Clutch and Flywheels

[RedBull]

okay....this may be a dump topic, but please entertain me

please help me understand what a clutch and flywheel is...the purpose of each.................and ....


thanks,

 

[I Grok NSX]

Here ya go: http://auto.howstuffworks.com/clutch2.htm

Search, and ye shall find

 

[Briank]

The above is a good reference for the clutch. The flywheel provides a rotating mass that keeps the engine turning between the power strokes of the engine. On a 6 cylinder engine there are only 3 power strokes for each revolution of the engine so with out a fly wheel the engine would not stay running. Installing a lighter flywheel is a common trick to increase performance; it doesn’t increase the power of the engine it just decreases the amount of rotating mass that the engine has to spin.

 

[Daria]

... Installing a lighter flywheel is a common trick to increase performance; it doesn’t increase the power of the engine it just decreases the amount of rotating mass that the engine has to spin.

What are some of the down faults of a lighter fly wheel?

 

[VBNSX]

What are some of the down faults of a lighter fly wheel?

The comparison that I got from someone a long time ago was to explain theory in drag racing. Loss of initial torque.. (think small here)

Suppose there was a big 500 lb (exaggerated for explanation) ball rolling down the hill. Now get in front of it and stop it. kind of difficult.

Now try a big ball of same size.. but only 5 lbs. Rather easy.

initial momentum of the ball would be the engine turning it.
The stopping it is the clutch engagement.
The ball itself is the flywheel
The momentum is easier to keep when the clutch engages and the flywheel is heavy versus if the flywheel were really light.

hth,
x

BTW... Daria... i'm lazy.. that safety wire is still there.. :tongue:

 

[Daria]

Thanks for the ball analogy X - that makes very good sense. Does that mean the car will almost not idle with a very light flywheel?

I'm glad you're still wired up. I think everyone should keep one of these http://www.bakerprecision.com/tools1.htm in their tool box.

 

[Shumdit]

Thanks for the ball analogy X - that makes very good sense. Does that mean the car will almost not idle with a very light flywheel?

I'm glad you're still wired up. I think everyone should keep one of these http://www.bakerprecision.com/tools1.htm in their tool box.

It's more likely it would make it very easy to stall, but would also make the throttle response much more lively.