Clutch gone at 20,000 miles
#1
Clutch gone at 20,000 miles
My 2003 Mini needs a new clutch and the dealer says it was faulty usage and not covered under warranty. My son has been driving the car for about 5000 miles and I have never known him to ride the clutch. I drove it a week ago and did not notice any signs of clutch wear. Can a clutch go that fast?
#2
Yes it is possible. Ours went out at 23k, and was in fact due to misuse. My wife claims not to have known better.
If you don't believe the tech have them show you the clutch plate... If it's all scorched and burned up, you have no recourse even if you take it up with MINIUSA the claim will be denied.
If you don't believe the tech have them show you the clutch plate... If it's all scorched and burned up, you have no recourse even if you take it up with MINIUSA the claim will be denied.
#3
#5
#6
I have over 43,000 miles on my 03 (most of them are hard miles) and I just got a new transmission (under warranty) and if I wanted them to they said they would put a new disc in if I paid for the disc but it looked like new. I have worked in auto parts for about 18 years and have seen some bad clutches. I looked at mine and said put it back in. Riding the clutch is bad for it and also revving the engine too high and letting the clutch out slowly. Also, hills, like in San Francisco, are bad for it as you burn it everytime you start up some hills.
Earl
Earl
#7
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Originally Posted by kenchan
Drag racing, clutch drops, riding the clutch, slipping the clutch on every gear during shiftup, etc.
But if you could explain... I would really appreciate it.
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#8
#10
As stated abuse of a clutch is , high revs,4500+ rpms,at a stand still and dropping the clutch,takiing your foot off it fast.Usual results in some wheel spin.
Whats worse is letting the clutch out to slow,RPM does not matter much.Real bad from a stand still,but also hard on it while shifting.
Also when cruising don't hold your foot on the clutch pedal,as even slight pressure can cause the clutch to disengage a bit and slip,use the foot rest!
I find the clutch to be very light in a MINI,meaning it does not take much pressure to depress it.So if you hold your foot on the pedal you could be riding it a bit.
On flat level ground you should be able to get rolling with no throttle,with a smooth fast release of the clutch pedal,not a normal way to get going,but you should be able to do this.
If your clutch is slipping,or going bad as it were,you can tell by getting into 2nd,well any gear really,and while at about 2000 rpm floor it,if the revs go way up but you don't move faster with the revs,it's time to have it looked at.
Whats worse is letting the clutch out to slow,RPM does not matter much.Real bad from a stand still,but also hard on it while shifting.
Also when cruising don't hold your foot on the clutch pedal,as even slight pressure can cause the clutch to disengage a bit and slip,use the foot rest!
I find the clutch to be very light in a MINI,meaning it does not take much pressure to depress it.So if you hold your foot on the pedal you could be riding it a bit.
On flat level ground you should be able to get rolling with no throttle,with a smooth fast release of the clutch pedal,not a normal way to get going,but you should be able to do this.
If your clutch is slipping,or going bad as it were,you can tell by getting into 2nd,well any gear really,and while at about 2000 rpm floor it,if the revs go way up but you don't move faster with the revs,it's time to have it looked at.
#14
No,you will know,if you have as many miles on your MINI as you say,you will FEEL it.And if your not sure,your dealer tech. should be able to tell on a road test.
I think that if you don't burn out much,shift fast,not hard,but get into gear,you should not be having any clutch problems at 34K.
I think that if you don't burn out much,shift fast,not hard,but get into gear,you should not be having any clutch problems at 34K.
#16
For those whose clutch went out early, which ECU software version are you running?
My car was built in Sept 03. It came with V35.5 from the factory. With that version, as hard as I tried, I felt I was destroying my clutch. It was basically impossible to drive the car smoothly. I was worried enough that I asked my dealer if that was how the car was supposed to behave.
With V36 though, everything was different. The car was much easier to drive, and it doesn't feel like I was killing my clutch.
My car was built in Sept 03. It came with V35.5 from the factory. With that version, as hard as I tried, I felt I was destroying my clutch. It was basically impossible to drive the car smoothly. I was worried enough that I asked my dealer if that was how the car was supposed to behave.
With V36 though, everything was different. The car was much easier to drive, and it doesn't feel like I was killing my clutch.
#17
I killed the clutch in my very first car -- a '77 Oldsmobile Starfire.
My dad didn't tell me to keep my foot off the clutch when I wasn't using it! I learned my lesson and have never burned out a clutch since. My last car, a '90 Miata, had 128,000 miles on the clutch and it was still good.
I'm a very good driver. <spoken in my best Rainman voice>
My dad didn't tell me to keep my foot off the clutch when I wasn't using it! I learned my lesson and have never burned out a clutch since. My last car, a '90 Miata, had 128,000 miles on the clutch and it was still good.
I'm a very good driver. <spoken in my best Rainman voice>
#18
To all of you concerned about the condition of your clutch...
Unless you do the things lot describes, don't worry about it. An abused clutch is VERY easy to spot after they disassemble your front end and look at the clutch. The disk will be obviously worn and heatspotted. I know this from experience with my own abused clutch.
It is possible for a clutch to fail due to manufacturer's defect etc... and this failure may even cause the clutch to slip. But if there is no heatspotting, or evidence that you do autox or do anything else that causes abnormal wear to the car then you have nothing to worry about.
According to MINI of Sterling they have in fact seen clutches fail prematurely due to manufacturing defects. Those repairs have been covered by warranty. When my clutch was replaced they had every intention of covering the repair under warranty, that is until they took the car apart and saw the condition of the clutch plate.
Unless you do the things lot describes, don't worry about it. An abused clutch is VERY easy to spot after they disassemble your front end and look at the clutch. The disk will be obviously worn and heatspotted. I know this from experience with my own abused clutch.
It is possible for a clutch to fail due to manufacturer's defect etc... and this failure may even cause the clutch to slip. But if there is no heatspotting, or evidence that you do autox or do anything else that causes abnormal wear to the car then you have nothing to worry about.
According to MINI of Sterling they have in fact seen clutches fail prematurely due to manufacturing defects. Those repairs have been covered by warranty. When my clutch was replaced they had every intention of covering the repair under warranty, that is until they took the car apart and saw the condition of the clutch plate.
#19
#22
Of all the deadly sins of clutch abuse, riding the clutch is absolutely the biggest killer of them all, IMHO... By even resting your foot on the clutch pedal while driving, you are slightly engaging the clutch, which allows it to slip... building heat, wearing off the puck material, etc.
My Grandad replaced a clutch in my Grandma's VW every 5,000 miles for about 5 years before he figured out what she was doing... riding the clutch...
If you teach someone to drive a manual tranny right, teens are as good as anyone... Just teach them good driving habits (e.g. no riding the clutch, don't freewheel around corners, don't sit at lights in neutral, etc.).
My Grandad replaced a clutch in my Grandma's VW every 5,000 miles for about 5 years before he figured out what she was doing... riding the clutch...
If you teach someone to drive a manual tranny right, teens are as good as anyone... Just teach them good driving habits (e.g. no riding the clutch, don't freewheel around corners, don't sit at lights in neutral, etc.).
#23
Originally Posted by scobib
If you teach someone to drive a manual tranny right, teens are as good as anyone... Just teach them good driving habits (e.g. no riding the clutch, don't freewheel around corners, don't sit at lights in neutral, etc.).
#25