my dang computer crashed for the second time in a month!!! STUPID wack power supply causing problems...anyhow, i'm going to get my ACT clutch from got rice (Phoeung) also when the time is right...haven't done much searching but i've received a little TOO MANY good recommendations for this guy and since he's supporting all of us, i might as well support him...

NmexMAX, i'm going with a 99 SE tranny...too hard to find i30 plus it will be more expensive....but this 99 i found is real cheap and has 1 year warranty...gotta find vin though but yea it's from junkyard, not sure if it's rebuilt. No way in hell am i doing work myself...paying skeelo to do it for me (600) i have a fSTb and rear sway bar (well it's chilling in my room) and the rest are all audio and looks mods...installed fogs myself, diamond cut bumpers, new double din Kenwood DPX 4020, changed all speakers, indiglo gauges....that type of stuff...i'm trying to see if this guy has the whole 99 SE so i can take all parts needed but haven't contacted him lately and been busy with school and trying to get wheel alignment to put my 18" CHROME RIMS ON....here's a pic of my car from front...real nasty pic due to bad camera but i'll be taking more pics, especially when rims are on...



thanks everyone..oh ONE MORE THING!!!

WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY you almost hti the 500 mile mark so u can soon show everyone what you can do???? when u buy a new clutch u gotta like drive carefully for 500 miles then u can drive any way you want or something???? is this a way to keep clutch lasting or something? or for first 500 miles clutch is real loose then it gets hard after the 500???? I never knew about this.....someone answer this for me please

 

Referring to the clutch break-in period... This allows time for the friction surfaces to 'cure' and also settle in without creating hotspots before the surfaces 'mate' correctly. After that you can drive normally however you want to define that... harder driving still = shorter clutch life as usual.

 

Drive normally? so how are u supposed to be driving before you can drive normally?

 

No hard acceleration, keep the rpms on starts as low as possible with as little slip as possible, no hard shifting, etc. Baby the clucth as much as you can and it will live a much happier and longer life Then after the break in you can drive it as hard as you want (within reason). My clutch has been great at the track with 3500 rpm launches, hard shifts, and occasional back to back runs. If you do go to the track I would recommend letting the clutch cool as much as possible though because heat is a big factor in reducing the life of your clutch. If you do some searching/reading you'll see all of the above mentioned in numerous posts.
-hype

 

ohhhh NOW i understand...dag, i guess no one will be driving except for me....atleast for first 500 miles?! dam thats a long time...but umm...u said clutch heats up? even with city driving? letting car stand idle is only way to stop heat?

 

chunger explained it already; it's like breaking in new brakes. You want to create an even layer of clutch material on the flywheel. This prevents high/low spots down the road (known as thickness variation). You also should heat cycle the pressure plate. If you drive it gentle for the first 500 miles, you'll be fine. If you do burnouts, high rpm launches, chirping in 2nd,3rd gear, you'd probably end up frying your disc and/or pressure plate.

 

Should you also resurface flywheels when you change clutch?

 

It's a good idea to resurface the flywheel so the clutch has a nice smooth surface for breaking in. It will pretty much eliminate the chance of any clutch "chatter". I roasted my clutch a month ago at the drag strip and my car had 99,700 miles on it. I believe that most people that have clutch chatter with an aftermarket clutch probably did not have the flywheel resurfaced.

The transmission shop I took my max to showed me my flywheel and I had scorched it (blue/gold color). They said resurfacing the flywheel would relieve any stress fractures that would have formed and again provide a smooth surface for the break-in. It cost me an additional $75 and like it has been mentioned in this thread, this is no time to be cheap. It would not surprise me with your HP monster that you have scorched the flywheel.

 

I second resurfacing the flywheel. I get very little chatter with my ACT and for me the resurface only cost about $40. A resurface isn't nearly like a lightened flywheel, but it does take some of the weight off as well.
-hype

 

You can measure the runout and see if it needs to be resurfaced.

 

I had planned on resurfacing mine while the clutch is out. It's about $40-$50 here. What about balancing? Do you think it is worth balancing, because you really should balance the crank and everything for it to be balanced or is it a waste of time. As far as measuring runout, I don't have a dial test indicator so I would rather just get it done to be sure. After putting close to 350 ft-lbs of torque to it when it's slipping, it's probably warped.

 

I've only seen one case where the clutch/pp/fw/crank were not balanced and this was in a 600+ hp TT Z. Needless to say, some bottom end damage occurred

For most people, it's not needed but if it makes you feel better, by all means do it