Official TSB #08-16-4: Clutch Drag REPAIR RESULTS

[GT500FLYBOY]

Some pics from my TSB tranny rebuild. Here's the housing leaned and all apart and some of the new parts laid out.

 

[GT500FLYBOY]

Here are the pics of significance. Remember - this tranny was just installed in June. I had the symptoms after a few weeks, but nowhere near as bad as with the original tranny, clutch and flywheel. I was actually going to let the TSB work go for the time being - I was simply going to have a tech make note of the symptoms so we could refer to them later. That was until last weekend when I couldn't get it into any gear at all.

 

You've seen the pics of my clutch and flywheel with the bluing from overheating. The clutch was essentially dragging at all times. Some of us who had the tranny's replaced have been considering skipping the tranny kit rebuild since we haven't had the units in for very long. I had this very discussion last week with the tech and the Ford FE. Today - we see here why it's really a good idea to have all of the TSB work completed.

 

These pics are of my reverse synchro gear assembly. They are also blued from overheating. The one ring that has it the worst is actually brass - and you wouldn't know it. The tech explained to me it was clear the clutch was always dragging and the synchros were trying to make up for this by spinning wildly and burning themselves. Again - this is even with few symptoms over a few weeks. The 1st and 2nd synchros looked OK - and all of the gears looked OK - and there was no metal found of anykind at the bottom. He said this tranny could have gotten by on just a few of the tranny rebuild pieces. Though he also said my orignal tranny with 15k on it, would likely need all of the parts. All of the parts were in the kit were identical to what was being replaced - he wasn't sure if that would be true of my orignal tranny. We'll find out. I'm dropping off my original tranny to have him do the rebuild on it as well.

 

[Joker45]

Mine is in the shop right now for this TSB. It should be done tomorrow.

[Grabber]

Here are the pics of significance. Remember - this tranny was just installed in June. I had the symptoms after a few weeks, but nowhere near as bad as with the original tranny, clutch and flywheel. I was actually going to let the TSB work go for the time being - I was simply going to have a tech make note of the symptoms so we could refer to them later. That was until last weekend when I couldn't get it into any gear at all.

 

You've seen the pics of my clutch and flywheel with the bluing from overheating. The clutch was essentially dragging at all times. Some of us who had the tranny's replaced have been considering skipping the tranny kit rebuild since we haven't had the units in for very long. I had this very discussion last week with the tech and the Ford FE. Today - we see here why it's really a good idea to have all of the TSB work completed.

 

These pics are of my reverse synchro gear assembly. They are also blued from overheating. The one ring that has it the worst is actually brass - and you wouldn't know it. The tech explained to me it was clear the clutch was always dragging and the synchros were trying to make up for this by spinning wildly and burning themselves. Again - this is even with few symptoms over a few weeks. The 1st and 2nd synchros looked OK - and all of the gears looked OK - and there was no metal found of anykind at the bottom. He said this tranny could have gotten by on just a few of the tranny rebuild pieces. Though he also said my orignal tranny with 15k on it, would likely need all of the parts. All of the parts were in the kit were identical to what was being replaced - he wasn't sure if that would be true of my orignal tranny. We'll find out. I'm dropping off my original tranny to have him do the rebuild on it as well.

 

 

Nice Pic's John. It will be interesting to see the original parts too.

[chuck]

My car has been in the shop for 3 weeks as of yesterday. Dealer ordered all TSB parts before I brought it into the shop. After 3 days in the shop I got a call stating some vendor-supplied parts not on the original TSB list were needed and that those parts were on national back order. Got another call yesterday telling me that the back ordered part (a "5th gear ring") had been shipped by the vendor to Ford and that it was now on the way to the dealership. They hope to have the part in hand and repairs completed early next week. Sound bogus? Anyone else run into something like this?

[Son of GT]

My car has been in the shop for 3 weeks as of yesterday. Dealer ordered all TSB parts before I brought it into the shop. After 3 days in the shop I got a call stating some vendor-supplied parts not on the original TSB list were needed and that those parts were on national back order. Got another call yesterday telling me that the back ordered part (a "5th gear ring") had been shipped by the vendor to Ford and that it was now on the way to the dealership. They hope to have the part in hand and repairs completed early next week. Sound bogus? Anyone else run into something like this?

No, definately not bogus, it's SOP (Standard Operating Proceedure). I had to wait a few days for some of my parts to come in too.

[GT500FLYBOY]

My car has been in the shop for 3 weeks as of yesterday. Dealer ordered all TSB parts before I brought it into the shop. After 3 days in the shop I got a call stating some vendor-supplied parts not on the original TSB list were needed and that those parts were on national back order. Got another call yesterday telling me that the back ordered part (a "5th gear ring") had been shipped by the vendor to Ford and that it was now on the way to the dealership. They hope to have the part in hand and repairs completed early next week. Sound bogus? Anyone else run into something like this?

 

A lot parts - mainly the tranny kit - have been on back order. Though I heard, just as of last week, that they caught up on the back log. My car is evidence of that. They had all parts as of Friday - and I just got my car back.

 

What a difference. I have no trouble getting into any gear now - and it is very smooth. Very precise and confident with the shifting now. You may have noticed I never did say that when the tranny was installed back in June. I don't believe the clutch and flywheel were installed correctly. The tech also found the pilot bearing had some slight damage to it. I'll put a pic up later. The tech felt they must have had trouble installing the tranny last time. He said this may be yet another thing that could hangup the clutch on the input shaft.

[chuck]

Thanks for the info guys. I've got my fingers crossed that it gets done soon. New FRPP shifter will also be installed and just got my Shelby shift knob in the mail today.

[m81mclaren]

Here are the pics of significance. Remember - this tranny was just installed in June. I had the symptoms after a few weeks, but nowhere near as bad as with the original tranny, clutch and flywheel. I was actually going to let the TSB work go for the time being - I was simply going to have a tech make note of the symptoms so we could refer to them later. That was until last weekend when I couldn't get it into any gear at all.

 

You've seen the pics of my clutch and flywheel with the bluing from overheating. The clutch was essentially dragging at all times. Some of us who had the tranny's replaced have been considering skipping the tranny kit rebuild since we haven't had the units in for very long. I had this very discussion last week with the tech and the Ford FE. Today - we see here why it's really a good idea to have all of the TSB work completed."

 

 

 

Well, mine is back in the shop as of Tuesday night. I drove it prior to dropping off and had a tech ride with me. He stalled it first pulling out and immediately stated that the clutch engagement is off. He felt some chatter and agreed that it just did not feel right. I am waiting for the call back from the servcie manager to determine next steps. I am going to ask for a full TSB as well as a diagnosos on the msaster/slave cylinders and pilot bearing. I have not been able to see any of the work done on my car so I am at their mercy. Will keep you all posted.

 

-DH

[Son of GT]

Here are the pics of significance. Remember - this tranny was just installed in June. I had the symptoms after a few weeks, but nowhere near as bad as with the original tranny, clutch and flywheel. I was actually going to let the TSB work go for the time being - I was simply going to have a tech make note of the symptoms so we could refer to them later. That was until last weekend when I couldn't get it into any gear at all.

 

You've seen the pics of my clutch and flywheel with the bluing from overheating. The clutch was essentially dragging at all times. Some of us who had the tranny's replaced have been considering skipping the tranny kit rebuild since we haven't had the units in for very long. I had this very discussion last week with the tech and the Ford FE. Today - we see here why it's really a good idea to have all of the TSB work completed.

 

These pics are of my reverse synchro gear assembly. They are also blued from overheating. The one ring that has it the worst is actually brass - and you wouldn't know it. The tech explained to me it was clear the clutch was always dragging and the synchros were trying to make up for this by spinning wildly and burning themselves. Again - this is even with few symptoms over a few weeks. The 1st and 2nd synchros looked OK - and all of the gears looked OK - and there was no metal found of anykind at the bottom. He said this tranny could have gotten by on just a few of the tranny rebuild pieces. Though he also said my orignal tranny with 15k on it, would likely need all of the parts. All of the parts were in the kit were identical to what was being replaced - he wasn't sure if that would be true of my orignal tranny. We'll find out. I'm dropping off my original tranny to have him do the rebuild on it as well.

 

 

Well, mine is back in the shop as of Tuesday night. I drove it prior to dropping off and had a tech ride with me. He stalled it first pulling out and immediately stated that the clutch engagement is off. He felt some chatter and agreed that it just did not feel right. I am waiting for the call back from the servcie manager to determine next steps. I am going to ask for a full TSB as well as a diagnosos on the msaster/slave cylinders and pilot bearing. I have not been able to see any of the work done on my car so I am at their mercy. Will keep you all posted.

 

-DH

DH, if you were trying to add Flyboy's photo's into your post, it didn't take. With respect to having everything on the TSB done even if you have the new transmission, I couldn't agree more and my dealer says and did the same.

 

I'm very happy with the results.

[GT500FLYBOY]

Well, mine is back in the shop as of Tuesday night. I drove it prior to dropping off and had a tech ride with me. He stalled it first pulling out and immediately stated that the clutch engagement is off. He felt some chatter and agreed that it just did not feel right. I am waiting for the call back from the servcie manager to determine next steps. I am going to ask for a full TSB as well as a diagnosos on the msaster/slave cylinders and pilot bearing. I have not been able to see any of the work done on my car so I am at their mercy. Will keep you all posted.

 

-DH

 

 

 

The pilot bearing is replaced as part of the TSB, but the slave cylinder/throw out bearing is not. Though my tech felt this was important to replace this as well and did so. He wanted to be sure anything that may hangup the clutch on the input shaft was addressed.

[Son of GT]

Well, mine is back in the shop as of Tuesday night. I drove it prior to dropping off and had a tech ride with me. He stalled it first pulling out and immediately stated that the clutch engagement is off. He felt some chatter and agreed that it just did not feel right. I am waiting for the call back from the servcie manager to determine next steps. I am going to ask for a full TSB as well as a diagnosos on the msaster/slave cylinders and pilot bearing. I have not been able to see any of the work done on my car so I am at their mercy. Will keep you all posted.

 

-DH

 

 

 

The pilot bearing is replaced as part of the TSB, but the slave cylinder/throw out bearing is not. Though my tech felt this was important to replace this as well and did so. He wanted to be sure anything that may hangup the clutch on the input shaft was addressed.

Yeah, my tech also thought that everything that's connected to the clutch/flywheel should be replaced, and did. From soup to nuts, he replaced everything.

 

Me? I VERY happy that he did.

[bullitt2090]

Greeting,

 

I am a new owner of a brand new alloy/silver gt500, since 08/01/2008. I have put on over 500+ miles in a month because I just love driving this car and it is also my only vehicle.

 

I want to share my experience and get feedback and comments from the many experts on this forum.

 

1st week, first day, right from the showroom floor, the clutch made a loud scratchy chattering noise that is audible from the interior cabin with windows rolled up. This continued for about a week.

 

2nd week, I noticed, when I start the car with the clutch in neutral; I hear a single click sound when I let off the clutch pedal quickly, as soon as the engine turns over. However, I no longer hear the chattering noise in the interior cabin. I do continue to hear the hissing when the clutch is in neutral and the pedal is not pressed downward.

 

3rd week, the weather got hot and I started using the air conditioning unit when driving. The chattering noise came back loud as before, same as the first week. The chattering noise would go away when clutch pedal is pressed downward.

 

4th week and onward, the hissing and chattering can be reproduced repeatedly as described above.

 

I have not read in the topic whether other owners have or are experiencing the same chattering noise problem air conditioning is turned-on. I assume this is all related to the clutch problem that everyone is talking about.

 

I appreciate any feedback and suggestions.

 

Thanks,

Ron

[m81mclaren]

Yeah, my tech also thought that everything that's connected to the clutch/flywheel should be replaced, and did. From soup to nuts, he replaced everything.

 

Me? I VERY happy that he did.

 

 

Thanks guys. My next step will be to ask for full TSB, CSC, & MC/SC. Does that about do it?

[Grabber]

Greeting,

 

I am a new owner of a brand new alloy/silver gt500, since 08/01/2008. I have put on over 500+ miles in a month because I just love driving this car and it is also my only vehicle.

 

I want to share my experience and get feedback and comments from the many experts on this forum.

 

1st week, first day, right from the showroom floor, the clutch made a loud scratchy chattering noise that is audible from the interior cabin with windows rolled up. This continued for about a week.

 

2nd week, I noticed, when I start the car with the clutch in neutral; I hear a single click sound when I let off the clutch pedal quickly, as soon as the engine turns over. However, I no longer hear the chattering noise in the interior cabin. I do continue to hear the hissing when the clutch is in neutral and the pedal is not pressed downward.

 

3rd week, the weather got hot and I started using the air conditioning unit when driving. The chattering noise came back loud as before, same as the first week. The chattering noise would go away when clutch pedal is pressed downward.

 

4th week and onward, the hissing and chattering can be reproduced repeatedly as described above.

 

I have not read in the topic whether other owners have or are experiencing the same chattering noise problem air conditioning is turned-on. I assume this is all related to the clutch problem that everyone is talking about.

 

I appreciate any feedback and suggestions.

 

Thanks,

Ron

 

Welcome Ron. Been lurking for 3 years and just made you first post.

 

Your car needs the TSB work installed. Print the TSB and read it, so you know what it says. Then go to your dealer with it in your back pocket.

[bullitt2090]

Welcome Ron. Been lurking for 3 years and just made you first post.

 

Your car needs the TSB work installed. Print the TSB and read it, so you know what it says. Then go to your dealer with it in your back pocket.

 

Thank you for your reply. i never own a svt product and my previous car was an 01 black bullitt, as in the user id. i registered long time ago but never really actively use the site until recently. Thanks.

[Joker45]

Well I got my car back today after having the TSB done. I was only able to drive it about a mile as it went back into the stereo shop for more work. I did notice that the shifting felt smoother. The clutch engagement is at a differnet point then before. It seems to be much higher then before. Besides that I have nothing more to add as I didn't get to drive it much. I saw the repair order and it lists 7.4 hours of labor to do this and that he let the tranny sit on the bench for 24 hours to let the sealent cure before reinstalling it. I guess that's good.

[Grabber]

I talked to BadTony today. His Blue GT500 is at my dealers getting the TSB. As they were pressing on the syncros....the 6th gear bearing blew out. It could be a week or more to get the new part. His car sits at the dealership. He's glad they gave him a rental.

[Son of GT]

Thanks guys. My next step will be to ask for full TSB, CSC, & MC/SC. Does that about do it?

Yes, that covers everything.

[brianspony]

I wanted to update everyone of the status on my Shelby. I waited till my vacation was over last week and brought it to Ford this morning. I had the service manager take it for a test drive and he agrees that the chatter taking off in first gear is very bad. He claims the shifter throw and the high clutch pedal engagment is normal for a SVT Mustang. He asked me if this was my first SVT owned vehicle and I informed him it was. Although I'm not convinced about his decision on the pedal or shifter I have a lot of faith in this dealership and will wait to see what they receive back from Ford as a corrective action. I am certain they will take whatever actions are necessary and make it right for me. I will update next week when I hear back from them.

[GT500FLYBOY]

A lot parts - mainly the tranny kit - have been on back order. Though I heard, just as of last week, that they caught up on the back log. My car is evidence of that. They had all parts as of Friday - and I just got my car back.

 

What a difference. I have no trouble getting into any gear now - and it is very smooth. Very precise and confident with the shifting now. You may have noticed I never did say that when the tranny was installed back in June. I don't believe the clutch and flywheel were installed correctly. The tech also found the pilot bearing had some slight damage to it. I'll put a pic up later. The tech felt they must have had trouble installing the tranny last time. He said this may be yet another thing that could hangup the clutch on the input shaft.

 

Here are some pics of the pilot bearing damage. There's a plastic carrier that holds the rollers in place. It appears there was some damage done by the input shaft when the tranny was installed. It looks like the rollers may have been offset a bit. Not a lot, but it didn't look right to the tech. He took care with this in mind when he installed after the TSB work.

 

[Wilmmr]

Hello All,

 

I'm new here and just picked up my GT500 new yesterday. Now I haven't driven a six speed since high school but here is one thing I've noticed and just wanted to compare notes to see if it is normal. When the car warms up, in second gear I get a sound, not exactly a whine, sounds almost like the air conditioning if that makes any sense, in fact at first I thought it was the air conditioning bogging down when I hit the gas but I get the sound without AC as well. Definitely tied to the gear since I don't have this in any of the other gears and it will get higher or lower depending on the RPM. I do not feel any shake or grinding thru the stick shift but do feel/hear the flywheel. I have not experienced any of the clutch drag described in earlier posts, everything shifts securely and I have detected no "hiss" unless this noise is the "hiss" everyone talks about. The owner's manual says that I will hear things out of this transmission that you don't normally hear due to it's high performance nature. I'm going to put a few more miles on it to see how the sound evolves, if it does before I do the Service Manager SVT Tech dance but wanted to check here first. I'm leaning towards the out of alignment flywheel theory or maybe it is normal?

 

Anyway, my GT500 just came off the truck 48 hours ago, I bought it on sight so last week it was on the assembly line, one would think the "Clutch Drag" discussed in this post would have been addressed on the line but who knows.

 

Anyway, thanks for any responses!

[6-Speed]

Greeting,

I have not read in the topic whether other owners have or are experiencing the same chattering noise problem air conditioning is turned-on. I assume this is all related to the clutch problem that everyone is talking about.

 

I appreciate any feedback and suggestions.

 

Thanks,

Ron

Mine chatters noticably when the AC is turned on, but I am not sure it's related to the clutch.

[Son of GT]

Hello All,

 

I'm new here and just picked up my GT500 new yesterday. Now I haven't driven a six speed since high school but here is one thing I've noticed and just wanted to compare notes to see if it is normal. When the car warms up, in second gear I get a sound, not exactly a whine, sounds almost like the air conditioning if that makes any sense, in fact at first I thought it was the air conditioning bogging down when I hit the gas but I get the sound without AC as well. Definitely tied to the gear since I don't have this in any of the other gears and it will get higher or lower depending on the RPM. I do not feel any shake or grinding thru the stick shift but do feel/hear the flywheel. I have not experienced any of the clutch drag described in earlier posts, everything shifts securely and I have detected no "hiss" unless this noise is the "hiss" everyone talks about. The owner's manual says that I will hear things out of this transmission that you don't normally hear due to it's high performance nature. I'm going to put a few more miles on it to see how the sound evolves, if it does before I do the Service Manager SVT Tech dance but wanted to check here first. I'm leaning towards the out of alignment flywheel theory or maybe it is normal?

 

Anyway, my GT500 just came off the truck 48 hours ago, I bought it on sight so last week it was on the assembly line, one would think the "Clutch Drag" discussed in this post would have been addressed on the line but who knows.

 

Anyway, thanks for any responses!

Wilmmr, all 2007 through 2009 GT500's are affected by the flywheel and clutch issue. FoMoCo won't resolve it on the assembly line until the 2010 model year.

 

BTW, congratulations on your purchase, and welcome to the family; a somewhat disfunctional family, but a family never the less.

[Light66]

Wilmmr, all 2007 through 2009 GT500's are affected by the flywheel and clutch issue. FoMoCo won't resolve it on the assembly line until the 2010 model year.

 

BTW, congratulations on your purchase, and welcome to the family; a somewhat disfunctional family, but a family never the less.

 

 

Here is another one, my Nov. 2007 built 2008 GT500 is getting the full TSB. Just got the call from the dealer today.

[bull]

Here is another one, my Nov. 2007 built 2008 GT500 is getting the full TSB. Just got the call from the dealer today.

 

 

all these little problems for a car priced in such a way as to impede rationality..may be thats why motor trend placed it dead last...dont get me wrong..if i hack out half my brain i would still buy a new KR..damn car on appearance is done right

[Light66]

all these little problems for a car priced in such a way as to impede rationality..may be thats why motor trend placed it dead last...dont get me wrong..if i hack out half my brain i would still buy a new KR..damn car on appearance is done right

 

 

 

Couldn't say better myself.

[Wilmmr]

If my problem described above, if it even is a problem, is a result of the issue addressed by the TSB, it amazes me that any company would not fix that problem at the source, immediately. If there is ANY question, especially on low production models such as these. I mean, we aren't buying Chevy's here, this is serious cash for a serious machine and if we do not feel we have been given the experience we expected from this outlay, guess what, we won't be buying another one.

 

Just my 2 cents, and venting, may not be the same problem, but some have had this problem and it should have been fixed the moment these reports came in.

 

Pie in the sky, I know.

[GT500FLYBOY]

If my problem described above, if it even is a problem, is a result of the issue addressed by the TSB, it amazes me that any company would not fix that problem at the source, immediately. If there is ANY question, especially on low production models such as these. I mean, we aren't buying Chevy's here, this is serious cash for a serious machine and if we do not feel we have been given the experience we expected from this outlay, guess what, we won't be buying another one.

 

Just my 2 cents, and venting, may not be the same problem, but some have had this problem and it should have been fixed the moment these reports came in.

 

Pie in the sky, I know.

 

The TSB fix just came out the beginning of August. The cars and engines being sold now have been in the pipeline for some time - well before the TSB release date. I imagine the fix will be applied to the production models soon, if not already.

[Son of GT]

If my problem described above, if it even is a problem, is a result of the issue addressed by the TSB, it amazes me that any company would not fix that problem at the source, immediately. If there is ANY question, especially on low production models such as these. I mean, we aren't buying Chevy's here, this is serious cash for a serious machine and if we do not feel we have been given the experience we expected from this outlay, guess what, we won't be buying another one.

 

Just my 2 cents, and venting, may not be the same problem, but some have had this problem and it should have been fixed the moment these reports came in.

 

Pie in the sky, I know.

Wilmmr, please take a moment to read my post #18 in this forum:

 

http://www.teamshelby.com/forums/index.php...st&p=516372

 

It may provide you some insight as to why things are the way that are.