Alos

Hi guys I have a 1986 944 N/A and have to change my clutch. I was thinking of usin a Fidanza flywheel and wanted to know what you guys think about that? What experiences have you had from using this? Is it a good idea? Is it even worth it? Lastly what differences if any should I expect to get from using this?
I appreciate any help that can be given. Thanks!

RayGT3

I've used them in Corvettes , not my Porsche. They are a quality product and somewhat reasonablly priced. If changing a clutch, I would usually change to a lighter flywheel. Engine spools up and down much quicker, makes engine seem more responsive. Some say engine revs are easier to match when down shifting. And the obvious, you save the weight difference between the old and light weight wheel.

ehall

I know of atleast two 951 owners who love theirs. I'm putting one on mine. It's a serious reduction of weight. Keep in mind a light weight pressure plate, in addition, is the way to go. If you're going to do this PITA of a job, replace the clutch etc. Do it all at once.

comatb

I have one in my 89 N/A and it is great, and yes I also used a light weight clutch. Most people think it is at least an S or more. This is in combination with 225/50-15 tires really helps acceleration. No it's not Turbo-like, but a great improvement over stock. Go for it.

Bill

PorschePhD

We have been a dealer for them for a couple of years now. We have had no issues at all. Seems to be a good value for the price.

sayporsha

I recently put a SPEC aluminum flywheel, lightweight pressure plate and Stage 1 clutch in my 86 951. Would I do it again? Maybe the aluminum flywheel & lightweight clutch. Definitely not the SPEC clutch disc, though.

The reduced mass is a good thing. I experience absolutely no driveability problems from that, and the quicker revving and spool-up are great fun. However, as with most things, there is a trade-off. There is significant gearbox rattle, especially when decellerating in 2nd gear. I'm chasing down another annoying noise that sounds just like a heat shield vibrating against something. Now I'm 80% convinced it's the torque tube bearings protesting the increased vibration from the reduced dampening mass. Maybe rebuilding the TT will help. The car is a track car that sees occasional street duty, so it's tolerable. If I drove it every day it might make me nuts. Well, actually, this engine & drivetrain are going into a 968, but that's another story . . .

I DO NOT recomend any SPEC clutch disc. It chatters so bad - especially in reverse - I have to rev the engine like a rookie to get the car rolling without any drama. I have read others' accounts of the same chattering (a.k.a. juddering), especially from the Stage 2 & above. I'm going to try an OE 944 Turbo S clutch disk to see if it improves. Then I think I'll practice my discus toss with a very expensive piece of athletic gear.

Jim @ EuroWerks

We have installed them in most all porsches You deffinately want to ck the reference allen bolt in the flywheel make sure it is at the right hieght and blue loctite . Remember that if you need to adjust it after it is installed adjust it through the inspection hole on top and "DON'T DROP THE ALLEN KEY !!!!!!!!
Jim

Crivens

Surely it would burn up, a Fedora is much better used on your head than as a powertrain component

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www.salenca.com 'websites die, content lives on'

HAMMER502

i installed one in my 86 944 when i rebuilt the engine(also used a spec clutch).no issues after install and the car was much quicker than the other 944's that i had driven up until then.i didn't have the resources for a turbo,but this upgrade made the car an absolute blast to drive both on the street and at the track,gene.

Charlie944

I just bought a Fidanza and was having it balanced with my custom clutch assembly by Markus Blaszak (who has been great to deal with) and the balance shop reported that with the set-screw trigger the flywheel was 2.76 grams at 4.3" radius with point at 263 degrees.
Without the set-screw trigger 1.34 grams at 4.3" radius with point at 11 degrees
... or about 6 lbs effective mass unbalance at 5800 RPM for the 2.76 grams with set-screw in.
WAY too much!!

Just thought I would share, overall it is a great piece and I recommend getting one, just get it balanced with your clutch assembly.

2bridges

Charlie944
Yikes - that sounds like quite an imbalance. Can I assume you attribute that to clutch assembly and not flywheel?
Any experience with factory flywheel asmbly balance. Curious how far out that would be.

sayporsche
I am very surprised to hear that from stage 1 - I wonder if TT bearing issue is contirbuting? Please post if you figure it out. Just did sachs clutch, but decided the next time I was in that deep it would get spec stage 2........ however this is a dual purpose car.. some minor chatter does not bother me much, but that sounds pretty bad

sonny1

Yes, they chatter, but they hold tons of torque & hp (stage 3+), I won't use anything else on high hp Porsches, cheers, Sonny.

Charlie944

2bridges, that imbalance was the just flywheel alone. The pressure plate and ring gear were balanced together as a seperate assembly. I have not done a balance check on the factory flywheel. I am will be putting in a Feramic full-face sprung hub disc in place of my slipping windowed Kevlar unit here this coming week. This is should hold around 450ft/lbs of torque and is still streetable. Bought the Feramic from South Bend Clutch Co.

Dozer

A friend of mine got one shipped over to Norway. When he installed it, it did not fit!!!
I guess he was just unlucky... Seems like everyone else is happy.

loosecannon

I just installed one on my 911SC, along with an aluminum flywheel. The engine gets revs so quickly that all too often I slam into the rev limiter before I have time to shift. I changed the cams at the same time so I don't know how much can be attributed to the flywheel.