sat968

A couple of days ago I was doing a spirited launch and ended up causing the clutch to slip rather than launch. I caught it pretty quick and backed off the throttle and the clutch engaged.

Not a surprise, but I had a burning smell after this and I'm still getting a slight smell under normal, more sedate driving. I checked the rotors for heating just in case the smell was coming from the brakes, but nothing unusual there. So it does seem as if some damage has been done to the clutch.

My 968 only has about 28k on the clock. I've only had it for a few months, so who knows how the PO drove the car.

What can I expect from the clutch from here on out? I don't seem to be getting any slip under normal driving, nor am I getting an vibration, etc. Should I start pricing out a clutch job?

BruceWard

I would change it. It is unpleasant and can damage other parts as the clutch disk fails. Change it now before the disk fails and scratches up the flywheel and pressure plate, etc.

It is much easier than a 944 clutch, half the bell housing comes off, the drive shaft slides back and you replace the parts.

Look at this thread for info on my recent clutch change https://rennlist.com/forums/showthre...hreadid=107877

RajDatta

Scott, I would 2nd that. In your case, I would inspect the pressure plate and flywheel and probably everything else will look good. If that is the case, all you need to swap is the clutch disk which is under $200 and you should be good to go.
You have plenty of people like Bruce who have done great writeups and can help you through the process. This will not only help you save $$ but also help you get to know your car better.
Let us know if you need any further help.
Regards.
Raj

sat968

OK, for a complete novice, how difficult will this be? How long should it take to perform the swap? Assuming the flywheel doesn't have to come off, are there any special tools required?

Looking at Bruce's thread, there appears to be a couple of inspection ports. Will I be able to determine the health of the clutch, and the parts required for repair, by looking through these?

The 968 is my daily driver, so if I undertake this, I'll need to have all the parts lined up and get it completed over a weekend.

TIA

BruceWard

I think that sounds like a good idea, get all the parts you know you need, and perhaps a few extra then do it over a weekend. I did it over several evenings breaking it down to a few hours at a time, but I think its at least a long day for anyone learning as they go, like me. Starting Saturday morning seems like a good idea, and if you can get anyone experienced to help that would be good, if not just post any questions on here. The guys here posted me through it and I had never seen a clutch before.

At a minimum I would change the clutch disk, needle bearings (2), pilot bearing, throwout bearing and the pressure plate bolts (9). I would also have a pressure plate and throwout bearing guide tube on hand in case you need them.

My experience in trying to get the flywheel resurfaced was not good so I would not bother taking it off as long as it feels smooth.

My guess it that as long as you do this prefailure your pressure plate and flywheel should be ok. If the pressure plate side of the clutch disk goes it will damage the $350 pressure plate, if the flywheel side goes it will damage the $1200 flywheel. So I think you should do it as quickly as possible.

I have heard rumors from a supplier that 968s shipped with a bad set of Sachs clutch disks and that there may have been a recall. This could explain the early failures.

I highly recommend that you pickup a set of the cheeseheads I mentioned in my clutch thread. The high quality short ones are so much easier to work with.

RajDatta

Bruce has a good point. Have all the parts ready. Call sunset porsche and explain the situation. They will take everything back you don't need. Worst case scenario, you will have to eat their 20% restock which I doubt.
Call Jeff, he is very good and will have everything lined up for you. See if you can locate a copy of factory 968 manual in cd form. If you can't find one, let me know and I will lend you mine.
Read it ahead of time. Of all the 944/968 series cars, these cars are the easiest by far and typical hrs for a shop are rated at 2-2.5 for a clutch job. Being a 1st timer, make it x2 for you.
Go over Bruce's writeup and you should be all set. One other option is to go with a higher clamping pressure plate but it will stiften your clutch pedal considerably. You can get those at Paragon-products.com. It is not needed by any means but if you like to get hard on your car, it might be worth it.
When you are ready, bruce and and few others including me will share our contact info in case you run into a problem.
Good luck and welcome to the world of DIY!
Regards.
Raj

sat968

Thanks guys.

I do have the 968 manuals and I'll go ahead and review what's in there. I also ran across a couple of web pages that may help me understand better what is involved:

This on is explicitly for the 968:
http://www.megadose.net/968/clutch.htm

This one is for the 944/951, but should give some background on the internals:
http://www.connact.com/~kgross/FAQ/944faqcu.html

I was thinking about the higher effort pressure plate, but I'm not sure. It would be nice to find an example here in Raleigh to try out before hand. While I drive the car most of the time, the wife may end up driving it on cccasion. I don't want to make it undriveable for her. Also, if all I need is the clutch disk and a few other items, I go from $200 to over $700 to make the change.

BruceWard

The least expensive option is certainly going to be to only replace the clutch disk assuming everything else is in good condition. I would do the bearings as well, it seems like a waste have to do all the labor over again beacause a bearing fails in the future. Definately buy a good 8mm cheesehead and new bolts for the pressure plate!

I had the same thoughts about upgrading the pressure plate but left it stock because the wife is just learning to drive stick. In fact she drove her first AutoX in the 968 yesterday. If I had decided to upgrade the pressure plate I would have gone with http://www.specclutch.com/ . They offer a package deal that is much cheaper than the website prices that include a lightweight flywheel as well. David (the owner I believe) has a couple of 951s and talking to him it sounded like he would be happy to build any setup we might want.

I also used http://www.megadose.net/968/clutch.htm as a reference.

sat968

Well I'm finally getting around to doing something about the clutch. I've contacted Sunset and one of the parts, Throw-Out Bearing Guide Tube: 944 116 087 01, is about a month out for delivery. Given that my 968 only has about 45K miles on it, how important is it to change out this part?

Also, there's one part I haven't been able to locate in PET: Pilot bearing: 931 102 111 00. I'm guessing I either have the incorrect part number or I'm looking in the wrong place. Could someone check the part number and provide a PET reference for me?

Thanks,

Scott

RajDatta

Scott, I will look it up this evening. You will not need to swap out the pilot bearing unless you swap out the flywheel.
I would get fork bearing, rod if your's has grooves in it, new throwout bearing if old binds.
Sunset sells the complete kit which includes clutch plate, pressure plate and throwout bearing all together. Sometimes when you ask about individual parts, you end up paying a lot more.
Raj

Eric_k

The direct link for that page has changed to: http://www.968turbo.com/clutch.htm It is also posted in the DIY section of 968forums.com.

I have re-used the Guide Tube in the clutch jobs I've done. It most likely has very little wear.

The pilot bearing is a common part. Paragon products can supply them and it can be changed without removing the flywheel.

Eric

Always use

dynatech

Scott,
You can usually tell if the Guide Tube needs to be replaced by the feel of the pedal, if it feels notchy when you depress the clutch pedal you would more than likely need a new one, I would think that you would not need to get one at that mileage, unless you have run tour car without the cover plate attached like i did for a while, I need a new one.

Scott

sat968

Thanks for the suggestions. The kit is the way to go, its at least $100 cheaper than the individual parts, or the kit from Paragon.

Now I need to decide if I do the repair myself or get someone else to do it for me. Anyone have experiences with bringing your own parts to a mechanic? I don't relish the idea of a local mechanic sourcing the parts from the local OPC and resultant prices. Anyone up for a clutch party/BBQ in the Triangle?

RajDatta

Scott, its a very simple job and there is hardly any room for error. Bruce has a very nice writeup on it. If you run into any problems, you have us here to help you out.
I say, do it yourself.
Raj

BruceWard

Scott, I am not a mechanic or anything close. Changing my clutch was the first time I had every seen a clutch and with the help of the guys on this forum it went fine.

I have lots of pictures of my clutch at http://968.2ward.com/index.php?ALBUM=ServiceAndRepair

This is what it will look like once you have the bell housing cover off


Feel free to call me with any questions. I suggest that you get everything apart then if you have found anyone to do so invite them over to watch the reassembly.