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Honda Odyssey CVT - Front |
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Honda Odyssey Powerbloc Clutch and CVT TuningThe Honda Odyssey FL250 has a Constant Velocity Transmission (CVT) automatic belt drive similar to what is commonly found on snowmobiles. From the factory, the Honda Odyssey CVT system is calibrated very mildly. In fact, it felt like driving a stick shift car and starting off in 2nd gear and then shifting up to 3rd, 4th, 5th gear way too soon. The engine felt like it was constantly bogging and not allowed to rev up freely before the CVT system was shifting up to a higher range. In addition, when slowing down and then accelerating again, the CVT system would not "downshift" properly and it felt like it was really lugging. Since there is not much that can be done with the stock Salsbury front drive clutch, I decided to try to find a Powerbloc clutch for my Honda Odyssey...
The Powerbloc clutch is fully adjustable with changes in springs and weights in the pucks. It's a great upgrade for the Honda Odyssey, but the only problem is that they are now discontinued. So, the search began on eBay for a used or NOS Power Bloc for my Honda Odyssey. Fortunately, I was able to find one from an Odyssey racer that was slightly used and almost brand new. Finding a Powerbloc clutch for a Honda Odyssey FL250 can be a real challenge since they are no longer being made, but even more challenging can be the process to try to remove the old Salsbury drive clutch!
"Redneck" Spanner Wrench to Help Remove Old Salsbury Clutch At first, I tried to use a powerful impact wrench to remove the center bolt on the old Salsbury clutch. Good luck! I tried and tried. I attempted to hold the clutch with a rubber strap wrench while I hammered away with the impact wrench. It would not come loose. So, then I decided to make a "redneck" spanner wrench to help hold the clutch more securely while I tried to loosen the bolt. I made this crude tool with a long piece of steel bars stock that I had. I drilled with 2 holes through which I mounted two Grade 8 bolts. At first, I tried to use it with the impact wrench, but it was no use. The impact wrench could not loosen the bolt. Then I grabbed a LONG breaker bar and began to try to use some serious leverage to loosen the bolt. My redneck spanner wrench began to bend. That could have been eliminated with some bigger/stronger steel, but I decided to try to add a few Grade 8 washers to support the steel bar around the areas where I drilled the holes. The steel was bending near the area where I drilled the bolt holes since those areas were weakened. The large washers strengthened my redneck "spanner wrench" enough, so that I was able finally apply enough force to loosen the center bolt.
7/8 - 14 Tap and Bolt Used to Remove Salsbury Clutch Once I got the center bolt off, that was just the beginning. Next, I used a 7/8" - 14 tap to clean up the internal threads in the hub of the Salsbury clutch. Then, I used a big 7/8" Grade 8 bolt as a "puller" to try to pull the clutch off. Only problem was that my bolt was not quite long enough to reach the end of the crankshaft, so instead of looking for a longer bolt, I ended up using a short socket adapter (most any short piece of steel that would fit through the 7/8" hole would work). I reinstalled the bolt and I was able to use the impact wrench to tighten the 7/8 bolt and hammer off the Salsbury clutch. FINALLY, the old Salsbury clutch was off, and now I could think about installing the Powerbloc clutch on my Honda Odyssey. At the time of this writing, I'm still waiting for some parts before I can put everything back together. UPDATE: As is turns out, the guy who sold me Powerbloc clutch made a mistake and sent me one for a FL350. Unfortunately, he did not have the proper FL250 Powerbloc clutch. As a result, I needed to install the stock Salsbury clutch, but fortunately I found a set of stiffer springs and some new rollers to rebuild my old Salsbury. To see what a real FL250 Powerbloc clutch looks like, checkout this video. Towards the middle of the video, the owner shows an old FL250 engine with a Powerbloc clutch. Here are some links to pages showing some of what I've done on my Honda Odyssey so far: Honda Odyssey Airbox Mod Honda Odyssey Tuned Pipe Honda Odyssey CR250 Head Honda Odyssey Digatron Tach Honda Odyssey Powerbloc Clutch Honda Odyssey FL250 Driven Clutch Honda Odyssey Overheating Solution Honda Odyssey at Beverly Sand Dunes Honda FL250 Water Cooled Head Return to Main Honda Odyssey Page
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