lv6l

i just installed a stage 3 clutch and when i finish i notice the clutch pedal is even softer than stock. i had a stage 3 before in an gsr and the pedal was stiff as hell. what could be wrong? could over tighening the preassure plate bolts cause this?

DB1_559

im having the same problem too but i think it my axel it not in good enough but i would like to know

lv6l

oh really? how can the axle cause the soft pedal?

youngwon22

if the pressure plate is fine, then try adjusting your clutch pedal

lv6l

my clutch pedal is fully out, either way(close or far freeplay) it will be soft. how many/long should i bleed it after installing new clutch?
and how can i determind that my pressure plate is fine? i use a impact gun to tighten the pressure plate bolts, like i ask before..can over tighten it cause soft pedal?

skunktuned

First thought in my head about a soft/spongy pedal is air in the line. Try this, take a clear plastic piece of tubing that'll fit over the bleeder screw, attach it to the screw and crack it open. Then fill (about 1/2 full) a clean, clear bottle with brake fluid and stick the other end of the tube into the bottle and pump the clutch pedal. It's best to do this with two people cuz one person can pump while the other refills the resevior and checks for air coming outta the line. If you see air then there's your problem.

BUT...

Why would you tighten the pressure plate bolts with an impact. BIG NO NO. Unless it's stated in the installation instructions that the torque should be like 150 lbft or more you shouldn't have used an impact. Oddly enough I just did my clutch today, and even though it wasn't a stage 3 clutch the torque spec for the pressure plate bolts was 19 lbft. No joke! Find the recommend torque spec and readjust with a torque wrench.

Luserkid

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by lv6l &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> i use a impact gun to tighten the pressure plate bolts, like i ask before..can over tighten it cause soft pedal?</TD></TR></TABLE>

Wow, i mean.... wow dude! Im shocked your bolts didnt break or you screwd up the threads in the flywheel. I suggest taking it off and redoing it correctly before something worse happens to it.

The clutch pedal could be for a number of reasons the way it is. But before you try to fix that problem fix the bigger problem first. Invest in a helms, it will save your life.

lv6l

hmm i always had a clue to torque the bolts on the pressure plate but never had one. i put in a previous clutch before this one and did the same thing, the pedal was normal and it ran find for about 3 years. i guess i got lucky.

i herd from a comment left by another member that axle can cause soft pedal...is this possible?

Luserkid

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by lv6l &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i herd from a comment left by another member that axle can cause soft pedal...is this possible?</TD></TR></TABLE>

No Axle has nothing to do with clutch, has to do with transmission. Its not hard to see how the clutch pedal works. Its pedal - Master Cylinder - hard lines - soft lines - slave cylinder - Throw out bearing fork - throw out bearing - clutch. One of these isnt doing the correct job.

Archidictus

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by lv6l &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"><FONT COLOR="red">i use a impact gun to tighten the pressure plate bolts</FONT></TD></TR></TABLE>

Pressure plate bolts are usually torqued to about 19 foot-pounds (picture).




Your average pneumatic impact gun will push no less than 150-250 foot-pounds of torque when it stops turning a fastner. If the pressure plate has been torqued that much without breaking the flywheel, one or the other is probably warped so badly that the plate fingers aren't making even - or significant - contact with the throwout bearing.

How did that seem like a good idea, son?

slodel

just put a new clutch in my car also no impact gun here just a ratchet wrench and muscle

bleed the line there is most likely air in it

nota-eg

How old are the clutch and master cylinders?

What type of clutch is it?

I just installed a Unorthodox Kevlar Unsprung clutch and it's just as soft as my stock one.

Take a finger and push the little ball on the slave cylinder back. If it's fairly easy to push back then your master cylinder is good, if it's hard to push back the master cylinder can be going bad. After awhile condensation that builds up can cause the valve in the master cylinder to go bad. (I was told to all of this by a tech at unorthodox racing).

Have you tried driving the car yet?

Archidictus

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by slodel &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">just put a new clutch in my car also no impact gun here just a ratchet wrench and muscle

bleed the line there is most likely air in it </TD></TR></TABLE>

Unless your muscles click at 20 foot-pounds, you might want to invest in a torque wrench next time you install a clutch

He's right in suggesting further bleeding of the clutch line, though. You don't even need two people for it: just open the valve, attach it to a bleeding canister with some rubber hose and work the clutch pedal with your hand until the fluid coming out is new and clear. Be sure to keep the master cylinder full.

slodel

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Archidictus &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

Unless your muscles click at 20 foot-pounds, you might want to invest in a torque wrench next time you install a clutch

He's right in suggesting further bleeding of the clutch line, though. You don't even need two people for it: just open the valve, attach it to a bleeding canister with some rubber hose and work the clutch pedal with your hand until the fluid coming out is new and clear. Be sure to keep the master cylinder full.</TD></TR></TABLE>

when you bleed it also you cant just bleed it once or twice we did it about 7 or 8 times just to make sure and then drove it and then once or twice more

lv6l

running the car like this now, would the clutch ever slip due to less grip from how i installed it?

i guess overall i will re-install it and torque it correctly now.

lv6l

that thing that connects to the shift fork...slave cylinder or clutch master cylinder(not sure whats it called) but how can you tell if thats gone bad? i think my soft pedal feel is due to this. i tried bleeding it a lot and its still soft.

nota-eg

The thing that connects to that fork is called the clutch slave cylinder. I'm not sure how to tell if it's going bad. I just replaced mine.

What kind of clutch is it?

If it's driveable I don't think there's anything wrong with it.

Putting the bolts on too tight shouldn't cause slippage. Depending on the type of clutch it may slip (Unortho Kevlar can slip for first 300-1000 miles, for example.)

lv6l

oh i see. i'm running a no brand stage 3.(on budget). i had an act stage 3 before in my gsr and the pedal is very hard. but somehow im still trying to figure out what could be causing my soft pedal.

i have tried bleeding it, doesnt help, i thought it might be my slave cylinder that is broken. any idea nota-eg?

lv6l

UPDATE

i just called the company where i purchased the clutch from and they told me their pressure plate is actually stock and only the 6 puck ceramic material is used to help the high torque and will prevent slippage. i dont know if this is true. i'm planning to turbo my car and my hp goal is around 200whp. would it slip on this clutch??

thanks a lot to all that gave inputs and advices.

nota-eg

I can't say that it will or won't slip on the clutch (just because it's no name, ect), but if it's like a stock clutch it shouldn't have any issues with holding 200whp.

I had the original clutch in my car (I think, 3rd owner) and the car had 230k miles on it. It's been boosted since last summer and I had no issues until I tried to run with slicks. Burnt it up in the burnout box. Thing was like a trippy paint job, all purple & blue looking.

Just take it easy on the car for the first few hundred miles to break the clutch in properly. Driving it hard can cause the friction material to get too hot and glaze over, which will cause more slippage than 200whp.