What's up guys. My car started making a clanking noise yesterday everytime i pressed the clutch. From searching on hear i'm pretty sure that it's the throw out bearing. I went to a dsm shop that's in my town this morning and the guy told me that I might as well replace the clutch and that it will cost $700 to replace the whole clutch assembly with a stock clutch. I asked the guy if he recommeded installing a ACT or Exedy clutch instead of stock but he told me that I should stick with stock because he said other parts would have to be upgraded when using a racing clutch. Is this true? I found a good deal on-line on a stage 3 clutch assembly but i don't wanna buy it if i'm gonna run into problems. My car is stock except for intake and exhaust. I also wanted if anyone on here has changed their clutch without having a lift. I'm tempted to just put the car on jackstands and do it myself. Thanks in advance guys.

No don't upgrade your clutch. Your car is stock.

Stock I say.

I eat emo kids for breakfast

1995 Eagle Talon (SOLD)
72' SuperBeetle
72' Standard Beetle
56' Deluxe Beetle

Why is it bad to upgrade the clutch when your stock? I guess I have the wrong mentallity when it comes to this subject. I usually would think that something upgraded is better off than stock. Wouldn't an upgraded clutch handle more and be less likely to break down on you?

If you're going to upgrade your clutch, don't get an ACT 2100 or 2600 unless you plan to run big boost later on. I say a stage 1 or stock.

No matter what you do, aftermarket TOB's have a problem getting along with other parts of the car. I had to replace mine (Sachs) in favor of an OEM TOB.

1998 Eclipse GS

GS-T Axleback|CAI|OBX 4-1 Header|AF/X UDP|

The main reason to upgrade a clutch is to keep the clutch from slipping under high torque. If your car is stock, you should not be having any slipping problems. Therefore you would be better off stock and saving money as well as avoiding any negative drivabilty effects. If you were to start running high boost or somehow make high HP with naturally aspiration you would notice the stock clutch will not hold up and will not grip properly. Actually right this moment I am half way done installing a new SPEC stage 3 clutch over my stock one because i'm now boosting 12psi and my stock clutch is not holding the power. I virtually do not have a 1st or 2nd gear at full throttle, the clutch just spins, RPMS soar and the car doesnt go anywhere until I hit 3rd gear.

What about replacing the clutch yourself? Have any of you guys done it with only jackstands? I'm not looking into spending $700 to just replace a clutch. I've done my own suspension, clutch master and slave cylinders, exhaust and a few other simple things. Do you guys think I can do it myself?

all your really doing is unbolting the pressure plate and taking off the flywheel. Get your flywheel resurfaced so the clutch breaks in properly. Then you just attach the flywheel again, centre the friction disk with the alignment tool and bolt up the pressure plate.

I think the job rates about 5 out of 10 (10 being motor rebuild and swap) But everything is a lot easier for me cause I have a shop.....with hoists.And air tools....so I've never pulled a tranny with the car on jack stands. For me. That would be a PITA.

I eat emo kids for breakfast

1995 Eagle Talon (SOLD)
72' SuperBeetle
72' Standard Beetle
56' Deluxe Beetle

Does anyone know where I can find a full write-up with pics on a clutch installation? I have a chilton's but usually I like to read as many different write-ups as I can before starting any work on my car.

You can do it. I'm doing it right now like I said. Minutes after that last post I dropped the transmission. It's raining now so I'm done for the day, but I'd say if I were doing just the clutch I could do it in perhaps 5 hours, 6 tops (without any major problems). Right now I'm at around 5 hours because I had to fully remove all of the front control arms that are to be replaced with brand new parts. It isn't easy, but I've been through much worse. If you have the tools and the patience, go for it. It will be a headache but save yourself some money and gain some useful knowledge. PS. I've been doing it with no help and a recently broken pinky finger on my strong hand.

You can do it. I would suggest you look into the PTCruiser clutch with the search here. I had one installed for about a year (before I blew up the trans) and it was very nice. Slightly higher clamping force than stock to compensate for the greater torque rating of the 2.4L in the PTCs. Drives like stock and very affordable.

You can do it yourself. It's modular and merely slips on and off once you have access. If you have the clearance, replacing the clutch on our cars (if you have the modular clutch), takes all of 45 seconds. It's getting to the damn thing that can be a PITA.

Save the cash. DIY.

Cool. Thanks for the advice guys. I'm gonna weigh out my options and see what I do. I'm leaning more towards doing it myself. I love working on my dsm.

It's a PITA the first time through, but if you're even considering replacing the clutch yourself, then do it. There are the gurus here that can replace it in 'x' amount of hours, but don't expect your first swap to reach their time mark (well atleast I couldn't.....2nd time might be diferent). This is a good learning experience, especially if you love working on your DSM. Remember to replace the rear main seal and TOB, it's just a cheap preventative measure. Also, don't waste your money on a clutch that you'll never see a benefit from other than a slightly stronger left thigh. I debated the same issue last summer and am glad I didn't spend the extra cash. The car doesn't make enough power to justify a fancy clutch, the stock will hold no matter how 'hard' you try to drive it.