Engine/Transmission (1994 - 1998) Exhaust and clutch installed

[BJMarshall]

Got the new clutch and 5" exhaust finished up Friday evening. I think the brand of the exhaust was Expandit. I bought it on ebay. The fit was real good and it was easy to get it done. It sounds great, but I don't think I am going to like it for very long. It's a little loud for my taste. I think I will try to find a quieter muffler for it. At least the funny smell from the cat is gone now.

The clutch is a 13" retrofit. I got a kit from Valair with a new flywheel and all associated parts. It is the straight organic disk. So far I am very pleased. When first installed it was grabby. It was actually a little worse than the OFE I had. After a few hundred miles, it is smoothing out nicely. It has similar pedal pressure as the SBC clutches I have had. It's harder than the LUK that was in there, but not too hard by any stretch.

The LUK clutch was very close to coming apart. The springs were just about to fall out of the disk. I can't totally fault the clutch for this though since the pilot bearing was MIA. There was only some gray paste where the pilot should have been. I find it hard to believe the clutch job was done properly 10k miles ago. It took me an extra day to finish up the job as I had to find a new input shaft.

The clutch seems to have a very stiffly sprung hub. With some other clutches I could actually feel what I perceived to be the springs bottoming out under hard acceleration. I haven't felt that with this one. At my current power level I don't think slipping will be an issue either.

Let me also say that I have no problem with SBC. I have installed and used several clutches from them and all have performed flawlessly. I tried Valair because of the ad here on TDR. Their price was a little lower and so far I have been treated very well. All of my questions were answered professionally and in a timely manner. I will report more as I get more miles on the new clutch, but so far so good.

 

[arthr31]

Hey there,

I have to replace my clutch very soon. I'm thinking about the valair and sbc. Our setups are pretty similar, I think. How many hp do you estimate you currently have, and what is the clutch (valair) rated for? How would you compare it against the sbc clutches you've run with (other than what you've already commented on here if you can... )? Thanks for sharing your results too!

 

[BJMarshall]

I would guess around 300hp. Somebody please correct me if I am wrong. My 98 will outrun the 03 with the Smarty on 7 up to 70mph or so. I ground my own plate. Once I put the new clutch in and eliminated the slipping problem, I slid the plate back until the tires wouldn't break loose in 3rd. I've got the wheel and compressor housing to make a 35/40 hybrid, but just haven't had time to do it yet. The clutch I got is rated at 450/900. I don't think I am there.

Comparing it to a SBC, it seems to rank somewhere between a ConO and an Ofe in engagement feel and pedal pressure. We'll see how it does in the long run. I'll share what I find as I get more miles on it.

 

[pete97]

If you don't mind me asking, What did you pay for the clutch? Pete

 

[arthr31]

BJMarshall, thanks for sharing. Let us know how it works out. .

btw, why did you go w/ the 450/900 clutch? Do they make a unit which'll hold more? If so, why didn't you get the more capable unit? (i ask because that's something i'm considering... between the OFE and FE at this point)

 

[BJMarshall]

Pete, the clutch and flywheel were about $600 delivered. Check out valairinc.com. I bought mine on ebay.

I went with the organic disk because I wanted smooth engagement. I know I am not at the power level that it is supposed to be able to handle so it should be fine. I'll upgrade in the future if I need to.

They offer clutches that are supposed to handle up to 600hp. They offer covers with plate loads up to 3800lbs.

 

[SteveAnsley]

BJ,



Any issue or need to fabricate on the install of the Expandit exhaust on the 98 12valver?

I see how MBRP advises an added rear hanger for the 12 valves.



Did you use the muffler?

How's the drone?

 

[BJMarshall]

No real fabrication. Had to shorten one of the intermediate pipes, but I assume that is the case on most kits since they are designed to fit all wheelbase. I could not get the part going over the rear axle to clear both the spare tire and the shock very well. I wound up with maybe 1/4" clearance. I am going to clearance the pipe a little so that I will have a little more. I don' think a few small dents in 5" pipe will hinder flow that much. :-laf

As far as the drone goes, that is the main reason I may try out some different mufflers. The muffler that came with the kit is little more than a hollow tube with some louver type baffles in it. It looks like a muffler and I had no trouble with visual inspection, but it doesn't do much for sound. The drone is most noticable around 2000rpms. That works out to between 58 and 62mph. There is a very narrow range where the drone is intolerable, but that range just happens to be where I do most of my driving.