Staffan

I read about this twice over the years, and it happened to me as well.
My slipping clutch was caused by a bad rubber seal between the clutch and the engine.

It's very easy to tell if you have this problem.
just jack up the car and look to the right of the flywheel, there are two gaps (you can see th flywheel here), if you got lots of oil here, then you most probably have this problem.

My advice is to make sure to change the rubber seal between clutch and engine when you change your clutch. In order to get it in place you need to put in the freezer for an hour or so.

Also, to change the clutch is no rocket science but it's not very easy either.
I was adviced by "everyone" to get the whole engine out, but I must say that if I would do this again I would leave the engine in the car and just do a partial engine drop.

Sameer

If I can remember, I think I had this problem once before in my WRX.

Staffan

Things are really great.
I have now driven the car for about 10 hours (1 hour on the track) and I have no oil around the flywheel area, it's dry like sahara in the summer.
Just regret I didn't spent the extra money on a light weight clutch....

bogey1

Would you guys expect this seal to be changed if you had paid someone to convert your clutch to the lightweight RS clutch? What I mean is would it be normal to replace this seal as part of the process (by a professional shop), on a car with say 45k on the original clutch?

Staffan

Hard to say, it's not part of the "RS clutch kit" which contains "everything" you need to replace clutch and flywheel including all the bolts. But, the signs of an oil leak are more than obvious when you separate the gearbox from the engine, you need to be blind on both eyes to miss it.
I spent an hour just cleaning the gearbox.

JasonAndreas

YES!
With the engine and transmission split it takes less than 30 seconds to pull the seal and make sure the new one is seated properly. Your mechanic should also bleed the clutch slave cylinder but for some reason quite a few don't (or lubricate sliding surfaces, etc.)

bogey1

Interesting, this deal cost me a RS brand new RS clutch in 1200 miles! I was told it was not part of the deal, and could not be seen. Cost me another few thousand dollars for a new set up! Very interesting, and thanks for the feedback.

JasonAndreas

Who did you buy the kit from? A lot of RS clutch kits are put together by part suppliers (i.e. people that call themselves tuners) that don't have a clue. If you only drove 1200 miles before the RMS failed (see picture below) you should have been able to clean the pressure plate and flywheel and reused them. The clutch disc would have to be replaced but that should only cost around $300USD + labor, not thousands.

bogey1

A reputable tuner. When it was obvious the clutch was spent, I decided to go to more of a race set up, and purchased the parts before the diagnosis. I am guessing I kind of got stung.

PorschePhD

I disagree, if a leak occurs and the pressure plate is burned then it is done. You can not take apart that setup and have it machined. We have tried to pull those PP apart and have it done. It never works out. There are serious issues with the rivets and getting it back together....properly. Not replacing it will cost the customer more money as it will never hold properly with a disc change. especially on a modified car. BTDT.

In regards to the leak, we have pulled a lot of cars apart where you would sit there and question whether the seal was replaced because things look so clean. Meaning the seal looked like new or recently replaced and not leaking or seeping. Rule of thumb is you should replace it if you are in there. A good seal on cars that sit for periods of time sometimes no longer become good seals. Through the years and still even recently Porsche changes how they make the seals in order to prevent this.