Trying to see if I can get some answers concerning my clutch/clutch pedal travel. The car wont engage into gear with the engine running. I have bled the throw out/slave cylinder and looking into the bell housing I can see the throw out bearing move when the clutch is pressed, however it doesn't move much. Is there an adjustment inside the car for pedal travel or is it automatic. I noticed that the pedal does not come close to going to the floor when pressed and there also isn't much pedal pressure when pressing it down. Just curious if there is something other than dropping the transmission and replacing the clutch and bearing. Thanks for looking.

 

This part " I noticed that the pedal does not come close to going to the floor " does not match the rest of your statement. Does the pedal hit a stop ?


Common problem in GM cars was the clutch disk would fracture allowing one of the springs to (**** - fescluginner censor) tilt.. When that happened the clutch travel would be reduced, would feel like you hit a stiff spring, and not disengage.

 

When i press the clutch down it hits the switch to let the car start but is still off the floor a few inches. It seems like the clutch master cylinder isn't pumping up enough pressure to press the throw-out bearing in enough. By the way, this is an 04 with 54k miles on it. Are these cars prone to have their clutch master cylinders failing?

 

I have 75000 on mine and it is as good as it ever was. I don't ever try to dump the clutch to spin the tires though.

 

My Graphite went to 116,000 with not a hint of clutch problems. (Impacting the VW at 55mph ended the ride......)

 

Did it still have a good feel to it up until that point?

 

158,752 on my original clutch, runs good and no problems, have talked to acouple people on here saying they changed their clutch at 220k and 240k.
Dumping the clutch hard on trans, but not near as hard on clutch as riding the clutch all the time.
And alot of the time throw out bearings go out before clutch does, but if you at the point of changing throw out bearing, no wise to not change the clutch while is is tore apart.
Does it go into all the other gears fine?
If you are having a problem going into 1st, try going into 2nd or 3rd or 4th, say if it slides right into 4th then leave clutch engaged and back 3rd, 2nd then I bet it will slide back into 1st.
When at a stop it is not always a clutch problem but measly just all the gears not in perfect synchronization.
And even if you come to a stop and have problem going back into 1st, just hut 2nd real quick then back to 1st.
Most of the time I slide into 1st before I come to a stop and will slide in.
The throw out bearing does not need to move much to engage & disengage.

 

It drives and shifts just fine, I was just curious as to how long I could reasonably expect the clutch to last.

 

All depends on how it has been driven and you drive, some people clutch can last alot longer than others.
Another reason I do not start off in 2nd, most that do just ride the clutch slipping it constantly, think about it, the more you are on your brakes the shorter their life..
But still rare for any clutch to go out under 100k

 

I always use 1st gear as I figured the engineers knew what they were doing.

 

Whelp, my suspicions are confirmed. I decided to drop the transmission after work this afternoon and low and behold, the clutch was blown out completely on the pressure plate side and in tact on the fly wheel side. Someone was either hammering on it or riding the heck out of the clutch pedal. I've never seen a clutch completely separated from the disc before, It was literally in pieces being sandwiched together by the pressure plate. I took some photos and will upload when I have some time. Again, the car has 54k miles and I am the third owner. I bought it this way from someone on Craigslist. It has been sitting in their garage for the last 4 years waiting to fix itself I guess! Oh well, new Luc clutch on the way and I'll have it up and running before I know it.

 

And alot of traffic jams???
Ever notice why some semis have a large space between them and the vechicle in front of them???
So they don't have to touch the clutch, I do the same in my car when I am in traffic, that low 1st is great in traffic.
But dang, 54k on these clutches, someone was really rough.

How is the dual mass flywheel?
Are you changing it also?
Or just the clutch, pressure plate and throw out bearing?
Everyone I have heard says you have to completely change out the dual mass flywheel when changing out the clutch but, have yet for someone to tell me why that is.

 

Not changing the flywheel, it looks fine. I'll rough it up a little bit with some sand paper and install the new clutch, bearing, pressure plate and throw-out bearing. Should be good for another 54k!

 

With someone who knows how to drive a manual, be good for over 200k.
TY for pics, ya it definitely exploded.
Dumping the clutch, and the clutches do not have the springs to absorb heavy shock loads.

A good thing about manuals vs auto, usually all that goes out on a manual is a clutch (unless, running over capacity, it torque or towing)
Auto is a complete rebuild.

 

Wow very interesting pictures!

 

We just recently acquired a 2007 Crossfire with manual transmission (37,000 mi). The clutch seems OK now, but I may need to replace it in the future. I really appreciate these photos and information. Seems like I will be able to replace the clutch when the time comes.