zooming993

Took the car out for a quick spin this morning and the clutch slipped for the first time. Does weather have any effect on the clutch? I ask this because it was a chilly 26 degrees when I had her out. The clutch hasn't been replaced and she has 40K on her.

Thanks

e9stibi

I am not aware of any weather impact on this but let others chime in. 16 years for a clutch is not bad ...

tribaltech

Make sure your clutch pedal came back all the way. I had the same issue and noticed my clutch pedal wasn't releasing all the way up. It's apparently a well documented issue. Do a search on Kinematic Lever.

Of course, this may be a totally different issue, just relaying my experience.

Mercedesben

If you do a strong launch you can heat the clutch and you will not have any bite in 2nd and 3rd gear. So I save my launches for autoxing and I'm fine. Just no drag racing!

EckFe1

It sure can have an effect if you drive a turbo. You'll get more power and torque when it's cold. The clutch shouldn't look bad on a 40k car unless you've been doing a lot of drag racing with high rpm clutch drops.
I took my clutch out at 70k and it was hardly worn.
Even if you have a leak in the hydraulics, the pressure plate will hold. You might not be able to shift or even get it in gear.
If you have a leaking crank shaft seal, you might get oil onto the clutch disk and the result could be a slipping clutch as well. Check where the engine mounts to the gearbox. There's a little opening where you can check for problems. If it's leaking out of that position, you might need to get the seal and clutch done.
Let's hope it's dry.
Ed

No HTwo O

My clutch was starting to slightly slip early this spring (April). I would see the RPM's slightly blip up 200-400 RPM when the car was on boost. Had the clutch replaced (and upgraded along with a LWFW) and I was good-to-go. Mileage at the time was almost 50K.

Make sure your engine air filter is changed too. If you can smell the clutch, it's getting into the engine filter too.

zooming993

Thanks for the replies. I did a quick check under the car and didn't see any fluid. When it slipped I wouldn't say I dropped the clutch but I did get on her pretty hard. It slipped going into 2nd and 3rd gears. After it slipped I drove her around a bit and she shifted normally (clutch engaged, no slips). This may be a stupid question but, what are the signs when the clutch is starting to go out?

Thanks

ilko

Slipping is usually the biggest sign of a failing clutch. My clutch started slipping over the summer - initially it was around 6K RPM, then 5, now it can happen between 3 and 4... I'll have to take care of it sooner rather than later. Don't want to wait until it starts slipping when I'm driving up a hill. That would be a ****ty scenario...

EckFe1

Typically, a worn clutch engages very late on the pedal. Eventually you won't be able to engage into any gear without grinding it. The slipping will always impact the higher gears first. It'll feel like as if the car is on ABS braking but you're on wot. You'll feel a shudder through the whole car with the rpm raising. If you have oil on the clutch it'll smell bad quickly and slipping can occure anytime. There might be better terms and explanation out there but that's what came to my mind to answer your question.
Ed