So this past sunday I was on the freeway driving for maybe about 15-20 mins. When it was time for me to get off at my exit, I downshifted into 4th. When I did this the clutch pedal was VERY hard. It did it again when I downshifted into 3rd, and then again when I came to a stop to put it in first. I went to a carwash and then to my mothers house. On the way over there the car was slowly but surely having problems shifting into gears, and again I was having the issue with the pedal feeling hard. Eventually after I left my mom's house and maybe about a block or two from my house, the car would not shift into any gear, and the only way I could take off was to turn the car off put in in first and then start the car. The car would take off on its own without me even giving it gas. However I still couldn't shift it into gear.

Now I took it to a repair shop the next day, and the repairman replaced both the master and slave cylinder. I called him today and he said that after replacing the master and slave cylinder that the car is still doing the same thing. He also noted that the first time he drove the car when I dropped it off the car acted fine, but when he drove it again it started acting up again. The clutch inside the car is the stock clutch (it was replaced two years ago along with a 9.5 lb Fidanza flywheel), also the fluid inside the tranny is Motul Gear 300, which was put in last year. The only other mods I have on the car is a CAI, and header. The slave cylinder moved when you put your foot on the clutch, it wasn't leaking, the brake fluid wasn't low.

Does anyone have any idea what the problem could be?

 

mines been acting up as well, it was hard going into gears after a 200-300 mile trip, i have an 05 w/ 139k miles

 

btw stock clutch and flywheel from factory

 

That sucks.... Sounds like to me that it is your throw out bearing. Does it chatter or slip when in gear? If not then the bearing is the place I would look to first.

 

thats a pretty good lifespan for original parts, sounds like overhaul time!

 

Well the clutch and flywheel where replaced two years ago, at like 133,000+ miles, so something doesnt seem right if this clutch only lasted 56,000....and yea my first though was the throughout bearing....the guy called me again today and told me that after replacing the master and slave cylinder that the car is still doing the same thing and the the clutch will not disengage. So now he has to open the tranny up and see what the heck is going on...all together though, I went from being quoted, $180+tax for the slave cylinder, to $429+tax for the master and slave cylinder, to over $900 for the master, slave, and clutch replacement...smh...

 

hope the throw out bearing was replaced with a new stock oem one at the time of the clutch and flywheel was done,if not there you go,if you use any aftermarket ones there no good,they fail very quick

 

The one that came with the kit was used. And the kit was just the regular Exedy clutch. Im not sure if thats aftermarket, but I could have swore that exedy was the one thats used from the factory...it sure felt like it...

 

ok so guys I got my car back today, and the clutch pedal feels alot harder than it did before the clutch was changed..now it doesnt in anyway feel the way it did when I was having the problem but its much harder. Also the clutch seems to be engaging immediately and pretty much ever if you have the clutch pedal pressed almost all the way down. Does this mean the pedal needs to be adjusted and if so how do u go about doing that? Thnx

 

you can ajust the engagement point buy ajusting the push rod behind the clutch pedal itself,but where the the clutch engage how fat off the floor

 

Is it normal for the clutch pedal to be harder than it was before the clutch was installed? Because I've had the clutch repaired before in this car and the clutch was REALLY SOFT when I got it replaced. I tried turning a screw on the pushrod and I couldnt really get to it. Is that how u adjust it?

 

its normally the other way around,new clutch its usually hard until it breaks in,but when you say clutch repair what exactly was repaired,how many miles all on the clutch,theres a nut on the push rod you gotta loosen then you can turn it i think clock wise to move it up and counter clock wise to move it done,its goona take some fooling around with before its perfect,,but you gotta lock the nut back up before your done,there was a thread on this,ill see if i can find it,thats how i did mine,

 

Hey the clutch repair was I actually had the clutch and flywheel replaced at 133,000 miles. The flywheel was a Fidanza 9.5 Ib aluminum flywheel, and the clutch was Exedy OEM replacement clutch. I saw that nut and tried to loosen it but there isnt much room down there for me to do it, I'll have to try it again.

 

its a very tight spot,gotta move the seat all the way back and get a good position,i use a open end wrench to loosen the nut,its kinda hard the first time,but once its loose just screw it all the way down until it cant go no more,then u can use that nut as leverage to turn the rod,dont turn it to much or ill pop out,maybe like 1 or 2 full turns depding on where you want it,

 

Ok thnx I'll try that, that you know of though, a clutch that engages really quickly like that doesnt damage or effect anything negatively does it?

 

your not changing on how quickly it engages all your doing is changing to engagement point to a more comfortable spot,i know that oem clutches dont engauge quick....depending on what aftermarket clutch you buy will determine how stiff the pedal is and how fast it engauges, i have the act street clutch with a heavy duty pressure plate and the clutch is pretty stiff and engauges quick but i love it,never like the oem clutches,thats just me,i have a 12 lb flywheel instead of 9 lb cause its alot better for a daily driver,

 

Hmm....So OEM clutches aren't supposed to engage quick huh? Ill have to see what clutch kit the repair shop ordered and who they got it from...and I dont mind the quick engagement at all, I actually like it better than before because now I know exactly when the engagement is going to happen and it allows me to shift a little more quicker, or I guess really I should be saying it FORCES me to shift quicker.

 

correct, oem clutches dont have a quick engagement point,its like that so the youth can drive the car,oem clutches are very soft compared to and aftermarket one,its like steping on to a sponge compared to like a act clutch or something,i just dont understand why they or you would do a oem clutch and a light flywheel,unless your not sure what clutch was actually installed,the less play in the clutch the better it is,ive driven numerous of different car ranging from stage 1 to a stage 3 twin disk clutches,and i do have to say out of all the car inlcuding stock ones,tc's have the easiest clutch to play with if your a beginner,

 

Hey I decided to upgrade to the lightwieght flywheel for no real reason really...The last time I had to the clutch replaced, I figured since everything was going to be opened up and taken out, why not upgrade the flywheel...and yea I guess I'll have to ask the guy what clutch kit he used, but I know before when I had the clutch replaced it was the oem replacement Exedy branded kit. This clutch has to be about 40-50% stiffer than the last clutch...idk if he ordered a TRD clutch kit or somethin, but it def feels like the clutch has a heavy duty pressure plate. Also he wrote on the invoice how much the clutch kit costed, and it came out to be a little over $250...idk how much the TRD kit goes for, but im sure its probably as expensive as a ACT stage 1 kit. The whole feel of the engagement and the stiffness of the pedal def scared me when I first got the car but I do like the way it shifts now, its very precise and the engagement is very strong and crisp. Before on the other clutch the engagement was variable, unpredictable, and not every strong. Also not as quick.

 

i think you should find exactly what clutch your using now,cause we can guess all we want,i would not feel right if i didnt know what was in my car,just saying,but then again no one works on my car besides me,when i first did my act clutch it was very stiff and very harsh on engagments but after like 400 miles of driving it got alot better,still stiff and fast engagement but love it,,i dont know any clutch kits thats less then $300..act ones go for $450 think the trd ones about $350...hopefully its not a ebay clutch