You'll see a major difference when you install this kit AND upgraded clutch kit. You'll need to take out the trans out anyways, mind as well replace it the clutch.

BUT if you still wondering this kit will make a difference with OEM clutch. Answer will be yes... but a big difference? Not really.

Isn't the stock clutch is also made by Exedy? The Toyobaru specification must have included concessions for very casual MT drivers.

Remove the clutch spring. Eric wrote up a thread on it; it's a 15 minute job and easily reversible if you end up not liking it. With no spring helping you push the pedal, the interface becomes much more direct.
It is, but OEM spec is lower than Stage 1 spec.

Besides possibly having the ability to handle less torque, can you describe what you mean by "lower"?

I have one of these forks in my gearbox now. I was having disengagement issues and minor clutch drag at high revs which would cause the high rpm gear engagement issues from time to time. I have an FX400 clutch.

The car should be back together in the next week. I'll update this post on if the Velox fork resolves my issues.

You're correct, stock clutch is made by Exedy. It's OEM spec, so it's a bit different spec than say stage 1 or 2.

When they were building the the 86, they try to save the cost by try to use much current Subaru/Toyota components. I was surprised that, they used Subaru clutch fork instead of Toyota clutch fork. Toyota uses Aisin more than Suabru, so I was expecting they'll use more solid Toyota fork... Well, I was wrong.

If you keep OEM clutch and don't do too crazy stuff, stock clutch fork will work fine. When you upgrade to make it harder, OEM fork tend to flex, resulting cracking happens.

Trust me, I know this. I broke my clutch fork into 3 peices lol

I've already done that and put it back over a year ago due to a foot injury. I don't/can't do heavy clutches anymore.

The stage 1 has a stronger pressure plate and a different disc, and it can handle more torque.

Hm... thinking about it more. Maybe before I buy & install into my car. Maybe I should show this product next time I see Tada-san to explain how weak is the OEM clutch fork is... so he and his team can look into it next gen.

I could be very wrong but they likely don't care as long as it doesn't break with the OEM parts? Past that it is a customer developed issue... But again could be wrong.

Had to look up torque spec for a customer, 12 ft-lbs on the pivot install torque.

I'm slightly curious if the clutch fork could help the OEM TOB last longer. I know it's a bit of a stretch and can't be proven for a year or more but what if one of the fork ears is bending while the other isn't? This would cause a non-uniform load to be placed on the bearing and perhaps reduce life? It's something that has been going on in my head since beginning this project. Only time will tell though.

Thanks,
Eric

That same non-uniform load would theoretically have a dramatic effect on clutch feel.

All this talk makes me want to get a new clutch and pressure plate and tossing these parts in. Too bad my stock clutch is fine :/

Damn shame

I see your point. At the same time, it doesn't hurt the ask/tell them. Good example is updated gauges for kouki 86 and new BRZ. Tada-san received few email and message talking about how right side of gauges are waste and should be updated to something more beneficial for the owners. After few discussion and replying back messages. Tada-san and his team looked into LCD screen with extra feature.

Another example is, rear chassis flex (near the rear window). There were feedback from racing teams (in Japan) discussing about in flex happening. Tada-san and their team looked into that and have stiffen the area by 15% (iirc) to reduce the flex while keeping it not too stiff. We're talking about racing teams that uses 86 for racing with a lot of upgrades on it.

Of course there are other example that Tada-san knows, but haven't fixed... so it's all up to Tada-san and his team.

Edit:
& yes, to see the result for your fork to be effective and so on, it'll take a yr... but tbh you guys make legit parts, so I'm not worry about the quality or other issue as much. ;)

So a slight introduction since I don't post very much.

I own a small performance shop in the heart of the Bay Area. I can confidently say we have more 86's then anywhere else on the planet. In a any given week my little shop see's 12-15 FRS's and BRZ's, on top of the German cars I also specialize in.

Currently, I've got around 90+ FI'd cars out here and a 1/3 of them have aftermarket clutches. The clutch lockout issue has plagued a number of them. For a long time, I was under the impression the issue was flywheel related. I had narrowed it down to that after trying a few setups in one of my personal FRS's. It never occurred to me to look at the clutch fork as an issue, until this thread was started. A stronger(less flexible) fork sounded like a great idea(OS Giken thought so as well), and at the very least, would stand up to the forces of these stiffer pressure plates.

I have been happily installing lot of Velox parts lately. Nothing better for a shop to install, then quality parts with no fuss! Very recently I had a customer detonate his stock throwout bearing. With plans for big power soon he settled on a fairly aggressive clutch. Spec Stage 3 with Aluminum Flywheel. I thought it would be a great opportunity to try out the new Velox clutch fork, and the customer agreed(His stock one got eaten as well).

The fork itself was machined nicely, and the holes for the springs and clips were a perfect fit. The real surprise came after the install. I have installed a couple of these clutches before and they are NOT forgiving. To my surprise, the usual chatter and jerkiness was almost eliminated, and the vague clutch pedal feel turned into a more precise movement. The downside, the clutch pedal actually feels light. (The customer wants it stiffer even!) After the break in I will report back to see how the shifting feels and if there are any lockout issues.

I was so happy with how this clutch fork felt, that I ordered another one as fast as I could to put in a car on Friday with an ACT clutch and flywheel(and then JRSC, E85) For the price, its a no brainer, and I will continue recommending them to customers as I see fit.

Bottom line, Eric/Velox is cranking out high quality parts, and this clutch fork is just that! Also, his customer service is ridiculous, and I thought I was good :)

http://i208.photobucket.com/albums/b...pssvfx1ufp.jpg

http://i208.photobucket.com/albums/b...psm2vsbsoy.jpg

http://i208.photobucket.com/albums/b...pszstrzvhq.jpg

http://i208.photobucket.com/albums/b...psx9xamwav.jpg

I think the idea of the stock fork not being able to distribute load evenly could be what is happening.

As I said in my earlier post, I have an FX400, which is a fairly heavy clutch. Since installing the clutch I’ve had engagement issues. Feels like a slight clutch drag when clutched in. I adjusted the master cylinder to no avail, dropped the transmission a couple of times to relubricate the TOB, and replaced the TOB more than once in an effort to fix the annoying issue.

I actually had the TOB clips break on me before as well. I made a thread about it at the time.

http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=74366

Here’s a video from back then showing what happened to my TOB clips.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZiilzaDVWs"]Frs clutch tob - YouTube[/ame]

I have since installed a Velox fork with a new TOB.

http://i66.tinypic.com/312jqww.jpg

I noticed when it was apart, that the surface the TOB rides on was pretty marr’d up. See two pics below.

Has anyone seen this before on an FRS with a heavy clutch and factory release fork? My theory is the fork was distorting, and the bearing was being actuated back and forth on a non-perpendicular angle with the input shaft snout causing these marks. You can actually see two cupped wear marks towards the front of the snout. It doesn't look like a happy camper.

http://i65.tinypic.com/kbdgys.jpg
http://i64.tinypic.com/2hq8dnd.jpg

From what I can gather from the diagrams online, this is the part scored up on mine:

RETAINER-BEARING
Part Number: 30099AA040

I’ll have to order a new one, and replace it when I get in there to do the Velox pivot ball.

I will be purchasing this when I begin my tear down to do my build

This makes a huge amount of sense. If the stock fork is flexing (as it almost certainly is), any chatter during initial engagement would very likely feed into the springy fork and wind up being amplified. The same springy behavior would do nothing good for precision. The more rigid Velox replacement kills both of those birds and might very well lead to increased part (TOB) life because the loading is more consistent particularly if the stock fork is twisting as it's oscillating.

This is probably already discussed somewhere, but my wee brain just got wrapped around it.

All these parts the Velox folks keep coming out with at times make me wish I was harder on my car so I could need them. They are really, really sexy pieces of art.

Super easy to replace this part FYI. I've taken it apart multiple times while disassembling transmissions for rebuilds/upgrades (in our expensive quest for an OEM gearbox fix for 3rd and 4th). Simple unbolt, silicone, bolt back on. There is an input shaft seal that you'll want to purchase and install new FYI.

I'm really happy that my thoughts on the fork potentially causing TOB failure isn't too far-fetched and makes sense to others. Maybe I'm not so crazy after all :bonk: .

Pivot points and clutch forks just shipped out to FT-86 SpeedFactory so they should be in stock there shortly. We still have some on the shelf as well.

Thanks,
Eric

Received the pivot the other day. Looks great.

However, the pivot looks to be raw (no plating). Am I correct in this observation? Would you agree the part would benefit from a zinc plating or similar coating? I might throw it in our next batch of clear zinc that goes out at work when the opportunity arises. Just wanted to confirm.

I'm no expert but I doubt it will make a difference. Probably coated in grease when installed, right? Probably won't hurt though

It's a stainless, no need to worry about rust.

That solves that. Thanks!

I ordered mine!
Clutch and pivot, to go together with a new OS GIKEN grand touring dual disk clutch (ordered to replace a failed throwout bearing - as I need to open the gearbox, I decided to replace everything that could be replaced inside...)

Just wanted to provide some additional feedback now that the car is back together. I had quite a few drivability issues since getting my fx400 clutch and flywheel combo a couple of years ago. I'm very happy to report all these issues have now vanished with the install of the new clutch fork. The disengagement is smooth as can be now, there is no binding sensation on clutch in like there was before. Gears no longer lock out, and everything feels buttery smooth. Eric I can't thank you guys enough this fixed my car and made it drive like it used to on the oem clutch.

Mike

I got my South Bend Stage 2 daily clutch (with stock flywheel) and Velox clutch fork installed. Although I have no idea if the fork makes a difference in drive feel, I will say, it's a great reassurance for one less weak link in our glass transmissions! Also I didn't want to get it installed since it was just so pretty....

This is really neat to hear that our product is making this car "fun" and "driveable" again!

My experiences with the ACT Heavy Duty has been nothing but stellar. I've heard from other owners that theirs would chatter, have high RPM lock out (similar to @mhiscott experience), etc; but I've been extremely happy with its operation for the 2k miles so far. The clutch pedal is very linear and the clutch drives near OEM, just a tad bit heavier pedal.

Thanks,
Eric

Have not gotten the car rolling yet but pedal feel already while sitting is amazing! A lot more precise it feels. I will update later down the road

Running an OS Giken single GT clutch with their heavy, well built throw out bearing.

Installed.mfeels good, much more positive clutch response now, I have the slickest gear changes ever now.i believe as a result of this fork working without flex

Currently using ACT street extreme clutch with regular(non lightened) flywheel(lighter then stock) and about 5k miles into using the clutch it is starting to lock me out of first gear(really annoying at street lights) any chance the fork might be the culprit? anyone else run into engagement issues and used this fork to fix? thinking of just ordering the damn thing and getting a new act or oem throw out bearing plus springs(retaining springs for the bearing/fork.

Also- i have adjusted the pedal multiple times to see if it would help and bringing the pedal way up helped for about 20miles then it started doing same thing so i adjusted the pedal again to where its about half an inch higher then the brake pedal. seems to be heat related as when its cold i have smooth engagements, once ive driven for some time and the car is hot it starts locking me out.

Pretty sure someone mentioned it helping earlier in the thread. If it was mine, I'd give it a shot

How weak is the oem pivot ball? I just installed the fork and didn't even realize that velox even made a ball pivot until I had already installed the transmission.

It's not necessarily weak, however with a twin plate clutch or heavy duty clutch and extra pressure on a stronger fork will wear or mushroom the pivot eventually. The stronger pivot just gives a little extra longevity. No one has complained about the stock pivot failing, this was created to give a little extra security due to other vehicle applications that had stronger forks installed also had their pivots fail like in a few Nissan vehicles. So really past experiences, and from what velox said, it wasn't that hard or expensive to create.

So here's something interesting that happened to this clutch fork pivot, a local car at that!

http://i.imgur.com/0s5vjuK.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/yvDPlUm.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/BTrhxOy.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/yGGXBSR.jpg

The last picture is what makes me question what broke what. Which part broke first (TOB or Pivot) to cause the fork to rub against the bell housing. I don't truly have an answer, my guess would be TOB started to fail, causing a bending moment to be placed on the pivot which caused the pivot to ultimately fail. That's just a guess though, car has over 120k miles on it.

He drove the car like this for 20 or so miles to get it home one day, then to the shop the next.

Thanks,
Eric

Hm... was it stock clutch? I've heard flex of clutch fork causes stress on pivot and weaken by stiffer aftermarket clutch, but never seen it break. Good thing you made a stronger ver! :thumbup:

@VeloxEric, any idea when the next batch of forks will be ready? Back order status problems :)

He was on stock clutch fork still. He was/is on an Exedy Stage 2 clutch.

FT-86 SpeedFactory has another batch headed to them currently, just received these in today! I'll have our website updated as well, we have a few on the shelf.

Thanks,
Eric

Happy to hear this, I made an order from ft86speed factory last week and eager to receive and install the fork


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

when will these be back in stock?


I check ft86speedfactory and it says back ordered