NJTom2000

I admit up front that I really know little about motors/engines/transmissions, hell, cars in general.

But lately I've convinced myself that there may be something up with my car. I may be imagining it but it seems that my gear shifter has been "sticking" when I try to shift the car. Even though I have the clutch pedal fully pressed to the floor it feels like the shifter doesn't want to move. It sort of feels like what it feels like when you move the gear shifter into neutral while decelerating without pressing in the clutch.

It does seem to go away as the car really warms up.

Otherwise the car runs %100 fine.

I've used my car for a few track days and about half a season of autocrossing. I expect that using the car in this manner will cause some of the normal parts ( ie clutch ) to wear out faster than they normally would. I may be hyper-sensitive looking for problems that don't exists.

So the basic question is it what I have described symptomatic of something starting to go, or hopefully I'm just nuts?

Thanks -- Tom

gregstevens

I found with a new clutch installed the other day that the symptoms you are describing have disappeared. This was the case especially when it was cold. Very very notchy and it felt like it was hard to get out of gear, especially 1st and 2nd gear.

I would submit that your clutch is worn (or close to it) out and doesn't fully disengage even when you have the pedal all the way to the floor.

How many miles do you have?

NJTom2000

Thanks for the response Gregg.

I'm around 12.5 K miles.

derryck

I also noticed that the stock clutches seem to 'adjust themselves'. I had mine re-adjusted (engagement point lowered) and it seemed to help out quite a bit.

gregstevens

That's not many miles so I wouldn't expect your clutch to be smoked just yet. I had 28k on my OEM clutch and it was pretty well shot. The disk was toast, but the pressure plate wasn't missing any teeth, which was good. I have several thousand miles on the track and a few autocrosses and I tend to drive the car pretty hard. But I don't do clutch drops (maybe 8-10) so as long as you rev match and don't do drops, your clutch should last longer than 12.5k miles.

Hmmm

Do you find that this goes away when the car is fully warmed up? Does your clutch makes a buzzing sound as you decellerate in gear between 4-3k rpm? If so, take it to the dealer for the clutch TSB. They will replace the clutch free of charge and you can bring a stronger/better aftermarket clutch for them to put in instead of another stocker...

gregstevens

Tom, if you want to get more miles out of your stock clutch, take it back for them to adjust and see how that goes.

If it persists, take it back for the TSB work...

That would be what I would do...

xviper

Good advice given so far. You should also do a quick check of the tranny fluid level just in case it's as simple as this.

marcucci

Clutch wear has nothing to do with the engagement point, other than the pressure plate losing retention force (i.e. it will disengage easier). If you're having trouble disengaging, check tranny fluid level first. It doesn't need changing very often but if it's leaking it certainly needs to be topped off.

What will affect disengaging (making it worse) is the clutch fluid. This is normal brake fluid but will break down faster as a result of less fluid and more heat buildup. Generally, all brake fluid should be flushed every 30k of normal driving, or if you race, every 2 or 3 events (maybe more often). Conventional brake fluid breaks down and picks up contaminants very fast. As it picks these up it loses effectiveness (becomes more compressible) and can actually delay clutch disengagement (or brake engagement). I highly suggest checking your fluid level.

If your clutch or brake fluid ever looks like coffee (i.e. doesn't look like water or honey) you should flush it. I suggest Valvoline Synthetic, it's cheap & available and performs much better than stock.

NJTom2000

Thanks for all of the advice.

I'll take a look at the fluid. If that seems ok I'll ask the dealership to adjust the engagement point. If that's doesn't do the trick, I'll talk to the dealership about the TSB's.

I do have that deceleration noise but it's never bothered me enough to risk any tranny work.

I'll let you know how it turns out.

-- tom

Schatten

[QUOTE]Originally posted by gregstevens
[B]Tom, if you want to get more miles out of your stock clutch, take it back for them to adjust and see how that goes.