Clutch Repairs

How to determine the need for maintenance?

Unlike other friction components of the car, the clutch is located between the engine and transmission – this almost completely eliminates the possibility of physical inspection and verification of the integrity of the equipment without the intervention of a professional.
Thus, most owners will find out about the breakdown of the clutch after the symptoms of a serious malfunction of this device appear:

• Burning smell

  Every driver knows that a certain amount of such a smell can be felt when accelerating in first gear – this is the norm for driving in heavy traffic. However, an increase in the burning smell and its prolonged retention during driving may indicate a breakdown of the driven disk.

• Gear slide

  If you have started to notice some oddities in the gearbox operation: the handle slipping out of the selected gear or the car switching to neutral independently – this may indicate severe wear of the plate and the urgent need to replace it. Another cause of this problem may be an oil leak that contributes to excessive lubrication of the clutch plate.

• Switching gears difficulties

  Often the cause of such a problem is an incomplete disconnection of the engine from the transmission. As a result, the clutch is not fully pressed out, limiting driving.

• Clutch vibration

  A fairly rare symptom of a malfunction, which often occurs in DSG gearboxes – it occurs when a bearing is damaged, around which two parts of the flywheel rotate. Unfortunately, it is impossible to repair the clutch in this case.

• Pedal resistance when pressed

  Most often, the cause of such trouble is a breakdown of the spring-loaded diaphragm in the pressure plate. Fragments of this part fill the space between the driven plate and the outer shell of the pressure plate, limiting the movement of the pedal.