New clutch recommendations

Dad burnt the clutch up in his 05 4wd 4cyl truck. I’ve had good luck with LUK (pun somewhat intended) in the past. I see Rockauto also offers an Aisin unit, which has always been a good name in my experience. He does some towing with it but I’ve never had good luck with high performance or towing clutches. I’m planning on getting a LUK unit but looking for feedback first.

 

LUK was one of the two original clutch suppliers for the 5 speed 2.7l. Chronic problems with the quality of their clutches, including slippage, caused ToyMoCo to dump them as a supplier and require only the Aisin clutch be used for warranty repairs. Like many companies who once built a solid reputation they are not the same quality as "your daddies LUK".

BTW, there is a "heavy duty" factory clutch for the 2.7 that uses Aisin factory components (Toyota owns Aisin. It was derived from the parts from one of their previous V6 engines that produced 190 hp (yours has 159) and a new disc to increase clamping force.

A TSB was released on June 28, 2011, and updated in 2013, to address slipping and gives part numbers for the components using the HD parts. Here is the TSB:
SB-10075796-2280.pdf

The part numbers are:
Clutch Cover (Pressure Plate) - 31210-35291
Clutch Disk - 31250-60500
Turnover Spring - 90949-03132

 

Went with the Aisin and got it installed today. Seems to work as it should. Install went pretty good. I don’t have a lift so I put the front wheels on ramps and the rear on jack stands. Used a fairly large floor jack to support the trans and transfer case. I’ve done that a few times before on bigger trucks, just try to guess the balance point and jack it up there. Its pretty wobbly and can fall off easy. Going back in I used ratchet straps hooked to the frame to lift the front of the trans and the floor jack under the crossmember. I was able to leave the shift boot intact and unbolt and attach the shifter from underneath after lowering the trans down. Had about 5 hours tied up in it.