5.9 clutch
 

I have a 02 dodge 5 speed. I need a new clutch. I got 160k out of the old one. Most of the time not hooked to anything. I tow, though not very frequently. Range from 300 to 12,000 pounds, with an occasional load over 16. Like during the fall, I may go haul 6 loads of round bales. But its mostly a few four wheelers or maybe 10 head of cattle. Do I need a 13? Or can I go like a step up with a valair 12? I plan on keeping it for as long as I can.

If you're going single disk, I don't think there's much of a price difference between the two sizes of clutches. Are you running at stock power, programmed, or what?

It seemed like it was 280 for the 12 & it seemed like it was a step above stock, maybe organic something? The 13 was 650 maybe & it came w a flywheel. Stock right now, considering a diablo pwr puck. 50 hp.

we have had good luck with the sacs ceramic 12" replacment clutch, holding fine in 12v's with "100" plates slid forward

You're going to have to put that last sentence in English. Me no comprende. I was with you until after 12v.

I thought we didnt like ceramic clutches for towing because of how hard they catch?

Basically he's saying that the clutch he is referring to is holding between 100-150hp over stock on a 12v.

Two different questions. On a clutch, you are more worried about hp than what you're towing ? To rule out the slave/master cylinder, my transmission guy said he couldn't see the rod actuating. He had it in the air. Is this something you should be able to see or feel or is something in the way?

not what i ment at all, the ceramic's dont wear as fast, can take more slipping, and have a higher friction coeficient, as a result they can hold more power

if you had a slave/master cylinder issue then probably the clutch wouldnt release, so if it is slipping then thats probably not the issue

i've been towing with single and dual disk 12 button ceramic clutch's for years, now the 6 button ones thats a whole different ballgame they act more like the southbend Con-Fe clutchs which have the feramic side to the disk, i dont recomend those for anything, if you need more then a 400hp clutch, go with a street dual and be done

True. And I went back and checked his first post and he said he rarely tows. I guess I saw the weights he listed and assumed he towed often.

This is whats going on. I can step on the clutch, start it, and it won't go in gear. Sometimes, on the way to the shop, the clutch would let me switch into 1st from a stop. A couple times, I had to kill it to get it to quit pulling. Stepping on the clutch had no effect . So, more times than not, the clutch would not let me out of gear. As far as I can tell, when it is in gear it's not slipping. The fluid is not dirty in the reservoir , & the pedal does come out when I step on it. So, I dont know if it's the clutch or slave/master. The guy at the shop said he thinks it's the clutch but he's not sure. He also said he had it in the air & could not see the
Rod engage or disengage. He could not see it. I guess something was in the way. Pumping the clutch numerous times has no benefit.

It sounds like an air in the hydraulics issue. If you can figure a way to pressure bleed the system from the bottom up it is easier to get trapped air out than trying to foot bleed from the top down. I made a pressure bleed tank from pvc and some fittings that works well. I use it on brakes and clutch systems.

the way the slave/master cylinders on these trucks are set up they come new as a sealed unit so i would think if it had air in it, you would probably see a leak somewhere. unless the guy at the shop took the two 13mm nuts off the studs and removed the slave cylinder from the bellhousing then there is no way he could see the rod, even then when you do remove it the rod can just fall out, and i wouldnt suggest pushing the clutch without the slave cylinder being bolted up correctly. now that we know more about the problem i would start with another set of master/slave cylinders since it only takes about 15min to change them out and if thats not the problem its not a bad idea to replace them with a new clutch anyways. if the cylinders dont fix the problem then your going to have to pull the transmission and inspect all of the parts of the clutch system. it could be the throw out bearing, or could be wear on the pivot fork, or even a problem with the pressure plate like on of the pivots inside it being broke. i have seen all of these things cause the problem you are having. when inspecting all of the parts keep in mind that it only takes as much as .025" of wear to cause the clutch to not release

Ok, had the m/s replaced w a valair. Same problem, needs new clutch. Now, the guy I talked to where I bought the part said ceramics weren't good to slip the clutch. True? Did I waist money replacing the master?

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Valair has a 12 rated 300 hp 700 ft pounds 3400 pressure plate $280. Organic facings.

i've never had any problem with a ceramic clutch

The ceramic is one of the toughest materials out there, the negative about them is that they catch hard, meaning they don't engage as smoothly as other materials.

A ceramic clutch is either engaged or disengaged. It does not slip.

Luke

they do not feel like an organic clutch no, but i wouldnt say they are in or out, try a con-fe feramic clutch now that is in or out but the sacs clutch that i'm talking about is not. they use what looks exactly like the disks that SB uses in their ceramic 12cb dual disk's (which i tow with on a weekly basis) and for the holding capacity they engage plenty easy. I have never had a problem towing with these clutch's even backing up loaded has never been a problem.

Ceramic's are a NO SLIP clutch, unless its a multi disc, and still it is limited slip and we do not recommend them for towing. If you have enough power to just let out on the clutch and go, then you will be fine. Most dont. You can also underpower a clutch. Forcing a ceramic clutch to slip when it is not designed for that will burn it up. Some people do use them for that, most wont have good luck. JMO

This is also why they engage so quick, if they had slip in them they wouldnt