Replacement clutch again

[anorak bo]

My 2018 T6 LWB was racked out by a reputable company early 2019....
.....BUT has pushed payload / weight limits very close to its maximum let alone increasing torque on clutch apparently

Heavy duty suspension upgrade recently

So CLUTCH & DMF….

I had to replace the clutch early 2023, and now again 2024.
I realise the higher use of torque but how come the original clutch lasted from 2019 up to 2023 ?
(Incidentally it was used no less apart from the first 4 weeks of covid)
When I questioned the garage in actual clutch brand etc they insisted :
"VW Clutches are just the same as the Sachs ones we’ve fitted .
We can send the clutch back but they will say the fibres have got hot and it wont be covered“
So Do clutches vary in quality??

We all know from white goods to gas boilers that market leading brands now provide entry level products as as their high end products to remain competitive

I don’t slip the clutch , and careful when biting clutch etc

I recognise the payload issue but is there a high quality clutch out there?

My mileage is very low under 30,000 !

I understand by adding the weight is my fault BUT just want to get as much out of a clutch as possible...

 

[DaveD]

My 2018 T6 LWB was racked out by a reputable company early 2019....
.....BUT has pushed payload / weight limits very close to its maximum let alone increasing torque on clutch apparently

Heavy duty suspension upgrade recently

So CLUTCH & DMF….

I had to replace the clutch early 2023, and now again 2024.
I realise the higher use of torque but how come the original clutch lasted from 2019 up to 2023 ?
(Incidentally it was used no less apart from the first 4 weeks of covid)
When I questioned the garage in actual clutch brand etc they insisted :
"VW Clutches are just the same as the Sachs ones we’ve fitted .
We can send the clutch back but they will say the fibres have got hot and it wont be covered“
So Do clutches vary in quality??

We all know from white goods to gas boilers that market leading brands now provide entry level products as as their high end products to remain competitive

I don’t slip the clutch , and careful when biting clutch etc

I recognise the payload issue but is there a high quality clutch out there?

My mileage is very low under 30,000 !

I understand by adding the weight is my fault BUT just want to get as much out of a clutch as possible...

I disagree, adding weight is not your fault, you bought a van designed to carry weight and assuming you stayed within the weight limit for your van the components including clutch should be perfectly capable of functioning for a reasonable period of time / miles.
The life of the clutch should be measured by the miles rather than its age and I'm not sure from your post if the clutch has done 30K miles or if your van has a total of 30K miles, but either way you should be able to expect much more from a clutch if the vehicle is driven properly.
You have no choice but to fit a new clutch so I'd insist on the garage fitting a genuine VW clutch this time.

 

[Paynewright]

Sachs are an OEM supplier - I’ve fitted Sachs components to another vehicle that had the OEM part number ground off. It was 75% cheaper!

I would happily use Sachs parts again, however, that does seem very poor mileage for a clutch. Also dont rule out a faulty pressure plate.

 

[Nutexa Frictions]

Hi, if you can send us your old clutch plate, we can reline it for you like brand new. Also we can look into putting a higher quality friction on it that we use for the Golf R’s and Audi S3’s

 

[DXX]

So Do clutches vary in quality??

Yes. Some specialists can quote lower prices by using salvaged and re-conditioned equipment.
Always make sure you get a written quote with the warranty terms and conditions.
On completion of the work the invoice needs to show the individual part numbers used.

 

[anorak bo]

My 2018 T6 LWB was racked out by a reputable company early 2019....
.....BUT has pushed payload / weight limits very close to its maximum let alone increasing torque on clutch apparently

Heavy duty suspension upgrade recently

So CLUTCH & DMF….

I had to replace the clutch early 2023, and now again 2024.
I realise the higher use of torque but how come the original clutch lasted from 2019 up to 2023 ?
(Incidentally it was used no less apart from the first 4 weeks of covid)
When I questioned the garage in actual clutch brand etc they insisted :
"VW Clutches are just the same as the Sachs ones we’ve fitted .
We can send the clutch back but they will say the fibres have got hot and it wont be covered“
So Do clutches vary in quality??

We all know from white goods to gas boilers that market leading brands now provide entry level products as as their high end products to remain competitive

I don’t slip the clutch , and careful when biting clutch etc

I recognise the payload issue but is there a high quality clutch out there?

My mileage is very low under 30,000 !

I understand by adding the weight is my fault BUT just want to get as much out of a clutch as possible...

Thank you for all your replies - really appreciate this.

I run my own business, flat out all year round....therefore downtime kills me !!

Obviously I had to get it back on the road ASAP , so the garage replaced the clutch yet again and have sent the old clutch back to Sachs or their supplier.

The showed me the complete assembly , which all looked fine (A bit discoloured , heat marks etc) and highlighted how the fibres had broken down.

If it goes again , then I will pursue a more heavy duty option - 'Nutexa' I will bare you in mind , I might request the old clutch from them if I can

Just to confirm mileage : 30,000

Original clutch: 2018-2023, (racking/weight increase easy 2019) 2nd Clutch : Jan 2023, 3rd Clutch: April 2024


So can anyone confirm specifically what the original clutch would have been ?

Part number Sachs '636440640' was quoted on last weeks invoice but not on the year before .

There must be a harder waring fibrous material on the original VW one