Clutch Chatter

[silvercoffin]

Until recently it wasnt clear to me what people mean by chatter. i thought it was a sound. Chatter is actually the car bucking or shuddering when you are trying to slip a clutch that is not cooperating or simply not designed to slip.

Given that definition, I dont understand why people complain about chatter. Of course you are going to have chatter if you buy a clutch rated for 800tq and designed for racing. You will have even more chatter if you are trying to slip the clutch too much when you are driving.

Do I have chatter with my spec 3+... Yes if I try to drive it like the stock clutch. You cant slip the clutch as much. You have to let it out more quickly and then no chatter! I think the people that say they dont have chatter just know how to drive the car right. the people saying it has to do with the install are wrong imop. You either bought the wrong clutch for your application or you aren't driving it right!

Anyone else agree?

If you want a clutch that you can let out nice and slow and slip then go with one rated for less tq or stick with a stock clutch.

 

[turbodawg97]

Until recently it wasnt clear to me what people mean by chatter. i thought it was a sound. Chatter is actually the car bucking or shuddering when you are trying to slip a clutch that is not cooperating or simply not designed to slip.

Given that definition, I dont understand why people complain about chatter. Of course you are going to have chatter if you buy a clutch rated for 800tq and designed for racing. You will have even more chatter if you are trying to slip the clutch too much when you are driving.

Do I have chatter with my spec 3+... Yes if I try to drive it like the stock clutch. You cant slip the clutch as much. You have to let it out more quickly and then no chatter! I think the people that say they dont have chatter just know how to drive the car right. the people saying it has to do with the install are wrong imop. You either bought the wrong clutch for your application or you aren't driving it right!

Anyone else agree?

If you want a clutch that you can let out nice and slow and slip then go with one rated for less tq or stick with a stock clutch.

+1, took me a bit to get used to it.

 

[04torchred]

I agree with you, my Spec 3+ will only chatter if you do two of the following things.
1. Let it out slowly without enough engine rpm. You can no longer let the clutch up slowly with zero to no gas like you could the stocker and have it get moving.

2. Again let it out without enough engine rpm and try to slip it :-D

 

[TT04Cobra]

+2, got used to the DFX. Not bad at all. And then I get in a Mustang with a stock clutch and laugh at how easy it is compared to what I have now.

 

[Cobra*Commander]

I'm trying to figure which clutch I need to go with. My daily driver will hopefully have close to 500hp at the crank when I'm finished. I'm figuring the Spec2 or CF Duel Friction to keep some of the stock feel/slip. I've never driven a car with the Spec3 or CFDFX. Since they're not made to slip wouldn't this mean they're not neccessarily for daily drivers???

 

[IronTerp]

Ironic fact is that most of the higher performance clutch options for our cars actually have a softer peddle feel than stock. I installed one of LDC's clutch freeplay kits on my Spec 3+ and it gave it that stock clutch feel.

 

[silvercoffin]

...

all the ldc kit does is take up that extra pedal movement from keeping the cable loose. To my understanding after installing it , It doesnt have anything to do with how the car will shift. It keeps the pedal from vibrating rom the slack in the cable. If I am wrong about this...will someone explain?

The Spec 3+ can be daily driven but i wouldnt like it so much only because you need to let the clutch out faster so you really need to let the car in front of you pull away a little before you go. It can be daily driven without any chatter but thats what you would need to do.. I have noticed that I can slip it a little more now that I have 170 miles on it, but I like the instant grab. The pedal is definately much easier than the stock clutch. The ldc kit didnt have much effect on the pedal feel either imop... it just got rid of the loosness at that top of the pedal.

you can definetely go with even a spec 2 i think. Check their site for the tq ratings on their clutches. As long as you arent going to be at the track every weekend you will be fine with a clutch rated for less power and you will be happier on the street. The Spec 3+ is rated for 800tq i think.. Thats over kill even for me, but I wanted something that will last and grab hard.

 

[IronTerp]

Yes, to my knowledge, you are correct about the purpose of the LDC clutch freeplay kit.

Silvercoffin, IMO, you need to put some more miles on you Spec 3+ before really giving it a thorough appraisal. There's been tons of folks who have indicated that this setup becomes much more user friendly as it gets completely broken in at the 500+/- mileage point. At only 170 miles, the feel of your setup could change quite a bit as more clutch disc surface is worn away from normal usage.

I've just know way too many folks that hit the track on occasion with 500 RWHP setups that have had issues with the CF, Spec 2 level clutches.

 

[TT04Cobra]

Yes, to my knowledge, you are correct about the purpose of the LDC clutch freeplay kit.

Silvercoffin, IMO, you need to put some more miles on you Spec 3+ before really giving it a thorough appraisal. There's been tons of folks who have indicated that this setup becomes much more user friendly as it gets completely broken in at the 500+/- mileage point. At only 170 miles, the feel of your setup could change quite a bit as more clutch disc surface is worn away from normal usage.

I've just know way too many folks that hit the track on occasion with 500 RWHP setups that have had issues with the CF, Spec 2 level clutches.

+1 IronTerp your right. When I put my DFX in I knew I would have pretty bad chatter and did. To the point where it pissed me off but as miles were put on it it became more and more user friendly. But of course you can't take off slipping the clutch but you'll get used to it Silvercoffin.

 

[TT04Cobra]

And +1 on the softer pedal feel Ironterp, I definitely thought my DFX after getting it in was going to be more stiff and boy was I surprised.

 

[silvercoffin]

...

yeah i know

i called spec and they said not to go easy on it but no burnouts or power shifting during the break in. they said the 450 is just a guide line. i was going to only put 200 miles on it before hitting they trrack but after all that money id rather be safe than sorry.

i love the spec 3+ so far thought i wasnt complaining about it.

 

[P49Y-CY]

And +1 on the softer pedal feel Ironterp, I definitely thought my DFX after getting it in was going to be more stiff and boy was I surprised.

+1

just got my car back yesterday, pedal effort way less than stock. kinda nice. i will break it in for several hundred miles before romping on it

edit: had the car a few days now and yeah i can really feel the chatter at low rpm. drive-thru burger runs are gonna be interesting!!

 

[HISSMAN]

I just finally rolled 1K miles on my DFX, and it is finally not chattering as much. The first 500-750 miles were hell though.

-Jeff

 

[silvercoffin]

....

really chatter for that long? Do you have a firewall adjuster?

Mine seemed bad until I got the clutch pedal to grab lower to the floor. Then it was just easier to drive because it was disengaging while I was still giving it more gas i think.. My chatter was bad for the first 20-30 miles. Only reverse seems tricky now with 250 miles on it.

but anti freeze leaking from somewhere as put a pause on my break in period. Car is going back into the shop this weekend...hopefully something simple but i cant figure out where its coming from.. oil cooler? i think....ihope

 

[HISSMAN]

I have everything. Firewall adjuster, LDC clutch pedal mod, quadrant, etc, etc. The Spec and the DFX are very different clutches though. The DFX is a 6 puck.

 

[S.V.T.]

if you did an a/m quad and adjuster, would that forgo the need to get the LDC clutch free play kit to keep the slack out of the clutch cable?

 

[silvercoffin]

..

no you still have to get the free play kit if you dont want to have your pedal be loose. The free play just puts enough tension on the cable to keep your pedal all the way up so it doesnt vibrate when you are driving. The LDC Kit doesnt effect how the clutch engages/disengages or the trans shifts at all.

Mine was vibrating real bad sometimes because i keep the cable loose so the pedal grabs low. ( with still enough distance between fingers and bearing to be safe)

 

[silvercoffin]

...

although...couldnt you use the other hook in the quadrant to adjust some of the slack? I never messed around with that.

 

[04torchred]

no you still have to get the free play kit if you dont want to have your pedal be loose. The free play just puts enough tension on the cable to keep your pedal all the way up so it doesnt vibrate when you are driving. The LDC Kit doesnt effect how the clutch engages/disengages or the trans shifts at all.

Mine was vibrating real bad sometimes because i keep the cable loose so the pedal grabs low. ( with still enough distance between fingers and bearing to be safe)

The idea behind the LDC kit is more to make sure your TOB is kept off the pressure plate fingers all the time and that it isn't riding on them. Keeping the pedal tight is a by product.

 

[silvercoffin]

...

Never heard that. my clutch was adjusted fine when I finally looked underneath before installing the LDC. I guess when you keep the cable that loose that can happen?

I bought it for the pedal feel and vibration that happens when you keep the cable loose so it engages close to the floor