Will I need the special tool described in the owners's manual (J 36221) to disconnect the clutch actuator cylinder hose? or can I disconnect without it? Thanks!

 

I just answered my own question. I used a miniature set of channel locks. They measure about 4" long and very thin. I inserted them around the ouside of the white ring pushing them inward and pulling on the cable - voila!

 

how hard is it???

i might be doing it

 

Yeah Slip glide how about that difficulty level,and can you give a link to the site for the kit?? I dont feel like waiting for mine to get screwed

 

Here's the link:
http://www.ls1speed.com/catagory.cfm?catagory=trans.
I was told to stay away from the aluminum flywheel unless racing - noise and chatter due to the heavy grip and lightweight of the flywheel.

Disconecting the hydraulic line at the trans went pretty smooth, after I figured out what had to be done and not having the recommended tool - I first took the whit plastic ring off; that was dumb.
For those who haven't done it yet: there's a white plastic band about 9/16" in diameter that acts as a realease mechanism. You push in on the white plastic band while pulling with moderate force on the clutch line. That's where that tool comes in. You need something to wrap around at least two opposite sides of the plastic ring (white band) so you can push inward to release the mechanism while pulling on the clutch line.

Removing the Master cylinder was a pain because it had two push on retaining clips that held the U-bolt in place at the fire-wall. Seems like no big deal except for the fact that they were behind the bracket that attaches to the fire-wall. I can only think that my car was assembled wrong. The service manual seemed to indicate that they were on this side of the bracket. Well anyways, I pushed in on the left side of the U-bolt and thought I could push the U-bolt thru without removing the star shaped retaining clips. The right side of the U-bolt wouldn't move - even with persuasion.
I used a healthy jewelers type screwdriver to insert into the inner diameter of the bolt hole and bend the retaining tabs up. I rotated the clip and bent all the tabs. To my amasement the left one had dissappeared, and after the right one was bent, broke, and removed from under the bracket, the U-bolt pushed right through. It was just a matter of pullin the stuff out from the engine compartment side, which required a bit of wrestling.
That part's done! This weekend comes the next.

 

Just some input on the Flywheel

I wholehartedly recommend one. I have the Star-Spec one & love it. There are no problems with idle, chatter, etc.

If someone is having chatter problems, it's more likely an issue with the type of disc & PP being used (or how they drive it).

I've done a complete A4 to M6 swap, if you have any questions just email me.

Gordon
www.provenperformanceconcepts.com

 

so u still have some work left....let us know how it goes...

maybe u can write a guide for it

 

They were using a Cartek Clutch & PP.

 

Skip....

I came in late on this whole thing that you're doing.

What are you doing altogether...a clutch replacement?

Let me know & I'll share my thoughts with ya.


Gordon
www.provenperformanceconcepts.com

 

Gordon....
I'm doing a hydraulics replacement at 50K. Clutch pedal sticks to floor when cold (below freezing so far). You have to pull it up by hand and pump it about 10 times to get it driveable. Since I'm halfway there I'm goint to replace the Clutch & PP and maybe flywheel and pilot bearing. I'm looking for suggestions in the clutch dept for a awesome street machine with Borla exhaust, air box, eibachs (junk!) & gabriels, and Hurst shifter. What do you suggest in the clutch dept? Thanks!

 

Skip, everyone's going to have thier favorites, for one reason or another.

Here's mine:

If your car is 98-00, get the 01-02 master & slave cylinders (they are higher capacity). Just get the ones from GM .. per Star's recomendations (you don't need the McLeod or anything). The GM slave comes with a new Throw-Out Bearing and the master comes with the line & the reservoir.

Drill out the restrictor in the hydraulic line before installing them.

Get a new pilot bearing.

Use a good fluid. The stiffness when cold is common. Mine gets stiff on the first push when it's really cold. However, it sounds like you have a problem with the slave or master .... or.. your fluid is REALLY gucky!

As for the clutch & flywheel.....

I fully recommend an aluminum flywheel if you can afford it. Changes in throttle are more noticable & the engine can spin-up faster... as well as spin-down faster. This helps with quick shifting. Most people don't think about this end of it! I have seen absolutely NO negative side effects of using the lighter wheel. It still starts & purrs super smooth (too smooth !!) at idle, no stalling, etc. I really liked the way it idled & reved with NO flywheel or clutch on it !

As for the clutch... after a lot of research (and having used some pretty heavy duty stuff in my past....), I decided on the Star- Spec parts. I choose the Stage-3 because I expect to see over 400 RWHP ... and .... I road race it. If you will be mostly stock and no road racing (at least no real regular), you'll be fine with the stage-2. That said, I REALLY like the positive engagement characteristics of the Stage-3 (non-sprung hub & no Marcel in the disc). There is no chatter or anything .... if you drive it properly. You can't slip it when starting out. It's either in or out. For THAT reason... if you do a lot of stop & go driving.... I'd NOT recommend the Stage-3.

I went to the Woodward Dreamcruise last year & had just done the A4 to M6 swap..... I decided I couldn't (shouldn't) participate in the official cruise on Saturday... due to the clutch.

Get a urethane trans mount while you're at it. Get a urethane Torque Arm mount too. These will noticably increase the vibration you feel in the chassis, but will also firm up your driveline feel & increase it's torque handling capability.

I really don't feel that you need to replace the actual shifter. I have the stocker & with a short stick added (which also gets rid of the rubber bushing), it shifts great. Remember I'm road racing ... and have had no issues with this 2-3 shift everyone seems to talk about.

So, how much $$ is this Cartek stuff?

Anything else.....?

Good luck,
Gordon
www.provenperformanceconcepts.com

 

Man this guys great,M3 that is sooomme help. Thats exactly the way I figure a performance parts guy should be. Way cool
T.

 

Thanks Gordon!!!! Here's the link to the Cartek setup:
http://www.ls1speed.com/index.cfm

Third gear grinds at heavy accelerations. Is that due to a fault in the transmission? or was it because my hydraulics were going? Are there any upgrades to be done to the transmission while I have it out? Thanks again! It's obvious that you are the man!!!!

 

Umm... Gee... thanks for the kind words, guys..


The Cartek set-up looks pretty nice (although expensive). It has a sprung hub with solid pads. This will give it less vibration transmission & a minor reduction in driveline shock. However, since there is still no marcel ... it won't want to slip much if you try to ease it in..... similar to the Star Stage-3. Just be sure you're OK with this (on either one) .... not a bunch of regular, daily stop & go type driving.

For the cost, you could almost do a Star clutch & an aluminum flywheel.


One thing that's cool is the pre-bleed hydraulics (it is a major pain in the @$$ to do it once installed). However, you could pre bleed a stock set-up also. JUST BE SURE THAT YOU DON'T SEPARATE THE UNITS DURING THE INSTALL. Now, I know that the quick disconnect is supposed to keep air out while disconnecting the hose.... but.... Well, actually since I have not done it this way... I'm not sure if the master can be threaded up from below, between the steering shaft, manifold, and frame rail. If it can't fit, the hose will have to be disconnected. AND, technically, should be fine & not need additional bleeding.

Err...well.... actually, if they are doing the install.... that's their problem, not yours...

A point:
If you were to use the pre-bleed Cartek kit parts..... ask if the restrictior has been drilled out. If it hasn't, then you'll need to pull the line from the master to do the drill-out, which means the thing needs to be bleed again anyway.

If anyone tells you that the restrictor does not need to be drilled out..... say thank you & go elsewhere .... or just know that you do need to do it. The restrictor slows the fluid flow so that the pressure plate has a smoother engagement with the disc, thus cushioning the drivetrain when you side-step the pedal. That's fine, but in racing or ... ummm... doing burnouts.... it lets the clutch slip .... pre-maturely wearing it out!

As for the grind going into 3rd.....
I have heard about this being a somewhat common issue. If it's a synchro (which it likely is), the clutch will not fix it. Now, the clutch may have accelerated the synchro's demise (due to the possibility of the hydraulics being week & not fully releasing the clutch), but..... ... I would think that you would have seen grind issues in other gears also.

I would think that you should either have the synchro (or all of them... just because it's open) replaced ... or .... get another used low mileage trans.

Anyway... good luck & I'm happy to help with input.

Gordon
www.provenperformanceconcepts.com