pretty sure i destroyed my SouthBend stg 4 clutch

[sean1.8t]

UPDATE ON POST #92...5-31-08


sad!

i was practicing launching for this season in a parkin lot. and dropped the clutch at ~5500 rpm's, tires spun, took off like a bat out of hell and went to redline-ish. and pressed in the clutchand took it out of 1st gear and into neutral(like an idiot!). heard nothing from inside, but stopped and tried to reverse, but couldn't. couldn't get into any gear at all.

symptoms:

-wont go, even close, into any gear when car is on.
-when the car is off, it will go into 2,3,4, and 1st barely.
-putting the car in 2nd gear while off, i start the car with clutch in and the car lunges forward softly and dies.
-spaced off looking for any hydro fluid under the car. so im not sure if it was leaking any

car's at my brother's shop and well take a look at it tomorrow. at first i thought i bent the shift linkage, like the main shift fork. but starting the car in gear and having it lunge and die, is not a good sign im affraid..

what do you guys think?

[[email protected]]

Bet your clutch in 3 pieces now like mine was

[a4darkness]

Bummer man. Hope it works out ok. Keep us posted.

[Das General]

why was going into neutral so bad?

[Silence]

Defintely clutch. Proabably an issue with pressure plate. If it goes in gear when off, and lunges when starting, its clutch related.

[audipotential]

Um, so are you saying that I shouldnt be buying this clutch? This was the one I wanted.

[dougyfresh]

Um, so are you saying that I shouldnt be buying this clutch? This was the one I wanted.

For the mods in your sig. This clutch will be fine. Its working fine for me.

[audipotential]

For the mods in your sig. This clutch will be fine. Its working fine for me.

Im thinking long run doug...
Like for when I put down 300 at the wheels.

I thought Ok stage 4 OFE SS would be perfect....guess not???

[AudiBama]

Im thinking long run doug...
Like for when I put down 300 at the wheels.

I thought Ok stage 4 OFE SS would be perfect....guess not???

just dont clutch drop from 5500 and then pop it into neutral

[audipotential]

just dont clutch drop from 5500 and then pop it into neutral

lol!

[dougyfresh]

Im thinking long run doug...
Like for when I put down 300 at the wheels.

I thought Ok stage 4 OFE SS would be perfect....guess not???

If you can wait until the fall I'll let you know how my clutch holds up with 350awhp and counting....

Otherwise just get a Stage 5 FE SS clutch and you should be okay.

[sean1.8t]

Bet your clutch in 3 pieces now like mine was

how'd you blow yours again?

what did you replace it with?

im thinking of going to the stage 5 as a replacement.

[d_maniac]

how is going into Neutural be so bad???

[sean1.8t]

not exactly sure. i feel as if i just let off the gas and pressed the brake, this wouldn't have happend. the car went great all the way though 1st gear, but when i went from heavy throttle to pressing in the clutch, that's when this happend..

just my thoughts from the experience

btw, the neutral part wasn't the idiotic portion of the story i was emphasizing on. it was the clutch engaging portion.

[AudiBama]

wouldnt stage five be so damn chattery and stubborn for daily driving?

[Tgr_Clw]

wouldnt stage five be so damn chattery and stubborn for daily driving?

FE SS is fine for daily driving.

[audipotential]

Now that I remember, your clutch was pretty solid when you launched it that time.

FE SS is fine for daily driving.

[wolfdog]

why was going into neutral so bad?

how is going into neutral be so bad???

Yea, I'd like to know the specifics behind why getting on it (aside from at 5500 rpm) and dropping into neutral would cause an issue. Why would going into neutral versus applying the brakes then neutral make a difference? He mentioned applying the clutch was what he was emphasizing, not dropping into neutral but still, you have to apply the clutch at some point so I'm lost, lol.

I never launch and am interested in the SB stage 3 and 4 replacement so this would be educational for me.

[sean1.8t]

Yea, I'd like to know the specifics behind why getting on it (aside from at 5500 rpm) and dropping into neutral would cause an issue. Why would going into neutral versus applying the brakes then neutral make a difference? He mentioned applying the clutch was what he was emphasizing, not dropping into neutral but still, you have to apply the clutch at some point so I'm lost, lol.

so am i..

but the clutch was engaging and working great in first gear all the way up to redline. at the point of engaging the clutch is when everything went wrong.. but it was probably the launch that did it.. weird as i've launched the car many of times with not so much as a single hiccup. guess it only had one left in her..

anywho, glad it happend close to my house. and not 2 hours away at the track

[Papachristou]

FE SS is fine for daily driving.

i have a weak ass stage 1+ with the stage 5 ( FE SS ) mine is a daily driver as well, i dont have any problems or regrets. It is tough to get used to at first, i looked like some dumb rich kid trying to learn to drive again but i never stalled it... if you do a lot of stop/go i wouldnt get it though, it gets a little tough if you are stuck in traffic, but it rarely bothers me

FE SS!!!!!!!!!

[QuattroRocket]

Winston had one of the apparently defective batch of clutches Southbend was hit with, they replaced it for him with a Stage 5 and has been running strong since ... well except for all the time the car sits waiting for parts :-)

[dougyfresh]

i have a weak ass stage 1+ with the stage 5 ( FE SS ) mine is a daily driver as well, i dont have any problems or regrets. It is tough to get used to at first, i looked like some dumb rich kid trying to learn to drive again but i never stalled it... if you do a lot of stop/go i wouldnt get it though, it gets a little tough if you are stuck in traffic, but it rarely bothers me

Yeah. They definitely take some getting used to. Took me a few days to get used to my OFE SS. Only time it sucks is when I'm stuck in traffic in Manhattan or trolling the side-streets looking for a parking spot.

[wolfdog]

Winston had one of the apparently defective batch of clutches Southbend was hit with, they replaced it for him with a Stage 5 and has been running strong since ... well except for all the time the car sits waiting for parts :-)

Hmm, maybe this could be a defective on that just happened to hang on a bit longer? Didn't the lining used to come apart or something? Perhaps when he launched the lining came off the clutch plate and the pressure plate held enough to disguise the issue until he worked the pedal. Don't know if that would also result in not being able to get it into gear.

[sean1.8t]

yeah, im trying to figure out if my clutch was part of that "bad batch". but im afraid it isn't.

does anyone know the time frames that, that bad batch(s) were sold from?

that would be sweet if this was warrentied. but that's not usually my luck. so we'll see

[Papachristou]

supposedly there was a bad batch of OFE clutch discs, the rivet heads werent big enough or something, i forget. thats part of the reason i went with an FE SS

[AudiA4_20T]

You guys need to chill, I guess its possible but with all the people that have this clutch its a small amount that have had problems... Ive done probably 40+ 5k launches with mine and blew my trans before my clutch

[sean1.8t]

You guys need to chill, I guess its possible but with all the people that have this clutch its a small amount that have had problems... Ive done probably 40+ 5k launches with mine and blew my trans before my clutch

who needs to chill? everyone is fine in here. i love the clutch. and am going to replace it with another southbend, no questions asked. just going to go with the dual feramic disk this time

[AudiA4_20T]

who needs to chill? everyone is fine in here. i love the clutch. and am going to replace it with another southbend, no questions asked. just going to go with the dual feramic disk this time

lol not you, all the people that come on here and go OMGZHUHDUHS! The SB failed! I was going to get one but now im so scared!

they need to chill lol, and then everyone goes, I thought it could handle my K04?!?!? Whats wrong!??! like its been covered SOOOOOO MANY TIMES

[dougyfresh]

lol not you, all the people that come on here and go OMGZHUHDUHS! The SB failed! I was going to get one but now im so scared!

they need to chill lol, and then everyone goes, I thought it could handle my K04?!?!? Whats wrong!??! like its been covered SOOOOOO MANY TIMES

Exactly. haha.



The defective batch has come and gone. If you buy a clutch now you have no problems. Clint and I bought ours back in the fall and ours are perfectly fine.

[pac1085]

my clutchnet did this a few times, always after slipping it too much. i think it fuses together or something. i've always had to force it out of gear while the car is still rolling and rev to like 7500 rpm a few times in neutral and it would "break free"

[sean1.8t]

my clutchnet did this a few times, always after slipping it too much. i think it fuses together or something. i've always had to force it out of gear while the car is still rolling and rev to like 7500 rpm a few times in neutral and it would "break free"

hmm... interesting.

mine definately wasn't slipped (just a little bit until it bit like the mofo it does).
so you're saying it could have fused together?

what were your symptoms? and can you explain again what you did to get it to "break free"

[mike-2ptzero]

so am i..

but the clutch was engaging and working great in first gear all the way up to redline. at the point of engaging the clutch is when everything went wrong.. but it was probably the launch that did it.. weird as i've launched the car many of times with not so much as a single hiccup. guess it only had one left in her..

anywho, glad it happend close to my house. and not 2 hours away at the track

Well even if it was working in 1st gear doesn't mean the clutch was still good. Just means that the power was being transfered to the driveline thru the clutch while you were moving, the problem is that you cant get it to release while the car is running now. I had this problem when my pressure plate broke into 5 pieces. Had to drive the car 2.5 hrs home from the track and shifted gears by turning the engine off and then pop the clutch to get it started again.

hmm... interesting.

mine definately wasn't slipped (just a little bit until it bit like the mofo it does).
so you're saying it could have fused together?

what were your symptoms? and can you explain again what you did to get it to "break free"

If the organic side heats up too much it can glaze to the point that it ends up sticking to the pressure plate once it has cooled down.

[sean1.8t]

Well even if it was working in 1st gear doesn't mean the clutch was still good. Just means that the power was being transfered to the driveline thru the clutch while you were moving, the problem is that you cant get it to release while the car is running now. I had this problem when my pressure plate broke into 5 pieces. Had to drive the car 2.5 hrs home from the track and shifted gears by turning the engine off and then pop the clutch to get it started again.

yeah, haven't taken it apart yet, but my brother says most likely the pressure plate took a dump.

btw, i was going to PM you back, but i'll just do it here.. i'll be ordering a new clutch from you shortly. thanks a lot

[sean1.8t]

If the organic side heats up too much it can glaze to the point that it ends up sticking to the pressure plate once it has cooled down.

are you saying this could be a slight possiblity in my situation?

if so, what's the fix?

[F16HTON]

My OFE SS used to do this all the time and Charlies Avant did it to me too. the pressure plate welds itself to the flywheel.

[sean1.8t]

My OFE SS used to do this all the time and Charlies Avant did it to me too. the pressure plate welds itself to the flywheel.

weld as in, permanantly welded?

is there any other fix? or did you guys just replace the clutch kit?

[F16HTON]

Not permanently...basically the ferrrous side of the clutch disk leaves metal deposits on the flywheel, these can get hot and the two pieces (clutch disk and flywheel) fuse together for a bit.

I would have to pull off to the side of the road and fuck with the car because you could not get it out of gear. Once you turn off the motor, you can then shift the gears to free stuff up.

However I do not think this is very good for the tranny...nearly everyone i know that has a Southbend clutch has had one issue or another, many people have had catostrophic transmission failure.

I am not badmouthing the product, just shit happens.

[sean1.8t]

i agree, shit happens. i dumped the clutch, so the clutch took a dump. it's the way stuff works out sometimes. can't get to worked up about it..

but last night after it happend ,while the car was off, i shifted like 40 times into the gears i could get it into. and still nothing. how long did it take you to break it free?

and the transmission failure you speak of, is it from the time of the clutch welding itself to the FW? or does this happen when you try to force it into gears after said incident?

[A4 TSCHUSS]

Im thinking long run doug...
Like for when I put down 300 at the wheels.

I thought Ok stage 4 OFE SS would be perfect....guess not???

I have had the OFE SS in my car with the GTRS for 28,000 miles now and have tore the shit out of my transmission, I snapped the prop shaft which is the shaft that goes into the engine from the tranny and have done more launches than I could even guess (around 100 trips down the 1/4 mile I can guarantee and many more launches on the street) and my clutches is still working PERFECT and has never even slipped at all.

[sean1.8t]

btw, Greg, what clutch do you run?