Where do I get a clutch??

[thenick]

Right, decided today that my clutch is on the way out after 50066 miles. not bad for the original unit but now I am in a bit of a pickle. I'm supposed to be having the car rolling roaded up at TVR Power on Saturday but Jason has said don't bother coming up if my clutch is anywhere near finished as it will be ripped to pieces. Great.

So looks like I need a new one fairly quickly so I can get this rolling road sorted out asap if not Saturday as my car is running quite lean after a bunch of mods. I spoke to Dave Batty first as he did my cam change and as expected, his quote was rather expensive. At least £750 + vat - ouch! He said that this included the clutch kit which was an A.P unit designed for 500's (mine is a 450) because they no longer made any others, which came in at just over £400. TVR Power say they can do me an A.P clutch for £250 plus 6 hours labour to fit it and I recall seeing a Chimaera clutch kit on the internet a few days ago for more like £120 (can't find it now though!).

I am a bit confused now as firstly I have no idea which clutch I actually need and how much I should be paying for it. Secondly I am unsure who to use... where is a good place to get said clutch fitted (either close to Caterham in Surrey, or Birmingham city centre)? Of course if Dom's price is reasonable, then i'm sure I can ask him nicely if he can do me a deal for a clutch and RR session all in one as it will save hasstle. So does anyone have any good suggestions/input?

[mdotrutherford]

Nick

RPi have been recommended on previous posts re Clutch's, there website is comprehensive as it covers all RV8 installations and thus is a bit difficult
to pin down for a Chim price so guess a call would be required. Appreciate if you could post back when you have found out as its an inevitable purchase for all one day.

http://www.rpiv8.com/engine.htm

[esso]

IMO if your taking your car up to Power your just as well off letting them sort your clutch out for you,saves the hassle of having to take it elsewhere & you wont find anyone better to give you advice on what you require.Always sorted me out when ive had issues with my Cerb.

[thenick]

esso said:

IMO if your taking your car up to Power your just as well off letting them sort your clutch out for you,saves the hassle of having to take it elsewhere & you wont find anyone better to give you advice on what you require.Always sorted me out when ive had issues with my Cerb.

To be honest I will probably just give it to Dom and tell him to fix it! I had considered doing it myself but I don't really have the time or an extra pair of hands to help and the moment - also can't be bothered

Dom has been great when i've used him before but since i've heard such a big variation in price I wanted to check around before I commit to Power

[esso]

Think the basic price for the clutch wont vary that much,its the labour rates that vary,Power is reasonable & Dom & the guys are very helpful.

[rev-erend]

Well - if you want the new clutch to last as well as the old one - I would not RR it until the clutch has had a chance to bed in.

My clutch (McLeod) recommended that it's run in for 300 ~ 500 miles before full power is used in earnest.

Edited by rev-erend on Friday 6th July 11:11

[That Daddy]

rev-erend said:

Well - if you want the new clutch to last as well as the old one - I would not RR it until the clutch has had a change to bed in.

My clutch (McLeod) recommended that it's run in for 300 ~ 500 miles before full power is used in earnest.

Spot on, all clutches need bedding in before used in anger

[hawkespcs]

Hi nick still looking forward to seeing your car. I did my clutch my self just couple of days before i went to lemans talk about timing. they right about the only make the 5L clutch some people still have the 4.3 and 4 clutch in stock but since you have and still increasing the power it be a good idea to fit the 5lt clutch in. i think it was £300 for the 5L kit. I did it myself fitting the clutch and what a pain in the back side it was. it helps to know what gear box you have on my griff i got the rover box what a pain in the a** to get out. Because you have to take bolts from inside the bell housing. But the t5 is a better design. It was a 2 day job for me making sure i did the job right and was the first time i did it so was in no rush. Its not a hard job just a job that takes time. I would of thought since they rebuilt your gear box they would of checked your clutch any way nick hope to see you soon cant right to hear your car. James. Hi esso sorry I not been in touch been a fing night mare with work and the car. Hope you had a great trip to lemans it was a good weekend well apart from the first night there. Any way see you all soon at the next meet I hope.

[thenick]

I did have a feeling the clutch would need to be bedded in...! I also agree that I will need a 500 clutch as with a RR session, I am probably going to exceed the power of a standard 500 already and I intend to continue in the persuit for more power, so it would be silly not to...

James, I will be around plenty this summer at the Griff and Chim do's and probably Rockingham as well plus some WM run outs no doubt... I have the T5 box so it would be a little easier but I have to use the car every day at the moment so don't really have the time to leave it on axle stands for too long, and I wouldn't want to rush the job and bugger it up.


I'm still not sure how Dave Batty manages to charge what he does for parts though... [rant]£400+ for a clutch kit??? He also (among other things) charged me £175 for lifters and £75 for 6 litres of Castrol GTX Magnatec when I had my cam change. Which at the time I thought nevermind but then I found I could get the oil for £50 in Halfords and the lifters were Land Rover units which V8Developments told me should be £7.50 each. Grr. Great guy who does great work, but next time I will supply my own parts! [/rant]

Edited by thenick on Friday 6th July 11:56