Luk clutch = expensive junk $1,200.00

[Jed]

Ok, this is the last recourse that I have. 40,000 miles ago I upgraded my clutch because I had visions of h. p. in my future. Installed cerametalic clutch good for 1000 ft. lbs. in march of 05. Was reccomended by local distributor as the best available. As of last friday clutch was slipping so bad it had to come out.

This work was done by a certified mechanic and the owner of George and Kats Automotive in Poway CA.

The distributor, Southland Clutch in San Diego said that this was the best clutch on the market and not to believe the internet crud because all of the other manufacturers used Luk parts to build their clutches.

I have never had a trailer hooked up to my truck I do not drag race and I do not sled pull. I have hauled the usual crap home from Home Depot and I do not live on a hill.

Until March of 06 the only hp. modification I had was an edge ez.

My mechanic as well as the owner of the shop next to his are willing to swear on a stack of Mopar manuals that the above is true.

Last week my clutch started to slip bad getting on the freeway. When we took it out we found 50thou. wear on the flywheel and 60thou. on the pressure plate the clutch disk looked new.

I have been driving for 40 years and have worn out a bunch of clutches. Hot rods, work trucks and farm trucks.

Ok so maybe I am not easy on a clutch but my super duty welding truck will get 75,000 to 90,000 on a stock clutch and it weighs over 10,000 and it is a POS.

So in good faith I call my distributor that reccomended the clutch, his response was oh wow, gee, that did not last very long you must have too much power and you must not know how to drive.



So, I call Luk Clutch and get the same story word for word except they say you must have been towing!!



I talked to Southbend they called b. s.

I have a OFE on the way the said if it would not hold they would send an FE.

Cost $850 shipped.

I know that Luk representatives monitor this board and I challenge any of them to call me or reply to this post.

Feel free to call b. s. on me but I have the parts and pictures of my odometer to back me up.

And how many shop owners do they wish to call a liar?



Jim Allison

619 517 0527



Let the games begin.

 

[oneshotkyle]

sorry to hear. this is just another example of "you get what you pay for". no doubt peter will stand behind his clutch 100%. that is what i paid for. your only as good as your word. .

 

[PKirby]

I personally would not use ceramic clutch material for a street driven vehicle. Cerametalic brake pads destroy brake rotors also.

 

[DRadzierez]

Peter (south bend) has the best customer service in the industry by far. It would be a great choice to use him.

 

[AFarmer]

You'll be very pleased with South Bend - customer service and products are second to none.

 

[South Bend Clutch]

Jed, sorry to here about your problem and I want to thank you for choosing us this time.



I would like to point out that when the cerametallic came to market, I warned of longevity. I did not want to press the issue as to look like I was bashing anyone or another product. Just stating what we experienced in the 50 years we have been in business. When building a clutch to hold power it is easy to throw metallic materials on the clutch disc because IT WILL HOLD. The down side is what you have experienced, it will groove the castings of the pressure plate and flywheel at a very rapid rate. We worked very hard to find a material that would hold the power, give decent driving manners and provide nominal iron ware to extend longevity. When we came up with the Feramic material, I knew it would be the best but the price was 10 X's the cost of the other materials which in turn drove the price of our clutches up. I hoped that in the long run it would prove itself. I would also like to make another promise... Now that feramic has proven itself, other companies are seeking other manufactures to duplicate what we have done at a lesser cost. They are doing this by going out of the country and bringing in a look alike. I WILL NOT DO THAT FOR ANY REASON. If it hurts our pocket book then so be it. I will stick with the quality and the fact it is made right here in North America. And, if another company tells you that their product is the same, they are lying. We are the only company in the world that has the rights to the feramic facings used on our diesel clutches. (This is a fact!) The products we use and the way in which we distribute our product will keep many people employed in our country and that is the way it will remain! I guess we will find out if Wallmart can build a better mouse trap.



Peter

 

[24V-DSL]

Peter...



This is why you'll never worry about the phone ringing.

 

[mattymac]

I have put my FE through its paces and it just smiles and laughs at me! Peter has a customer for a long time with me, but not if I cant slip my FE anytime soon and need a dual disc! Great product and great service, you get what you pay for and IMO its a cheap price to pay for peace of mind!

 

[Diesel Nut]

This is a perfect example of why I only offer South Bend Clutches. You just can't beat them.



Sorry for your troubles, but its a lesson learned, and hopefully a few guys can learn from your and not on their own. Best of luck with your new South Bend, I know you won't need much (luck)!!

 

[lmills]

South Bend is the way to go. Peter and the gang at South Bend have untouchable customer service.

 

[RobertP]

ditto on southbend and peter, second to none



peter has recently saved my butt. i will post about it soon.



Robert

 

[JCleary]

My experience with South Bend has been great. Peter goes above and beyond with his customer service. You will not be disappointed! I can't say enough good about South Bend Clutch.



I can tell you, my OFE can take a beating! I have yet to slip it. And the drivability is great.

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

Gear Vendors, FASS, DD 2,Schwitzer s300g, Scheid street cam,head studs, edge ez, BHAF,ATS exhaust manifold, 4" flowmaster, high speed floormats

WELL, the list of your mods tells the story - and clearly points to the cause of your problem!



It's those damned "High speed floormats"!



They have long since proved to cause improper clutch pedal travel, and solid clutch engagement - resulting in the exact situation you have arrived at.



Get RID of those before you start using that new SBC setup, or you'll likely get stuck alongside the road again real soon! :-laf :-laf



Sorry to hear about your problem - I have about 25K on my own LUK Cerametallic now, mostly towing our RV - so far, so good - but it pays to look and listen...

 

[mattymac]

Sorry for your troubles, but its a lesson learned, and hopefully a few guys can learn from your and not on their own. Best of luck with your new South Bend, I know you won't need much (luck)!!

About 90% of the time (especially if your a member here with all the bad HP influences )its cheaper to spend the extra money the first time and be done with it than to go back and then do it agin the right way.

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

About 90% of the time (especially if your a member here with all the bad HP influences )its cheaper to spend the extra money the first time and be done with it than to go back and then do it agin the right way.

For sure, if you have HP mods and ARE an aggressive driver, the choice of a clutch becomes more sensitive and narrow.



In my case with my own LUK, and my HP mods, they're all for towing, not drag racing! I am far more interested in holding power while IN gear and up a steep grade with the RV in tow than I am in making 4 wheel drop-clutch wheel-spinning starts at an intersection or at the track. The vast MOST of the time, My truck is driven VERY conservatively, and little clutch stress or slippage is involved.



Personally, I'm far more interested in economical operation and whatever I can do to EXTEND the life of my truck and individual components, than I am in unnecessarily abusing it. Thus, the LUK has so far worked entirely acceptably for me, and the cost was attractive as well - but IF I was more interested in activities that were known to severely stress the clutch and drivetrain, I'd probably look for a different clutch - and probably a different brand. Price would have to be somewhat lower in priority than performance.



You just have to match your NEEDS, usage and bank account to what you choose - don't expect silk purse functionality from a sow's ear item/price - and IF you do that properly, chances are you WILL "get what you pay for" in YOUR specific use...

 

[Joseph Donnelly]

On another thread about being very happy with LuK, I mentioned the high flywheel wear in 10,000 miles. This thread shows how much wear you can get with more miles than that. It is just a property of that particular friction material. A property of diaphragm clutches is that clamp load goes way down when the distances change--which was the case with . 050 + . 060" wear. That further promotes slippage. I also posted the LACK of wear with the con-FE. It costs more, but holds more power and doesn't wear out that expensive flywheel. Also it lasts a lot longer so factor in labor costs.

Peter's con-FE is a "proprietary" material in a "niche" market. LuK designs their stuff for mass markets and their usual distribution channels. The cerametallic does hold more power than stock and work. . . for a while. The con fe is as user friendly as the LuK, lasts far longer, is way easier on the flywheel, and if you have more power, it will hold it, about 150 hp more than the Luk. That doesn't mean it is less than good with lower power. I seldom use high power, but love having a clutch that is long-life and resistant to wear, glazing, slippage, etc.

 

[JWestley]

When the clutch in my truck went out, the first call i made was to South Bend. I stepped up to the FE which is a little more than i needed, but i know i have some room to work with. Customer service was great, and no other clutch will ever go into my truck.

 

[pwerwagn]

For starters, you got ripped paying 1200$ for a luk. Thats a ridiculously expensive price for one!! (I paid roughly half that)



I have a luk in mine and with almost 30K of towing heavy (18,000lbs or so occasionally), racing, 4wd launches at 3,000 rpm, speed shifts from 2nd -5th, etc, its still holding fine at around 400hp/900ft lbs (guess). Its my daily driver so it gets used in stop and go driving, freeway, etc. Its also used regularly in 4wd loading boats and stuff at the lake. No complaints so far.



I spent extra attention to make sure all the surfaces were contaminate free. I broke the clutch in nicely for about 200 miles. And I kept the plate slid back for about the first 800 to make sure i didnt slip it. I didnt want any factors to affect the life of it.



If i had the money, I would have definitley gone with the FE from peter (not only for its quality, but also for the fact he supports America! ). I just didnt not have the money at that time.



for what I paid for my Luk, im totally satisfied at this point in time. Joe told me the advantages/disadvantages when I bought it, and he let me make the decision on my own.



--Jeff

 

[Jed]

Many thanks to all who have commented on this thread



Pwagn, to make it worse it was from a trusted distributor who had always been good in the past. A fellow TDR member hooked me up for a much better price than what I paid for the Luk see AFarmer



Gary, would it work if I just turned my floormats over and ran them on the slow side?



mattymac, I admit I have fallen under bad influences when it comes to hp and if the truth be told this was a cheap learning experience just a bit inconvenient but much worse things happened on the way west.



Once again thanks to all especially Peter for making a product that I am sure will work great for me.

 

[glhs]

I had started a thread about my cermatallic vs South Bend a while ago. My results were similar to yours. Luk distributors blamed the results on anything but their clutch. I might have to resurrect the thread if I find it.

Thank you Peter!