Malingator Posted November 30, 2007 Share Posted November 30, 2007 well the new Spec Stage 3+ Clutch is in as well as a Spec Flywheel. So far (only 60 miles) you can tell it grabs really well. Been going VERY easy on it to break-in. There is some clatter if you downshift and it gets to low revs and getting the hang of first gear is pretty tricky sometimes, it's NOT forgiving...not enough, stall, too much and you launch....am sure once it sets and I drive it some more will work just fine. The only other thing I notice which I don't think is related, and may just need some extra lube is the shifting is really tight...the stick sometimes is really smooth, other times is really stiff and you really need some push to get it in gear...opinions? Oh yea,,,went stage 3+ as I'm planning on going w/ a FMIC, 18g internals and a fuel set-up this summer...didn't want to push a Stage 2 too the max... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
20thGTI2LGT Posted December 1, 2007 Share Posted December 1, 2007 nice, going to have to include this in my options for my replacement coming soon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balrock Posted December 1, 2007 Share Posted December 1, 2007 i am about to take the SPEC stage 2+ and the LWFW for my 18G setup. what else did you look at before taking the plunge and where did you get it and how much if you dont mind me asking. PM if you prefer. THX! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malingator Posted December 1, 2007 Author Share Posted December 1, 2007 I spoke w/ ACT but they use a WRX flywheeel. Figure that if I was spending $ on a clutch and flywheel might as well have as strong a flywheel as the clutch. The Spec flywheel is supposed to be stronger than the WRX so it just made sense to go w/ it. The total install w/ parts was about 2k...not cheap, but not too bad...at least I don't have to worry about doing that upgrade when I go up in turbo and FMIC... Now if I can figure out why some shifts are really stiff...no reason I can think of..sometimes is just fine, other times it's tough to shift....ideas anyone???? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 1, 2007 Share Posted December 1, 2007 2k for clutch? Not bad? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malingator Posted December 1, 2007 Author Share Posted December 1, 2007 clutch was $700...Flywheel was 370...and had some labor problem, fluids etc...actually was $1600 now that I look at the full bill... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Noktrnal_Legacy Posted December 1, 2007 Share Posted December 1, 2007 Wow.. I can't imagine spending that much on a clutch.. Lol.. Sounds good though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boostjunkie Posted December 2, 2007 Share Posted December 2, 2007 I spoke w/ ACT but they use a WRX flywheeel. Figure that if I was spending $ on a clutch and flywheel might as well have as strong a flywheel as the clutch. The Spec flywheel is supposed to be stronger than the WRX so it just made sense to go w/ it. The total install w/ parts was about 2k...not cheap, but not too bad...at least I don't have to worry about doing that upgrade when I go up in turbo and FMIC... Now if I can figure out why some shifts are really stiff...no reason I can think of..sometimes is just fine, other times it's tough to shift....ideas anyone???? The ACT clutch is setup to use an 06+ WRX clutch or ACT's lighter weight equivalents. Sorry to burst your bubble, but the Spec flywheel you chose is in no way, shape or form "stronger". $2K, or even $1600 is quite a bit to pay for a clutch. I'd also question either the install or the clutch itself, as movement in the shifter should not be affected by a new clutch. Sounds a bit like the clutch is not fully disengaging, which is making the syncros work overtime and the shifter action stiff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malingator Posted December 2, 2007 Author Share Posted December 2, 2007 The ACT clutch is setup to use an 06+ WRX clutch or ACT's lighter weight equivalents. Sorry to burst your bubble, but the Spec flywheel you chose is in no way, shape or form "stronger". $2K, or even $1600 is quite a bit to pay for a clutch. I'd also question either the install or the clutch itself, as movement in the shifter should not be affected by a new clutch. Sounds a bit like the clutch is not fully disengaging, which is making the syncros work overtime and the shifter action stiff. Actually I was only going off what ACT told me on the phone when I called. They told me that I was better off not to use the WRX flywheel and to look for another company to use. They actually told me to call another company....no idea why, but that's what the tech at ACT told me himself... I hope your not right about the clutch not releasing fully. I can't tell you all the drama that went along w/ getting this install done...you have NO idea!!!! Car was down for about 3 weeks...!!! I got kinda stuck w/ some install cost due to some unforseen problems...For all the work that was done the price was fair. If things had gone according to plan the cost woould have been closer to $1400 or so..give or take..after tax for the parts that's only $400 for labor...I guess such is life when dealing w/ cars..sometimes you win...sometimes you get a little stuck and spend more than you want...at least the car is back on the road. If this clutch needs to come out again I'm gonna have a friggin heart attack....!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigT Posted January 2, 2008 Share Posted January 2, 2008 Any update on this? Do you mind if I ask who did your install? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lucas569 Posted January 2, 2008 Share Posted January 2, 2008 woah $1600? my friend whos an ex suby tech does it for $200 (labor) i helped one of my buds install an ACT clutch on his LGT and i swear this was one of the simplest installs weve had so far... what went wrong? normally when a shop qoutes a price its by the book... they shouldnt charge you more if they have problems... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malingator Posted January 2, 2008 Author Share Posted January 2, 2008 Clutch rounded up for sake of math...$700 Flywheel $375. Machine my old flywheel before found out we could not get it in safe thickness $100. So in parts $1175 add .06 sales tax..$70..so without any labor already at $1240..now fluids and labor..oh yea..and tax on the labor... Also here's a post from the shop about what went wrong. they didn't charge me a penny for the problems... LONG!!!! We opened an account with Spec as a customer with a Subaru Legacy had requested a clutch through them. That cost US Thousands of Dollars in labor for THEIR Manufacturer Defects, and more importantly, cost our customer his vehicle for 2 weeks. We were told the reason a clutch we installed was not working properly was because we most likely did not install it correctly because "we were sent the correct parts". We explained to the guys at spec we have done clutches in some of the craziest vehicles ever, and we had installed and removed this one 5 times and it would not engage properly. He told us, that did not mean too much to them as they had seen mechanics with the highest accreditations could not perform a simple job. (He said it nicely though) It took a week and a half for Spec to agree to LET US PAY to send this clutch back. They even asked us to measure it before it left, and we said ok: __________________________________________________________________ Jeremy The Pressure Plate to Ring Gear Stock 23.23 Spec 21.96 Thickness of Flywheel Stock: 44.86 Spec: 40.86 Pressure Plate Friction Surface: Stock: 13.3 Spec: 11 I believe these are the measurements you need. Please let me know. Thanks. Geoffery (Remember this part of the convo as it comes in to play later) _______________________________________________________________ Turned out we were sent the correct parts, but they were defective. After OVERNIGHTING it for $100 we were told 2 days AFTER it was recieved that "One of the rivets was contacting the plate which caused it not to release. That being said, it is fine and thus ready to roll". We requested it to be sent overnight AGAIN to have our customer taken care of as fast as possible. then Spec shipped it Ground...and we were ONLY Notified after we realized we STILL hadnt recieved it and called them to find out what was up. They cancelled that one and shipped another one overnight. After appologizing they emailed: "I will send another kit to you today, via UPS NDA. This will get the parts to you tomorrow for installation as planned." THEN...looking at our Credit Card Statement...SPEC CHARGED US TO SHIP IT BACK OVERNIGHT and DID NOT TELL US!!!!!!!!!! They then credited us back after leaving me on hold for 30 minutes and after i flipped out on them We recieved it 2 days later and "whoops" it comes with the incorrect Bearing. We explained this in an email to Spec and said, you sent the wrong bearing... we were told by our salesman "I didn’t personally send it…it goes through production." Good answer right? So we already ordered a new bearing at that time as we realized we could not count on them for anything. Our customer called spec to complain to them about their service as i had shown him all the emails and called him every day to update him. Spec then basically lied to him, and said it was something we had done, and he told our customer we said "the measurments on the clutches were not the same" and thats what we were focusing on and complaining about the whole time, thats why they didnt authorize an immediate return on the clutch, Which of course was a load. They then asked him what he wanted to "Make up" for the issue. He then said, how about you credit me back some money towards my flywheel. They told him he would not be getting ANYTHING for free and that if he wanted a spec product in the future they would give him some form of the discount. We did not bill our customer for ANYTHING more than a simple clutch install. When we relayed that to Spec they said "wow i am suprised, most places would charge him at LEAST Storage fees" Guess your outlook on customer service varies form company to company. To be fair: We also put a Spec clutch (Which had already been ordered before this all took place) in a RSX and it was fine. We have been around for many years, and by far have crowned Spec as one of the WORST companies we have ever dealt with. I have 18 Pages of emails from us to them documenting this situation and their responses as does our customer. Lastly, this story is not about how good or bad a product is. It is about the customer support you get AFTER the sale. Many times you will find this is JUST as important as the quality of the product you are purchasing. We pride our selves on offering the best customer service to our customers and in a case like this, it cost us a couple thousand dollars to make our customer happy, And we learned a valuable lesson of what NOT to sell. This is our experience with this company and is not intended to bash or to harm a company, it is simple as our experience put out there for others to make their own decisions. If you have any other questions or you are curious what we might have for your application please be sure to let us know. Thanks Geoffery Modified by Geoff@SwiftMotorsports at 7:51 AM 12-12-2007 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boostjunkie Posted January 2, 2008 Share Posted January 2, 2008 Ouch... I drove an LGT with a Spec clutch and it was pretty nice, but damn that story was REALLY bad. I have an ACT in my car and that is what I always recommend now. Never had a problem with any of their kits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qikslvr Posted January 2, 2008 Share Posted January 2, 2008 This is funny because SPEC told me that their clutch packs and FW's are designed to match "exactly" what the OE specs are. I love my SPEC Stage2/LWFW setup and have had a few minor issues to deal with, but nothing like this. Their customer service reps seem to be pretty sure that you are the problem and not their product. As stated in my review; they were no help in solving my TOB squeal problem. I pretty much figured it out on my own and got some suggestions from my Subie mechanic. There have been at least 5 people on here that have had the same TOB/Clutch Fork issues with SPEC clutches and SPEC has done nothing to assist any of us nor have they acknowledged the issue as of yet. Great products with not so great support/cust service IMO. Let's kick this pig! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLKGT5 Posted January 2, 2008 Share Posted January 2, 2008 I have the same problem with my TOB, but I use a ACT setup. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 3, 2008 Share Posted January 3, 2008 I read some negative comments about Spec before. Spec should be awarded Planet Subaru award. Your unclutch company.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigT Posted January 3, 2008 Share Posted January 3, 2008 Damn! They suck at customer service. Guess who won't be buying a spec clutch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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