Superformance clutch question...............

[Semper Fi]

Hi guys,

I recently purchased SPO1350 (2002). I have owned the car in my posession for 2 months now and started noticing that it doesn't go into gear easy from a stop. During normal driving, it's fine. I only put 250 miles on the car since owning it.

I also am not sure where the clutch fluid reservoir is-- I believe it's under the drivers' side front fender.....can anyone verify this for me?

Thanks,
Gerard

[Jim Norris]

Semper Fi,

I can't help with the shifting problem, but the clutch reservoir is attached to the firewall. The brake reservoir is under the fender.

[CWizard]

Hello Gerald -
The clutch reservoir on SPO2038 (and all others I've seen) is on the firewall, just to the driver's side of center. The one under the fender is the brake fluid. I'm no clutch expert, but with your symptoms, I'd also be worried about the tranny. There have been several threads here recently on various Tremec issues. Might be worthwhile to do a search.
And welcome to the SPF family. Do you know about SCOF?
http://performanceunlimited.com/scof/
Also, sounds like you might need an owners manual. You can download one here:
http://www.secondstrike.com/Technica...eBulletins.htm
Good luck!
Jerry

[Excaliber]

No worries me thinks, a simple clutch adjustment should cure the problem. After 200 miles or so the disc is nicely seated and an adjustment at this point is par for the course.

The clutch pedal simply isn't moving the pressure plate far enough away from the disc to FULLY disengage the trans from the flywheel.

Thats what I suspect is happening...

[Semper Fi]

Thanks for the replies gentleman. I didn't mention that the car has 2,250 miles, I put 250 of them on the car since purchasing it.

I was under the impression that the brake fluid was the reservoir on the firewal as in Jim Norris' picture in post #2. The reson I thought that is because the reservoir cap says "Wilwood". I thought that was for the brakes?

Thanks for the downloadable SPF manual.

[Tony Aprile]

I agree with Excaliber...adjust the clutch or have it adjusted. Thats the rod between the slave cylinder and the clutch fork...just in case you didn't know.
Tony

[Iceberg]

Welcome to the joy of Cobra ownership. Superformance makes a beautiful car and I am extremely pleased with mine.

Condolences on your Tremec experiance. I hope you have access to a good tranmission mechanic. Scan over the various Tremec posts in the Transmission forum, of which I am involved, and you will see your sympton is the begining of a gradual decline.

When I have more time I will have to share my entire Tremec experiance with the forum. However, it would take me hours.

Kurt

[Randy Rosenberg]

I've got an old tremec, and I have found that if I slip into 2nd or 3rd while at a stop, then it slips into 1st easily (same thing for reverse). I was told it had something to do with synchos. Anyway, I've had my clutch recently checked out, and it's fine, so I know this is not a clutch issue.

[Excaliber]

Randy thats also true for any number of trans, including the top loaders. When you 'disengage' the clutch the trans gears, all though now diconnected from the flywheel, continue to 'free spin' (momentum) for a short while. First gear is the largest gear in the trans and has more friction than the other gears when engaging it. By shifting into second first (which always requires less effort on the synchros than first gear) you stop the spinning gears (or substantially slow them down), making the shift into first easier. Sometimes I don't actually shift into second, I simply pull the gear shift back and put a little 'pressure' on second gear to slow or stop the gears from spinning, then shift into first.

With a PERFECT trans with PERFECT synchros the problem is less pronounced when shifting into first, but even then it's not a bad idea to 'bump' second gear slightly first to slow rotation and ease the pressure on the first gear synchros. You can 'feel' when the first gear synchro is showing it's age by the fact that it takes a little more pressure than it used to to slip into gear while rolling. When you 'feel' that over time, it's time to start thinking about learning to 'double clutch' and 'save the synchro'!

When downshifting into first while rolling, like coming up to a stop sign or whatever, I often 'double clutch' just to ease the pressure on the synchros for first. First gear is typically the FIRST gear to experience syncho damage over the life of the trans.

This basic principle, subtle as it is, is a classic example of why some race drivers experience more 'failures' of equipement during a race than other drivers do. It's the 'little things' that tend to save the 'parts' over the course of a race as opposed to 'forcing' things into place. Could be 'little things' like how you use the brakes, manage the rpm of the engine, downshift for the corners, etc. It's a driver trying to 'save' the car for the full race sort of thing.

[Semper Fi]

Originally Posted by Randy Rosenberg

I've got an old tremec, and I have found that if I slip into 2nd or 3rd while at a stop, then it slips into 1st easily (same thing for reverse). I was told it had something to do with synchos. Anyway, I've had my clutch recently checked out, and it's fine, so I know this is not a clutch issue.

I filled the fluid (it was low) and it works great now

[Excaliber]

By the way, does it slip nicely into 2nd or 3rd gear or is there still a lot of pressure\grinding required?

...sure sounds like the clutch disc is not fully releasing, which can happen even when the clutch IS adjusted correctly for various reasons (warped disc for instance).

[Lowell W]

Kinda sounds like this all over again...

Clutch adjustment

Lowell