Im trying to talk my buddy into a tC...i just got an RS3 xB and im loving it. He is looking for a car to repalce his 03 Ram that is raping him at the pump. Right now his top car is the Chevy Cobalt SS s/c (i know i know but man oh man is it fast). he liked the tC also but the one we test drove was a used one with ~15,000 on it (only 5spd on hte lot). He said he felt like he was going to blow out his knee cause the clutch was so stiff. I have two theorys, one the previous owner f'ed it up or 2, (is the clutch hydrolic?) some issue with sitting for so long and taking a little for it warm up again???

Im trying to use the 5,000 price diff to get him in a tC (and the TRD s/c) but he doesnt like the stiffness of the clutch. Any info on this would be great...im trying to hurry him up and get him into an RS2 heheh

thanks guys

 

thinking the previous owner may have upgraded the clutch..
and yeah. it's hydraulic.

 

the stock tC clutch from what ive heard is as smooth as better. Maybe its aftermarket???

 

probably aftermarket....mine is just fine.

 

I have this same question. Are there any other possibilities? I bought a 05 FM used with 10,000 mi. and the clutch is oddly stiff. I have a friend that bought a 05 BSP new and all you have to do is blow on the clutch and it goes to the floor. I'm about to talk the car to the dealer over it. Hey this ismy first post I'm so glad this sight exists keep up the good work.

 

I just ordered one, but test drove a brand new one in a different color, the clutch required force but reasonable force, nothing crazy, something sounds wierd about your case....

 

ok thanks guys...ill have to find a new one for him to drive so i dont have to look at a cobalt when he comes over.

 

i have bad knees and can drive it fine
the clutch is not hard/stiff at all

it will be a pain though when i put my new clutch/flywheel in

 

i've test driven 2 stick shift tcs...both were new and both had a super light clutch. the stock tc clutch is really easy to use, requires little effort
i'm guessing that clutch is aftermarket for it to be so stiff. i've never driven a tc with the trd clutch...

 

the TRD clutch is what the vehicle most likely has
driven one with it, pretty stiff...compared to stock

 

My clutch is very light and very smooth. No problems here. Even when my knee is acting up, I can drive it fine.

 

the tc clutch is so light that it makes me wonder how long it will last.
my brothers jaguar x type has a really stiff clutch...but it's not fun to drive in traffic

 

i told my friend about all of this and he wants to give the tC another drive in a different car. he likes the exterior and interior better then the cobalt but he liked the engine/gearbox in the ss. the aftermarket for the tC is enormous compared to the SS so that may also help sway him. Can you guys give me some usernames or pics of the hottest tC around so i can add some fuel to the fire. we will probably spend saturday test drivng some other possible cars, hopefully you guys will have a new member.

 

i have an oem clutch and it's stiff as hell. even the gearbox is pretty stiff. i had it checked out by the dealer and they said that nothing was wrong. I've tried to have the problem checked out more than once.. I've driven other Tc's Before and the clutch is so butter on the other ones. same goes with the gearbox...

 

weird...sounds like you should goto a different dealership and have it checked out.
maybe they screwed up and gave you a trd clutch but never charged you. also, maybe it needs adjustment or your hydraulic system has something wrong

 

ive noticed a difference in clutch feeling between cars also. My car has a very smooth clutch that doesnt take my pressure to engage. I have an 06 w/ 6300ish miles. A local tC friend of mine (whocares05050) has an 05 w/ just over 23k miles and his clutch is ALOT stiffer than mine. We're both on the stocker. I dont know what gives lol

 

if your friend is actually considering comparing the tC and a cobalt, i'd suggest he get the cobalt. chevy needs business too. someone has to buy that stuff.

 

After driving my friend's RSX Type-S, the tC's clutch does feel much harder.

 

I think the tC's clutch pedal is stiffer than other cars. I've driven 5sp in the Cavalier (02) Mazda 3 (06) S-10 (03) Civic Del Sol (94) and all of them are easier to press down. The mazda 3 is brand new and was light. The Cavalier had 6000~ on the odo, the del sol has a newer clutch less than 20,000 on it. The s-10 was beat to hell (not mine). All of those are much easier to work with than the tC's pedal.

 

From my experience driving both the Manual tC and the Manual Cobalt SS Supercharged, I would say that I like the Cobalt's better...