NineBall

First of all, I promise I'll never work on another Corvette drivetrain without a lift. These cars are a major pain in the *** compared to f-bodies, when it comes to working on trannys, exhaust, rearends, etc...

I spent about 12 hrs yesterday, mostly on my back, trying to finish up the C6. For those of you that missed the previous post, I busted the rear differential housing at the track in my C6. So, while the car was apart, I decided to swap out the clutch with a new Textralia clutch.

That was the beginning of my nightmare! Clutch swaps in C6 Vettes officially suck. Let me give you the rundown of what is required to change one out.

-put Corvette on four jackstands, about 14" clearance under the car. For safety, I also added four other jackstands in different locations *just in case*
-remove entire rear axle assembly, including brakes and suspension
-disconnect a crap load of wiring harness plugs all over the place.
-drain the transmission completely (or it will dump out when you disconnect the cooler lines, Z51 only)
-place tranny jack under transmission.
-remove spark plugs, longtube headers, and entire exhaust system
-place jack under oil pan (with 2x4 for support) to control height of engine.
-remove belly pan with all 36 of its 8mm bolts. Not sure why GM used so many here.
-disconnect slave cylinder, which is now hidden under the damn brake booster
-disconnect tranny cooler lines (Z51 only) Hope you emptied the tranny first!
-remove console, shift ****, then shifter
-disconnect torque tube from bellhousing (bolts easy to reach)
-disconnect bellhousing from engine (holy pain in the ***!!!) No room for tools
-remove intake manifold (or even worse, Magnacharger in my case)

WTF? removing an intake manifold to do a clutch swap? Yes, because GM is stupid and put a 1-piece bellhousing on the C6 that won't slip over the clutch unless the engine is tilted all the way back against the firewall with the intake removed. STUPID.

-cuss at GM and their stupid service design, throw some tools.
-place jack under oil pan (on 2x4) and lower the engine down until it touches the firewall
-remove bellhousing (finally!!!)
-remove pressure plate and flywheel
-reassemble

I've got the new clutch in, the torque tube, tranny, and new DTE differential (with DTE brace) installed now. I still have to put the exhaust system and rear suspension/axles back on the car. Probably another 4-5 hrs of work left since I don't have a lift.

One good thing to note is that LG Motorsports longtubes can be easily installed/removed under the car with it only about 14" off the ground on jackstands. They fit with plenty of room, you could install those on your driveway.

So, how did you enjoy your weekend? lol

Tony

CMEPASU

Ummm, I had a beer, watched some tv...and messed around with the new "family car" that I just bought. I picked up a new 06 Trailblazer SS 2WD complete with a 395hp/400tq LS2 from the factory...what a fun toy! This thing is just begging to be modded.
Not to hijack your thread Tony....but you did ask

p.s. do you think your clutch install would have gone faster if "boostedC6" had stopped by to help as promised (sorry...i couldn't resist)

NineBall

Those are nice SUV's, my brother in law has one. I thought about buying one, but decided I needed another truck to haul around greasy car parts and engines with.

boostedC6 would have been helpful, he would have gladly liked to remove my Magnacharger for me.

EuroRod

Man, I feel your pain. The Porsche 944 and 928's have the same torque tube and tranny in the rear set up. Want some fun. Try a clutch transplant in a 944 that has a LT4 up front! Actually, I've done this so many times, I think I could do it in my sleep. I've got it down so I can change a clutch in about 8 hours. The first time I did this, I was on the front of the learning curve, and it took twice as long. Fortunately, I have a lift. Honestly would not try it on stands. Thats too much punishment! Bet you found that you have some 'new' muscles, huh?

exukboy

Thanks for that brief write up on the clutch swop etc. It annoys the heck out of me that instead of GM making it easier on a C6 to swop the clutch than say on a C3, they have made in 40 times harder. I guess that's progress! If I have to have a new clutch assemly in my vert, I definitely will do it myself but will ask for advice from you guys who already know the procedure. You guys have my utmost respect cos I'd already heard how tough and involved the swops are on the C6 and 5.

DTE Powertrain

Welcome to the Corvette "fold" Tony, as that was a good initiation for you. It only gets better form here, trust me...


Best Regards,
Phil- DTE

mlongo99

Well, you never know if there really was some benefit, like weight distribution, ease of manufacture, or build cost, that caused GM to sacrifice the ease of service to the drivetrain. And realistically, most people never have to mess with it. All I can say is that that's one job I'll be paying someone else to do.

Dale_K

What is the flat rate for a clutch and flywheel on a C6?

NineBall

Clutches vary in price depending on brand, etc...

Clutch installations are typically $600-800 labor from what I've heard. Knowing what I know now, I'd gladly have paid $1000 to avoid the hassle

....or just put that $1000 towards a $2000 lift (better idea!)

johnodrake

I feel your pain. I used to do such on my '73 L82 Back in the Day...

Too damn old and stiff to do that now.....I can only wish....

AutoCutter

Wow, were you busy! Did you put in LG's Carbon Fiber Drive Shaft?

big bollas

Sorry to hear that Tony. I have been down that road before and the only positive thing about it ,is that I knew it was done right and the $ I saved I had the extra cash this time so I let MTI install my cam and supercharger but only after convincing myself that they would do a good job"and they did"
Here a for you .

timd38

They say what doesn't kill you makes you stronger.........

NineBall

taking a break right now, worked on it some after work this evening. The exhaust is back on, and the rear suspension is back in the car. Its starting to look like a car again instead of an explosion of Corvette parts on the floor.

I have about 2-3 more hours of work. Filling fluids, doublechecking bolts, tightening up the exhaust clamps, putting the CAI back on, bleeding the brakes, etc..

valdeztke

I broke into a sweat reading that thread ..... Whheew back to the AC for me

CBB

I also broke into a cold sweat reading your initial post. I used to work on my C5 on jackstands.

Finally learned my lesson. The hard way. After developing persistent back pain after my last work under that car. That was almost two years ago. Never again.

By the way, it still looks like you have enough to keep you busy. You are a faster worker than I.

That would be about 4-5 hours worth of work for me easily.

I'd have to do everything you describe above, plus align the exhaust tips, zip tie any wire(s) I saw which might get in the way of something hot, turn all the clamps the right way, bleeding the brakes alone would take a good while for me.

I'd have to go and torque every bolt in that suspension cradle to specs, test drive it, recheck the fluids, including the tranny fluid, which I don't know how you are going to do on those jack stands, drive it again, and then put away all of the tools.

That would be at least 4-5 hours for me. But good luck.

excessive81

sounds like it be easieer to pull the motor!!

The Clevite Kid

Amen to that ! ! ! If my garage was bugged by Chevy engineers, they would have gotten several earsfull of inspired, creative cussing at them over the years. Every design engineer should have to work 4 weeks a year on cars at least 4 years old - - -

NineBall

haha, funny you mention those details, it took me about an hour to line up the exhaust pipes and tips, and to make sure there were plenty of clearance room and no wires nearby. The car is done mechanically, stayed up until 11pm working on it. Just needs the fluids done and it can roll again.

NineBall

Just an update, I finished the car last night and drove it to work today. Glad it is finally back on the road!

now for some break-in miles on the Textralia clutch and DTE rear diff...

Tony