Has anybody even seen a ring like this on a Pressure plate?

Damn I’ve never seen a clutch like that. Keep us posted if you get anywhere with it in the morning.

Spec is a not a good company, spec is a garbage company.

The SMG SAC clutch plate has adjustments in it for self adjusting of the clutch this pressure plate does not. The fingers for the TOB on the plate also sit recessed so they probably modified an existing clutch plate with the ring so that it will contact the TOB instead of making a totally new setup. The SAC clutch also requires special tools to setup, this clutch does not have those adjustments so it does not require special tools. It just looks like another half assed clutch from SPEC.

Why didn’t you spend real money to get quality parts? This is not a Hyundai.

You probably don’t want to remove the clutch, but can you measure the installed height of the spec vs the installed height of the OEM clutch? Is the difference appreciable?

and u going to be putting a turbo kit on…, come on guy just tow it to jason and let some one who works on cars for a living- do it right!

slowly, very slowly u are killing this car. hint: FS:200X BMW M3, slightly murdered 5k.

Its not the fact that its not a SAC pressure plate… im very aware of the differance…

Horspower freaks uses a non SAC pressure plate just fine in many SMG cars… theirs though however does NOT have this ring on it…

otherwise their PP looks like its from the same OEM

http://www.horsepowerfreaks.com/images/products/HorsepowerFreaks/Clutch_Kits_E46_M3_Feramic_Stage_1_LRG.jpg

This is the HPF clutch kit…

it looks like they use bent fingers to put the actuation point near the same spot… where as spec put on that silver ring…

I measured the distance, and it seemed to be VERY VERY Close between the 2… within a 1/8 of an inch… it was hard to get exact because i had to use a straight edge while measuring the spec clutch on the car…

jason didnt want to deal with this… and im not having ANY issues with the mechanical side of this… it is just the software that is causing the issue, even the BMW dealer couldnt figure it out… i had the car towed there on friday and they had no idea… which makes me think its the pressure plate that is causing the issues

but when you install the pressure plate on the flywheel the fingers compress… So you really need to measure installed vs installed.

However, From a physics standpoint, I don’t see the ring making a HUGE difference.

The ring OD is probably close to the TOB OD, so the moment arm is similar…

I would measure the distance installed vs installed.

I know it SUCKS too, but If all else fails, put the OEM unit back in and see if it will reprogram. If it doesn’t, you know something else is wrong.

There’s not a lot of stuff that can happen here. How much stiffer is the pressure plate?

Im not sure how much stiffer it is… since i cant feel it… the onyl way i could actuate the thing is to put it into a press or something…

I am waiting for a call back from spec from somebody over there who is familiar with this application… first guy i talked to didnt know anything…

the ring is a TOB spacer… and it is the same OD as the TOB, thats why i figured it was there on purpose

ugh you didnt happen to unhook the hydrolic line did you?

No hydraulic lines were opened ever

But i just heard back from SPEC, they send me the wrong damn pressure plate…

the correct one does NOT have that spacer on it for the SMG cars…

They arent sure waht exactly this one is, they think it may be one of their higher stage PP’s like a stage 4 or 5 for the 6 speed cars, and that spacer is on there to help provide better feel for the stiffer /flatter plate!!

=) glad ya figured it out

dude, seriously. spec is garbage. id tell them to keep there clutch then give HPF a call. Are they gunna compensate you at all for wasting your time?

Yah right!

No time compensation, just shipping the new one, I don’t /can’t really spend the extra 300 bux for a hpf clutch at this time, after I spent 200 bux diagnosing this at the dealer, if they can’t get me a new Pp tommorow I’ll go hpf

+1 for the spec hate wagon. had two of em, will never buy another.

I’ve had nothing but fantastic customer service from the people at SPEC.

Same here…I’ve put my Spec clutch through quite a bit of abuse over the past 8 years now and it still performs like it was new. Not understanding where the comments about their products being garbage are coming from, unless they’ve dropped the ball over the past few years:gotme:

They have so far treated me great when I’ve called in, but if they can’t get me the correct part tommorow I’m jumping ship to hpf

:WORD: I just ordered a Stage 4 from them, got a smoking deal on it as well

for the M? did you get it already?

why stage 4? with going that high i would imagine the HPF would be a better choice if your going to be that high powered