Borg and Beck clutches

[BorniteIdentity]

Yo.

 

My Avensis needs a clutch. Not wants - needs.

 

Local grease monkey charges just £40 per hour labour (no vat), but evidently only has an account with an expensive motor factors. This came to light when the cost of gaskets for my mercedes were twice as expensive as the dealership.

 

Before I ask him to fit a part I've supplied - are Borg and Beck clutches any good? I don't want to get laughed at by said monkey for turning up with Fisher Price kit. There's one on ebay at £72 rather than the £170 I was quoted by him.

 

He's agreed to do tyres at £5 a corner, so hopefully will be up for it.

 

Thanks

[twosmoke300]

Id always try and get a luk if poss . Ive taken out several BnB ones where the springs in the centre plate or the cover plate fingers have broken up .

[dave21478]

if I ever meet Mr Borg or Mr Beck they will get a very hefty kick in the balls.

 

They used to be a well known name but apparently like so much their current stuff is cheap, badly made shite.

Not an actual clutch disc but I fitted their concentric slave cylinder/release bearings to the Freelander and its been shite ever since. Bad fit, leaky joints, lets air in and needs bled once a fortnight. Im not the only one either - there are others on a landrover forum with the same hassles.

[Bren]

Borg and Beck stuff was always considered good.

 

Must be made in China now.

[BorniteIdentity]

Feck Arse Industries.

 

LUK it is.

 

The thing is... this is autoshite. I don't even like the car, but it refuses to die. Every time I've tried replacing it, I've ended up keeping it and either running the successor as well or punting that on instead.

 

£400 sheets on a £500 car stings. But not enough to put me in a 0% GM.

 

MTFU time.

[Junkman]

I once put a Borg & Beck kit into a De Tomaso Pantera, which had made minced meat out of two LUKs in no time. It was proudly made in the US of A, looked substantial enough for a concrete mixer and didn't explode until I sold on the car. Since this was the last car I ever had that needed a clutch replacisation, I would have never guessed Borg & Beck could be anything but the best.

[Eddie Honda]

*old duffer talk* What ever happened to top-notch Laycock clutches?

[jonathan_dyane]

Very disappointing. Why is everything shit now?

[twosmoke300]

Because everyone shops on price

[jonathan_dyane]

You're quite right. I do despair.

[mercrocker]

I think B&B name was actually taken over from the well known brand which had become moribund.   Chinese.   Most people I know in the trade have told me to avoid them like the plague.  Unless you are lucky (and sure) enough to come across a genuine new old stock....

[Rusty_Rocket]

My Land Rover man tells me that Borg & Beck used to be the best... but is now made 'elsewhere' and now the Britpart heavy-duty kit is better.

That is a very worrying revelation.

LUK for me if poss.

[twosmoke300]

Valeo aren't too bad or blueprint for jap stuff

[Grundig]

I threw & Borg n Beck clutch kit in the GL5 when the gearbox had to come out for a slave cylinder - no probs so far, but it might have been new old stock ?? 

 

 

pictured here with the worn oe VAG clutch that came out 

[Timewaster]

We used to sell b&b clutches as a premium brand with QH as a mid range and Autodrive recon cardboard clutches as a cheapy sell it quick option.

Autodrive were half the price of QH but were utterly shit.

We mainly bought them because the woman on the sales desk had THE sexiest voice that the terminally Horny 18year old me had ever heard.

Never met her. She was probably a beast.

 

Anyway,This was all 20 odd years ago. So probably not much help.

[gordonbennet]

Another once great name gone east by the sounds of it, i too would have assumed B&B to be the dogs bollocks.

 

I know good clutches aint cheap for Volvo's, the 940 td replacement wasn't cheap, but then it never gave a  moments trouble towing 2 tons round when required either.

[andrew e]

The last clutch I changed, must be ten years ago. It was slipping on the M25, must have been doing 20 MPH, speedo showing God knows what! For extra shite credentials got towed home by my Dad's Frontera

 

[Squire_Dawson]

I don't think they're much good these days (surprise, surprise), best to buy old stock if you have old chod as the friction disc and brake pads are likely to contain asbestos. Just don't go blowing out any dust.

[dugong]

Verdict on Sachs clutches, please? Charade needs one once I've sorted a few bills out. 

[trigger]

Sachs used to be a good make and still probably are. I've fitted a B&B clutch in the Cortina and it seems fine, TBH if the Avensis was mine I'd probably just chuck as B&B in it, at least it's not a recon National clutch like most the cheap ones on ebay.

[BorniteIdentity]

Thanks for your advice as always.

 

Waiting to hear back from the Jap specialist who have looked after the car before to see what they can do before I start the DIY search again.

[michael1703]

Euro shite parts also stock AP clutches

 

Luk as mentioned are ok, Valeo are O.E. For Ford and a few others