[DeTomaso] Clutch slipping at 3000 RPMs

Sat Aug 11 13:41:09 EDT 2007

I am quite confident it is a Pantera clutch, but not sure which kind. My father would not put junk parts in it, but cannot check since he passed away years ago and I do not have any paperwork regarding this project.

The clutch has been bad for many years, never really changing. I believe the mechanic that installed it, Ray from Pantera of Houston, had issues with the shaking and opted to have it shake less and engage less probably.

I will take some pics of the slave cylinder and how it is adjusted, just had to replace the lifts on the trunk lid last night, got tired of propping the lid up with a broom handle and now can work on it a lot better.

-----Original Message-----
From: MikeLDrew at aol.com [mailto:MikeLDrew at aol.com]
Sent: Friday, August 10, 2007 8:00 PM
To: Szwab,Konrad,HOUSTON,IT; detomaso at realbig.com
Subject: Re: [DeTomaso] Clutch slipping at 3000 RPMs

In a message dated 8/10/07 7 31 24, Konrad.Szwab at AlconLabs.com writes:

Any other thoughts ?

Everybody is leaping to the conclusion that your clutch is shot.  And it may be true.

BUT, it's also possible that it is just horribly out of adjustment.  Instead of not releasing completely, instead it is not *engaging* properly, and is slipping.

I have seen this happen to Matt Bradley's Pantera.  The prior owner was apparently a cheapskate, and instead of installing a proper Pantera clutch, instead he stuck a regular Mustang clutch in there.  When they fired it up, the fingers of the clutch hit the bellhousing, and busted it. :<(

So, instead of replacing the clutch and bellhousing, they fabricated a metal cover for the busted-out portion, then put it all back together, and improperly adjusted the clutch intentionally, partially depressing the fingers to keep it away from the bellhousing.  Then they sold it to poor Matt.

We drove it to a track event at the Motorsports Ranch, and on the way down I could tell that the clutch was slipping under hard acceleration.  Once at the track, the combined Pantera tech crew found it horribly out of adjustment, and adjusted it properly.  He started up, sounded great, let the clutch out and started to drive away and CRACKCRACKCRACKCRACKCRACKCRACK!!!!

He depressed the clutch right away, and the noise stopped.  That was how we figured out the problem.  We mis-adjusted it so he could limp it home, and soon afterwards he chucked it over the hedge and installed a Centerforce PANTERA clutch.  No problems after that.

So.  Do you KNOW what clutch is in your car right now?  If it's a Mustang clutch, you might have the same scenario as above going on.  And even if you have a proper Pantera clutch, it could simply be misadjusted.  Before condemning it, I would at least try to see if you can adjust it properly and get proper function out of it.

If you do have to replace it, definitely put some kind of Pantera clutch in there (you can get very good stock-style replacements from Pantera Performance Center, or Centerforce clutches from the Pantera vendors, or even from Summit Racing etc. if you have the Pantera part numbers, which they probably won't have).

Good luck!

Mike

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