Went to a PCA time trial yesterday. Got a good number of time trial runs in. on my last session I noticed shifting into fourth was a bit notchy. Then later I had trouble even getting it into 4th, once I even ground the gears pretty good.
Then after my last run I pulled off to run down the road for a cool down and I heard some strange noises as I was down shifting into 2nd while having trouble w/ the shift. When I stopped and tried to go into first it wouldn't go into gear, it wasn't disengaging the clutch. 2nd wasn't much better. I could turn the car off and put it in 1st, put the clutch in, and then start it. Trying to slip the clutch made a horrible noise and the car had very little power. After much trial and tribulation I finally limped it home. 200 mile trip pulling my tire trailer from mineral wells to austin. good thing I learned clutchless shifting in my a friends POS Aspire. After this I am seriously looking into getting a tow vehicle. I was quoted $450+ tow esimates!
Anyway, the sheet metal center section of the spring hub disc hand torn. I think some debris also got between the disc and pressureplate/flywheel causing disengagement problems
see here

http://tinyurl.com/3yest

flywheel & pressure plate both quite a bit of heat spotting. 30K miles of hard auto-x and some time trials and lapping sessions thrown in.

Anyone know the minimum spec thickness for an LT1 flywheel after resurfacing?

Sorry to hear about your bad luck. I dunno what the min thickness is for it, but I know stock is around 1.828". Just take it to a shop and if they say its to thin then get another one. Given the milage and the use that its going to go though I would probably just get another one just to make sure its the proper thickness and you don't run into clutch slipage. This could also be someones way of telling you to park the z28 for awhile and race the yeller beast.

hmmm, maybe.
I thought about bringing the C4 out today, but I had enough after yesterday. I don't have good luck w/ breaking the 'Yellow Beast' and I didnt' want two down cars. And besides, I really wanted to pull my trans and see the damage so I could order parts on monday.
Since I have the T56 out, I'm thinking of overdering a rebuild kit from hanlon motorsports or the gear box. it could be fun....

FYI, there is a guy that works at AAMCO off of Burnet that does all the race trannies for the drag racers in town. He does damn good work and will warranty it for as long as you own it, or atleast he does for the auto's. I think he charges around 600 per tranny depending on how much needs to be done and he does it all as side work. Takes him about 2-3 days to get one done. I know a lot of people that have used him in the past and have nothing but good to say about him. That is unless you know or have a good idea how to fix a T56, I personally don't like digging around in those kinda things. A lil' off topic but......I don't suppose you have a tool to get the fluid out of a vette rearend do you?

After I was hit with a $300 tow charge from Arlington to Granbury, I bought a trailer.

And the small group of friends I run with has an agreement that if someone who has driven to an event can't make it home and a towed vehicle can, then the broken one gets towed. It's good to have a group of friends to help out.

And if you are serious about a tow vehicle, I have my old PU truck I would sell.

http://69.56.235.42/forums/showthread.php?...threadid=500177

It's rough, has it's quirks and needs a few hundred dollars worth of TLC but it will pull stumps. I would make you a killer deal on it.

If you are serious, call me at 254-897-5849

Morgan, do you know if the clutch in your car has ever been replaced?

If not, there is a TSB for a piece... I think it's the pilot bearing. The original equipment one wears, and if it's not replaced, it will cause exactly what happened to you. Ask me how I know. The TSB replaces that original bearing with a different type of bearing that is not prone to allowing the clutch to wear unevenly (and ultimately break apart).

I get about 70K out of a clutch. I've only replaced the flywheel once (this last time, at about 270K).

Karen

I put this last clutch in 30K miles ago. I used a pilot bushing from the autoparts store, which by the way was over halfworn. More than the original (?) was at 100K miles. The replacement bushing you speak of, is it the roller bearing as opposed to the bushing? The GM replacement for all bushings (diff cars/trucks) seems to be this roller bearing. I actually have one, I just went w/ the bushing thinking it would be more reliable. I can't see how a bearing would survive in there w/ no added lubrication and all that extra clutch debris/dust.

If I rebuild the T56, I'm gonna try it myself w/ a kit from Hanlon Motorsports or The Gear Box.

Geez Mitch. If I wasn't buying a house right now....

I've been told that the bushing is stronger and more reliable, that is what I went with, especially after blowing up 2 POS Spec Stage 3's last year.

My brother calls it a "needle bearing," but, yeah, I think it's the same thing. He said the bushing gets worn out, and allows for a more "elliptical path" of travel.

I haven't replaced the bearing, and it's been in there now for almost 150K.

Karen