Discussion
After some advice and/or experience & recommendations with regards different clutches from different suppliers pretty please?! I'm doing around 13,000 - 15,000 miles per year and my current AP clutch was fitted just over 20,000 miles ago & appears to be on its last legs. Replacing every year & half is way too expensive for my budget!
Has anyone had the Helix fitted for any length of time? Or know of any others which will last longer??
Many thanks in advance as usual!
Ryan
Has anyone had the Helix fitted for any length of time? Or know of any others which will last longer??
Many thanks in advance as usual!
Ryan
I see you are a Tuscan owner so being a Chimaera owner with a Helix clutch this may only have partial relevance to your question.
What I can tell you is my Rover V8 Helix is a quality part, the pressure plate & its fingers are well made & very stout.
The friction material on the driven plate is quality German made Sachs branded.
http://www.sachsperformance.com/product_info.php?l...
In fact the whole assembly seemed very Sachs to me
But that's no bad thing
It is about 15% heavier on the pedal but that's more a specific trait of the Helix RV8 part, a twin plate S6 Helix should be lovely & light.
My feedback is not S6 specific I know, but it does tell you (in my limited experience) that Helix as a company do produce/offer good quality parts.
Put this along side some specific feedback on their S6 pack and you should have your answer, I hope this helps in some small way?
What I can tell you is my Rover V8 Helix is a quality part, the pressure plate & its fingers are well made & very stout.
The friction material on the driven plate is quality German made Sachs branded.
http://www.sachsperformance.com/product_info.php?l...
In fact the whole assembly seemed very Sachs to me
But that's no bad thing
It is about 15% heavier on the pedal but that's more a specific trait of the Helix RV8 part, a twin plate S6 Helix should be lovely & light.
My feedback is not S6 specific I know, but it does tell you (in my limited experience) that Helix as a company do produce/offer good quality parts.
Put this along side some specific feedback on their S6 pack and you should have your answer, I hope this helps in some small way?
TVR Tommy said:
I've fitted a Helix, but not done very many miles so can't help there. A Helix should be cheaper as you can buy just the clutch plates when they wear out.
Tommy, that's true....but my understanding of the existing AP "mode of failure" is either the clutch diaphragm fingers breaking, or the butterfly springs between the friction plates flattening?When I replaced my clutch (after about 25K miles) the friction material was reasonable - say 60% worn, but was getting harder and harder to change gear. Guess that might also be attributed to a worn slave cylinder. If Helix/ A.N.Other manufacturer addresses these weaknesses, then happy days!
Nick
I would stay clear of the Helix clutch, fitted one to a friends Tuscan recently and could not get the inner friction disc to clear properly - tried everything and was demented with the damn thing. I have also since heard from a TVR dealer that they have had similar problems (made me feel a bit better ).
Just my opinion/experience....
Just my opinion/experience....
Dickie Dastardly said:
I would stay clear of the Helix clutch, fitted one to a friends Tuscan recently and could not get the inner friction disc to clear properly - tried everything and was demented with the damn thing. I have also since heard from a TVR dealer that they have had similar problems (made me feel a bit better ).
Just my opinion/experience....
I fitted one myself zero issues. The discs have a particular order/face from memory so I'm guessing this would be your problem lies. Just my opinion/experience....
The helix clutch itself is spot on and the car drives infinitely better. Add to that the helix clutch is rebuildable and the AP isn't, plus it's cheaper ... It's a no brainer.
Edited by m4tti on Saturday 23 May 10:49
m4tti said:
Dickie Dastardly said:
I would stay clear of the Helix clutch, fitted one to a friends Tuscan recently and could not get the inner friction disc to clear properly - tried everything and was demented with the damn thing. I have also since heard from a TVR dealer that they have had similar problems (made me feel a bit better ).
Just my opinion/experience....
I fitted one myself zero issues. The discs have a particular order/face from memory so I'm guessing this would be your problem lies. Just my opinion/experience....
The helix clutch itself is spot on and the car drives infinitely better. Add to that the helix clutch is rebuildable and the AP isn't, plus it's cheaper ... It's a no brainer.
Edited by m4tti on Saturday 23 May 10:49
m4tti said:
I fitted one myself zero issues. The discs have a particular order/face from memory so I'm guessing this would be your problem lies.
The helix clutch itself is spot on and the car drives infinitely better. Add to that the helix clutch is rebuildable and the AP isn't, plus it's cheaper ... It's a no brainer.
How many miles has anyone put on a Helix clutch before we declare it a no-brainer? I've heard all this before about another alternative rebuildable unit that disappeared quietly... The helix clutch itself is spot on and the car drives infinitely better. Add to that the helix clutch is rebuildable and the AP isn't, plus it's cheaper ... It's a no brainer.
Edited by m4tti on Saturday 23 May 10:49
Basil Brush said:
How many miles has anyone put on a Helix clutch before we declare it a no-brainer? I've heard all this before about another alternative rebuildable unit that disappeared quietly...
Which clutch disappeared.?Sorry this was originally from racing green. Having already bought their fff head and the fact that the md is a qualified engineer and they put a lot of ground work into this, none of the other outfits can boast such skill sets. None of the others have designed their own parts. And I don't call stroked cranks bespoke parts. I have the utmost confidence in the part.
I accept their failings, but this is the real deal. Every single one of their engine parts or any of their uprated parts far exceeds any other suppliers parts.
The ap part is poor and is run as a monopoly via tvr power. Presumably that won't exist now with the transfer of all tvr part to tvr-parts limited.
Edited by m4tti on Saturday 23 May 23:30
m4tti said:
I fitted one myself zero issues. The discs have a particular order/face from memory so I'm guessing this would be your problem lies.
The helix clutch itself is spot on and the car drives infinitely better. Add to that the helix clutch is rebuildable and the AP isn't, plus it's cheaper ... It's a no brainer.
The friction plates have a correct face and order which you can't really go wrong with, add to that they are marked with paint to show how to assemble; if only the problem had been that simple!!The helix clutch itself is spot on and the car drives infinitely better. Add to that the helix clutch is rebuildable and the AP isn't, plus it's cheaper ... It's a no brainer.
Edited by m4tti on Saturday 23 May 10:49
As I say only imparting my experience (and advising what I've been subsequently told )
Cheers
Dickie Dastardly said:
The friction plates have a correct face and order which you can't really go wrong with, add to that they are marked with paint to show how to assemble; if only the problem had been that simple!!
As I say only imparting my experience (and advising what I've been subsequently told )
Cheers
Did you contact them, sounds like the wrong plates were packaged up by helix?As I say only imparting my experience (and advising what I've been subsequently told )
Cheers
m4tti said:
Did you contact them, sounds like the wrong plates were packaged up by helix?
I did Matt, as much to advise that it may have been heading back to them. The clutch is now working and is improving through use but in comparison to the AP unit in mine it was a pig - hence I was quite pleased to hear a specialist had had a similar issue (a bit peace of mind that it wasn't something I was doing). m4tti said:
Which clutch disappeared.?
Sorry this was originally from racing green. Having already bought their fff head and the fact that the md is a qualified engineer and they put a lot of ground work into this, none of the other outfits can boast such skill sets. None of the others have designed their own parts. And I don't call stroked cranks bespoke parts. I have the utmost confidence in the part.
I accept their failings, but this is the real deal. Every single one of their engine parts or any of their uprated parts far exceeds any other suppliers parts.
The ap part is poor and is run as a monopoly via tvr power. Presumably that won't exist now with the transfer of all tvr part to tvr-parts limited.
The RP one that was supposed to be engineered to overcome all the AP issues.Sorry this was originally from racing green. Having already bought their fff head and the fact that the md is a qualified engineer and they put a lot of ground work into this, none of the other outfits can boast such skill sets. None of the others have designed their own parts. And I don't call stroked cranks bespoke parts. I have the utmost confidence in the part.
I accept their failings, but this is the real deal. Every single one of their engine parts or any of their uprated parts far exceeds any other suppliers parts.
The ap part is poor and is run as a monopoly via tvr power. Presumably that won't exist now with the transfer of all tvr part to tvr-parts limited.
Edited by m4tti on Saturday 23 May 23:30
I get it, you like RG.....
It's not so much I like them, but after reviewing carefully all of the products on offer via the small group of specialist out there RG product specs exceeded most others.
The clutch is a good example. You phone AP up and the don't want to know about supplying components, even though they could. Power have or did have an exclusive deal with them. Power redistributed those clutch packs to all other suppliers. You now have second rebuildable option. Which can't be anything but good.
Although this clutch pack could quite easily be substituted for another with the correct dimensions. I know another member who's used a triple plate.
The clutch is a good example. You phone AP up and the don't want to know about supplying components, even though they could. Power have or did have an exclusive deal with them. Power redistributed those clutch packs to all other suppliers. You now have second rebuildable option. Which can't be anything but good.
Although this clutch pack could quite easily be substituted for another with the correct dimensions. I know another member who's used a triple plate.
Dickie Dastardly said:
m4tti said:
Did you contact them, sounds like the wrong plates were packaged up by helix?
I did Matt, as much to advise that it may have been heading back to them. The clutch is now working and is improving through use but in comparison to the AP unit in mine it was a pig - hence I was quite pleased to hear a specialist had had a similar issue (a bit peace of mind that it wasn't something I was doing). Heavier pedal doesnt bother me (very rarely stuck in traffic here in Scotland). Gear change at a standstill was very very stiff initially, but improving a lot with usage.
Heavier, but not a huge amount, I guess something like 15%. Thing is there is no reliable baseline to compare against unless you take out a AP in good working order and put one of these in.
Main thing for me was the stiff change (dragging), tried the pedal adjustment but didnt help.
Thrashing it around Crail did... good ol Italian tune up!
A few other posts suggested abusing the clutch for a little while as a remedy.
Main thing for me was the stiff change (dragging), tried the pedal adjustment but didnt help.
Thrashing it around Crail did... good ol Italian tune up!
A few other posts suggested abusing the clutch for a little while as a remedy.
SergSC said:
Also have the Helix (and lightweight flywheel).
Heavier pedal doesnt bother me (very rarely stuck in traffic here in Scotland). Gear change at a standstill was very very stiff initially, but improving a lot with usage.
That's the same issue I encountered Serg, was difficult when stationary and notchy when moving - its getting better through use.Heavier pedal doesnt bother me (very rarely stuck in traffic here in Scotland). Gear change at a standstill was very very stiff initially, but improving a lot with usage.
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