170k miles worth of different clutches

P49Y-CY

fomocomofo
Established Member
Joined
Jun 21, 2003
Messages
11,218
Location
southwest
Recently I got very little life out of one my clutches, so wanted to see how much mileage I got out of each of them over the years. Both cars are daily driven (mostly on drag radials), and I race them at the drag strip regularly. They are basic upper pulley-only cars, ~450/450.

vert - brand/mileage/power & tires/# of drag races

- Stock Ford/45k/stock, stock/54

- Centerforce DFX/18k/stock, dr’s/7

- Ram HD/28k/pulley, dr’s/12

- Ram HD/18k/pulley, dr’s/10

- McLeod RXT/10k/pulley, dr’s/6​

coupe - brand/mileage/power & tires/# of drag races

- Stock Ford/30k/pulley, dr’s/6 (10k of this was stock, no racing)

- McLeod RXT/14k/pulley, dr’s/9

- McLeod RST/8k/pulley, dr’s/3​

My takeaway is you can’t beat the longevity of the stock clutch… as long as you're on the stock power level & tires. (In fact I think that hotcobra03 did not have to change his until 354K iirc!) And since I ate through my most recent RST very fast, I think the organic lining does not like the weight of the cars, but I am not dismissing the possibility of using the stock pivot ball as being a contributing factor. So next I will go back to either the RXT or try out their Kevlar discs. Also, the Ram HD proved to be a good performer, but ever since I went to the twin-disc setups I've been hooked on their incredibly light pedal-feel.

FWIW -
 

roy_1031

roy1031
Established Member
Joined
Apr 20, 2011
Messages
4,796
Location
Rancho Cucamonga, CA
Hey Chris how are you? That’s a lot of clutches you’ve gone through! I have an rxt on my setup and I was pushing 720/630 at wheels. It was strong enough to break a stock axle at Famoso but then I upgraded to G force axles and solved that problem. I started dumping the clutch at 5-6000 at the drag strip and the rxt never slipped. I took it apart the other day and it has signs of heat all over it. It never failed or slipped but I wonder how long until it did start to act up. I only had about 5000 miles or so on this clutch. I might try the centerforce twin disc next, heard a lot of good about those. And it doesn’t need an adjustable pivot ball when installing it either I heard.
0a4099a3faeaf1ab9bdec283a4b977d0.jpg
f9bc9b0fcf047a608f4a8bd41f92b94d.jpg



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
 

cj428mach

Well-Known Member
Established Member
Joined
Sep 21, 2012
Messages
7,609
Location
Kansas
I'm not impressed by the RXT/RST's. There was a post on facebook awhile back about the RXT's failing and several well known tuners, and vendors posted that they quit recommending them because they just don't hold.
 

MG0h3

Well-Known Member
Established Member
Joined
Jul 23, 2014
Messages
13,685
Location
El Paso, TX
I've gotten about 16k out of mine. Stock pivot ball which I think is a mistake.

Its let go twice during roll races when I get into it rapidly in 2nd or 3rd. Both times I got a huge chatter, let off, got back into it and it held. Normally I wouldn't do that but I think it was natural reaction like if I was spinning the tires.

Probably doing the centerforce next time.
 

gacobra

New Member
Established Member
Joined
Jun 2, 2013
Messages
17
Location
Lynchburg, Va
I'm not impressed by the RXT/RST's. There was a post on facebook awhile back about the RXT's failing and several well known tuners, and vendors posted that they quit recommending them because they just don't hold.

Had a RXT installed with a new Billet Aluminum flywheel. Went through the prescribed break in period. Took it to a reputable tuner and clutch flywheel combo would even hold half of what it was rated for. End up having to taking it out. Would never buy another one.


Sent from my iPhone using the svtperformance.com mobile app
 

me32

BEASTLY SHELBY GT500 TVS
Moderator
Premium Member
Joined
Sep 6, 2005
Messages
18,457
Location
CA,NorCal
For those with failing RXT clutches are you running the proper adjustments with your adjustable quadrant? I seen clutches fail fast when not adjusted correctly. Also isnt after market pivot needed?
 

MG0h3

Well-Known Member
Established Member
Joined
Jul 23, 2014
Messages
13,685
Location
El Paso, TX
Yes, you should have an adjustable pivot ball. I can loosen the cable until there is zero tension down at the fork, and its still tight against the PP.
 

roy_1031

roy1031
Established Member
Joined
Apr 20, 2011
Messages
4,796
Location
Rancho Cucamonga, CA
I had mine adjusted properly and the adjustable pivot ball from McLeod. Mine didn’t fail yet but it doesn’t look pretty for only 5000 miles. It’s just a matter of time when it did fail by those heat signs. People praise the rxt and hold it high on a pedestal, I’m not impressed with it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
 

wckdvnm

Well-Known Member
Established Member
Joined
Aug 10, 2015
Messages
1,333
Location
Kingman, AZ
My stock clutch lasted 115k then the throw out bearing took it out but it had tons of life left.
Got a “super cobra” clutch that ford used to sell and it chattered like a MF but held up to abuse. And 17k miles and still looks new.
Spec stage 2 has 700 miles on it and is just as good as the stock clutch. See how well it holds up for me now that I’m going to be running more power.
I don’t drag race however, I autocross.


Sent from my iPhone using svtperformance.com
 

hotcobra03

Well-Known Member
Established Member
Joined
Mar 11, 2007
Messages
7,461
Location
poteet,texas
20150314_173332.jpg


365k,with first 3 yrs of many nights at the San Antonio dragway


side by side..

new is oem ford now..it looks different,,

I had put this in along with aluminum quadrant.heavy duty cable ,no fire wall adjuster..

I'm at 418 now,,haven't had to adjust it yet.

my driving habits mat play a large roll in longitivety,

I don't down shift to slow down like when I was younger,,smoked a lot of clutches..
 

P49Y-CY

fomocomofo
Established Member
Joined
Jun 21, 2003
Messages
11,218
Location
southwest
Hey Chris how are you? That’s a lot of clutches you’ve gone through! I have an rxt on my setup and I was pushing 720/630 at wheels. It was strong enough to break a stock axle at Famoso but then I upgraded to G force axles and solved that problem. I started dumping the clutch at 5-6000 at the drag strip and the rxt never slipped. I took it apart the other day and it has signs of heat all over it. It never failed or slipped but I wonder how long until it did start to act up. I only had about 5000 miles or so on this clutch. I might try the centerforce twin disc next, heard a lot of good about those. And it doesn’t need an adjustable pivot ball when installing it either I heard.
View attachment 1464682View attachment 1464683


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
Doin' good Roel! We got to get all the terminators together for a track day sometime soon!

As far as the McLeod clutches, I like to stick with them because they are local close to me and they do a full rebuild for a lot less than buying a new clutch and/or fw. I just wasn't expecting to do it every year, lol.
 
Last edited:

c6zhombre

E85 NutSwinger
Established Member
Joined
Sep 14, 2008
Messages
5,430
Location
League City, TX
My RXT is still holding just fine. Seven years old now. Honestly, it doesn't feel any different than it did when I bought the car. I've been impressed with it, drivability and the fact it's holding 700 wheel for so long now. Sorry to hear others have had issues.
 

cj428mach

Well-Known Member
Established Member
Joined
Sep 21, 2012
Messages
7,609
Location
Kansas
My RXT is still holding just fine. Seven years old now. Honestly, it doesn't feel any different than it did when I bought the car. I've been impressed with it, drivability and the fact it's holding 700 wheel for so long now. Sorry to hear others have had issues.

What's the mileage on the rxt? Time means nothing.

You also have posted many times that you like to have a tire setup that spins to prevent drivetrain breakage, that helps save the clutch.
 

Users who are viewing this thread



Top