clutch explosion !
 

I would like to hear from anyone that has actually had their cobras clutch expolde. In the old days I witnessed one come apart , injure a girl passenger , and chuck a piece of pressure plate through a crowded wendys resturant. Are clutches stronger now? , or are engines weaker ? I just dont hear about it much any more .I now have the ford motorsports aluminum bellhousing I dont think it offers any extra protection , I will have an honest 500 hp when all is said and done but those suckers are spendy but if I need it its no problem . I know people lose driveshafts and rear ends but has any one had a catastrophic failure ?

What cost more...a $500 safety bell housing, or a lifetime of missing parts of your body, and possibly injuring someone in or outside of your car...I can guarantee the cost of legal fees will be more than $500.

I agree with you it would be a real bad thing all the way around ! but do you know of anyones cobra that blew a clutch ?

Dang Wetdog,

From the header of your post I thought you cranked her up and already went "OH SH!T".

A scatter shield is certainly a good idea and ALWAYS a politically correct answer. Fact is though, clutch/flywheel carnage frequency is greatly improved from what it was years ago. New materials make such an event a rare occurence today.

Thats kinda what I thought , what gets me is if there is such a liability issue ...does the 500hp mustang have one ? , what about the viper ? , the new vette? believe me as I build away I am amazed how easy it is to go through the fibreglass it is nothing to a flying piece of steel. No Terry I didn't shell out my clutch , but there is always tomarrow.

Didn't the 2000 Cobra R (was it 2000? Maybe '01?) have a McLeod blowproof bellhousing?

Have not heard of anyone loosing their clutch this way for a long time. Not sure why, I am sure the materials used are alot better, but I also know in my area street racing, drag racing is a thing of the past, compared to 25 years ago. Back then all the kids crusied the street looking for a good race or just buring up the tires because it was a weekend. You always heard of someone exploding a clutch, throwing rods through the block, or leaving rear-end gears on the road. But these were muscle care, or rods built by young kids, who could not afford the right or the safest parts, and there only focus was that it was running for the week-end. (Man those were the days). Seems the guys who race today save it for the track and have their cars set up properly for it. Maybe that is also part of the reason we dont here about it as much.

I went through this decision during my drive train build, and it was a no brainer, when I and a passenger sit in the cobra and I realized our legs are about 6 inches from the spinning clutch and if by chance it does come a part the pieces will quickly be cutting me off just below the knees, my decision was made. I have a great chassis with the tranny tunnel framed from steel tubing and covered with sheet metal, and I still felt it a necessary safety precaution to go with e blow proof bell housing. Just my 2 cents.

Safety first for you and your passenger.

Jim

Under normal driving conditions
 

wetdog. There is not problem as long as the car is driven (UNDER NORMAL DRIVING CONDITIONS). This means no visible abuse. Clutches do break, 80% of the time the disc shatters. The pressure plate keeps most of the flying parts together, but not always. Lakewood shattershields are design to keep all the parts in the bell housing, this includes flywheels. There are limiters on the cars you have said so you can't do a 5G clutch drop doing a burn out for your friends. I have seen a clutch explode at E-town on a weds night. 302 Maverick without a lakewood did a 6,000rpm line leave. The clutch shattered in the first shift. Flywheel and pieces came 60 ft into the bleachers. No one was serious hurt. The flywheel pieces came through the roof of the car. After this happened the safety rules where changed and inforced. Clutches are made better for wear and weight today than the old years, ( 60's &70's ) As far as the steel and iron they make parts out of :confused::( Here is the simple question, Do you like the 2 feet you have? If yes adding $400.00 dollars to the total build is nothing. You need to make sure that the lakewood is centered on the block before putting the trans in. I have 4 lakewoods on all my cars and jeeps that are not automatics. IMO Lakewoods are better than Mcleod bellhousings because of a 1 piece part as compared to a multi piece part. It doesn't matter what kind of car had the explosion. It's more about SAFETY. Driveshaft safety loops are also another good thing to have with your body being 12" from getting the shaft. Rick L.

Maybe rev limitors help:)


Dwight

This type of question is similiar to the do I really need to use my shoulder belts? Do I really need a helmet when riding a motorcycle?
You already know the answer but if you are looking for people to agree with the wrong answer you can always find one here.

No,this question IS NOT similiar to shoulder belts & helmets when riding a M/C.Better materials,processes and attitudes(re-using questionable fasteners)make a scatter shield un-needed for a STREET car.As an example McLeods Street twin is guarranteed to 9000 rpm & 1400 HP.At 530 HP & 6500 rpm limited,it(the clutch) doesn't even know it's out of the box.

If you're still nervous,throw a trans blanket on it.It won't stop a flywheel but it will bag clutch parts.

A lot of circle track racers use these: Tilton Engineering - Driveline, Bellhousing, 52-Series Magnesium

But they also use small diameter clutches.
If you are using a cast iron flywheel or a cheap pressure plate, I would only use scatter shield.

agree with this. lot of guys using aluminum flywheels with lightweight clutch setups.

if you're still concerned carry a pickle jar to put the toes in.:D

You may not NEED it on a street car, but it is cheap insurance. Manufacturing defects do occur in even the best parts from time to time. I'd rather spend a few extra bucks for the scattershield than have my legs dependent on my confidence in someone else's manufacturing processes.

I shattered mine in London one year.

Limped home and replaced the clutch. The parts were neatly contained in the bottom of the bellhousing. I think Rick is correct, a lot of clutches come apart over the pressure plate exploding.

Just my opinion.

:D :D

"Back in the day" I had the clutch/flywheel blow on my 66 427 Vette while at the drag strip. It was scatter shield equiped and there were large dents in the shield. It looked like a granade went of inside of it.

I have a scatter shield on my FE Cobra. I also have a drive shaft hoop, rev limiter, and always wear the shoulder belts. When on the track I also wear the helmet, nomex, 5 point harness, neck support and arm restaints. As you can see I may have become a bit of a wuss:LOL:. At my age (61), I prefer to think of it as getting wiser.;)

Dick

"like a grenade"
 

I think that's the perfect analogy when a clutch/flywheel explodes.If those parts can literally put dents in a heavy steel scattersheild, imagine what the condition of your legs and other parts would look like. How much are your legs and other vital parts worth to you? Just pay the friggin $400. and be safe.

Well I just ordered the bellhousing , I just wondered how many of you out there are running with them ?

flywheel/clutch explosion.....
 

I witnessed a fatal flywheel explosion in 1969 at the Moroso Dragway (it
was known as Palm Beach International Raceway at the time) and it was a
VERY grim scene. The car was a '62 Galaxy with a 406 FE and a top loader.
The flywheel exploded about 60 ft. off the line and the car drifted off the left
side of the pavement and rolled to a stop. But there wasn't much that could
be done, the driver had died instantly from massive shrapnel injuries. Hydroformed housings were just coming on the market around that time and
I resigned myself to never bring a car to the strip without one.

....Fred