I was just playing with my 99 FRC and with traction control off and a dead stop I had a high RPM launch and when shifted to second the car just bounced off the rev limiter. Pedal was stuck to the floor, I just tapped it and it came right out. The car seems to be working fine but when I stopped at the next light I smelt the clutch burning. I know the clutch sticking is a common problem, but do you usually burn the clutch at the same time or do I have bigger issues? HELP PLEASE!!!

 

happens alot at high rpms....lots of theories on how to fix it..none have worked for me but......

 

Not a fan of the Ranger Fluid Flush either eh?

 

or any other method,
not even an entirely new clutch worked

 

New Stock Clutch? or New Aftermarket? I do believe the Stock LUK is notorious for this..

 

Is it normal to burn the clutch at the same time?

 

If you are shifting at high RPM and the clutch pedal stays down allowing the clutch to slip, then it is logical to assume that the clutch is going to be burning up at the same time.
It is slipping that causes clutch wear, not when it is fully engaged.

 

OP glazed the clutch on launch by inducing too much slip. When he made the 1-2 shift, there was insufficient clamping power. Once the friction surfaces cooled down again, the clamping force was restored. No lasting damage. But not a habit to get into.

Here are some other ways to glaze the clutch.

Burnout
Overheating the clutch during a burnout can happen when:
(1) you don't have enough water on the tire tread surface
(2) you position the rear wheels too far forward in the tacky rubber and then start the burnout. In this situation the rear tires have too much grip to spin at the hit of the clutch; so the clutch slips instead. This quickly glazes the clutch.
(3) you do everything correctly except continue the burnout too long, allowing the engine speed to be drawn down by the growing traction at the rear tires. A crossing point is reached and the clutch begins to slip. That produces a spike in heat in the rotating surfaces and the pedal reacts negatively.

High-rpm Shifts and Power-Shifting
On a high-rpm shift (using the LS7 as an example) the flywheel spins at say 7K (pre-shift) and 200-300 milli-seconds later the post-shift rpm is drawn down to 4700 (1-2 shift), 5100 (2-3 shift), 5400 (3-4 shift). Those rpm deltas produce significant heat that must be dissipated from the rotating surface. When you power-shift, the pre-shift rpm is higher and produces even more heat. That's one of about three reasons that power-shifting is risky and can have unintended consequences.

Cumulative Heat Leads to Malfunction
The clutch disc friction material has strands of raw copper interwoven to help dissipate heat from the surface. And there's substantial air-flow within the bell housing to provide cooling and evacuate clutch dust. But these design features can't deal adequately with the accumulated heat from
(1) improper burnout technique
(2) too high a launch rpm or too slow a clutch release
(3) power-shifting or improperly timed high-rpm shifts
(4) any combination of (1), (2), (3)

Once the cumulative heat reaches a break-point, the clutch either glazes entirely, losing clamping force after the launch attempt, or no longer disengages properly during high-rpm shifts.

Here's what I do to keep within the limits of the my clutch:
(1) Keep the clutch fluid clean including changes between passes at the track (usually after 3-5 passes with my driving style).
(2) Keep the launch rpm at no more than 3600-3700 and make a fast, one-piece clutch engagement
(3) Refrain from power-shifting
(4) After every pass, I lift the hood and sniff the driver's-side firewall. If I smell even a slight "eau de clutch" aroma, I know I'm not getting the clutch pedal out fast enough. That rarely happens to me because I observe rules (1) (2) and (3) just above. The alternative is an aftermarket clutch with a different personality than the stocker.

A pointed warning is to recognize the limits of your clutch. That means not adopting the all-out racing launches and power-shifting advocated by those with stronger after-market clutches; such approaches give a (dramatically) truncated clutch life. My approach should give at least 200 drag strip passes before the clutch requires replacement at stock power-levels.

Ranger