alex'87cab

Hi Rennlisters,
Besides the clutch slipping when driving or starting on an incline, what is another way to diagnose wear on the clutch of an '87 Carrera cabrio? The clutch grips at the end of the pedal being released. What is the average mileage interval between clutch replacement under average/gentle driving? Comments and advice are greatly appreciated.

George 86T

Alex--sounds like you just need a clutch adjustment. There should be a small amount of freeplay when you start to depress your clutch before you feel it engage (stiffen slightly). It should also start to move the car when in gear when the pedal is maybe an
inch and a half or two inches off the deck.

Mark W

The G50 hydraulic clutch actuator is self adjusting. It takes up the slack as the clutch wears up to a point. It sounds like you are in need of a new clutch disk since it seems to have it's gone beyond what the system can absorb.

It's hard to say what the average mileage is since everyone's driving style is different but a good rule of thumb would be 60k to 70k on a stock unit in a normally aspirated Porsche with a stock clutch.

KLehmann

Alex,

The G50 equipped cars appear to have a higher release/engagement point than the 915 cars. A friend has an 86 3.2 and noted how high it engages. I just replaced my clutch (with the early 76-77 930 disc), flywheel, release bearing and guide tube, cross shaft, and slave cylinder. The clutch engages at the top of the pedal travel as you describe. You can adjust the engagement by changing the length of the pushrod on the clutch master cylinder in the pedal cluster.

My car appeared to have the original clutch disc when I replaced it at 64k mi. I have no records to indicate this other than the date on the old clutch disc is labeled 12/86 I believe. It's possible for the clutch disc to have been replaced once before, but I don't think so. There is still some life on the old disc, so as Mark said, it depends on the driver. I recall seeing a post where the original owner of an early G50 car was first replacing the clutch at 80-90k mi (probably a lot of cruising, not much stop and go).

alex'87cab

Thanks for the info guys. The clutch was replaced 18k miles ago and was not abused. The car was stored in the winter and used as a daily driver in the summer. Could it be time for replacement this soon?
Thanks for your replies.

alex'87cab

Thanks for the info guys. The clutch was replaced 18k miles ago and was not abused. The car was stored in the winter and used as a daily driver in the summer. Could it be time for replacement this soon?
Thanks for your replies.

Bill Wagner

Sure, it COULD be time for another replacement, but it's not very likely. Like the others have said it depends on how the car has been driven.

Have you owned the car since the clutch was replaced, or was this done by a previous owner? Did this high release point just start showing up, or has it been there since the clutch was replaced? Is anyone else driving the car that may be inadvertently using the clutch pedal as a foot rest? When the clutch was replaced, was it everything (disk, throw out bearing, pressure plate, was the flywheel turned, etc. etc) or was just the disk replaced? How are the fluid levels in the hydraulics? What brand were the replacement parts?

Good Luck,

Bill Wagner
'91 C4

alex'87cab

I just picked up the car from my wrench and he adjusted the pedal to add some free-play... It feels easier to work and the disc engages a little earlier. History: the clutch was replaced 3 years ago and this was right after I bought the car. Everything that had to be replaced was, with Porsche parts. Hydraulics are ok. The update from the tech service bulletin for the '87 g-50 trans was done. When I do replace the clutch, for street driving what is the best option for grip and driveability?
Ciao,
Alex