Lightened flywheel and standard clutch

[Antman]

Hi All,

I've read a number of threads explaining the advantages of a lightened flywheel and feel like taking the plunge! I will be speaking to Mr T about sorting a clutch problem I have been having for a while (under warranty) so I was thinking about getting the TRD flywheel and have them install it whilst it's there.

Thing is, can a lightened flywheel work with the standard Toyota clutch, or will I end up having to replace the clutch more often? I have no other serious engine mods in place (yet!  s:wink: :wink: s:wink:  ) Just wanting a bit more welly for as little cash as possible..

Thanks in advance!

[rtbiscuit]

i brlieve a lightened flywheel is great for the track, you may find it a pig to drive in stuff like traffic, as you will need more revs to pull away and stop the engine stalling.

i dont have one fitted so could be completely wrong, i believe ekona had one fitted to a two, abd i'm sure he will post soon.

if i'm wrong ignore more.

if you want cheapish improvements try the mark iii pipe with a trd box filter.

then save up and get it chipped.

the chip is what i'm working towards now, just need to make sure i have everything else i want first.

most people will tell you the unichip is by far the biggest improving mod by any.

i suppose you could do it as the only mod. if you change your mind you just get it retuned.

good luck  s:wink: :wink: s:wink:

[Anonymous]

You're wrong  s;) s;)


If you're not going turbo, then the flywheel is probably one of the must-have mods I reckon. Response is improved no end, and it's no more hassle in urban traffic than a normal one (I only had issues due to the turbo wanting to spool up every time I moved off: When I was just N/A, it was absolutely beautiful to drive). The clutch won't wear out any more quickly either, so don't worry about that.

As Markiii has said elsewhere, it makes the car an absolute hoot to drive and you'll want to rag the nuts off it at every opportunity, as the revs just spin up so much more easily it's untrue. If you can, you should IMHO.

[kanujunkie]

i'll second that, had one fitted for some 40K now, about 25K of which was non turbo, whilst it takes a few miles to get used to, much like running in a new clutch. The spool up times are a lot quicker and the thing springs to life on country lanes.

no issues at all with mid town traffic or wear. My first clutch lasted 30K which was when the flywheel was fitted and my second clutch lasted 32k of which some was turbo, fair enough though the replacement of the stock clutch was an RPS

by the way, do have a look at these

 m http://www.ppeengineering.com/RPS.htm m

[Anonymous]

+1 for the RPS wheels, beautiful piece of kit.

[Anonymous]

I ordered one yesterday (RPS flywheel and clutch kit) based on Dan and Marks feedback. I can't wait to get it  s:D s:D

[Anonymous]

Good man, you'll love it! Be sure to do a nice write-up for us, be good to have another opinion on the setup.

[Anonymous]

Will do Dan!

[Tem]

...have you thought about the TRD clutch? Would be a nice extra for very little money, while they are working down there anyway.  s8) s8)

[markiii]

I ordered one yesterday (RPS flywheel and clutch kit) based on Dan and Marks feedback. I can't wait to get it  s:D s:D

Steve,

I suggest you get yourself some redline MT90 fluid for when they change it, makes a world of difference to teh shifting.

might be worth one of Prolexs TRD clutch lines as well

[rtbiscuit]

i'm interested now,

so this will make a difference to power delivery, you can access the power better.

and it makes no difference to driving in traffic. i'v had one or two friends who put lightened fly wheels on minis and said it made them difficult to drive in traffic. loads of revs needed to pull away gently lift with the clutch etc. feels like trying to pul away in 3rd.

how easy would it be for me to do this as a DIY job.

[Tem]

so this will make a difference to power delivery, you can access the power better.

Think of it this way, a flywheel is just a spinnig mass. The more you have it, the slower it makes the engine to change revs. Up or down. Floor the throttle and it takes a given time to hit redline. Remove some mass, floor the throttle again and it takes less time.

So yes, instead of using the engine power to spin a heavy flywheel, that power goes to the wheels instead. You won't get more power out of the engine, but more of the same power will make it to the wheels, cause you have less losses.

and it makes no difference to driving in traffic.

Don't get it wrong. It does make a difference. If it didn't, it wouldn't be much of a mod, would it?  s;) s;)

But the difference isn't anything a normal person couldn't get used to. It's like driving two different cars, sure there's a difference and you can't just drive them alike, but a normal person can drive both without any issues.

i'v had one or two friends who put lightened fly wheels on minis and said it made them difficult to drive in traffic. loads of revs needed to pull away gently lift with the clutch etc. feels like trying to pul away in 3rd.

No offence to your friends, but usually people who complain that a light flywheel made their car useless in traffic are people who play Gran Turismo a lot, but never actually installed a light flywheel.  s:lol: :lol: s:lol:

how easy would it be for me to do this as a DIY job.

Changing the flywheel is easy, getting there is what's hard. You have to take the gearbox off before you get to it and there's not too much room to do it. Apparently yuo can do it without removing the engine, you just need to undo two(?) mounts and leave it hanging by one and tilt it.

If it sounds too hard, it probably is.  s:? :? s:?

[Anonymous]

I ordered one yesterday (RPS flywheel and clutch kit) based on Dan and Marks feedback. I can't wait to get it  s:D s:D

Steve,

I suggest you get yourself some redline MT90 fluid for when they change it, makes a world of difference to the shifting.

might be worth one of Prolexs TRD clutch lines as well

Thanks for the tip Mark I'll get some of that in ready. I've already got the clutch line waiting to be fitted as I bought one from Dave some time ago but have never got round to fitting it  s:oops: :oops: s:oops:  

I guess I can get the Redline from the likes of Demon Tweaks, what's the gearbox capacity/how much will I need to buy?

Cheers  s:) s:)

[Antman]

Thanks for all the replies!

The reason I want to use the standard clutch is because it has only done 1500 miles after Mr T fitted a new one under dealer warranty! They just need to 'adjust it' to stop the car vibrating at 2,000 rpm!

I probably won't be going turbo, so the plan is to extract as much out of the N/A engine as possible, so induction kit, exhaust, manifold (really must get round to gutting the precats), maybe a sports cat... and the lightened flywheel, which I figure will give the more noticeable gain. Once the clutch wears out, the TRD unit will go in   s8) s8)  

I have read a bit about Fidanza flywheels, but searching on here shows only one member has one fitted - is that because of quality, or just because RPS / TRD / C-One are tried and tested items?

[Chris]

My first clutch lasted 30K which was when the flywheel was fitted and my second clutch lasted 32k...

Now tht's quite alarming - is this the standard sort of life expectancy one can expect from a stock clutch?  I'm just approaching 40k, and haven't really factored costs for changing it   s:roll: :roll: s:roll:  

On the other hand, does anyone know if flywheels have the same effect on the smt?  Did martin have one pre turbo?

[markiii]

martin had teh rps both pre and post turbo

[kanujunkie]

My first clutch lasted 30K which was when the flywheel was fitted and my second clutch lasted 32k...

Ste's has lasted over 70k, it depends how you drive it

[ad_car_08]

Any down sides to fitting a used/second hand flywheel?
Should I be alarmed that the car might've been ragged or they slipped the clutch quite a lot, against the lightweight flywheel?

[markiii]

depends on the price and condition, but in principle it can be fine, I think Spit had my used RPS from memory and to my knowledge its still going some 8 years later

[ad_car_08]

I'm being told it looks in good condition, but never can tell from pictures whether it's going to be a decent flywheel

[Essex2Visuvesi]

I'm being told it looks in good condition, but never can tell from pictures whether it's going to be a decent flywheel

For peace of mind you can always get it refaced by a machine shop