dadsturn

I am curious if anyone has had a problem with monster clutches after they had corrected the manufacturing problem. My clutch is 6 mos. old and now i have to remove it and replace. Seems like the pressure plate is going south. This is going to cost me big time on the re-installation.

Steve @ monster has stated that they will replace at no charge if they find that it is a defective pressure plate, but no warranty on the labor,
which is common but still a cost i should not have to eat..what can you do.

What worries me is that i drive this car daily, and do not beat it at all. This 3.5 clutch should have lasted a long time under those conditions which is why i went with a 700 hp. clutch. I sure hope that the second clutch lasts.

ajg1915

I've good and bad about most clutches. Personally, I think it's just luck if you get a good or bad clutch.

Not sure what your mechanical skills are but you could change the clutch yourself. Personally, If it was my daily drive and I did not have a bunch of crazy power mods done to it, I would get a LS7 Clutch.

They seem to work well. No sense in spending crazy money on a high powered clutch when you don't need it.

argonaut

I don't know what manufacturing problem you are referring to but I do have a monster stage 3 in the car and really dislike it. I have a stock LS6 but wanted the stage 3 because I use the car for HPDE and track days and wanted a strong clutch that can survive the abuse. Well it may survive the race track but apparently it can't survive normal street driving. Within 3 months after installation the clutch started making a terrible racket (a very loud, very strong vibration that sounded like something was broken). When I eventually got around to pulling it out again several months later I found the PP with some very noticeable hot spots on it. Steve at monster told me it was due to slipping the clutch too much and wouldn't offer any help (I'm not complaining, my bad, I waited to long to report the issue). Well...maybe, but I've driven clutches for 30 years and never had a problem like this before. I've come to the conclusion that this was a poor choice of clutch for my usage. It might be great on a drag strip or for someone who really hammers it frequently but it can't handle normal street driving.

I ended up scouring the PP and clutch surfaces and put it back in. Its quiet for now but I know that horrible sound is going to come back. I guess I need to take it out and do a few high RPM launches....LOL.

Good luck - hope you get your issues solved. Replacing the clutch is a major PIA.

ajg1915

Personally, I think you're better off with an OEM clutch instead of the after-market clutches if you can get away with it.

Just seems to be too many problem with manufacturer tolerances, installation instuctions, etc ... with these units.

Clutch jobs on these cars a PIA and very costly because you have to get your car re-aligned everytime you pull down the drive train.

hatewhatownsyou

.... i wish i would have read this before.
i just put a stage 3 in mine, ive heard of alot of people mainly DD their stg 3 and never heard this happen before. im worried now lol

corvette8189

get you one of these
diamondclutch.com

dadsturn

I dont have much use for even an Ls7 clutch. I'm around 580 at the engine now with 4.10 gears. So far i havent heard many complaints from this forum, hopefully it is a fluke.
Steve has been helpful, but i still have to pay for the labor which as all know isnt cheap. If the clutch had lasted even two years i wouldnt have a big problem with the installation cost, but not even 6 mos. and not being hard on it at all kind of grinds me the wrong way to pay for the change out.

dadsturn

update. the clutch was removed last night and the friction disc was basically powder. But the clutch got me back from 400 miles. From what is seen by Vettech and myself is that the pressure plate just lost clamping ability. I am sending to Monster for their evaluation and replacement clutch.
Between the rental car and the cost to do over for a 6 mos. old clutch it is costing me more now then it did the first time around.

ajg1915

From my personal view, you can't have a modded vette and think that it is going to be a dependable daily driver.

My vette is my fun car and I have a Grand Cherokee as a daily driver.

As for the pressure plate failure, it would seem to me that the springs got over-heated and lost their strength. Either way, I would be moving on to a different brand of clutches.

Luckily for me I do most of mine own work and only sub-out some minor stuff, like tuning, body work (paint), alignments, etc ....

Would be nice to hear why the clutch failed at such a relatively low mileage level.

bumble-z

aig1915, I agree w/ you 100% There is no way I would put that same manufactured clutch back in my car. Whose to say that this one won't last 6 months either. Are you willing to pay labor charges again? Don't make sense to me. Labor charges for this type of work can be quite steep!. Good luck.

Z06supercharged

I have a Monster stage 3.5 in for 14K miles now. I beat the living hell out of it all the time and not any problems with it. I can slam 4th gear full boost at 6.5K and it holds perfectly with 752 rwhp and 5th gear wot pulls holding fine all the way to xxx mph as well. I broke it in as instructed then beat on it. I DD drive it as well and its very docile and no problems cruising like a ol lady with it either.

I had to remove my driveline at about 6K to change out a leaking remote bleeder and inspected the clutch and all was fine looking.

Monster no longer has the 3.5 series and has gone with a 6 puck design for the 3 series. My 3.5 is a full face disc and I probably got the last one.

When I eventually need another clutch ill buy another Monster.

81c3

I dont really like my Level 3. I bought it and was told its just like a stock clutch. Its not. It makes a horrible sound when it gets glazed from NORMAL street use. If you are a 1/4 mile guy, this might be the clutch for you. Has great clamping power, but dont let anyone tell you it has good street manners. I would never buy another Monster clutch regardless of the intended use.

0331MARINE

Im thinking about a diamond. Im going to give them a call and talk with them about it. Ive seen alot of bad stuff with the monsters also.

Z06supercharged

Ill tell you again my M3.5 has excellent street manners and I drive 500 miles a week easily just on back roads and in traffic messing around with it. My son drives it, my daughter and wife drive it as well just fine with no complaints. Unless you are some 105 year old lady with a pathetic weak left foot and arthritic knee then maybe you wont like it. It will come off line smoothly at very little throttle, slip it like hell with a off the line blast or a fast quick release it doesnt matter.
No matter what clutch brand is in someones car there will always be many people who dont like it for whatever reason. If there was 1 perfect performing clutch out there EVERYONE would be using that 1 and that 1 only. There isnt!

froman

^^x2

dadsturn

There havent been many Monster clutch failures, so i will take my chances. Most who own the clutch are very happy about it. I had nothing wrong with the clutch pedal pressure at all. Something went south on the pressure plate.

81c3

First of all I dont have a Level 3.5. Its a Level 3. Secondly, its not about the clutch pedal pressure. If you intend to use the Level 3 on the street and not dump the clutch at 2500-3000 rpm on a regular basis, it makes a terrible, embarrassing squelching noise due to pressure plate/flywheel glaze.

Steve at Monster sent me a video of a GTO making the exact same sound I described to him. He knew what the sound was when he sent the video. That tells me its a fairly regular occurrence and also why there is a Level 3.5 Its probably better suited for street driving.

ECS sold me the clutch and the sales guy said its just like the stock clutch. Its nothing like the stock clutch. Theres more to consider than the feel or pressure of the pedal when comparing clutches.

ajg1915

Well if that is the case, why did you start this thread ??

hatewhatownsyou

i have a stg 3 with 800 miles on it, when did yours start makin these noises?


im happy with mine, it chatters a little but who cares. pedal pressure is nice, and its easily slipped from a stop and grabs whenever i dump the clutch.




try to find one manufacturer that doesnt have somebody bitching about them... you wont.

hatewhatownsyou

do you and corvette work there or somethin?