So I just had my flywheel + clutch replaced...

[anom3]

I just had a clutch job done on my 07.07 production 6MT E92 M3.

For those that don't know, if you want to have your clutch replaced on a pre 2009 (err... 2010? forgot the exact year) 6MT, you need to replace the flywheel as well as the design was changed in 2009/2010 (once again, don't recall the exact year). The clutch kits coming from BMW now will simply not fit the "older" flywheel. And there is (as far as I know) no way to get one that matches.

I ordered a LUK one off ebay, its like 3/5 the price, but a "direct fit" OEM replacement flywheel. Its a match for the "new design" flywheel.

I also ordered what was called an OEM clutch kit for the E92 M3 off ebay. Once I got it, it was stamped (on the clutch plate) LUK as well... But the print outs that came with it were BMW... And the throw out bearing looked like an OEM BMW part (stamped BMW, part #, etc). So its quite possible that LUK is subcontracted by BMW to do their E92 M3 clutch kits... Or simply that the seller lied and listed it as a "Genuine OEM BMW Clutch Kit". Btw, if you look at the pics on ECSTuning's e-store... They list the same kit as "OEM", and one of the pictures clearly shows a clutch plate with "LUK" stamped on it. Once I saw that I felt a bit better about the purchase.

So, I just drove about 30KM thru the busy streets of the city (5:45PM here, stop and go traffic) home.

a) Buttery smooth shifting. I had read that the E92 1->2 is "normally" notchy... Not anymore... It was before... But now I can shift with zero head 'boop'. Feels ALMOST as smooth as a civic's tranny.

b) The "chatter" noise when in idle is gone as well. What I mean:

0) Car in neutral, no clutch
1) "Chatter"
2) Clutch in (still in neutral, but can be in gear, doesn't matter)
3) No "Chatter"
4) Clutch out (assuming still in neutral)
5) "Chatter" back

I had the above symptoms since day one. Once again, everyone claims this is "normal"... Now there is no change in noise from clutch in / clutch out what so ever. We'll see if this remains the same after I do a 100+KM trip and the tranny has a chance to fully warm up. I only did 30KM or so on the drive home from the mechanics. My understanding is this is throw out bearing related.

c) I used to have a triple "thump" when I would engage the clutch in first or reverse. What I mean is:

0) Car is in 1st, apply a tiny bit of gas
1) Remove foot off gas, but the car is still rolling on its own due to momentum from step 0 + just from being in first gear
2) Slam the clutch (slam is the wrong word... Just engage quickly)
3) "Thump thump thump"

The same used to happen when going in reverse as well. This is most noticeable when parking. Especially if you have a tight spot in an underground parking lot that requires a bit of back and forth to get in.

This is ALMOST gone. I now have a single "thump", which is considerably quieter. I am assuming this is a bit of the drive train lash. Regardless, a marked improvement over the previous symptoms.

d) The clutch pickup point is quite a bit lower now. Almost immediately when I begin to lift my foot off the clutch it starts to bite. Going to take a bit of getting used to.

Few worthy notes:

1) My throw out bearing did NOT look in good shape. It was quite rusted... Not quite sure how water got in there seeing as it sits basically inside of the outer body of the transmission, or if its just from moisture... But it looked like it needed replacing.

2) The previous clutch had 70K KM on it. As far as the clutch plate, it looked in VERY good shape. Both sides looked as though they had quite a bit of life left to them. Worth noting my clutch never slipped before. I just didn't like the noisy nature of it... Which was the primary reason I did the swap.

3) Last but not least, I had 2 parts replaced off the drive train. My terminology is off here, but I am talking about the CV joint that links between the transmission and differential. We replaced the black rubber part on the transmission side, and the bearing in the middle. The black rubber part looked as tho it was in perfect condition, but I already had them order a new one so they did it anyways. The bearing looked as tho it had quite a bit of play to it. Not sure how tight it should be. I am talking about the middle bearing btw.

4) Just to give people an idea of the differences in labor here in Eastern Europe vs Western countries... The labor on the clutch job was about 350 bucks. They had a worker on it from 10AM to 5PM. BMW Certified shop, not a stealership tho. The boss there told me he should have been done sooner BTW. I could tell near the end he picked up his pace a bit. Worth noting they are what I would consider higher end over here. Brand new building in a nice location. From what I could tell fairly knowledgeable staff and all the right equipment. Very busy too. I had to wait quite a bit for them to slot me in.

So all in all, I am VERY satisfied. We will see how the LUK stuff holds up over the next few thousand KM... From what I read clutches can actually improve over the first thousand or so km as everything settles (the term I read is flywheel and clutch "mate") into place... But if it stays as is, I will be a happy camper.

I usually granny drive in the city, so I'll continue to take it easy as I always do as I read clutches should be broken in properly. I think one of the posts I read is BMW states 1000 gear changes for it to be fully broken in.

Just thought I'd share.

If anyone is interested in the exact parts that were replaced / ordered (flywheel + clutch, or the drive train parts) let me know and I'll look them up and paste the URLs.

[///M Power-Belgium]

Sounds like a good job was done here ,and i'm glad to read that you are happy with the result !
Next mission....let me guess => The clunk noise

[m3ray]

Very nice write up, could you maybe share that LUK fly wheel part number?

I voiced concern if this was an exact match to the OEM one supplied to BMW on another thread. I assume it is.

[anom3]

This is the ebay listing for the flywheel:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/291172496720

[s85e90]

yeah the rattle isn't bad but you had the older design and it was re engineered in 09. Pretty sure Luk does indeed make the OEM clutch also.

[AdonM3]

Your previous clutch lasted on 70,000 km? That seems way too soon to change a clutch. Did you drive your car hard consistently?

[m3ray]

Originally Posted by serg87

Your previous clutch lasted on 70,000 km? That seems way too soon to change a clutch. Did you drive your car hard consistently?

If you read his post carefully the clutch was fine, it was the flywheel causing excessive chatter (probably due to old design)