Clutches

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Which Are The Best Clutch Brands?

Unlike many other vehicle parts, clutch manufacturers are not that many and thus knowing the best in this field is vital. So, here are the top clutch manufacturing brands:

• LUK;
• Sachs;
• ACT;
• Exedy;
• Valeo.

If you are looking to replace your vehicle’s clutch, taking a look here can offer you a wide array of options that are not just the best in terms of their quality but are also available at reasonable prices.

What Do Clutches Do?

Clutches are an integral part of manual transmission vehicles. While a vehicle is working, the gears need to be changed in all internal combustion engine cars.

However, in a manual transmission vehicle for changing gears, the transfer of power to the transmission has to be stopped for a short interval.

As it is not possible to turn off the engine of a car running at high speeds, the clutches offer an effective mechanism of disconnecting the transmission of the vehicle from its engine without turning off the engine of the car.

How Do They Work?

All clutches have a disc that is covered on both sides with high friction material.

The disc of the clutch sits on the flywheel and thus in case an external force is applied to this disc, it starts rotating with the flywheel when engaged.

As the transmission’s input shaft is connected to the disc, therefore upon applying an external force, the power of the engine is transferred to the vehicle’s transmission. A pressure plate spring system applies this external force to the disc.

All of the above-mentioned mechanism operates when a vehicle is working under normal driving conditions.

But what happens when you press the clutch to stop the engine power from reaching the vehicle’s transmission system?

In this case, a special spring known as the Diaphragm Spring comes into action. It is present between the pressure plate and the cover of the system and when an external force is applied to the Diaphragm Spring, it disconnects the power from the vehicle’s engine to the transmission.

The external force required for this purpose is transferred by a hydraulic system which comes into action when the driver of a manual transmission vehicle pushes the clutch pedal.

What To Look For When Buying Clutch?

Here are some of the things you need to keep in mind while buying the clutch for your vehicle.

Watch our video on buying performance Clutches on our YouTube channel.

Material Composition Of Clutch Discs

The most important aspect to consider when buying clutches is the material composition of the clutch discs. Here are a few materials that clutch manufacturers use for the discs.

• Organic;
• Organic Composite;
• Ceramic;
• Sintered Ceramic;
• Sintered Iron.

The clutch plate material defines whether the engagement would be smooth or aggressive.

Pressure Plate Style

The Pressure Plate style is also an important consideration to make while purchasing the clutches. Some of the styles are:

• Diaphragm;
• Borg & Beck;
• Long Style.

The Diaphragm design is more suitable for everyday street usage because of its lighter pedal pressure.

The other two styles require more pressure and using them on a daily basis is not only cumbersome but also quite irritating.

High Or Low Load Situation

Choosing the right clutch for your vehicle also depends upon the weight of your car.

Vehicles that are heavy and thus have higher torque figures at lower engine speeds produce a high load situation for the clutch which can heat it.

Choosing the right clutch depends upon the load situation that your car will put on it, otherwise, even a high-end performance part will not work effectively.

Intended Use

The type of clutch you should buy depends highly upon the intended use of the clutch.

If you are aiming for street driving, you don’t need to get too fancy with the clutch options, however, if you are into racing stuff, your clutch will vary from that in a normal car.

Clamp Pressure

The clamp pressure associated with a vehicle also defines which clutch will suit it.

This is because vehicles that have higher torque at lower RPM require more clamp pressure whereas vehicles that have lower torque at higher RPM require less clamp pressure.

How Hard Is It To Fit Clutches?

Fitting a clutch is not like changing the wiper blades on your car. It requires precision and attention to detail.

This necessitates that the clutch fitting process must be performed by a professional who knows what he is getting into.

Clutch repairs and replacements are likely to cost you a lot of money mainly because of the extensive labour involved in the process.

It also requires considerable time and this is why you should not even think about taking it as a DIY project.

I would rate it as a 9 out of 10 processes in terms of difficulty (10 being the most difficult).

What Else Should You Check When Repairing Clutches?

When repairing a clutch, you must always check the flywheel in detail and see for any defects or flaws.

The centre bushings located at the end of the crankshaft should also be replaced when you repair the clutch system of your vehicle. Some vehicles have roller bushing whereas others have brass ones.

The reason for changing these bushings whenever you have already gone so far is that they are very difficult to reach and in case you are already working on the replacement of the clutch, not much is left behind.

Besides this, the cost of these bushings is negligible and thus I highly recommend that whenever you repair your car’s clutch, replace the bushings as well.

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This article is flagged for an update, so please pass on specific tips below that I can include. All articles, and content was written by me, Waynne Smith TorqueCars founder. Some outlines are just too general so I appreciate your feedback and suggestions. This entry was filed under Shop. You can leave a response below or join our forum to discuss this article and car modification in detail with our members.

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