absolutely nothing for the rest of us who enjoy our cars and the reliability they provide. Someone who passes through this site and reads your posts would conclude the Viper is junk and do not bother looking into purchasing one. That does not do a service to any of us.

Just my $0.02

 

[redsrt03]

Chris,

I believe it was Skip Wilson who said in a post that he thought the LUK OEM clutch is not adequate for the SRT-10s.

I've swapped out a couple of clutch disks in my day, so I have a fair understanding of clutchs and clutch disks. (And before you attack me by saying that is a testment to my poor driving, one was a Toyota truck that had 120K miles on it and I went aheard replaced the clutch disk, since I had removed the tranny to put in a rear seal, and the other was part of a complete engine rebuild due to a hydro-locked motor).

As far as my extensive experience, I don't have to eat a pound of dogsh*t to know what it tastes like. Maybe you do.

Viper SRT

The clutch burning smell started almost from day one. The lack of power (which I attributed to a badly slipping clutch at the time), happened fairly rapidly, within a week.

The dealer I took the Viper to, sells Vipers and has had a Viper-certified tech for quite some time.

Whenever you get multiple failures, troubleshooting becomes even more complicated as you try to ascertain which came first and if their is a connection.

So I'm curious, what do all of you dodge-loving, automotive genuis' have to offer Viper X? Or is he too just a victim of a bad tech and lousy dealer?

Final line, if it hasn't happened to you, you don't know [******] about the experience.

 

[Cris]

Not sure about Viper X's issue. I have never heard of that issue (fingers failing by expanding toward the throwout bearing). Maybe it is due to the RPS flywheel. There should be no significant heat on the fingers unless the throwout bearing was not turning. But that should have create an unbearable noise. Possibly the flywheel was flexing rearward during high speed but that seems like quite a stretch (no pun intended). Possibly the RPS flywheel has a different overall thickness. Just random thoughts as I have no idea what the RPS flywheel looks like.

I for one will go with the comp coupes lightened all steel flywheel if I decide to go the lightened route.

 

[Skip White]

One must do a search on clutch issues, and read it thouroghly. There is so much good info on the subject.

Skip White,

ps,Sorry for being gone so long, I see RedSRT has my name down as Skip Wilson. I guess that's what happens when you drop out for so long, but I'm back and have accomplished much in my absense.

 

[Viper X]

Just bled the clutch's hydraulic lines. Noticed some improvement but still not where it should be. Still grinds above 4000 rpm if I try to shift slightly quick. I'll bleed them again tomorrow night and try again. During the bleeding process, I noticed that three of the bottom four bolts that attach the belhousing to the engine were missing, the fourth was finger tight and about to come out as well. I replaced these last night with new.

Hey Cris, thanks for the reply. The RPS flywheel is billet aluminum with a segmented friction surface. I'm told its a spec flywheel in that it matches the stock flywheel in thickness, etc. You can see a pic of it at RPS's website.

My clutch is now also chattering very badly. I do remember that the throwout bearing was a bit noisy, but not unbearable. I'm very frustrated with this recurring problem and ready to throw out the lightweight flywheel start over, though I still don't think it's the problem. Still no solution in sight.

Any additional thoughts would be appreciated.

 

[redsrt03]

Yo Skip,

Sorry for the name mangling. It had been one of those days!

Viper X

Did your original clutch failure happen with the pure stock OEM or with the RPS flywheel? My OEM pressure plate fingers also seemed to show a lot of wear for only 4000 miles.

I take it you are still running with OEM pressue plate and clutch disk. Or did you upgrade those as well?

Well, good luck and let everyone know how it turns out.

 

[Viper X]

Yo Skip, where you been?

Hey Red, my original pressure plate failure was with the RPS flywheel.

Yep, I'm still running the OEM clutch / pressure plate and RPS aluminum flywheel. This set up is about shot again, clutch chatter is bad, pedal is low, grinding between gears unless you shift very slowly. Very frustrating.

I have the funny feeling that the cluprit is heat and the aluminum flywheel is transferring is faster / hotter than a steel flywheel would. Anyone know for sure? I beleive the comp coupes run lighter steel flywheels.

I'm about to go back to the stock flywheel and try an RPS pressure plate and clutch. Unfortunately, I found out that the RPS pressure plate is just a modded stock plate (heavier springs) and their street disk is a stock clutch disc (Luk I think).

There has to be a better answer for higher hp Vipers.

Let me know.

 

[Tom Glenn]

I have a Comp Coupe light flywheel (used) and clutches (used and new) for sale if you are interested.

 

[Skip White]

Viper X sorry to hear about your clutch problems.

I may be able to help you, since I've been through it all.

How much free travel at the top do you have?
How much do you let the pedel out before the car actually starts to creep forward?
How does the pedel feel from the way it originally felt, when all was well with the car?
Does it actually grind when changing gears at 4-K, wow that sounds like syncro's to me. The slightest bit of clutch disengagement would allow a clean shift at that rpm. Your clutch would have to be so bad, to have a grind when shifting, that the car wouldn't even be drivable.
You may very well have trans. problems.

Don't worry about the chatter. It will get much better, but never will it go completly away. You will never have fluid like engagement when releasing the clutch, due to the aggresive style of the clutch. There are some very bad clutch and flywheel combos out there. Call me if you need help locating a good clutch setup for the Viper, but beware, the right clutch for the Viper, will have a few drivability issues. There is a new setup coming out for the Viper, by Exceedy. This setup is said to be the, "Rolls-Royce" of performance clutches.

As for the premature wear on the disc, well this is normal. You really have get off the clutch, with this type disc. Stop dilly-dalling around at the light, it will waste the disc in no time. As soon as the clutch grabs hold, come on out a bit quicker than your used to. No jerking just get going,(this helps reduce chatter as well)

The RPS flywheel is as good as it gets.

To answer the question of where I've been. I've been getting established in TN at the Performance shop I purchased from a relative of mine. I'm going to get started on the Viper projects this coming week.

Skip White

 

[Viper X]

Hey Skip,

Glad you're back. To answer your questions;

1 - Too much free travel at the top, very spongy for about 4 inches and getting worse. Today it's nearer 5.
2 - As of today, the clutch engages about 1 to 1 1/2 inches from the floor. Reving it in gear moves the car with the clutch fully depressed.
3 - Pedal is soft, spongy and I couldn't get it into reverse today. My wife had to push me backward when we got caught in a tight parking lot. (This reallly doesn't maker her day. 85k car should do better with only 12,500 miles on it. Getting the trans into first gear was a challenge so back into the garage it goes until I take it to the dealer on Tuesday. As the car warms up, it is now refusing to be shifted.
4 - Yep, it was difficult to get it into gears today. I don't believe that the clutch is disenaging very much and there may be some "play" in the system. As the engine spins up, I believe that the "play" is allowing the clutch / pp to spin back and creating more problems. Perhpas this issue involves some improper set up (shimming behind the throwout bearing?) as well.
5 - After reading the 04 SRT-10 manual, many other variables exist. Oil on the disc, loose pp bolts, failed pp springs, pp not flat, bad disk, etc.

I took the car to West Coast Vipers Tech Day today and they kindly power bled the hydraulic system for me. They installed synthetic fluid at my request and the problem is getting worse (not their fault) just as it did a month ago. I believe that the stock pp is just not very well engineered when it comes to handling the heat a Viper engine develops. I really drive this car very easily compared to other Viper owners I know.

A new RPS clutch / pp are on the way. I will have John at West Coast Viper install them and we'll get this sorted out.

I am also afraid that the dealer will have an issue when they find out that the car is supercharged. They'll say the car develops more heat, aluminum flywheel, etc.

Skip, the car runs cooler now than it did stock. My sills are cool, my mileage on the highway is about 17 at 85 mph with 3.55's and I had this problem before I added the super charger.

It's hard to believe that no one else has this problem.

Regards,

Dan

 

[Skip White]

Dan, what kind of clutch do you have in the car?

Hydro system failure, or believe it or not,you may simply have air in the system. It can be very dificult to get out.

If you have a Spec brand clutch, that could be the problem. If you have an oem setup, they are normally not known for this, but they do slip, and the disc is no match for the S/C

No more than one inch free travel up top.

Optimal engagement is mid way through the pedal. Most SRT's come this way. As far as power bleeding the system, seems like I heard this is not advisable. I think gravity bleeding is best.

Once you get it right, you will be pleased. I've experimented with many clutches, and the RPS clutch, and six puck ceramic disc, with an alum. seg. flywheel is best so far. Center-Force dual friction is not bad, but very heavy, and limited on high hp applications.

Skip

ps, the more I think about it, the more I'm convinced you have simply have a hydro issue going on, and SRT is known to have problems in the slave unit, and problems getting the air from the system. DC has a procedure for bleeding this system, the dealer must follow it. No old school tricks. I had a copy of this, and it was not a standard procedure. Ford F-150 trucks, can be a nightmare getting the air out of the system.

 

[Viper X]

Hey Skip,

The car has a stock clutch and pp.

I agree on the 1 inch free play at the top and this is what it had when it was right.

The system won't gravity bleed. I have tried. I bled it manually three times and got no real improvement. The power bleed gave the same results that I got with the manual bleed.

What you may not know is that I've been down this road before with this car and the last time we tried all of these things. The "fix", though temporary, was to replace the pp / clutch. This brought the clutch pedal right back to the top. It stayed there for about 500 miles and has worked it's way down for the last two weeks. The dealer said it appeared that the pressure plate fingers had failed. They were actually higher, when placed face down than the fingers on the new unit. I can only conclude that these pp fingers are very weak or poorly heat treated / questionably hardened steel. Maybe I've just been unlucky? But I am certainly frustrated.

Dan

 

[Skip White]

Dan, please take my advice and get the oem setup out of that car. It simply is not right for a S/C car. I wouldn't even worry about getting it fixed for free under warranty. It will not hold up. Those clutches slip when hitting second gear, but not enough for you to notice it. When you get a good clutch in the car, you will then know the clutch was slipping. The oem clutch doe's not have enough clamping force, not to mention the disc material is way to soft, the springs in the hub are also to weak, all in all these things really make a good driving clutch, but will not hold up under load. They really do slip more than you think. All the LS1 guys have proven factory clutches are inferior for high hp applications.

As far as the aluminum fly. transfering the heat faster or more of it, that would have no bearing on this. Alunimun will transfer it faster, but not at a higher temp. If this were so, aluminum heads would be a real problem. There is one factor about aluminum vs steel, and it's that aluminum can have hot spots, where steel distributes heat more evenly. This is the reason alum. cookwear must be thick and/or have a copper disc in it, but the alum. fly. is very thick, so I don't think that's a problem. Never mismatch clutch components. I did this before, and had many problems. The segmented RPS fly. is very good about not distorting. That is one of the reasons it's that way.

I hope your mod sig. has a new performance clutch listed soon.

Skip

 

[Skip White]

Cris, I think you need a lesson in clutches,

I never said the oem clutch is weak, but under hard driving it does slip, and will not hold up, and it is a cheap clutch,(really a good bargain for the money) They sell all day long on ebay for around $175.00 The reason they DO SLIP, is because they are designed for great drivability, and that they do have. Do you think for one minute, at least 90% of all serious street rodders, would pay the huge cost for a performance clutch, and put up with the loss of drivability they do, for nothing. The Viper when modified will destroy the oem clutch, while slipping just enough for you not to notice it. It's the slipping what destroys it. Put a performance clutch in your car, and take notice to the lunge your car has when hitting second gear. It feels great. My front end man turned me on to performance clutches years ago, by telling me these things, and I told him that my oem clutch did not slip under load. He said it was, and when I put a good clutch in the car, I then would know it. Well he was 100% correct. Why would you think any oem single disc, (engages like a Honda Civic clutch, won't slip or fail under load. They will.

By the way, Dan, when you upgrade the clutch, have RPS send you a set of steel inserts for your flywheel. You have started a wear pattern that will not work with a new clutch. This I'm sure of. Chatter will never get better.

Skip

 

[Cris]

Yep, I am pretty stupid about clutches et. al. BTW are you aware that fuel dragsters and funny car clutches slip intentionally for the first half or so of the 1/4 mile and then go into a lock-up mode? Controlled slippage can be good as long as it does not result in excessive wear.

I would also agree that someone that is running 700 hp or more needs a clutch upgrade. There is no way the OEM clutch would be designed for that torque capacity. However, one of the 2 posters above indicating the clutch was not satisfactory did not have a performance increase. In that condition the stock clutch should be more than sufficient from a durability standpoint.

Also, it sounds like the problems that Viper X is having are unrelated to clutch capacity and are more related to the clutch release system. He can replace the clutch, cover and flywheel all day long and if the release system is not corrected his problems will continue. You mentioned that in one of your posts. But then you emphasized the clutch replacement perspective. I think his problems would be solved for the near term just by correcting the release system, as long as no serious damage happened to the transmission. As you indicated it really sounds like air in the system. I would remove the quick connect, bleed the master cylinder extremely well and then reconnect and bleed the slave cylinder. And plan on using a lot of fluid to do it well. I used 2 full quarts to finally get my slave cylinder bled properly.

Now, given that Viper X has had the flywheel replaced I doubt a dealer will cover warranty on the release system, or any part of the clutch system. The release system had to be disconnected and removed to replace the flywheel. And if air got into the system, or if any damage happened, that is the likely point in time for it to occur. Good luck and I hope you have a good relationship with your dealer.

 

[Skip White]

Cris, I hope I didn't offend you in what I said above.

You are right about the drag cars clutch slipping. The high traction tires offer no release and the controled slippage is to keep the engine from bogging down, but this slippage really only occours under extreme load, sort of giving the effect of a stall converter. When the Viper is well under way in second gear, no real bogg is happening. No slippage wanted. We've all noticed this bogg when our car's on a really good road, and the car is actually slower when hooking up really good. If the tires would just break slight amount, I would go faster, or the clutch would slip just a bit, at that right time, and for the desired amount, I would go faster. Problem is the slip in the oem clutch is uncontrollable in time and duration.

But as you said, Viper X probably has hydro issues. I really wish I had that paper on how to properly bleed this system. The factory has to go through this procedure when they build the car, so you can bet they have it down pat.

One slight air pocket, and you'll know it.

again, Cris, sorry if I offended you with my comment.

Skip

 

[Cris]

Nope, not offended. And not sticking up for the stock set-up either. But my experience has been that it has been quite durable. If slippage is occuring it has not seriously impacted the clutch life. It has to be one of the biggest stock clutches at something like 12 1/4 inches. Quite a bit bigger than most street rods can package, thus the need to go to premium clutch systems. Though the Viper could use a reduction in inertia that a multi-disk clutch could provide.

Agree on the clutch release hydraulic system. One thing I did not ask is if there is any sign of leaking fluid around the bell housing area, which could indicate if the slave cylinder, quick connect or any part of the slave side of the circuit is leaking. If it is leaking it could be aspirating as well.

 

[Viper X]

Hi Guys,

No fluid leakage. No apparent clutch slippage under power, and I have plenty of power - but I don't shift his car hard into second or third any more - don't need to. When this car is running right, you can "reel" most anyone in.

We replaced the clutch and slave just 1500 miles ago when the problem first surfaced and it did not help. Only the replacement of the clutch / pp brought the pedal back up.

Also, as stated above, we've bled, bled and re-bled this thing without sustainable improvement.

A new RPS system has been ordered and will be installed in a week or so. I'll have the flywheel re-built as well.

One other interesting thing, when I got under the car to bleed it last week for the first time, I noticed that 3 of 4 lower bellhousing to engine bolts were missing, the third finger tight. Apparently the dealer didn't torque these correctly when they installed the new clutch / pp 1500 miles or so ago and the clutch chattered from the time I picked it up. I kept hoping it would "break in", but it just got worse.

Thanks for all of your input.

I'll let you know what happens.

Dan

 

[Viper X]

Hey Guys,

Guess what parts are on national backorder? Clutch and pressure plate combo. Dealer can't seem to get one. Parts Rack has one. I smell a re-work. Sounds like someone softened the clutch / pressure plate system to try and appeal to more people (read older, weaker, smaller, etc.)

After more extensive discussions (no car to drive - still sitting = too much time on my hands with good weather) with a couple of very knowledgeable Viper people and clutch / pp people, it seems that there may be an issue with the diaphragm / metal fingers heat treat on some pps and some possible over stroking with the new adjustable clutch pedals for us tall folks. I'm still digging into this. I'll let you know.

Dan

 

[Skip White]

Dan, if you really want an oem setup for the car, I can get you one. As far as them being soffties. I believe the last more aggresive clutch ever put in a Viper was the 96 GTS. The new clutches were said to be softer, but this eliminated the slight chatter that the earlier clutches were known for. Cost is around $175.00-$200.00 for the complete kit. They are no worse or better than what the car came with, as a matter of fact, they are said to be the exact unit the car came with. Pedel pressure was never the issue, it was an annoying chatter, the earlier clutches were well known for. If you really want a close to stock, but better setup, let me get in touch with Carolina Clutch. They really know clutches and for a few more bucks, we can get a slightly better than oem clutch, and PP.

It has been years ago that the re-work of the clutch was done. And there was no real down grade to the clutch. LUK is the oem clutch, plain and simple, and as I've said before, not a bad clutch for the price. That sofftie story came out years ago. Every Viper made from about 97 up have this softer version in them. It did eliminate the chatter problem. If someone tells you they have a clutch kit for less than around $350.00 beware, it's a LUK kit, costing them half this price. A disc upgrade would make it around this price, but you would see the difference in the disc. LUK doen's not put any name on there clutch. Believe it or not, the many true performance PP's out there are a LUK PP that has been took apart and modified. No problem there, but they sure ask a pretty penny for them when they do this. Springs, changes in the fulcram point, segmented pads, heat treating, stronger fingers, and more can be done to the inexpensive LUK unit, oh and sometimes a pretty paint job, and stickers for the finishing touch. I wish LUK would get in on this. They could do it from the begining for a few bucks, but they cater to oem apps, and do very well in that market.

Does all this make sense to you guys? I may be a little off, but not much.


Skip

 

[Viper X]

Skip,

You are right. Check your email.

Dan

 

[Viper X]

Hey Skip and Group,

While doing some more searching today, I found out that Viper clutch / pp combo is now on national back order for more than 40 units. I guess I'm not the only one with problems.

I'm going to go to the aftermarket and see what I can find. Reallly tired of the car sitting in the garage due to a part failure that I can't seem to get replaced by the manufacturer.

The new Z-06 is looking better all the time!

 

[Viper X]

Another Update,

It seems that the OE LUK clutches / pressure plates are on the shelf at LUK as I write this. I just ordered one. Why can't my dealer get one? Why am I told they are on "national backorder", unless DC knows there are issues with this part?

Also, it seems that there are some "overseas" parts being used on our Viper pressure plates, and some known (by the clutch industry) issues with rivets and pressure plate fingers. Perhaps DC is going to address this with a recall for 03-05 and revised part for 06. I hope so.

My car is still sitting while I make car payments / insurance payments.

Frustrated.