Helix clutch experiences?
Discussion
would like to hear peoples opinions on the new helix clutch kit from TVR Parts, I heard that there were some teething problems when they first came out a couple of years ago, probably the usual tvr ethos of the first few customers being the guinea pigs, so if you have one on your car how is it performing, how many miles on it so far, thoughts please people.
I have a horror story to tell about Helix clutch - in short, just seeing that name again makes my blood boil. I had one supplied from TVR-parts fitted last year to my Cerb.
What originally attracted me to it, was not the lower price (compared to AP), but because they are supposedly rebuildable (unlike the AP)
So last summer, my AP clutch gave in. So I ordered a light-weight flywheel and Helix Clutch from TVR-parts.
Gave it to my trusted independent and asked him to fit it.
They could not get the clutch to engage properly. So spoke with TVR-Parts. TVR-Parts washed their hands of it, and refused to help, instead just pointing us towards Helix. So my mechanic phoned Helix.
Helix eventually agreed to take it back and bench-test it, so out came the gearbox again, and off went the clutch and flywheel to Helix.
They sat on it for 2 weeks with no progress. Their excuse being that their only guy who can test is on holiday.
Eventually Helix phoned back and said a couple of springs were bent, and "it must have happened in transit, or while fitting".
They replaced the springs and sent it back to the garage.
My independent was fuming by this, but took the clutch back and re-fitted it, this time video-ing the whole fitment.
I went to pick up the car the following day, and as i was reversing out of the garage, the clutch juddered so much i thought the engine was going to pop off the mounts.
I obviously left the car there, and again my independent phoned Helix.
Helix said, "this is normal". They then said to brace the brake pedal with a pole, and leave it overnight. (have you ever heard of such BS)
needless to say, this didn't fix it.
They phone Helix again. This time they said, "this is normal, after 500 miles it should bed in".
So i took the car back, and started to put 500 miles on it. The thing is, because the judder was so bad, the only way to pull away in 1st was to raise the RPM to over 2k, this i did for the next 3 weeks.
Now I have done 500 miles, and guess what.. judder is still there.
So i take it back to my independent, they take the box out *again* and then have an argument with Helix. Of course Helix are trying to blame everyone but themselves. Even when my mechanic said he had videoed the removal and replacement, and did they want to see the video..
Eventually, Helix agreed to take the clutch and flywheel back again.
Weeks passed while we were waiting for it to be bench tested again.
They eventually call back, and then report that the clutch has been burnt and the flywheel warped through the driver riding the clutch. I explained, I hadn't been riding it, but i did have to use high RPM to pull away. They blamed that.
I went nuts, have a screaming match with those f*ckers.. and then promptly ordered an AP clutch.
My independent fitted the AP clutch the following day, and it has been perfect ever since.
As far as i know, my Helix clutch is still with Helix, and I haven't had any money back, but actually I don't care. I just never wanted to hear from them again - in fact, typing this reply is getting me all p*ssed off again.
And of course, this was all happening last summer, and each week that wasted away, was a week of driving slipping away, as Winter was approaching.
This little experiment cost me a small fortune, my independent had my gear box out 3 times, and i forked out for 2 clutches and 2 flywheels.
I did think about going down the small claims route, but in the end, like i said - i just wanted shot of them.
At one point I thought maybe my independent was at fault, but like i said, i had worked with them for years, they've worked on TVRs and other performance cars for years, and for me they were proven not to be at fault, simply by the fact they fitted my AP clutch in record time first time with no issues and a year later, still fine.
oh, and i asked Helix about their "teething problems" from a few years ago. They explained they had a work experience guy there building clutches, and he messed up.
AP may not be perfect, but Helix... my advice is to stay well clear.
What originally attracted me to it, was not the lower price (compared to AP), but because they are supposedly rebuildable (unlike the AP)
So last summer, my AP clutch gave in. So I ordered a light-weight flywheel and Helix Clutch from TVR-parts.
Gave it to my trusted independent and asked him to fit it.
They could not get the clutch to engage properly. So spoke with TVR-Parts. TVR-Parts washed their hands of it, and refused to help, instead just pointing us towards Helix. So my mechanic phoned Helix.
Helix eventually agreed to take it back and bench-test it, so out came the gearbox again, and off went the clutch and flywheel to Helix.
They sat on it for 2 weeks with no progress. Their excuse being that their only guy who can test is on holiday.
Eventually Helix phoned back and said a couple of springs were bent, and "it must have happened in transit, or while fitting".
They replaced the springs and sent it back to the garage.
My independent was fuming by this, but took the clutch back and re-fitted it, this time video-ing the whole fitment.
I went to pick up the car the following day, and as i was reversing out of the garage, the clutch juddered so much i thought the engine was going to pop off the mounts.
I obviously left the car there, and again my independent phoned Helix.
Helix said, "this is normal". They then said to brace the brake pedal with a pole, and leave it overnight. (have you ever heard of such BS)
needless to say, this didn't fix it.
They phone Helix again. This time they said, "this is normal, after 500 miles it should bed in".
So i took the car back, and started to put 500 miles on it. The thing is, because the judder was so bad, the only way to pull away in 1st was to raise the RPM to over 2k, this i did for the next 3 weeks.
Now I have done 500 miles, and guess what.. judder is still there.
So i take it back to my independent, they take the box out *again* and then have an argument with Helix. Of course Helix are trying to blame everyone but themselves. Even when my mechanic said he had videoed the removal and replacement, and did they want to see the video..
Eventually, Helix agreed to take the clutch and flywheel back again.
Weeks passed while we were waiting for it to be bench tested again.
They eventually call back, and then report that the clutch has been burnt and the flywheel warped through the driver riding the clutch. I explained, I hadn't been riding it, but i did have to use high RPM to pull away. They blamed that.
I went nuts, have a screaming match with those f*ckers.. and then promptly ordered an AP clutch.
My independent fitted the AP clutch the following day, and it has been perfect ever since.
As far as i know, my Helix clutch is still with Helix, and I haven't had any money back, but actually I don't care. I just never wanted to hear from them again - in fact, typing this reply is getting me all p*ssed off again.
And of course, this was all happening last summer, and each week that wasted away, was a week of driving slipping away, as Winter was approaching.
This little experiment cost me a small fortune, my independent had my gear box out 3 times, and i forked out for 2 clutches and 2 flywheels.
I did think about going down the small claims route, but in the end, like i said - i just wanted shot of them.
At one point I thought maybe my independent was at fault, but like i said, i had worked with them for years, they've worked on TVRs and other performance cars for years, and for me they were proven not to be at fault, simply by the fact they fitted my AP clutch in record time first time with no issues and a year later, still fine.
oh, and i asked Helix about their "teething problems" from a few years ago. They explained they had a work experience guy there building clutches, and he messed up.
AP may not be perfect, but Helix... my advice is to stay well clear.
Edited by ginkent on Sunday 4th June 11:23
I fitted a Helix clutch on my chimaera.
It was exceptionally heavy and was never smooth on the pick up. The hotter the conditions, the more juddery the clutch became.
In the end I fitted an AP clutch suitable for a 500.
Now have a Mcloed twin plate clutch. Smooth pick up, heavier than the standard clutch but lighter than the Helix.
It was exceptionally heavy and was never smooth on the pick up. The hotter the conditions, the more juddery the clutch became.
In the end I fitted an AP clutch suitable for a 500.
Now have a Mcloed twin plate clutch. Smooth pick up, heavier than the standard clutch but lighter than the Helix.
Hi Clive - I had one of the first Helix clutches fitted to my T350 back in April 2014, albeit with a raceproved slave and Power lightweight flywheel.
To date I’ve had no issues, it does require a few more revs than the AP to stop judder but it is lighter to use, particularly the pedal action. Main reason I went for one was the ability to repair parts rather than have to replace the whole thing, so I have zero reason to complain or be unhappy. I do know my mechanic (Mat Smith) said it was a b!tch to set up and needed some very careful alignment and pedal travel.
However, would I go for one again? No. I’ve heard a lot of horror stories from other owners about the quality of them but more worryingly the quality of service from both the supplier (it was developed with them remember) and the manufacturer. I think in all honesty I just got lucky, from what I’ve heard the initial batch were actually pretty good then quality just slipped and hence so many problems from others. Hopefully I’ll see at least another 3 years from it but my advice to anyone considering one would be to stick with the AP.
To date I’ve had no issues, it does require a few more revs than the AP to stop judder but it is lighter to use, particularly the pedal action. Main reason I went for one was the ability to repair parts rather than have to replace the whole thing, so I have zero reason to complain or be unhappy. I do know my mechanic (Mat Smith) said it was a b!tch to set up and needed some very careful alignment and pedal travel.
However, would I go for one again? No. I’ve heard a lot of horror stories from other owners about the quality of them but more worryingly the quality of service from both the supplier (it was developed with them remember) and the manufacturer. I think in all honesty I just got lucky, from what I’ve heard the initial batch were actually pretty good then quality just slipped and hence so many problems from others. Hopefully I’ll see at least another 3 years from it but my advice to anyone considering one would be to stick with the AP.
thanks for your replies, I`ve decided to go a different route, seen a few people use these guys with fantastic results.
http://www.clutch-specialists.co.uk/?gclid=Cj0KEQj...
going for kevlar linings heat resistant up to 900 degrees, full rebuild and skim flywheel £380.
http://www.clutch-specialists.co.uk/?gclid=Cj0KEQj...
going for kevlar linings heat resistant up to 900 degrees, full rebuild and skim flywheel £380.
clive f said:
thanks for your replies, I`ve decided to go a different route, seen a few people use these guys with fantastic results.
http://www.clutch-specialists.co.uk/?gclid=Cj0KEQj...
going for kevlar linings heat resistant up to 900 degrees, full rebuild and skim flywheel £380.
Be interesting to hear what the results are Clive, mine is only approx. 25% worn but when the time comes....http://www.clutch-specialists.co.uk/?gclid=Cj0KEQj...
going for kevlar linings heat resistant up to 900 degrees, full rebuild and skim flywheel £380.
clive f said:
thanks for your replies, I`ve decided to go a different route, seen a few people use these guys with fantastic results.
http://www.clutch-specialists.co.uk/?gclid=Cj0KEQj...
going for kevlar linings heat resistant up to 900 degrees, full rebuild and skim flywheel £380.
Clive, any update mate?http://www.clutch-specialists.co.uk/?gclid=Cj0KEQj...
going for kevlar linings heat resistant up to 900 degrees, full rebuild and skim flywheel £380.
I know CG and have used them through my race and rally adventures for clutch kits. I also used them for my TVR powered Westfield SEiGHT never had an issue . Last job they did for me was taking a couple of thou of my Tamora flywheel when I fit my new clutch...the bonus is, they are 9 miles from where I live...they know their stuff and they're pretty quick on turn around
Buzz
Buzz
Superclutch in both of mine. 7 1/4 inch on the superlight flywheel. triple in one, twin in the other. Easier to stall but change gear a lot quicker. Think these are Quarter Master with a different name on but single billet serial numbered totally rebuild-able. Plates don't have transmission springs so very low inertia. Not every ones cuppa for road use but nothing else for me now
J
J
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