308 Using Triumph TR8 Clutch? | FerrariChat

308 Using Triumph TR8 Clutch?

Discussion in '308/328' started by chipkent, Dec 16, 2009.

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  1. chipkent

    chipkent Karting

    Jul 16, 2009
    115
    I've got the engine out of my 308. I removed the flywheel access cover and noticed some writing on my clutch. It said "Triumph TR8" and "98440". I was able to find this page which says that 98440 was a clutch part number for a Triumph TR8.
    http://www.ottawaclutch.com/triumph.htm

    Is the TR8 clutch interchangeable with a 308 clutch? Is this very common?
     
  2. chipkent

    chipkent Karting

    Jul 16, 2009
    115
    One other detail. The car is tough to get into gear under some circumstances. There is no crunching. Unfortunately, I only have ~20 miles in the car before it was obvious the engined needed to be pulled so I can't be specific about when it is tough to get into gear. Any chance this is from the TR8 clutch or is this most likely just a problem with the clutch adjustment? Given that I didn't notice crunching, any chance it is a synchro?
     
  3. FF8929

    FF8929 Formula Junior

    Apr 12, 2008
    799
    Livonia, Michigan
    Full Name:
    Fred Flynn
    Is the info on the clutch disc, handwritten or stamped into the metal? I'm sure the TR-8 parts are English measure while the F-car parts are, of course, metric. Can't see how a TR-8 part could fit. Boy, could we save some money if it's true! But, I doubt it.
     
  4. chipkent

    chipkent Karting

    Jul 16, 2009
    115
    Handwritten. I forgot to include that. Good point about the metric vs. imperial units.
     
  5. greyboxer

    greyboxer F1 World Champ

    Dec 8, 2004
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    Jimmie
    #5 greyboxer, Dec 17, 2009
    Last edited: Dec 17, 2009
    But don't both the clutches come from someone like AP in Leamington anyway ?

    Having said that I think the part numbers may be different
     
  6. FF8929

    FF8929 Formula Junior

    Apr 12, 2008
    799
    Livonia, Michigan
    Full Name:
    Fred Flynn
    #6 FF8929, Dec 17, 2009
    Last edited: Dec 17, 2009
    How do the disc and shaft splines fit together? Loose, tight,
    just right? Also, it's hard to believe that the TR-8 clutch would be over-engineered enough to handle the HP of a 308. Is there any, stamped in, numbers on the disc?
    I suspect that someone wrote the wrong info on the (308) disc, them someone else, who knew better, installed it in your car and didn't bother to remove the bad writing.
     
  7. chipkent

    chipkent Karting

    Jul 16, 2009
    115
    The bell housing is still on the car so I can't see very much. The writing is on the edge of the plate so it is visible through the small panel by the oil filter.
     
  8. ramosel

    ramosel Formula 3

    Sep 11, 2004
    1,237
    Meadow Vista, CA
    Full Name:
    R Moseley
    Huh? It was a 3.5 liter V8 of the same era based on an old Buick V8... It should be consistent 308 specs. Depending on whose stats you read it had anywhere from 160 to 220 hp - so thats right in range.

    Since neither Ferrari or Triumph manufactured their own clutches, its entirely feasible they used not only a common supplier, but a common part. Especially considering the other Brit vendors used throughout the car.

    Rick

    (PS, I had a TR7 as a teenager... what a hoot that car was)
     
  9. chipkent

    chipkent Karting

    Jul 16, 2009
    115
    I had a TR3a, and it was a blast. Too bad they got so ugly with the TR8.
     
  10. Rifledriver

    Rifledriver Three Time F1 World Champ

    Apr 29, 2004
    37,096
    Cowboy Capitol of the World
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    Brian Crall
    Nothing metric about Ferrari clutches. Most are off the shelf, chosen out of a catalog just like most other cars. The 308 clutch is common to a number of other cars.
     
  11. mike996

    mike996 F1 Veteran

    Jun 14, 2008
    6,871
    Full Name:
    Mike 996
    TR8? Hey Great! Maybe we can use some Lucas electric parts! :)

    "Nothing metric about Ferrari clutches. Most are off the shelf, chosen out of a catalog just like most other cars"

    Yeah - it's like bearings...they are standard and, as has often been noted, Ferrari (or any other auto manufacturer) doesn't make bearings (or hoses, or thermostats, or alternators or spark plug wires, or nuts and bolts, or brake pads or clutches...etc, etc, etc. ;)
     
  12. ramosel

    ramosel Formula 3

    Sep 11, 2004
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    R Moseley
    #12 ramosel, Dec 17, 2009
    Last edited: Dec 17, 2009
    Don't look too close at the name on your center console switches....

    Rick
     
  13. mike996

    mike996 F1 Veteran

    Jun 14, 2008
    6,871
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    Mike 996
    They work fine so they can't be Lucas! :)
     
  14. ramosel

    ramosel Formula 3

    Sep 11, 2004
    1,237
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    R Moseley
    Sad but true....

    Yep, there is a bit of the original "dark lord" in your Ferrari.

    Rick
     
  15. rolindsay

    rolindsay Formula 3

    Jul 14, 2006
    1,022
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    Rick Lindsay
    And I still have a TR3b - complete with the tractor engine, as designed.

    When touring the F-factory in 1999 we watched them build gearboxes. The individual gears came out of boxes marked "Porsche".
     
  16. Rifledriver

    Rifledriver Three Time F1 World Champ

    Apr 29, 2004
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    Ferrari used ZF in the past for internals just like Porsche did but did not buy from Porsche. About the only commonality anymore is the posi clutches.
     
  17. Rifledriver

    Rifledriver Three Time F1 World Champ

    Apr 29, 2004
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    Brian Crall



    The shape of things that break.
     
  18. woody6

    woody6 Karting

    Mar 9, 2009
    117
    Madison, AL
    Full Name:
    Robert B.
    The genesis of Lamborghini is attributed to Ferruccio Lamborghini's clutch problems with his car, and his subsequent discovery that the clutch in his Ferrari was the same one he used in farm tractors he manufactured. Considering how many parts-bins Ferrari raided to build its cars, I would be surprised if the disc for any Ferrari of the period was unique to Ferrari. Why reinvent the wheel, er..., clutch?

    --Woody
     
  19. Wade

    Wade Three Time F1 World Champ
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    #19 Wade, Dec 17, 2009
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
  20. Ferraripilot

    Ferraripilot F1 World Champ
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    #20 Ferraripilot, Dec 17, 2009
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
  21. Wade

    Wade Three Time F1 World Champ
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    #21 Wade, Dec 17, 2009
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  22. Dynra Rockets

    Dynra Rockets Rookie

    Dec 14, 2009
    21
    Maybe someone messing with a future owner.

    Several years ago I was having 2.05" journals of a mazda 626 crank ground down to use 2" chevy rods and I stamped "cosworth" on one of the counter weights just to mess with the head of some future engine builder.
     
  23. Dynra Rockets

    Dynra Rockets Rookie

    Dec 14, 2009
    21
    well the disk splines are off but a closer look at the pressure plate and it looks like the important mounting holes line up.

    Maybe an improvised TR8 pressure plate with a ferrari spec disk to get something out the door quick?
     
  24. BwanaJoe

    BwanaJoe Formula 3

    Oct 23, 2006
    1,764
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    Joe Burlein
    Bah, my Lucas stuff works fine. The damn Clear Hooters wiper switch just died on the TR6 though. NLA for YEARS now.

    Oh, and my BMW mirror switch just died on the Ferrari today. So much for German Engineering.
     
  25. 2NA

    2NA F1 World Champ
    Consultant Owner Professional Ferrari Technician

    Dec 29, 2006
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    Tim Keseluk
    #25 2NA, Dec 17, 2009
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    Here are a couple clutches I removed from customer's cars.

    One of them a Ferrari 365 GTC/4 that needed a new piston.

    The other a Series 3 Jaguar Etype (V12), in for an engine re-seal.

    Both clutches were still good but replaced because it "made sense" while the engine was out.

    I don't recall which was which anymore but they are dimensionally similar and could interchange (including the splines).

    Even the Lamborghini Miura uses a modified version of this same pressure plate.
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