iAMGod

HI all - I have that renowned chirping sound coming from the supercharger - was told by my mechanic it was the clutch - he said the entire clutch needs to be replaced - I have read on these forums that this can sometimes be remedied by purchasing the bearings made by nachi ad replacing the cluitch bearings - i suggested this to my mechanic but he said the clutch is 'worn out' and that is why the SC dsnt engage immediately and there is a bit of 'lag' under load.

My question is can anyone confirm whether simply replacing the clutch bearings with these nachi bearings would be effective to fix this issue ( not just the sounds but 'lag') as a $80 fix sounds better than a $1500 one.

Thanks in advance any insight is appreciated.

jmf003

No, unfortunately they are different components. You'll want to replace the bearings when the originals start to fail but that won't affect the clutch chirp.

cal1

I think your mechanic is right on this and not just trying to sell you something you don't need. I had the notorious chirp a few years ago. We tried to shim it and successfully removed the chirp for a short period of time. About six months later, the clutch bearing failed. I chose to replace the whole clutch pack which comes with a bearing pressed in place. The old clutch revealed significant wear.

You can live with the chirp without any real issues if you choose. If you take this route, I suggest you inspect your bearing occasionally for wear. You can see the bearing by removing the front cover. The bearing race has a protective cover so you should not be able to see the ball bearings in the race. I can post a picture of what a bad bearing looks like if you wish.

iAMGod

thanks for the responses - ^^^ i cant live with the chirp to be honest, but more importantly i dont like the 'lag' it creates so looks like i will need to replace it. If you could post those images of a poor bearing that would be appreciated,

regards

cal1

Happy to. My personal opinion is that a chirping clutch puts more force on the clutch bearing which is already known to fail so i would not take the chance. this is why I warn people to inspect the bearing.

iAMGod

thank you for that - have any idea where to get a super cahrger clutch from at the best price?

cheers

cal1

I bought one at mbpartswarehouse.com. I have heard people on the forum say good things about autohausaz.com. Are you in the US? I thought I saw right handed drive cars in one of your links.

By the way, changing out the clutch pack is very straight forward. As I understand it, the hardest thing to do is getting the big nut off of the end of the assembly. I had a local indy shop do the work for me at close to half of what the dealer wanted for the job.

iAMGod

Excellent, thanks for the assistance ill try those links - yes the 'stealership' was going to charge much more to do the job as per usual, so im taking it to a MB specialist.

Im actually in Canada - moved from Australia a few months ago those clips were of my brother and I - Im really enjoying how cheap your cars are here in North America - to give you an idea - a 2003 sl55 with 30kmiles will run you approximately 130,000USD in Australia......Im not complaining

Viet_Amg408

had same chirp and lag...


removing the shim between clutch friction plate and pulley improved it...now i can't even feel the clutch engagement..

also replace the bearing while at it..

or if you got $$$..just buy the whole clutch pack and replace everything new

iAMGod

Can you expand on what this 'shim' is - the only 'shims' im aware of are the lady boys your told to avoid when visiting bangkok.....

Is this safe to do though removing the shim im assuming it is to get more engagement from the decaying clutch?

cal1

Haha, I think you want to avoid these shims as well. Just don't think it would be a fix that lasts for long. Viet_AMG408 is a trusted forum member though.

I think you hit the "nail on the head." The clutch is worn and things can be done to get that last ounce of wear out of it, but the fact still remain that the clutch is nearing the end of its useful life.

iAMGod

cheers mate for the helpful info -

Rick SL55

I just order the Nachi bearing to have them i stock at home.

Viet_Amg408

THESE SHIM. BETWEEN THE MAGNETIC FRICTION PLATE AND PULLEY..
YOU CAN SEE HOW WORNED DOWN THE FRICTION PLATE IS .

..







MAKE SURE THERE'S CLEARANCE

iAMGod

thanks for the pics and advice everyone - i just dropped it in today to have the whole clutch replaced -

Viet_Amg408

NICE...THAT WORK TOO ..

CharlestonN

Sorry to revive an old thread but i am about to attempt the bearing replacement again this weekend (i have tried twice already to no avail), i can't seam to find a god strap wrench to keep the main shaft from turing with the bolt

What type of strap wrench did you use to get hold the bolt from turning the main shaft?

Thanks in advance

cal1

Can't help with the specific question because I don't know. Have you tried heating the bolt or nut up a bit? I have heard they were installed with locktite that needs to be warmed up to release. I know some people have only been successful with a air impact.

My guy had trouble with the same issue and then realized they had to pull the SC to install the phenolic spacers I had ordered so they did the job on a bench.

good luck

fscarce1

I called there and they said they don't stock this clutch pack it's a Mercedes dealer only part. Do you know part #, or price?

flyeffect

Does anyone have a used supercharger clutch/pulley.
I will buy one even if the bearing is bad, my clutch broke and came apart.
Thanks

iammalibuboy

For anybody reading this old thread (like me) others have used two hose clamps side by each to hold the clutch still while trying to loosen the nut. The hose clamp screw port butts up against a nub and prevents the clutch from turning. Others added a cut up inner tube between the hose clamps and clutch to add friction.

Noir230

A few months ago, I replaced my SC pulley with a smaller one. Having had no success with the hose clamp method and scratching my clutch drum, I used one of these:




At first it would slip around the drum, but worked quite well after I wrapped friction tape around the drum. I also used a small butane torch on the bolt to heat the threadlocker.

iammalibuboy

For Canadians.....
I replaced my supercharger bearing last night. Hose clamps with or without rubber didn't work and truth be told the only reason I tried that was because I didn't know what a strap clamp was. Turns out they are in stock at Princess Auto and cost 12 bucks (not much more than the hose clamps).
Nachi bearing was in stock at Nachi Canada in Concord. Had to buy it through a distributor then picked it up in Concord (cheaper online if shipping is free and you don't mind the wait).
Once I gave up on the hose clamps, bought the strap clamp and a 24" breaker bar the bolt came out easy.
Oven/freezer trick worked FANTASTIC. Bearing in freezer for 45 minutes and other thingy in the oven at 200 for 35 minutes then 250 for 10 minutes. Bearing dropped right in.
Really an easy job once you have the bolt out.
Last step...key to on position, gas pedal to the floor for 5 seconds, key to off, then release the gas pedal. Wait 2 minutes. Resets the CPU to max power.
Started at 5PM finished at 11PM including trips to Princess Auto and Home Depot, the wasted time with hose clamps, and 45 minutes of oven time.
Got my 500 HP car back.

cal1

Nice! Glad you got your monster back. Our cars are dogs without the SC.