buying a used lightened flywheel
Moderator: martauto
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NoTurbo
- E30 Zone Regular

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Would any of you buy a ragged lightened flywheel?
What are the risks of it cracking?
What are the risks of it cracking?
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ross_jsy
- Married to the E30 Zone

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Voted yes, depending on how much it has been lightened. There is a safe minimum you can take them down to
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Automaton
- E30 Zone Regular

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Wouldn't take a chance, might save me money now, but may have to pay a lot more if things go awry.
PWPF
PWPF
Maneesh
1986 E30 M10 316 Manual Schwarz Chromie
1982 E28 M20 520i Henna Rot - Project
1988 E32 M70 750iL Schwarz - MASSIVE Project
1991 W201 190e Automatic Schwarz - Sold
1991 W201 190e Automatic Silver AMG Tribute - Sold
1993 E36 M40 316i Manual Brillantrot (RIP: rotting in peace)
Join other Carb Fanatics: E30 316 Carb - The Faithfuls https://www.facebook.com/groups/444263742439145/
1986 E30 M10 316 Manual Schwarz Chromie
1982 E28 M20 520i Henna Rot - Project
1988 E32 M70 750iL Schwarz - MASSIVE Project
1991 W201 190e Automatic Schwarz - Sold
1991 W201 190e Automatic Silver AMG Tribute - Sold
1993 E36 M40 316i Manual Brillantrot (RIP: rotting in peace)
Join other Carb Fanatics: E30 316 Carb - The Faithfuls https://www.facebook.com/groups/444263742439145/
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DanThe
- E30 Zone Team Member

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- Location: Staffs
A "ragged lightened flywheel"?
Whats that?
Whats that?
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gooner1
- Out humping Reindeer
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- Location: Northampton.For my sins.
Seeing as most, if not all, are secondhand I vote yes.
Pretty sure you would be able to get it checked, if you were dubious about it.
Pretty sure you would be able to get it checked, if you were dubious about it.

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Meatballs82
- E30 Zone Camper

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Voted yes, I had one fitted to mine this year - no problems so far!

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NoTurbo
- E30 Zone Regular

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haha, sorry for the slang.DanThe wrote:A "ragged lightened flywheel"?
Whats that?
Ragged means it has come off a car that was raced regularly and driven hard for most of its life
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Split_S
- POR 15 junkie
- Posts: 529
- Joined: Sun Jun 16, 2013 11:00 pm
- Location: Canada
Some stuff I just won't buy used.... If you're gonna go thru the hassle of changing a flywheel, do it right man! For the little $ you'll save is the risk worth it?
Me thinks not...
I'll be changing mine and Im going with an aluminum machined flywheel made specifically for the job. Not cheap, but I wont be changing it out a month later Im pretty sure...
Me thinks not...
I'll be changing mine and Im going with an aluminum machined flywheel made specifically for the job. Not cheap, but I wont be changing it out a month later Im pretty sure...
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ross_jsy
- Married to the E30 Zone

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Thing is it's a big chunk of steel. Not much that can go wrong with it bar maybe excessive wear/heat distortion but that will be evident just by looking at it.
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Split_S
- POR 15 junkie
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Still, I always wonder why the guy would be selling it in the first place... If youre gonna do the install yourself then go for it if its cheap but then again - I wouldn't.
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Blitz
- Married to the E30 Zone

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Its not something that goes wrong often unlike dual mass.
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Simon13
- The longest resto in the world !
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some rubbish being said here! holy moly

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maggspower
- Turbo Farmer Tractor Driver
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There is very little to go wrong on a fly wheel, the ring gear, and the clutch friction surface. Never seen a worn out ring gear on an e30, and the clutch surface can be reground.
Hairyscreech ran a computer simulation on a lightened flywheel, it had less stress on it than a standard one. The stress is centered around the mounting holes, so any material removed from the outer edge lessens the centrifugal force placed on it.
I have never heared of anyone losing their feet in an exploding flywheel incident, there is allways a first though
I can lighten and balance, flywheels here, if anyone needs one doing. Group buy?
Hairyscreech ran a computer simulation on a lightened flywheel, it had less stress on it than a standard one. The stress is centered around the mounting holes, so any material removed from the outer edge lessens the centrifugal force placed on it.
I have never heared of anyone losing their feet in an exploding flywheel incident, there is allways a first though
I can lighten and balance, flywheels here, if anyone needs one doing. Group buy?
Contact: theengineshedonline@gmail.com
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ross_jsy
- Married to the E30 Zone

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Always is now Simon.
Maggs, I have seen some grim pictures of flywheel failures...on sub 9 second drag racers not sub 200hp road cars
Maggs, I have seen some grim pictures of flywheel failures...on sub 9 second drag racers not sub 200hp road cars
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maggspower
- Turbo Farmer Tractor Driver
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Yes my mistake, it should have read "in an e30", I have heard some nasty story's too.ross_jsy wrote:Always is now Simon.
Maggs, I have seen some grim pictures of flywheel failures...on sub 9 second drag racers not sub 200hp road cars
As for spurious information, well.......
Contact: theengineshedonline@gmail.com
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DanThe
- E30 Zone Team Member

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Some alloy flywheels are known to fall apart, ive never heard of a BMW flywheel breaking up, road or racing use, ive seen one thats come off the back of the crank on a race car but it didnt rip through the floor or anybodies limbs, just took a lump out of the gearbox.
