The news is not good. My clutch is slipping.

Lately, I've been driving more conservatively, to avoid slipping the clutch. But it's getting worse.

The clutch is a Spec Stage 2. It's only about 2 years old, with about 20K miles on it. I haven't had a chance to take a good look at it yet (i.e. separate the engine/tranny). But I'll have to do that soon. I'm not going to make any statements or draw any conclusions until then.

Come to think of it, the clutch has probably been slipping (although a lot less obviously) for quite some time. When I went drag racing last summer, what I thought was wheelspin was more likely clutch slippage. I didn't believe it at the time, because the clutch showed no other symptoms of slippage. It only happened when I revved up the engine and launched hard. Come to think of it, this might have also affected my last dyno run.

So after I fix the car, I need to do more dyno runs and drag races to get accurate data.

[This message has been edited by Blacktree (edited 01-25-2009).]

I just got a deal on an Addco 1" front sway bar that I couldn't pass up. So now my Fiero has a new front sway bar.

I bought some greaseable center bushings, made by Energy Suspension. I got 'em at AutoZone for about $20. Below is a shot of the sway bar just before installation.



At first, I was concerned that the larger bar might require drilling new mounting holes. I didn't think the mounting bolts were spaced far enough apart on the Fiero. But luckily, the bigger brackets just barely fit. In order to make it fit, I had to grind some material from the washers. Below is a close-up of the bushings, brackets, and washers.



And last but not least, a shot of the sway bar installed. Here you can see just how tight the fit was.



BTW, the mounting bolts are SAE Grade 8, 3/8" diameter. When I overhauled the suspension several years ago, I drilled out the bolt holes in the chassis and tapped them for 3/8" threads. These bolts are MUCH stronger than the dinky original mounting bolts. I don't have to worry about the heads snapping off any more.

Next on the "hit list" is the clutch. I should be addressing that issue soon.

[This message has been edited by Blacktree (edited 10-02-2017).]

Today, I played with the air filter can some more. This time, I decided to modify the base to increase the open area. In the photo below, you can see how it looked before modification.



According to my calculations, those three holes in the base have a total open area of about 4.5 square inches.

The first step in the process was to cut a piece of plate steel to fit in the opening, and tack-weld it in place. See photo below.



Then I used my Dremel tool with a cut-off disc to cut out the 3-prong section from the middle. After that, I re-assembled the air filter can assembly, with a nut on the bottom of the rod that holds the lid. I situated it so that nut was sitting in the center of the piece of steel I welded in, and then welded the nut to the piece of steel. I then disassembled the air filter can, so I could finish up the welds and clean them up. After a quick coat of paint, it looks like this:



According to my calculations, the hole now has about 6.5 square inches of open area. That's 2 square inches more than stock, and can potentially flow about 40% more air.

I also received some goodies in the mail. My Spec Stage 2 clutch is slipping badly. I decided to replace it with a ClutchNet unit, with a solid hub. Plus, I figured that while I have the engine out, it would be a good time to replace the cam. The existing cam (Edelbrock) is meant for use with a mild performance rebuild. But since I installed the Trueleo intake and exhaust headers, and the oversize throttle body, I think it's time for a more aggressive cam.



The cam is the PAW / SSI stage 3, which is roughly halfway between the Crane H260 and H272. Ironically, I had planned to install it originally. But the machinist said it would be too aggressive for that engine configuration (which at the time had the stock intake, ported stock exhaust, and stock ECM). So it sat on the shelf for a couple years, waiting for the rest of the engine to catch up to it.

[This message has been edited by Blacktree (edited 10-02-2017).]

Today, the fun started.





In addition to replacing the clutch and the camshaft, I also decided to remove the header wrap and repaint the headers with POR-20 Black Velvet high-temperature paint.

If I want to make it to the Daytona show, I'll have to work fast.

[This message has been edited by Blacktree (edited 10-02-2017).]

[This message has been edited by exoticse (edited 03-18-2009).]

Yesterday, I replaced the clutch. The old friction disc was a little worn, and had some glazing. The flywheel also had some glazing. I cleaned it off with some fine sandpaper, and installed the new friction disc.



After that was finished, I removed the headers. The header wrap was in pretty rough shape.



Even though I had applied 2 coats of paint to the headers before wrapping them, they still fell victim to rust. Luckily, the rust isn't very bad. Below, you see the headers with the wrapping removed.



Next, I'll clean them up and repaint them with the POR-20.

[This message has been edited by Blacktree (edited 10-02-2017).]

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Today, I replaced the camshaft. In the photo below, you see the new cam going in. Notice the assembly lube on the cam lobes.



You'll also notice that I'm not using any special cam installation tools. Instead, I use an Allen wrench to support the back end of the cam, while I handle the front end by hand. Believe it or not, this method works pretty well.

[This message has been edited by Blacktree (edited 10-02-2017).]