Being one of the more senior guys on this forum (48), I use my experience to assert a review of our clutch.

This is done as it relates to:

• my 30 years of driving a stick (1st car was 4-speed Nova SS 350 I bought in 1977)
• my 1,000+ dragstrip passes over that time (in all different types of cars)
• my proven class winning driving style/technique (everyone's seen a pic of my trophy)

Also, I learned to powershift at such an early age that powershifting was more natural to me when racing than was lift-throttle shifting.

OPINION: The SS/SC clutch is WEAK as compared to similar performance vehicles

Guys can flame (I know who they are) but I give their opinion little to no worth. I've just been at this game for way too long to have anyone tell me what's-what as it relates to driving style/expected clutch wear.

Now I love may car and I'm glad I bought it. But once again ...

OPINION: The SS/SC clutch is WEAK as compared to similar performance vehicles

 

I started to notice after I got tuned some 1->2 shifts under hard acceleration that the clutch would break loose and slip... I only have 31,000mi and I am guessing the motor is just making more hp/trq than the clutch can transfer... I haven't decided on a replacement yet, either an Exedy Hyper single or Centerforce is where I am leaning... I want to pick up a set of stage II axels and an LSD before I take it in for the clutch so I can do everything in one shot... My wallet hates this car...

 

x2

(except I only have 7k on my car and clutch started slipping with Stage 2 at 5k)

FYI: It was nice out this morning, so I did a little more impromptu testing ...

• The tire squeals when mashing the accelerator in 1st gear at 10mph
• I get no slipping when flooring the accelerator in any given gear
• Heavy throttle 1/2 shift = mucho slip (need to lift off)
• Heavy throttle 2/3 shift = mild to moderate slip (catches after 3-5 seconds while maintaining throttle)
• Completely lifting the throttle in between shifts (boring and quite unnecessary) results in little/no slipping

So the issue here is not being able to apply any rpm's whatsoever in between shifts.

This is NOT normal for a new/properly operating clutch. That much I know to be true.

So the SS/SC clutch is weak for it's class. It's the only car I've ever owned that did this with such incredibly low mileage.

 

This is just my opinion, and may or may not have any real value. But I think a lot of people just need to get used to the electronic throttle control.

If you haven't noticed, there is a delay on the throttle, albeit a small delay, there is still one there. Go out in your car, just sit there in neutral and hit the gas. You should see what I'm talking about. Same thing applies if you're on the gas hard and let off. This causes a lot different behavior than a standard cable throttle.

When you are hammering from 1st to 2nd, getting on the clutch right as you let off the gas isn't ideal (IMO) because the computer is still on the throttle for a small amount of time after you get off the gas. I've noticed that if I just delay getting on the clutch for half a second after getting on the gas instead of right away like you would in a cable throttle car, the clutch likes it a LOT more and I get no funny reaction out of it and it grabs solid all the way through the next gear.

Again, just my opinion, take it for what it's worth, which isn't much.

 

i had a slipping clutch on a stock setup, but most likely because the guy before me beat the **** out of it.

 

IMO that's our heavy-as-hell flywheel, which has the rotational inertia of a small planet.

Best way to shift this car that I've found is let off the gas when going WOT, and then get the clutch re-engaged a fraction of a second before mashing on the pedal again. Once you get it down, no more slippy. Although, I do have to say that the couple of times I've accidentally put the hammer down before re-engaging the clutch, it just bucked hard against the mounts, no slip at all. Guess I got lucky.

 

Learn how to drive a stick....... period!

 

Thanks, lost another keyboard to a mouth full of coffee...

I am 39 years old have owned a '74 400cid TransAm 4spd, a '78 6.6L TransAm 4spd, a '92 Mustang 5.0 5spd, an '80 350cid Corvette 4spd, a '96 4.0 Ranger 5spd, an '03 4.0 Ranger 5spd and this Cobalt, I have never driven anything with such a weak clutch. If this car was still making 200hp the stock clutch would be just fine but at almost 300hp at the crank it just can't handle it... I'm not a kid beating the **** off my car every day, I'm driving 99% highway and I'm noticing it sucks...

 

The problem most face is changing their driving style to accommodate the SS/SC . If you can't / won't then your going to have issues .

Frank , where did you earn your trophy ? Local track bracket racing? Come on .... are you a national championship winning drag racer? You really are an ego maniac , your opinion means crap compared to most others on this site because you think our little cobalt should drive like all the older performance car's that you've driven .

My first car (still have it) was a 72 Nova SS powered by a 425HP 427 with a M-22 rock crusher and 4.56's in a 12 bolt. So does that mean my cobalt should shift like that? Nope , it took me atleast a month to change my old habits and get used to my SS/SC. My clutch doesn't slip ......ever. I guess i'll have to post a picture of my trophies now.

 

Looking at your Cobalt (06 Cobalt Ss/Sc /G85 /Stage II /Stage 3 Pulley/ Ingalls Etd / Aem Cai /Gmpp Touring Exhaust), I would say you are probably putting down about 230ish hp to the wheels... If you were putting more to the wheels you would see that this clutch just can't handle what the motor is capable of generating...

 

I'm putting down just about what you are, no problems with my clutch. It isn't the same as any other manual I have driven, I will say that much. But once you get used to it, there should be no problems.

 

For daily driving I don't have any issues with the car, I love the fact that it gets 30+ MPG and can get up when I need it to. Before I did the header and dp the low RPM hesitation in first gear used to annoy the crap out of me but that is history. As for this clutch it is a serious disappointment, it should be able to handle more than it does.

 

Not sure how people are having so many problems with the clutch...maybe I'm the exception. I learned how to drive stick on this car (I stalled it on my test drive, and 3 more times on the way home!). 2 years later, with a 2.8" and bolt-ons for the last 18 months, 31k miles, and it still grabs like it always has. Still on original pads / rotors, too. No warping.

I guess I'm too gentle.

 

I had already been driving a stick for 5 years at the time you were born.

You need more time behind the wheel ... period!

 

LOL, I'm with you, I have been commuting up and down the GSP since my Sr. year of high school (21 years ago) I now average about 42,000 mi a year! and they are telling me I need to learn how to drive... ROF

 

There are people putting down more power to the wheels than you that don't have an issue. Hell Paul's turbo car is still on the stock clutch . Don't get me wrong , the clutch manufacturer for our cars can produce a faulty clutch from time to time , but saying that the clutches as a whole are garbage isn't accurate .

 

It's real easy for someone to make fun of something that they never had.

Because no matter where anyone races, they just don't GIVE trophies away along with a side order of fries.

Come on ...

So if you admit that you don't have decades of racing experience and that you've never won a trophy drag racing ...

Then YOUR ego must be the size of Mt. Everest if you think I'm going to start listening to you.

Come on ...

Your opinion is now determined as being worthless, as you never even bothered to ask me about ALL the different types of cars I've driven before you went on to make that ridiculous statement.

So tell me then, how is an '04 SRT-4 considered an "older car"?

Foolish kid ...

Yup.

If a new clutch that was made for that car went south after 5k of normal/spirited driving, then something is wrong with the clutch.

It's just logic man.

Ever use it?

You mean if you had any trophies.

And at this point, even if you did produce a pic of one ... I wouldn't believe for a second that it was yours.

By your own childish/illogical statements, I could never believe anything that you ever said.

Come on ...

 

Burning out and shifting into second and burning second will kill your clutch fast if you do it enough. You want to eliminate burning out alls it does is make you lose time and tread.

 

ROLFx2!

You know BRN169, I've met some really intelligent younger people on this forum who are as much a gentleman as they are smart.

Quite unfortunately though, I've also encountered a number of:

• punks
• self-prescribed know-it-all's
• e-thugs
• 2-faced back stabbers
• other people not worth my time

So I'll just have to ignore the bad and try to remember the good that is here ...

 

The difference between me and you is..... i would never post up a picture of a trophies and think it mean's anything. Or would i think that trophie makes me an all knowing king of drag racing and clutches .

I've been going to the track since i was 10 years old ( a couple of decades) , and i've prolly made over 1000 passes in many different cars , i could care less what you think or if you listen to what i have to say. Save the "KID" talk for someone that cares Pop's.

 

Glad I could be of assistance

 

I personally don't think anyone has the right to tell anyone else that they need to learn how to "drive." I know of a close friend of mind that could drive a tri-axle with the best of 'em but might not have the experience to get the quick shifts that I do out of my car... Driving encompasses all vehicles and to tell someone they need to learn how to drive is quite foolish considering they may have experience driving a vehicle you've never even sat in.....

Getting back to the Cobalt and feeding some of my input. I've got 45K on my car now, I'm 21 and love the way the charger whines while I'm grabbing gears... I learned to drive stick on this car and like a previous poster stated, I too stalled quite a fews times driving it home from the stealership with a grin from ear to ear. I've noticed times when my clutch has slipped but have usually attributed this to driver error. Not being able to compare it to many other cars... I know it "feels" a lot different then other sticks I've driven and does feel a bit weaker when bangin' through the gears. But at the end of the day, the car makes me smile when I drive it, and that's all I can ask.

 

ur probaly launching at way high rpms

and over reving in 2nd...

what do you launch at??

 

I wouldn't post picture's of the trophy's , i'm not that kind of person. They only mean something to me and my family, not anyone else. I guess a person with an overinflated EGO, like yourself, really needs to show them off. Mine are in a box in my basement, not out on the internet trying to prove something to someone.

 

wow guys. I just didnt know that when i switched over to stage 2 my clutch would uber slip. Its all good now, i went and got a new one... Thanks! for all the help