just had my dual mass fly wheel conversion to solid mass fly wheel(and clutch)..literally just got back from the garage and i must say the car runs fantastic! very quiet super smooth and even more responsive than before.i was a bit hesitant to make the change but im glad i did,i got the valeo 4 piece conversion kit from europarts-trade for £312..and £150 to my local indy clutch centre for the work.very very pleased..a big thankyou for all the guys who helped me with the comments and posts especially mike holroyd for making my mind up to go with the valeo clutch,thanks again guys your all stars.-peter skodaman3

Very interesting, I'm just having this dilemma at the minute myself! Are there any disadvantages to doing it at all? Why was the solid flywheel not used from factory?

What are the symptoms of the flywheel on the way out? My car is sometimes (not all the time) juddery in 1st and 2nd, and when in 4th at 30mph it makes quite aggressive jerking.

Is it normal that it wouldn't happen all the time? Or once it starts going should it get progressively worse?

hi,lyonzo..the dual mass fly wheels were fitted to cars to dampen vibrations and are good until they break down,and very costly to replace clutch and dmf. bad design fault i think because they break down well before the clutch has to be replaced.skoda dealers themselves prefer the solid mass fly wheels now as replacements,just had mine done and to be honest theres no vibrations or anything..just the same as the dmf but the solid will never break down just have to replace the clutch when that goes wich is well cheaper,skoda in liverpool charge £900 to replace and fit smf and clutch.but i bought my own valeo 4 piece smf and clutch £312 and £150 to fit from an indy,the symptoms i was having was juddering when reversing and taking of and up to 30mph onwards viration and a droning sound,i suspected dmf failing and with the help of the guys on the forum was advised on the valeo smf with clutch.you can get cheaper ones of course but you get what you pay for i suppose and cheaper lighter ones might vibrate..i dont know but just my opinion..so i went with the valeo 4 piece and have no complaints...hope this reply was of help" peter-skodaman3.

Thanks for that. I can get the Valeo kit for £300, but just want to check its definitely the problem I'm having!

You got a link to the part or a part number?

hi,mattcut..336441090.thats the part number from my invoice,give your reg in and they will tell you the right part,mine may not fit your car unless its the same as mine.good luck-peter.

Thanks for that. I can get the Valeo kit for £300, but just want to check its definitely the problem I'm having!

hi lyonzo,sorry for the late reply..just finished work..the agressive jerking you described didnt happen with mine,just vibrational noises and droning,get it checked 1st before you buy one,but juddering sounds the same tho..-peter.

Sounds similar to DMF problem.

1st & 2nd and reverse judder cold and hot.

Glad yours is all sorted now Skodaman. It's definitely recommended to do. Mines been great for the past 15K now.

Out of interest how do insurance companies view this type of modification?

I wouldn't intend on telling mine? It's hardly a modification to benefit performance or aesthetics.

Just picking up all these post on dual mass flywheels.

Can I assume that this was picked up by VW and sorted at some point? If so, what year was something done about it? I currently have Dec 10 reg. 2.0ltr 140bhp engine, is likely to be a casualty?

Just picking up all these post on dual mass flywheels.

Can I assume that this was picked up by VW and sorted at some point? If so, what year was something done about it? I currently have Dec 10 reg. 2.0ltr 140bhp engine, is likely to be a casualty?

All DMFs are prone to early failure, regardless of age. Don't forget the DMF is on these cars to reduce vibrations and strain on the gearbox, etc, not just to make it run smoother, which it often doesn't do anyway because of its flawed design, but no one has come up with a better one as far as I know?

I've also never read of a gearbox, or any other components, failing because of an SMF conversion, but again, you never know?

I'm still considering it for my Superb because the DMF seems to be on it's way out and it could save me £400 to get the Valeo kit.

I'll keep watching the threads and see what happens… :S

I wouldn't intend on telling mine? It's hardly a modification to benefit performance or aesthetics.

I understand that but some insurers see anything non standard as a mod and if the car does not match the spec sheet they can use it as a way to wriggle out of a claim (even if someone else is to blame).

Phoned up my Insurance Company and they weren,t interested in this conversion as no power gains are made from this.He said they would want to now about remaps/chips and turbo,s etc where extra power is gained.So DMF to SMF isn,t a problem at all

The big problem with DMFs is that the plate that is part of the flywheel (which takes the drive from the clutch plate) is much lower in mass ( weight) than the conventional solid flywheel. This means that this plate heats up much more quickly than the much larger solid flywheel mass. Some of these DMF plates are cast iron and have been known to crack and break into pieces. This happended to my wifes 1.9 TDI POLO.

There is much less to go wrong with the solid flywheel.

Im seriously concidered getting a SMF, does any one know of a part number for the 2.0tdi 170?

Emma, unfortunately you can't convert the 2.0 at the moment. It's only on the 1.9.

Will be in Whitby tomorrow, along with VCDS lead!

Mike

You can but you have to use an Uprated SMF

Not the OEM Style Valeo SMF

Hi all.

First post on here so be gentle. It sounds like the DMF on my octavia 1.9tdi is on it's way out. I have seen a complete kit on e-bay for £206 with single flywheel, the question is do I stick with the DMF, or should I convert ?

My opinion is to convert it to SMF.You won,t regret it.

spot on mike..since my conversion to smf..ive done about 3K and its smooth as silk quiet and responsive..happy days..pete.

Thanks for that....I will go with the conversion.

Hi all,

I am from India and Own an Octavia (Its called the Laura here), 2008 Ambiente Tdi PD 1.9. As I start the engine most of the time there is a judder. No judder on starting on the first start of the day. No juddering while driving. A similar problem had occurred about nine months back, I changed the battery and lo! things were back to normal. Members of the forum indicate that it could be either the clutch or the starter..how can I be sure and secondly if it's the clutch is it safe to convert from DMF to SMF as some people are against it.

Nirmal

Smf will take getting used to, I drove a octy with it and it can be very on/off and u will cut out the engine more easy, just takes getting used too,

Personally I prefer the more smoother DMF.

How many miles are people getting from new before a DMF failure? Roughly?