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Southbend Clutch info?

43K views 230 replies 68 participants last post by  JazzGranpa 
#1 ·
Hey everyone,

I am a new Supra owner as of September. I bought a supra with an EFR 7670 turbo (57mm) and was not happy with the performance and I decided to go with a S366 turbo instead to come closer to my power goals of 600-650whp on 93+meth.

My Supra currently has a Spec Stage 2 clutch with a spec lightweight flywheel.
I took my car to the track before the 2013 season ended and I could see/feel the clutch slipping even with the smaller 57mm turbo.

With the new turbo set-up making more power, I will need a new clutch that can hold power in the 600-650 range.

Here is how I will be using the car:

I only take my cars to the track once per year and get about 3-4 passes in per year.
Most of the other hard driving will be highway pulls and street driving.
With that in mind and less than a $1,000 budget for a clutch I have done some research and everyone seems to like the single disc Southbend clutches. They are said to have a "like stock" or "light" pedal feel and hold the power!

I cannot find much info on where to actually buy the clutch kit or what one I need. another member on the forum suggested a "bronze disc" southbend clutch kit. I just cannot find it anywhere. I see HPF makes a bronze disc and uses a southbend pressure plate, but I just want some concrete answers or some other suggestions!

Thankx,
Michael
 
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#210 · (Edited)
My southbend stage 3 clutch has roughly 1200 miles on it and I just dynoed 775whp 665 wtq on a dyno jet. No signs of slipping.
It had a harsh engagement for the first 500 miles which resulted in friends stalling it out lol and then settled into being a buttery smooth stock like feel that anybody can drive.
 
#213 ·
Weird cause my stage 3 endurance has not slipped once at 740wtq.. multiple dyno pulls and runs on the street. Are you using dual mass flywheel?

I was on a Dynojet tho.. not sure if there is a difference there
 
#214 ·
Interesting. Yes I'm on the DMF. There is probably a slight difference. But this clutch has seen over 700whp going on its 3rd year now, so maybe thats a factor too. I will see if I can get the dyno sheet from SP and see if there was actually any clutch slipping or just tire.
 
#215 ·
Mine is 2 years old with a total of around 8500 miles. Last year i was at 700whp/600wtq now this year at 900/740.

I did spend over 1500 miles as a break-in period when it was first installed so not sure if that has to do with it. But i think the biggest factor is how the tq hits and where. Here is my dyno sheet so we can compare. My high boost tune has timing pulled out on lower rpms so maybe that is why mine is still holding up. Still 700 wtq at 5000rpm



Ryan
 
#216 · (Edited)
These stage 3 OFE clutches can hold some torque down low on the dual mass flywheel. Alpha dialed back the timing around 5K, but it hits pretty hard.
we'll see how long it handles it.
 
#219 ·
Going to go either stage 3 drag or endurance

I just read the whole thread so from what I gathered the drag will hold more power but the endurance will last longer with both feeling like stock. So I pretty much pick one, I think I'll grab the endurance.

Anyone purchases a southbend clutch from Australia? I might contact them and see if I can send my flywheel in but there based in the states I believe so that's going to cost a fortune, I might have to bite the bullet and buy a new flywheel and stage 3 endurance.
 
#220 · (Edited)
Hi guys,

My South Bend Stage 3 Endurance took a beating on my car, it was all my fault tho..

I prepared my car for drag racing and had MT slicks on it. It seems that i slipped the clutch too much when staging the car and caused it to over heat. Obviously this clutch is not recommended for drag racing and i was fully aware of it. Clutch NEVER SLIPPED even though you can clearly see the damage below. Only symptoms i had was a noisy tranny at idle and under load on high gears, below 2000 rpm - https://youtu.be/mHsSGkTlfjM
Managed to run a 10.4 @ 145mph that day.. Here are some pics...







Seems that a 4 small chunks off the clutch disc came off and got stuck on the flywheel and pressure plate. This was causing the clutch assembly to vibrate and make the tranny grind loud at idle. Took me a while to isolate the issue and tried another V160 to make sure its not the tranny making noise. I tried my old stock clutch and all noises went away so i knew it is the clutch/flywheel or pressure plate.

So i cleaned those black parts off. The clutch material simply peeled off with a blade and i sanded down lightly the pressure plate and flywheel. Put everything back together and the noise is almost completely gone. Clutch drives normal and it not slipping.

I called South Bend and showed them pictures.. They recommended i resurface the PP and Flywheel and get the disc refinished. They also offered to do it for free which is nice. Since summer season is not going to last that long here in Canada, i decided to put everything back for now and maybe send it down in October.

Long story short - do not slip this clutch for long or this happens. Still an amazing clutch since it NEVER slipped even with clutch fragments stuck on PP and Flywheel. I have a feeling that this clutch can handle way more power then recommended since it did not slip even with the disc not fully seated. Also quick reminder that i'm pushing this clutch waaay past its recommended limit of 660wtq. This week i'm going to try the car at 40 psi and should put the car around 800wtq. Let's see if it can take it.

Ryan
 
#221 · (Edited)
Hi guys,

My South Bend Stage 3 Endurance took a beating on my car, it was all my fault tho..

I prepared my car for drag racing and had MT slicks on it. It seems that i slipped the clutch too much when staging the car and caused it to over heat. Obviously this clutch is not recommended for drag racing and i was fully aware of it. Clutch NEVER SLIPPED even though you can clearly see the damage below. Only symptoms i had was a noisy tranny at idle and under load on high gears, below 2000 rpm - https://youtu.be/mHsSGkTlfjM
Managed to run a 10.4 @ 145mph that day.. Here are some pics...







Ryan
Update to my post from 2ish years ago #209
Car has a Southbend Stage 3 Endurance Kevlar clutch with an OEM flywheel. Both new at time of installation. 2ish years ago with roughly 12k miles now, mostly dd in the city.
Only making BPU power, under 400. Clutch is supposed to hold 660 Ft-Lbs.

To be honest, I was out killing some new Mustangs the other day and I launched pretty hard.. Right after, the clutch pedal went soft like a marshmallow so I pulled over. I smelled the clutch and knew it got hot and went home. The clutch wasn't slipping when I drove home so I thought it was something in the hydraulic system. Next day I went to work and the clutch started slipping, by the time I got home it was unbearable. I could be standing still, drop the clutch in first and she wont even stall. I took it to my friend's shop that put the clutch in 2 years ago and he told me the clutch might be done because the hydraulics don't have a leak and it still dis/engages at the top.

I don't know for sure but I'm trying to find out before things get taken apart and I spend a bunch of money. Got any ideas what it might be, or is the clutch really done? I'll be really disappointed if all it took was one bad launch to wreck the clutch after only 12k miles with under 400hp.
 
#226 ·
Soft pedal (with no fluid leak) and clutch slipping = possible pressure plate damage (the spring teeth).
 
#227 ·
If I get under the car and look through the transmision's bottom covers would I be able to more or less see some damage or what might be wrong with it?
 
#229 ·
Glad I found this thread!

I am currently running a T56 Magnum in my Supra and went with the Clutch Master full face Kevlar clutch. They rate it at 600torque, but after calling them they also said they highly under rate the torque rating. My issue is like many others here, the clutch takes an absurd amount of break in time. I'm at 380 miles now and the clutch slips really bad if I try to go full throttle in 3rd gear.

I plan on going another 300 miles or so and trying again to see if the clutch will start holding the power (654whp & 490wtq)
 
#230 ·
I got a question for the guys on here. I had heard that South Bend will build a new OEM clutch if sent in to them to be made a stage 3 endurance. Should hold about 600 tq (rated by them). I called in and the guy i spoke with said they don’t do that. Any tips of whom to ask for?
 
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