Dual Mass Flywheels

[ru55.clarke]

Hi all,

Newbie here, hoping for a bit of assistance! I have had my wifes RAV ('53) diagnosed with DMF failure and told it needs a new flywheel and clutch. I have found a company in Wolverhampton who sell clutch and flywheel (solid conversion) kits for £290 Inc. the dreaded.

Now all I require is somewhere to fit it, the closest Toyota specialist I can find is in Nottingham (I'm in Lichfield, top side of Birmingham) but I have no past experience of them, obviously I would prefer to use someone through a recommendation.

Any suggestions gratefully received! Many thanks, Russ

[HEMI]

we are based in Stafford and have fitted loads of SMF's,not long done the wifes Rav D4D,I'm not sure if I can advertise on here but if you want a price I'm sure you could find me on the net

[anchorman]

Hi all,

Newbie here, hoping for a bit of assistance! I have had my wifes RAV ('53) diagnosed with DMF failure and told it needs a new flywheel and clutch. I have found a company in Wolverhampton who sell clutch and flywheel (solid conversion) kits for £290 Inc. the dreaded.

Now all I require is somewhere to fit it, the closest Toyota specialist I can find is in Nottingham (I'm in Lichfield, top side of Birmingham) but I have no past experience of them, obviously I would prefer to use someone through a recommendation.

Any suggestions gratefully received! Many thanks, Russ

Welcome to the club.

You could send a pm to HEMI. He is based in Stafford and has fitted solid flywheels to a number of vehicles. I would imagine he will fit it for you.

[anchorman]

He beat me by 1 minute!!!

[ru55.clarke]

Thanks for the replies HEMI and Anchorman. HEMI - PM sent. Cheers, Russ

[HEMI]

looks like I got a new customer,cant wait to see his face the first time he lets the clutch out when I've fitted his new SMF,

[tc123]

Hi there HEMI,

I've just had a Single mass conversion flywheel (bought from eBay - http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...m=220406879222) fitted to my 2005 RAV4 D-4D and wonder if you could give me some advice please. When the clutch is depressed there is a very noticeable vibration through the clutch pedal, also if I depress the clutch while the car is stationary I can feel a slight vibration through the pedal, when I rev the engine the vibration increases.

The car sets off fine and there is no juddering, rattling etc when letting the clutch out when stationary. At idle and when revving the engine with the clutch out the car feels just as it did before (when the DMF wasn't playing up!).

Have you found there to be a certain amount of this on the ones that you have fitted, or do you have any ideas what the fault could be please?

Many thanks

[anchorman]

Firstly, welcome to the club.

The clutch kit is described as OE specification which in fact is impossible as Toyota NEVER fit single mass flywheels as OE.

Regardless of the fact it is a SMF it sounds like a problem with the pressure plate or the way it has been fitted. When you tighten the pressure plate all those fingers that form a register for the release bearing should be dead parallel with the flywheel face but yours are out of true so it is like pressing a bearing onto the side of a buckled wheel and this is being transmitted back through the pedal.

The only way this can be cured is to take it all out and have a look. It could be that the pressure plate wasn't bolted up true to the flywheel and that is a fault in fitting. The only other way is if there is a fault with the pressure plate and that is a warranty issue with the parts.

First job is that it all has to come out which I'm sure you don't want to hear and then it can be examined. If it turns out to be a faulty pressure plate then you have to see just what this eBay supplier is like for warranty. If it is faulty fitting the repairer should pay and if it faulty parts then the supplier should pay and you have to try to claim the cost of fitting as your repairer surely won't want to.

Start by talking to the repairer and see what kind of response you get. You could also give Midland Car Spares a call and see what they have to say. It will certainly give you an idea about what they intend to pay if the parts turn out faulty. In law you have a contract with them so don't let them tell you that you have to claim on the manufacturer - that isn't how it works.

Good luck.

PS Where in Derbyshire are you?

[tc123]

Hi, many thanks for the reply.

I rang Midland Car Spares and they do seem very reputable (got that impression when I ordered the kit too) and the Manager said the clutch is made by Nippon Denso, which I believe to be a pretty good quality manufacturer. He also told me they sell loads of these single mass kits, especially for the RAV4 and have never had any complaints re vibrations etc, but Nippon pay £25 an hour labour on warranty if the part does prove to be faulty.

I'm glad that you've mentioned the pressure plate fitting/part fault because after talking to my brother about it thats what we'd come up with. I realise fitting the SMF increases transmission noise and absorbs less vibrations but what I have is bordering on the ridiculous - I've been pondering if this is normal for a SMF conversion how all the people whose cars are fitted with them are keeping their sanity!

I'm going to ring the garage tomorrow and ask them to strip it down to see what they come up with.

I'm in Chesvegas by the way

Cheers

[HEMI]

sorry I didnt get back to you yesterday,we were very busy.Was the clutch you bought a recon clutch kit,if so then that is your problem.Dont go for the cheapest clutch kit,go for Blueprint or ADL if you can,these are the ones we fit and have had 100% success with no vibe issues.Is the vibe only through the clutch pedal when you depress or just resting your foot on it?if so then it is the thrust bearing literally bouncing off the clutchplate and sending the vibes to the pedal,does the gearstick shake and vibe?I bet it doesnt,I reckon you have a faulty clutchplate or the whole thing has been fitted incorrectly or its a recon clutchplate thats weak.We never ever fit recon clutches,new ones(good ones,we have a reputation to keep up)every time

[anchorman]

I'm in Chesvegas by the way

Oh right, well I'm other side of Buxangeles or I would have popped over to have a test but thats a bit far away!

HEMI reckons they are as smooth as silk when fitted properly but I've never tested one. Nippon Denso do make OE parts for Toyota (although not SMFs) and are a good manufacturer.

Good luck

[HEMI]

Anchorman,if your ever passing through Stafford you can have a go in our Rav and see for yourself

[anchorman]

Anchorman,if your ever passing through Stafford you can have a go in our Rav and see for yourself

Don't often come that way these days but if I do I will pm you - that would be very intersting thanks.

What do you reckon with this one? I wonder if it is stuck on one of the dowels. Is one bigger than the others like usual?

[tc123]

Hi, thanks for the reply.

The whole kit is brand new, the flywheel in the listing is ADL Blueprint (part no. adt330206) and the clutch (part no. cty41002ck) comes up as Comline when you Google it - but that clutch is apparently for a pre-03 car - I paid an extra £23 (£285 in total) to include the clutch that fits my 2005 model which is made by Nippon I'm told.

There's no vibe through the gearstick or when I'm resting my foot on the clutch pedal when its at the top.

I know it's difficult to say without seeing everything, but would you think if it has been fitted incorrectly that the pressure plate and/or release bearing will now be damaged and need replacing again? The car has driven maybe 30 miles since

Many thanks

[tc123]

I'm in Chesvegas by the way

Oh right, well I'm other side of Buxangeles or I would have popped over to have a test but thats a bit far away!

I'm now 100% convinced there is a problem that needs urgent attention, many thanks for your input

[anchorman]

Hi, thanks for the reply.

The whole kit is brand new, the flywheel in the listing is ADL Blueprint (part no. adt330206) and the clutch (part no. cty41002ck) comes up as Comline when you Google it - but that clutch is apparently for a pre-03 car - I paid an extra £23 (£285 in total) to include the clutch that fits my 2005 model which is made by Nippon I'm told.

There's no vibe through the gearstick or when I'm resting my foot on the clutch pedal when its at the top.

I know it's difficult to say without seeing everything, but would you think if it has been fitted incorrectly that the pressure plate and/or release bearing will now be damaged and need replacing again? The car has driven maybe 30 miles since

Many thanks

No not necessarily but in any case the repairer should supply the parts if he has bggrd them. When you bolt the clutch to the flywheel there is usually one of three dowels to locate it that is larger than the others. If the mechanic doesn't get the large hole in the clutch on the large dowel it will not bolt up flush. It is daft trick for an experienced mechanic to do but your symptoms suggest that the pressure plate is twisted - there isn't much else.

[HEMI]

There are only 3 dowels which are of equal size on the flywheel(the one Russ has supplied for himself) and there is no way you can fit the plate incorrectly as there are 2 sets of holes in the plate but one set is way smaller than the other set,unless the fitter has tightened each clutchplate bolt one at a time instead of tightening them equally,we wont know until that box is taken out again,

[tc123]

They're stripping it down next week, if the parts are at fault they're going to fit a Blueprint kit supplied by a local motor factor, that kit costs £400 inc vat - the annoying thing is if I'd have known they did them I would have just asked the garage to supply and fit me one of those! I actually rang them to see if they could supply one before I got the one off eBay, but the ##@@@~# I spoke to told me they couldn't! I found out they actually do because I rang them after I got the car back for a price of a DMF and the chap who answered this time said straight away that they never sell any DMFs because they do a conversion kit that's less than half the price and everyone goes for that!!

The garage have fitted loads of clutches and done RAVs before (but replacing DMFs like for like), I really can't see that they would have tightened the clutch up incorrectly. They suspect the release bearing is at fault because there is no vibration until the clutch starts to actually disengage (about half way down the pedal travel when the level of resistance increases) when the bearing is taking more load - thoughts being that if the spring plates were misaligned there would be a certain amount of noise as soon as the bearing starts to press on them.

I think worst possible case this job will have cost me around £1150 and best case will be around £650 - if I'm successful with a warranty claim including labour - which I imagine could well be a lot of hassle on the phone/email!

[HEMI]

I just looked for my invoice for the part number of the kit I used(3 months ago) and it is ADT 330206(or ADL,invoice is a bit dirty,lol),its an ADL kit but I remember the flywheel was in Blueprint box and the clutch in an ADL box,anyway quote that number and see what they come up with.

[tc123]

Thanks for checking that for me, much appreciated.

Just reading through previous posts on this thread I'm thinking the company that Russ has got his kit from is quite possibly the same company that I got mine from, Midland Car Spares - mine was around £290 and they are based in Wolverhampton - I'm guessing he found them on eBay like I did.

Obviously you're very experienced with these parts and fitting them, I'd really appreciate your thoughts on the quality of the clutch they've supplied against ones you get from your supplier. My garage said it looked a bit cheap (he always likes to fit Valeo or LuK) but there were no visible faults with it, neither of the boxes had any product names on and there didn't seem to be any branding on the parts either.

[HEMI]

Well indeed the clutch you have has the same part number as the one we fitted to my wifes but the one that Russ has supplied is boxed differently and the make is Comline(never heard of them,so I hope its ok).Did your flywheel come in a Blueprint box and the clutch in an ADL box?if so then I think its down to bad fitting,of course it could just be a bad clutch(it does happen,even to us),lets just hope that the suppliers will pay for the labour in the warranty,they will try every trick in the book to get out of it,also it will take weeks before you get a final answer from the warranty claim.The main "excuse" they use to get out of it is "clutch fitted out of alignment on the shaft"which makes me laugh,cos if its out of alignment the gearbox wont mount up to the engine due to the shaft not going through the splines on the clutchplate

[HEMI]

Just took Russ' gearbox out and the DMF has wrecked itself and put huge grooves inside the bellhousing(not good).I will post some pics later if I get the chance.

[HEMI]

[anchorman]

Warranty job or do you think it was fitted wrong?

[HEMI]

Its not a warranty or fitted wrong,its the one fitted by the manufacturers in 2003,thats how good the DMF's are,lol,I've just took Russ' car out and it drives exactly how my wifes drives now,smooooth and lovely,he's coming in the morning to pick it up and I bet a pound to a pinch that he will ring me up and ask me what the hell you done to my car,its lovely,they all ring me the next day,its so satisfying when I'm right,lmao