Does my clutch look right with 7K miles?

[Bubbleguinea]

guys, im in the middle of a small rebuild...(installing some new toys) and ive got a new clutch..so i took the old one off and found this:

it is the larger of the two clutches....im just concerned about the two "rings" and that dark spot...

the flywheel looks a little rough too...thats surface rust, but yet again, the "ring"

see what im talking about? normal clutch wear after hard driving of 7k miles? i noticed when the car was full up of stuff the clutch would slip a little when i push her to the limit..thats why im gettin the certerforce 2...

[LanceM]

that baby has gotten hot, real hot, and I would say falls into the "not normal" for 7K miles IMO. You might want to think about having the flywheel checked and resurfaced for the new clutch.

[Chino 240Z]

Hot spots developing there, do you notice chatter as you release your clutch peddle? Need to get it resurfaced and cleaned up.

Someone is holding the car from rolling at a stop light using the clutch, or there's a new manual shift driver in the family using the car or someone is getting those tires to smoke a little too often? Hmmm, we all have been there done that at one time or another. :tapemouth Gotta get that clutch fully engaged before your on the gas so hard, it's slipping and building up heat. Hot enough to burn the disc, blue the plate and flywheel... look into a performance set up with little higher spring pressure and disc material?

[Zrush]

I'd think you'd have that "I smell clutch" and know you're doing something wrong before that much damage could happen. Yikes.

[28oz]

ouch dude....

time for a lightweight flywheel!

[Bubbleguinea]

trust me guys, i know how to drive a manual and thats not it...ive only seriously slipped the clutch once pretty badly in reverse, but thats all...

could this be improper clutch adjustment? my gears also grind when shifting...im thinking the clutch isnt fully dis-engaging....

[LanceM]

could this be improper clutch adjustment? my gears also grind when shifting...im thinking the clutch isnt fully dis-engaging....

That would do it, but surely you have smelled it haven't you?? It had to be smoking!

[Bubbleguinea]

nope, never smelled a thing at all...ever...

thats whats so wierd.

[sblake01]

Either that clutch has been abused or it was weak to begin with. Especially with both the flywheel and the pressure plate showing hot spots. Did you adjust the free play when you installed it?

[my_mad_z]

I feel your pain; I went through 3 or so clutches in 1 year when I first had my 260Z on the road..... It turns out that the previous owner had replaced the gearbox and had negletected to change the bearing carrier.

What was happening was that the bearing carrier was too long and in turn there was constant pressure applied to the pressure plate and it was causing the clutch to slip constantly. At first I thought I had purchased faulty clutches, but after some investigation, I found out that there are 3 or so different length bearing carriers.

I replaced the carrier with a shorter one..... problem solved! You need to make sure there is a little bit of play in the fork to ensure that you have the correct carrier.

The funny thing is that there was no smell of clutch slipping unless I really put my foot into it! The problem had me baffled and I asked a number of mechanics who also had no idea as to why my clutches were failing prematurely.

The reason I didn't assume the bearing carrier was the problem is because I was assuming it was the original gearbox. You may want to look into this to see if you are having the same problem!

Check the pressure plate fingures for irregular wear or distortion, this is a dead giveaway that the bearing is constantly holding pressure on the fingers.

Marc.

[Bubbleguinea]

yup..adjusted the pedal...

im wondering about the throwout bearing collar...i knew there were 3 differnt ones, but i think ive got the right one for the 2+2 clutch...

im still a little worried...ive got a new centerforce II lined up ready to go, but i want to figure out the problem first befrore i install it.

[Nigel1943]

yup..adjusted the pedal...

im wondering about the throwout bearing collar...i knew there were 3 differnt ones, but i think ive got the right one for the 2+2 clutch...

im still a little worried...ive got a new centerforce II lined up ready to go, but i want to figure out the problem first befrore i install it.

I suspected all along that your bearing throwout collar was wrong. They relate to the gearbox you are using [ 4 speed or 5 speed ]. There are actually 4 different collars.