So where's the thread with all the drivetrain mods needed with s/c hp? I have a 92 LT-1 6spd. Been looking @ Blowerworks.net kits.

 

W/Standard Shift I would defanely look at a HD clutch and scatter proof Bell Housing and Spicer Off Road U Joints [ I have a custom built Alum Drive and Half Shafts as well as a Dana 44 geared to 373 by Dana in my Automatic ] and C 5 brake conversion so it will stop with newfound power !

Don't spare the safety stuff cause plastic doesn't take kindly to flying metal !

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDbrv...=youtube_gdata

 

Thanks for the info.

 

LMK when you guys find the scattershield for the ZF...

 

My recommendations:

Clutch is a must. I had a SPEC stage II clutch break out the hub center on a N/A (old setup: 353 rwHP, 355 rwTQ) acceleration run. I was in the middle of 3rd gear hammering it and it was like I put it in neutral.

Needed a flatbed to get home.

Brakes are a must. Im real happy with my J55 13" conversion and eradispeed 2 piece rotors up front. The key though are my Hawk HP + pads (note: while they stop great - hot or cold, they squeak and dust). I originally ran EBC greenstuff pads with this conversion and they were terrible. Their initial bite wasnt very good and they faded.


I think forced induction is a little easier on drivetrain than say launching a 383 with gears/slicks or the instant tq boost of a nitrous oxide hit.

The special u-joints are a good idea, and dont forget to lower the rear bump stops so it will cause your suspension to bottom out sooner on a hard drag-style launch....instead of allowing the halfshafts to achieve significant angles (vs. straight out).

 

well, the scatter-proof bell housing is nice, But I can't say I've seen one for a zf?

the Spec clutchs totally blow!

get yourself in contact with Bill at ZFdoc.com, he typically recommends Carolina Clutch. Those guys can get you a combination that will work with you expected HP level. Otherwise, you end-up stepping into much more exotic combinations like a twin-disc street/strip setup.

I broke a u-joint before the blower install on the standard (dry) tires... these should be replaced with time.

the supercharger kits that are engineered from Greg are very well thought out and COMPLETE!

You don't "need" anything if you don't intend on beating the life out of the car (i.e. brakes- slow down sooner, don't go as fast, lol.... clutch- the stock one will service with the dual-mass flywheel for some time, and even absorb some drivetrain shock).

now if you mean "complementary" modifications to further benefit the limits of the supercharger, than by all means have a heck of a time blowing bucks on whatever your heart desires.

I'm still running standard brakes (c5 or better are in the works), and with modest driving (even aggressive bursts) they do fine. The key would be good pads (same pad options as the 13" combos!) and braided brake lines... with the age of these cars I would be much more concerned with an old rubber brake line bursting (been there done that not in a vette).

 

Don't have experience w/Corvettes W/Standards and most racing is done w/automatics or a combo like Lenco but back in the day before there were aftermarket scatter shields we used to make our own.

Several layers of alum formed work but me and a buddy found some sheets of Titanium [ we worked at an Aircraft plant ] and because of clearance formed it on the transmission hump on the inside !
Necessity is the mother of invention , someone said !

I ran a Aluminum Flywheel thinking it would not be as catastrophic if it failed and it reduced the driving assembly weight as well as the danger of flying steel .
I never had a flywheel explode but those guys from Midland that built the extremely high revving small block Fords in the middle sixties sure did.

Tachs olnly went to 8,000 back then and those guys used to hit 8,000 and count to four to shift. Est. 10,000 RPMs .
They ran a pair of Ford Falcons . 1 sedan one ranchero type.

If your car is a DD or you don't want to go that far put in the heavy duty clutch and the u joints .
And run Drag Radials and leave the huge slicks to decated race cars with plenty of HD racing drivetrain . Slicks are hard on the drive train period and especally hard w/ standards !

 

Don't have experience w/Corvettes W/Standards and most racing is done w/automatics or a combo like Lenco but back in the day before there were aftermarket scatter shields we used to make our own.

Several layers of alum formed work but me and a buddy found some sheets of Titanium [ we worked at an Aircraft plant ] and because of clearance formed it on the transmission hump on the inside !
Necessity is the mother of invention , someone said !

I ran a Aluminum Flywheel thinking it would not be as catastrophic if it failed and it reduced the driving assembly weight as well as the danger of flying steel .
I never had a flywheel explode but those guys from Midland that built the extremely high revving small block Fords in the middle sixties sure did.

Tachs olnly went to 8,000 back then and those guys used to hit 8,000 and count to four to shift. Est. 10,000 RPMs .
They ran a pair of Ford Falcons . 1 sedan one ranchero type.

If your car is a DD or you don't want to go that far put in the heavy duty clutch and the u joints .
And run Drag Radials and leave the huge slicks to decated race cars with plenty of HD racing drivetrain . Slicks are hard on the drive train period and especally hard w/ standards !

You can run wide tires with Gran Sport Backspacing 58 mm I think as 325 is stock width on those cars but there again too wide on a DD it places a load on the bearings unless you get it aligned for the new setup .

I don't think it's a problem unless you drive a lot but I noticed a really funky wear pattern on my 315's DR .

I'm now runing streets unless racing . Good DR's like my BFG s don't last many miles on the street anyway.
3 to 4 thousand less racing !

M/T last longer for a street car but are not as soft a compound.
Just make sure to get radials and not Bias Ply !
Corvettes don't like Bias after the seventies .

 

In 2002, carolina clutch did set me up with that SPEC stage II kevlar clutch. This is the clutch that failed. Although I just looked on their website and noticed they do not advertise SPEC anymore.

I know a lot of the mustang guys had cars with leaky rear main seals and were out there trying to raise cain claiming SPEC clutches were terrible.

As for my old SPEC stage II? I loved that clutch - right up until the point it failed (Which pretty much makes that statement moot). Why did I love it? Its feel was entirely consistent. Every other clutch Ive had had an engage point which would gradually get further and further away from the floor as the clutch wore out. 20000 miles of hard driving, drag launches later, its release point and bite was the same.

SPEC reassured me that their latest and greatest clutch (the stage III+), would be nothing like my old SPEC stage II. Thats what Im running now and it again is great. 100% consistent feel as it wears its feel doesnt change.

 

I ran the SPEC for several years, then had it come apart on the way home from a dyno pull. SPEC "made me whole" on the damages, but I sold the replacement (still in the package) and purchased a McLeod twin-disk that has been in ever since.

If you look at the design of the SPEC vs the McLeod, you will understand why you never hear of the McLeod's coming apart. They are expensive, but well worth it in very high HP applications.
Aaron

 

Your experience sounds just like mine. Do you remember what model SPEC clutch you had? Mine was the 'kevlar' stage II (i was also using the lightweight Louie Fidanza aluminum flywheel). Despite the failure, I liked my SPEC clutch because - as mentioned before, it was consistent. Constant grip and release point as it wore.

They werent willing to do squat for me. I purchased it in 2002 and the failure occurred in September 2006. Maybe that was too long. SPEC told me they wanted to analyze the failure and I should send it in. I made the mistake of doing that and they never got back me with me, claimed they lost it or something. I also sent them the GM throwout bearing - which was a big mistake. I should have kept that as the new throwout bearings are made in China and have more 'slop' in them. The only good thing SPEC customer service did was recommend the Stage III+ which is working fine in my supercharged car.

As for SPEC vs. McLeod...
McLeod twin-disk is the grippier, more durable clutch.

You will not hear about clutch failures with McLeod. What you will hear about is u-joint failure, halfshaft failure, broken stub ends, Dana 36 (or 44 even) parts, etc.

Its just too good.

 

My failure was in '02. I too was using the SPEC Stage 3 with the aluminum Fidanza flywheel. The replaced it with a stage III+ (that I sold) and also made me whole on the damage to the car. It toor up the mainshaft color, and cut one of my header collectors ~90% off and narrowly missed (by ~1/4") my main wire harness for the FAST.

If you look at the design difference between McLeod and SPEC, you will see that McLeod uses attachment that is similar to axle studs with a nut on the top side of the PP securing everything, whereas SPEC uses a bolt thrugh the PP into the flywheel.

I had already been through the halfshafts, stub/axleshafts, u-joints etc, along with several D44 housings prior to this even with an auto. My combo works good and I just have to keep a watch on the halfshafts (lines painted down both, and watch for twist). The real reason for survival of the rear components is because no matter how much I work at the suspension, nowadays, my car will not go better that ~1.75 on the 60', but will run low 9s in the high 150s.

I often think that if I could get the 60' down into the 1.2 sec range, I could get this car to potentially drop into the high 8s, but reality is that I would just start breaking a bunch of stuff.

If I could just get that quicker time without the abuse on the car. Never going to happen.