Edmunds dealer partner, Bayway Leasing, is now offering transparent lease deals via these forums. Click here to see the latest vehicles!
Clutch Questions
I picked up my 99 4X4 V6 Tacoma on 1/31/99. It
has been great so far, however it has developed a
"clicking noise" when I depress the clutch. It
occurs about 1/2 way down when I press the clutch
pedal. You can feel it too. I took it in to the
dealer and they lubed it and "adjusted" it and it
was fine for 2 days, but then returned. It seems
to be getting worse, but it might be because I am
focusing on it so much. It is hard to hear with
the radio on, but you can feel it. I looked at
where the clutch goes into the truck body from
inside, and I can see that one part of the clutch
arm (I have no idea of the names of these parts)
is
striking another part (a circular ring) as it is
being depressed, thus making the noise.
Am I being really picky or would this bother other
people also? Has anyone else noticed this with
their truck(car)? Should I demand that the dealer
fix it, or is it something I should just live
with?
(Obviously, the first lubing and adjusting didn't
last). My 82 truck's clutch never did this and it
has the original clutch (194,000 miles). Thanks
for any advice!!!
has been great so far, however it has developed a
"clicking noise" when I depress the clutch. It
occurs about 1/2 way down when I press the clutch
pedal. You can feel it too. I took it in to the
dealer and they lubed it and "adjusted" it and it
was fine for 2 days, but then returned. It seems
to be getting worse, but it might be because I am
focusing on it so much. It is hard to hear with
the radio on, but you can feel it. I looked at
where the clutch goes into the truck body from
inside, and I can see that one part of the clutch
arm (I have no idea of the names of these parts)
is
striking another part (a circular ring) as it is
being depressed, thus making the noise.
Am I being really picky or would this bother other
people also? Has anyone else noticed this with
their truck(car)? Should I demand that the dealer
fix it, or is it something I should just live
with?
(Obviously, the first lubing and adjusting didn't
last). My 82 truck's clutch never did this and it
has the original clutch (194,000 miles). Thanks
for any advice!!!
Tagged:
0
This discussion has been closed.
Comments
The white-lube suggestion is good. If the problem persists, however, suggest that you return to the dealer (assuming the warranty is in effect) and point out what you have observed. Emphasize to them that it's only a linkage problem and they should be enthusiastic. Linkage repair is far less work that would be any repairs involving the primary clutch components.
Is this what you are experiencing? My car is 10years old now and never has needed the clutch changed. I want it to last at least another month before i get my new car
This, as opposed to hydraulic or cable actuated.
If the bellcrank is striking another component, this can indicate a serious misalignment of engine/transmission mounts, a mismatch of components, or even a broken throwout fork retaining spring which allows the fork to come off the pivot ball inside the bell housing.
I observed a similar problem in a 1975 Firebird which ate clutches because the throwout fork wasn't right for the bellhousing which wasn't right for the Corvette Muncie transmission -- and the Buick throwout bearing!
Guess that car was built during a strike!
My advice is to go to another dealer -- say nothing about your problem, and test drive a similar (or identical) vehicle. Look at the linkage and see if it hits.
Read up on your state's lemon laws, then take it back and tell them you want it fixed. No need for bluster or threats, just tell them what will satisfy you. They already have one strike...
i called the dealer, and he said that since it's a new car, i will notice all sorts of noises and should wait 200-300 miles to let the jeep "settle." and if the noises persist, then i should bring the jeep in.
this sounds a little sketchy to me. what do you think?
any thoughts?
Jsh139, the "rubbing/crunching" is symptomatic of a release bearing if the clutch disengages fully, engages smoothly, and does not slip. While driving on a quiet street at a steady speed of 25 to 30 MPH, depress the pedal slightly but not enough to disengage the clutch. Hear the noise? If so, it is very likely the release bearing. The bearings on a few cars can be lubricated in place; most cannot and therefore need to be replaced. A new bearing won't cost much but the labor to remove and reinstall the transmission could be significant.
-Josh
When this happens the pressure against my foot (from the clutch pedal) also decreases.
Letting the pedal up and pressing again solves the problem.
Some mechanic tried to tell me I needed a whole new clutch and that the problem was with my master cylinder. That didn't make sense to me so I plan on getting it looked at by another mechanic.
Any comments?
Gus
Conference Host
Does anyone know how to do this? The car is a Volkswagen GTI (2000 model year).
Does anyone know if this model is hydraulic or mechanical? Is it easy to adjust? Perhaps this is something you could have done under warranty. I'd imagine that whoever did the pre-delivery inspection should've adjusted the clutch so that it engaged half way between fully pushed in and fully disengaged.
I have a 94 Acura Integra with a hydraulic clutch.
My car is not allowing me to shift into a gear while coming out of another one, say from 3rd to 4th. I had to stop, pump the clutch a few times before I was able to drive off. This just started happening. I have replaced the clutch master cylinder about 2 months ago because it was leaking. I check the lines and there are no leaks. I replaced the slave cylinder last night, but the problem is still there. This problem is intermittent at this point.
Any ideas? I have 142K freeway miles on the car. The clutch is not slipping.
Thanks.
I bled the system again making sure all the air was out of the system, but I still had the problem with shifting. I finally took it to a clutch shop last week and they said my clutch needed to be replaced. They suspected that the spring on the clutch disk might have popped out. Sure enough that was what had happened. Now with the clutch replaced, I am able to shift again.
The system is hydraulic. The hydraulic line disappears into the bell housing where the slave cylinder is hidden.
Is there an adjustment at the pedal or at the fluid reservoir; per a previous unrelated post someone mentioned a similar problem with a reply mentioning air in the system.
Help
hanks for the follow-up, gba2mich!!
I own an 84 Rabbit GTI and had the clutch replaced about 10 months ago. Before I replaced the clutch, I had a slight hesitation/jerking motion only when accelerating in 2nd gear. After the clutch was replaced, along with rear main crankshaft seal and a used tranny, it hesitates/jerks more noticeably when in 2nd,3rd, or sometimes 4th gear, especially climbing a hill. That hesitation only occurs from 2,200 to 2,500 rpms under slow to moderate acceceleration,and stops if I press the gas down harder or allow the rpms to go up to 3,000. I also noticed it is hard to get it to engage smoothly when changing gears. You really have to concentrate to keep it from engaging too abruptly and causing a slight shudder felt through pedals and steering. My clutch is operated by a cable. Could this problem possibly be caused by the clutch not aligned properly in the housing or maybe contaminated by oil causing it to slip?? Of does the clutch need to be adjusted? I originally thought the clutch just needed to be broken in, but the problem continues. The only adjustment I know of has to do with the cable and all that really does is add more or less dead pedal travel. Any help as to what may be causing the problem and how to alleviate it would be much appreciated! Thanks!!
After diagnostics, I was informed that I needed a who;e new clutch... two days later I was informed that due to my driving for such a LONG time with a bad clutch, they had to send my flywheel out to be machined....now after speaking with numerous people, I have been told that in order for a bad clutch to effect a flywheel takes months of driving ( my problem only lasted for 7 days before I couldn't even MOVE the car). I have also been informed that if a car has a bad flywheel, the clutch will go very fast---such as mine. Could anyone validate this information for me?
THANKS!
If the flywheel were warped, it could prematurely wear out the clutch plate...uneven engagement between clutch and flywheel.
If the clutch were worn out, down to the rivets, it could badly score the flywheel, requiring it to be machined smooth again...like a bad brake pad scores the brake rotor.
A bad clutch plate can score the heck out of a flywheel in 7 days.
Sounds like your mechanic is on top of things.
How was the pressure plate and throw out bearing?
45k miles seems premature for a clutch, but I guess it can happen.
My 1986 plymouth reliant has 139k on original clutch.
Good luck
I will now have to take them to court for negligence and breach of contract. Two things:
1) How can something be a failure "that never normally occurs" and still be "normal wear and tear"?
2) Just because a car company gives you a free rental and washes your car doesn't make it a "good" company. No wonder Nissan is in trouble if it's pulling crap like this. I will never buy another Nissan or Infiniti product again.
Churdk, you have an excellent case in that the shop verified the clutch was OK immediately before it failed.
Suggest that you pursue the liability question with the Nissan zone office before going to the trouble of involving your attorney.
Please keep in mind, however, that some very conservative drivers do abuse clutches rather badly. To avoid stalling, they unknowingly slip the clutch quite a bit. In many cases, it has become habit and these drivers don't realize they have reduced the clutch life. Of course, if clutches in your previous cars have lasted 60,000+ miles, you surely are not guilty of this.
If you are not a jack rabbit at every light or a clutch rider-gotta be a problem with the clutch. Got 195K from my last Honda clutch and they are notoriously soft-mostly in town driving. Got to be something bad wrong with this vehicle.
On cold (30 and below) mornings when I'm starting out in first gear I get some slipping and shuddering. When the car warms up after 10-15 minutes I can't get the car to fail. The pedal also seems to "stick" to the floor alittle bit. If I very slooooowly let out the clutch, it doesn't seem to happen. I've checked the clutch and transmission fluid levels and they look good.
I've never heard of this before, I'm thinking about getting rid of my car soon, so I would like to know if I'm going to have problems trading it in or sticking someone with a lemon. Also if it isn't a big problem I may hold onto it till late spring. Anyway, any help would be greatly appreciated.
Mark
Do I need clutch work? (Topic #243)
How can clutch last longer? (Topic #504)
Pardon the interruption, please continue. :-)
Pat
Community Leader/Maintenance & Repair Conference
My wife drives a 92 Chevy Cavalier with a five speed. Her sister gave it to us for free, so we're not complaining about any of the problems it has. I would like to fix some if possible however. The clutch doesn't engage until the pedal is almost all the way out, and it slips a bit if a gun it in fourth or fifth gear. Seems I should be able to adjust this(cable, not hydraulic), but the Book we have(not sure if it's chilton's or other) does not clearly explain how to do this. I'vle looked a bit for someplace I might be able to make such an adjustment, but to no avail. Anyone know where this adjustment would be made for her car, if it can be made? Thanks for the help.
Mike
Earlier it didn't bother me much (ignored it as a quirk in a otherwise lovable car). But now, with the foot injury I am seriously looking for some
way to shorten the clutch play. Any suggestions on how/where to get this done? It is still under warranty (3K miles to go on the 36K warranty).
Thanks
Raj
I don't know if it is possible to shorten the clutch travel distance.
You could always ask your mechanic about this.
Perhaps the foot could be wrapped with an ace bandage, or a nice pair of work boots which go up past the ankle would give better support until the foot heals.
During the cold morning, when i shift into 2nd, I
can feel the gears kind of connecting even with
the
clutch to the floor. When the car warms up,
shifting into 2nd is fine? It almost feels like
the syncronizer isn't up to snuff when it's cold?
Does anyone know the synchronizer is the problem
or
could it be something else? Can the 97 Altima
clutch be adjusted to fix this?
Showed me the cable, told me to get 2 13mm wrenches and tighten the bolts.
Clutch is hydraulic and book says, "No Free Play."
Do I put the car in gear or neutral? How do I
know when it is adjusted correctly?
Please e-mail me: Bertone1984@aol.com
Some one mention a few things to do if you absolutely want to make sure that you want your clutch to last.
1)Dont ride your clutch
2)Disengage your clutch at lights and put gear in neutral, in other words dont press the clutch in and hold it when you stop.
However I have a few things that I need to clarify.
3)Someone said that when starting from stop, it is generally better to first, press the clutch in. Second, put into gear. third, give it a tiny weeny bit of gas and then release the clutch, preferably at 1500rpm or around there. They say that this is the safest method to shift to ensure longivity of the clutch. Is it true?
4)In relation to the above question(3), if query 3 is true, when then do I shift into other gears? You can't possible expect me to shift at that low a RPM at every gear right?
5)Somebody also said the best to shift is to match engine speed with transmission speed. I understand this logic as the most wear in clutch is when the clutch is partially engaged and the transmission is spinning at a different speed from the engine. Question is how can you tell when the engine speed is in syncro with the tranmission?
6)When you release the clutch, do you release it slowly or quickly? Because the most wear comes when the cluch is partially engaged only, it make sense to release it quickly. But wouldn't that be dumping the clutch and is bad? OR am I not totally cluelss and not making sense here?
I just have to do an expensive clutch replacement and hence have learned my lessons in the importance of clutch maintainance. Any input will be GREATLY appreciated.
PS when you answer could you please address the quesion number that you are addressing to? Thanks again!
2) When stopped in traffic (unless it's a very long wait), if your clutch is properly adjusted, leaving the car in gear with the clutch disengaged is OK; this causes very little wear.
3) From a clutch-life perspective, the best start is with minimum engine speed - such that the engine almost stalls. Suggest you practice this in a deserted parking lot. Don't worry about stalling the engine a few times as you get the feel for the minimum RPM that will get the car moving. Then learn to rev just enough to make the starts smooth. Embarrassing as it may be, if you stall the engine occasionally your clutch technique is probably about right.
4&5) Don't worry too much about upshifting to other gears. If the shifts feel smooth to your passengers, you almost surely are not hurting the clutch or other drivetrain components. You are quite correct that speed matching would eliminate clutch wear but, for most of us, this is a lot of effort for a very small benefit in clutch life.
6)You're right again; quick engagement reduces the frictional wear of the clutch disc. However, the impact associated with quick engagement is likely to break the clutch linings and springs as well as other drivetrain components. Again, the best technique is a compromise.
The conservative driver's most likely clutch-wear causes are (a)inadvertent slipping of the clutch during starting (many drivers don't realize they are doing this) and (b) clutch linkage that is maladjusted. The adjustment error can be either the inability to fully engage or the inability to fully disengage. Upshifts and downshifts, unless they are quite abrupt, contribute very little to clutch wear.
during starting"?
I have done it before in an automatic but never a manual.
Thanks in advance!
My advice is to buy the lube yourself and find a friendly local shop that will do it for you at a somewhat reduced rate.
FWIW, I have had good experience with Redline MTL.
your host, Bruce