A pressure plate assembly for a friction clutch includes a housing connectable with an abutment arrangement for rotation therewith about an axis of rotation. The housing has an outer axial side and an inner axial side. A pressure plate is mounted in the housing so that it faces the inner axial side. The pressure plate is rotatable with the housing about the axis of rotation. The pressure plate includes actuating sections which extend past a radially outer edge of the housing. An energy storage element is mounted on the outer side of the housing such that the energy storage device exerts a force on the actuating sections for urging the pressure plate away from the inner axial side. An assembly pretensioning arrangement is operative for holding the energy storage element in a pretensioned assembly position in which the energy storage device does not exert a force on the housing.