clutchs
 

anyone heard of or used a phoenix friction brand cluth. looking for reviews

I have not heard much about them. they have been around for a while. Why not go with a Valair or SouthBend. We carry both.

So I want to stay with a single disk. Would I need to buy a kit with a new flywheel seeing as my clutch had slipped a lot and I'm sure it's got hot as hell.

wont do southbend again. bought complete kit for my '03. followed break in instructions. Still wont hook in 5th or 6th gear. Called southbend, they blamed it on installer. Talked to installer, they wont look into it unless I pay for the labor. I already paid for the clutch, pressure plate, hydraulics and install once, don't want to pay again for the same lack of service that I've been shown so far. That seems to be the norm anymore though...They're willing to take your money, but not going to go the extra mile to see that you are satisfied with the product.

I think it's important to let the installer supply the clutch and make a dab more money. That way you're covered in the event of an issue.
SBC has a list of authorized installers/suppliers nationwide.

I put about 400 miles on this Valair Kevlar ceramic clutch today and I freaking love it! It's a little weird the pedal is much lighter than I thought it would be but grabs hard. I can do a 5th gear run from 45-120 wot and it doesn't even think about slipping the tune I've got in it is (just a guess here but Im sure I'm close) about 120-140 over stock on 38 psi of boost. So far it's handling it very well and I can break the tires loose in 3rd easy instead of spinning the clutch. I had my mechanic throw away the old flywheel and clutch but I saw them. I've never seen heat spots so bad before and everything was just absolutely covered in clutch dust. But about 1250 dollars later I have new parts installed. In a few months I'll tell all you sbc bandwagoners that's it's still doing great and give it a 5 star rating

My local mechanic charged 225 to install my new 13 inch clutch and hydraulics. I usually let him order parts but he was completely reasonable on install price since he's drove my pickup and realized I actually needed a higher performance clutch and he was good with me running what I wanted to. That's the good thing about a little town, he backs up his work and he'll make it right with you. Sadly lots of mechanics half ass their job and charge you to fix what they fuck up in the first place.

Southbend and Valair make good products. I know both owners and have had good experiences with warranties from both companies. If the installer made a mistake that is not a defect in workmanship. If they get the clutch back to inspect they can tell. Be honest and straight up with them. Can't expect anyone to warranty a part they have not seen where they suspect install error or abuse.

3-4X that labor in San Diego.

This is local guy that's always been here and runs a shop by himself but he charges 55 dollars an hour so it's not like most shops a few hours away that charge between 65-80 and everything takes 2 hours longer. I had a buddy and our local ford dealer which is an hour away charged him 8 hours for a pcm install so he made them take it off and told them to eat shit and went and bought his own and we were done in less than an hour. It really helps having and honest shop and hard working mechanics