Hey guys, I have been debating on upgrading the software on my virgin 03. I guess I have 2 concerns, the car is a CPO so I'm assuming any motor related issues will not be covered under warranty. The other is the clutch, I never hard launch the car or do hard shifts, pop the clutch etc. The most I ever push the car is a quick 3rd to 4th shift @ WOT. So if I continue with my current driving habits could I expect to get the same clutch life just as if the car was stock? Thanks guys.

 

The stock clutch is pretty robust. I just took mine out last week and it looks almost new, and it has 10,000 miles on it. I ran into the same issue's regarding non-OEM parts, and my $tealership refused to install my Sachs LWFW. I don't think the clutch will be a warranty issue, but it's may always be something the dealership may point to on future claims. My stock clutch could no longer handle the torque produced by the engine after I flashed the ECU, so I had to upgrade to a stronger clutch. The new clutch feels the same as the stock clutch to me, especially now that I've got some miles on it. The acid test was when the wife didn't notice the difference (slid another mod past her...lol).
And if you are interested in upgrading..shout out Kevin at UMW....he'll take care of you.

 

I have the UMW flasher. Drive with the performance setup, reflash to stock when I take it to the dealer. Takes about one minute. I know others (GIAC) have the same setup.
Dealer should never know.

 

My clutch lasted all of a few days after I flashed my ECU. This was at 28K.

 

I went with UMW's Stage 2 tuning and zero clearance turbos with 15000 on the clock. I've added 2000 more since the upgrade, including a day at the drag strip last Friday (best ET 11.9, best trap 125). The stock clutch is still holding strong.

Don't get me wrong, I know it's got a limited life span with stage 2 torque, and I plan to change it fairly soon, but if you're not hard on clutches in general, and yours hasn't been abused by a PO, you should be OK for a bunch of miles.

Jeff
Jeff

 

Blew my stock unit (I am owner 2) about 3 days after the UMW software was added. See my signature for what I did to fix things. All is well.

I had never blown a clutch in years and years and cars and cars.....so I chalk it up to the prior owner and thw torque of the UMW software. I posted a bunch on this earlier and on rennlist.


Jeff

 

as for clutch wear, I have had my flash for about 6k miles, and track the car. No problems yet, but I know I will blow it sooner or later. I drive it like a rental.

 

I got 5 years and 68,000 miles on the stock clutch. 6,000 miles stock / 50,000 miles stage 2 (flash and exhaust) - 510HP / 12,000 miles Stage 4 600HP. Then it began to slip on occasion at WOT 3rd and 4th gear pulls at stage 4.

 

My stock clutch went the day I put in the GIAC ecu. It was on the way out (28k miles), but the programming finished it off real good!

HIGHLY reccomend a LWFW setup with whatever replacement clutch you go with. The car revs soooooo nice now.

 

thanks guys, this is probably too general of question but what would you esimate the cost of the parts and labor on a aftermarket clutch?

 

Clutch wear is directly related to driver use and software will not effect it.

 

That wasn't the case for me. I had a perfectly good stock clutch that began failing immediately after I flashed, only in the high torque bands (3rd &4th)....but after a few of those it got worse and worse. When I removed the clutch, it still had a couple millimeters before the rivets on both sides of the plate. I respectfully disagree with you, just citing my experience. That being said...I am soooo happy with my Sachs LWFW!!

 

That seems a bit naive, especially coming from a race shop. Every clutch has a limit to the amount of torque it can transmit. Typically, as the friction disk wears, the clamping force applied by the pressure plate decreases, which in turn decreases the max torque capacity. An heat can cause the pressure plate spring(s) to relax over time. So...

Take a clutch that's been around the block a few times, bump the transmitted torque by 80 ft-lbs or more with a new flash, and I can easily imagine "software induced clutch slip".

Jeff

 

Jeff

I think you misunderstood my post. A few posts earlier someone stated that they installed a chip and there clutch failed the next day..

While I agree with your points on how a clutch wear's it is still directly related the use by the driver. A factory clutch can easily with stand the horsepower and torque of a chipped 996tt even on a race gas file.

Now if you had someone abuse the clutch and perhaps glaze it you are correct it will slip.

We have several customers who regularly track there 996TT's and the cars are making in the 550 -580 hp range.

No problems with stock clutch's - Granted this is not in a drag racing enviornment.

I have noticed that stock clutches fail or begin to fail at about 30-40k miles of normal spirited use. Usually slipping in higher gears 4-5-6 under load and hardly ever in 1-2 -3rd.

Again, this "ALL" boils down to the way the car and clutch is used and this ultimately lies with the driver.. No??
Even the strongest of clutches will wear and fail prematurely if abused....