Have a 2004 Crossfire, assuming with the original clutch, 49K miles and on days where it's rainy or hot and humid first gear feels like it skips or fails to engage from a complete stop. I have to get a little momentum for everything to engage properly.

Does this sound like I need a new clutch or maybe something with the manual transmission fluid (which I'm not even sure where that is on this car)?

 

Have you changed the fluid at all? If not, you should regardless as a first option.

I used royal purple and it cost less than $20 for the fluid Also improved my shifts slightly...

 

No, I haven't. Any good instructions on how to do this? I don't have a pump of any sort, so hopefully I'm able to drain it with alternate means.

 

I would glance through the service manual, but without a proper pump, I am not sure you could even do the job. I would think any tranny shop would swap it for you pretty cheap. It is a pretty painless process with the right tools...

 

Bumping an old thread -

Weather is getting humid again, causing this issue to arise. I have not yet had the manual transmission fluid replaced, but would that really cause the clutch to not engage properly on humid days? The issue is really not apparent at all in dry, cooler weather, and it's ONLY noticeable from a complete stop into first gear.

And I should add that I just passed 50,000 miles on the car, so maybe it's just time to replace the clutch?

 

I can assure you the sub $100 solution I suggested will, by far, be the cheapest attempt at a fix, and that is all that it is, an attempt. With the age of the car, it should have been changed anyway, so why not try it? You could start replacing thousands of dollars worth of transmission components instead, but it doesn't make much sense to me...

Not sure why I said royal purple above, I used mobile1 5w20 engine oil in both of my cars...

 

I'm at 96K on the original clutch and I live in Guam so it's 80F and super humid everyday. I swapped out the tranny fluid with 5w-20 Royal Purple and it shifts a lot smoother. If you're having issues with the clutch that early. It probably is operator error...

 

If the shift lever gets the transmission in first gear it's not the gear oil.
What is the tach doing while you have this issue?
Try second gear.
Where does the clutch engage when it's driving OK?

 

Not sure how it's operator error. I've seen other posts where people needed to replace the clutch at ~40k, so it doesn't seem that ridiculous to me. I've just not owned a car where the clutch felt like it wasn't grabbing on humid days.

The RPMs drop like it's goig to catch, but when it slips it just feels like it's going to die. The engage point of the clutch pedal isn't any different than non-humid days. I'll try second gear and post back.

 

When the clutch is fully released is this when "slip" occurs? Almost sounds like your engine doesn't like hot humid days by this post and just needs a little more pedal put to it..

 

If the clutch was slipping the RPMs would go up. Could you be loosing power when it's hot and humid?

 

It doesn't slip, just has difficulty engaging. Like the clutch 'skips'.

 

I think the not so technical terms you use confuse everyone. Clutches are supposed to slip, I think your clutch does not disengage properly. Do you drive with your foot on the clutch?

 

Ok updating with info..

It only appears to happen in first gear and it doesn't have to be a hot day necessarily, just a lot of moisture in the air. I don't really know how else to describe it other than the clutch feels like it's not gripping properly.

No, I don't drive with my foot on the clutch. No idea about the person that had the car before me (was 32k on the car before I got it, I've only put about 20k on it.)

 

Are you hearing anything that seems like a part of this puzzle?

I really don't understand a cluth failing at 50,000 miles - unless the former owner only THOUGHT they understood how to drive a stick. My '93 GMC truck went 406,000 on the factory clutch !

 

Well, the former owner was a female. Not saying for sure that's the cause, but you never know!

And I don't hear any sounds, it's strictly a feel that comes from the clutch. It feels that if I don't massage the clutch and gas properly that the car would sputter and die, almost like if I left it in gear and came to a complete stop without putting it in neutral.

 

I am assuming the OP's car is a manual transmission, correct? If so, you probably have minor warpage of the pressure plate or flywheel surface, which is what causes the vibrations when you engage the clutch. This is usually caused by overheating the clutch from improper use (probably from the previous owner mentioned.) When you eventually have your clutch changed, make sure to replace the pressure plate and have the flywheel resurfaced if possible.
I don't think a gearbox oil change will help with this, although it certainly would be a good idea to replace the fluid with fresh compatible gearbox oil.

I have a BMW 3 series that does the same thing, but that car is going in 100k miles with the original clutch - it only "shudders" every once in a while - probably weather dependent like you mentioned, I just haven't noticed a pattern.

 

oil on the friction surface can make it chatter too. Any problem with the shift from first to second?

 

This doesn't sound like clutch problems at all. It sounds more like the engine is starved - not getting the fuel that it needs under load. Like previously stated - your tach should climb if the clutch is slipping - and it sounds like yours is dropping. The car is almost stalling out. A clutch that slips in first will slip in every gear when under load - not just first. The humidity may in some way be fooling the MAF sensor, but you'd need a more informed opinion on this than mine. But I seriously doubt that it's related to the clutch.
Look for links like this - http://www.ehow.com/about_5382536_ma...-symptoms.html
I'd try cleaning it first, as per the instructions here. That could be your very inexpensive fix.