posiible bad flywheel?

[Forsythe003]

Well I have started to notice vibrations and kind of like a clanking noise. The noise happens not when im accelerating, but as soon as I left of the throttle it makes the noise and vibrations. The noise/vibration goes away once I depress the clutch or when I pop it out of gear. I also noticed that it makes a little bit of noise when Im sitting still and with the car in neutral and rev it up. I recently replaced both front cv axles, one rear cv axle, and the driveshaft. All cv axles still have no play, torn boots, or anything. I then replaced my snub mount with a polyurethane one, and with no avail nothings changed. I then checked my transmission mounts and motor mounts and all are good. about 10k miles ago the clutch was replaced, but the OEM Dual Mass flywheel was not. All bearings were replaced also along with the clutch. Ive been trying to search but it seems like no one else has the same symptoms as me. The car has 150k on the clock. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

[SJorge3442]

Well I have started to notice vibrations and kind of like a clanking noise. The noise happens not when im accelerating, but as soon as I left of the throttle it makes the noise and vibrations. The noise/vibration goes away once I depress the clutch or when I pop it out of gear. I also noticed that it makes a little bit of noise when Im sitting still and with the car in neutral and rev it up. I recently replaced both front cv axles, one rear cv axle, and the driveshaft. All cv axles still have no play, torn boots, or anything. I then replaced my snub mount with a polyurethane one, and with no avail nothings changed. I then checked my transmission mounts and motor mounts and all are good. about 10k miles ago the clutch was replaced, but the OEM Dual Mass flywheel was not. All bearings were replaced also along with the clutch. Ive been trying to search but it seems like no one else has the same symptoms as me. The car has 150k on the clock. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Im not saying the DMF (dual mass flywheel) IS the problem, but with 140K on it, I would have 100% swapped it with a new one. When my DMF failed, the gear shifter would rock around like crazy, I had a audible noise as if something that was spinning was off balance (the DMF) and I could feel pulses through my clutch pedal from the flywheel rocking back and forth. The worst part is, the only way to check this is to pull the transmission and clutch pack and see what it looks like.

[Forsythe003]

I have no problem dropping the transmission, since I have a lift and proper tools and know how. But the noise I notice is almost like a bad wheel bearing but a lot louder, that's about the only way I can describe it. when I did the clutch the first time I actually wasn't aware that they were a dual mass flywheel. Im used to working on passats, but im also not sure if they are DM flywheels either, I kidna wished I would have done my homework a little better before I swapped the clutch. I just wanna narrow it down before I go dropping the transmission.

[SJorge3442]

I have no problem dropping the transmission, since I have a lift and proper tools and know how. But the noise I notice is almost like a bad wheel bearing but a lot louder, that's about the only way I can describe it. when I did the clutch the first time I actually wasn't aware that they were a dual mass flywheel. Im used to working on passats, but im also not sure if they are DM flywheels either, I kidna wished I would have done my homework a little better before I swapped the clutch. I just wanna narrow it down before I go dropping the transmission.

Heres a video I took showing what the flywheel looks like when it fails. Since yours sounds like a wheel bearing, im not sure if its the flywheel causing your issues.

[Forsythe003]

Thanks for the video! ill try and maybe get a video of the sound to maybe help diagnose my problem!

[sarge1]

Where in Pa are you? I have a dmfw you can have, only 40,000 miles on it. I'm in NEPA, above Scranton.

[Forsythe003]

Im a good couple hours from you then, Im in Central PA, by Pittsburgh

[Kevin C]

FYI, a new LUK dual mass from Rock Auto is $175.

[Forsythe003]

Another question I have is, would it be worth it to just go to a single mass flywheel with a sprung disk? I found a valeo kit, with throw out bearing, pilot bearing, sprung disk, pressure plate, and a single mass flywheel for $380. Would that be a better option then going buying another Dual Mass flywheel?

[diagnosticator]

Another question I have is, would it be worth it to just go to a single mass flywheel with a sprung disk? I found a valeo kit, with throw out bearing, pilot bearing, sprung disk, pressure plate, and a single mass flywheel for $380. Would that be a better option then going buying another Dual Mass flywheel?

The dual mass flywheel specifically absorbs torsional vibrations from the crankshaft, and prevents the vibrations from being transmitted into the trans and driveline. A solid flywheel with a sprung clutch disc won't be able to absorb the vibrations as well as the DMF, so there will be noises from the gears rattling in the trans especially at low load and in neutral gear at idle speed. A single mass flywheel with a sprung clutch disk really offers no advantage over a DMF.

[walky_talky20]

Cost. Simplicity. Reliability. I think those qualify as advantages.

[old guy]

I've been running the Valeo kit for ~60k miles now and I have no complaints. The Valeo single mass flywheel is almost as heavy as the LUK dual mass flywheel and consequently it doesn't exhibit some of the bad manners associated with a lightweight single mass flywheel.

Can you feel the difference? Yep. But is it significant? Nope.

Here's my overall impression shortly after i installed it four years ago. Clicky click® I still feel pretty much the same way today.

[Forsythe003]

Thanks for the replies and info! Im gonna let it ride for now to see if the noise gets any louder so maybe I can diagnose it a little better. And if it does turn out to be my flywheel, I believe I am just going to go with the valeo kit with the single mass flywheel.

[imnuts]

When my DMFW failed, there were always vibrations. No real noises from anywhere, but it would vibrate regardless of engine RPM and road speed. Certain RPMs/engine loads were worse than others, but it never quit vibrating until I swapped it out. Mine didn't rock like the one in the video SJorge posted, but it did rotate like that (10-15° of rotation, should be <5°). On the 1.8T, you'll want to keep close to the original weight of the flywheel, whether it is a dual or single mass, as the engine isn't as well balanced as the 3.0. You're more likely to experience chatter and vibrations as the weight of the flywheel gets lighter.

By any chance, did you align all of your mounts (snub, engine, transmission) to see if that may be causing it? You could also check the wheel bearings to see if your wheel has any play when it is off the ground.

[Forsythe003]

yes I did readjust all motor and transmission mounts, and also while I was replacing cv axles I checked the front wheel bearings all felt good and were not extremely hot. but thanks again everyone for all the imput. I believe im gonna let it ride a little longer till I can for sure say it is the clutch, I also am going to get a used transmission since my third gear syncho is out, (either rev match or skip it) but hopefully all my cards fall out right and I can source a good transmission and be able to swap both at the same time. or maybe go for a 6 speed swap depending on how much money and time I want to spend on it