Ralliart_on_LSD

iTrader: (8)

OK well i had the RRM clutch for about 7,000 miles now, and all i can say is i love it. But... about 4 days ago, i noticed it slipping. But heres the thing, i live in new jersey and right now, its about 18 degrees F* in the morning. I first noticed my clutch "slipping" when i was on my way to work at 6:30 in the morning. when it first happened i was in shock, but i tested it about 10 times on that 20 minute ride to work, and it only slipped the first couple times i checked... well this has been going on for four days the same way, slipping at first, but not after about 15 minutes of driving...

so heres my question... does the material of the RRM clutch need to be "warmed up", or is it just straight up SLIPPING on me and im screwed....

any input would help, but only GOOD AND CORRECT info is prefered... thanks guys

Myszkewicz

iTrader: (2)

First, a few questions:

Who installed the clutch? Flywheel step is measured in thousandths of an inch for a reason.

Did you break it in properly?

Is that 7000 miles of 1/4 mile track abuse, or 7000 miles of mixed city/highway regular driving?

Is it only doing this in 1st and maybe 2nd, or is it in every gear?

No, it shouldn't need to be warmed up, but if it wasn't installed or broken in properly, or was glazed by your driving habits, it could slip until it gets warm.

Jars1000

Could very well be a flaw in the flywheel that causes this problem.

Jars1000

or abuse....that'll do it too.

AdamRA

iTrader: (2)

My car with stock clutch gets chatter the first shift on a cold start. It could be that.

Ralliart_on_LSD

iTrader: (8)

a place called Good Deal Transmissions put in my clutch and flywheel, and a friend of mine put the SS clutch line in...i hadnt had the slightest problem at all until 4 (well 5 days ago now) on that first bitter cold morning...

its 7,000 miles of highway city driving, with an occasional race here and there. maybe once a day or every 2 days i beat on my car, but thats only for about 2 or 3 shifts, and i never miss ...

and it dont do it only in 1 and 2nd gear, it does it in all the gears, but like i said, only fo the first few minutes of driving... seems perfectly fine after about 5-10 minutes...

and about breaking it in properly, i never really knew the proper way, but when i first got it, i drove it like baby for 3 days, then i got on it for the first time after that, and pretty much did it on a somewhat regular basis after that (i never abuse my car, ijust have ALOT of fun with it, thats all)

and about the hole "driver error" factor... of course i grinded a couple gears in my day, but not alot at all by any means,,, BUT my car does have that infamous 1st-goin-into-2nd gear shift problem which happens every once in a while, even if i shift it perfectly

Ralliart_on_LSD

iTrader: (8)

o yea, another thing to consider... i was racing my lil bro's 240sx a while back, back when my clutch was perfect. Well it always felt really good and all that, but like an idiot, i went like 25 mph in reverse, and i rode the clutch the first like 7 seconds of doin so... i smelt that burnt leather smell pretty bad, BUT my clutch felt amazing... after "warming" it up like that, my clutch never felt better, it was grabbing and launching me so damn good. i also noticed after i did that, i never "grinded" the infamous 1st-goin-into-2nd shift since then.

so this is whats makng me think my clutch isnt slipping, just the material needs to be warmed up more then stock ones (i hope).... but i would like more opinions and more expert advice...

wish rob would chime in too...

DangerousDan

iTrader: (8)

just some more input for you. I still have the stock clutch but it chatters (alot sometimes) before it is warmed up. usually takes ten minutes or so. I don't have any problems other than the chatter though.

Jars1000

I have the chatter too in the cold, but i'm pretty sure it's not supposed to be normal. Mitsu is working on fixing mine right now. It first popped up at 18,000 Km and they replaced the clutch thinking it was a flaw there. But then it came back again after another 8000 Km so now they think it must be a flaw in the fly-wheel.

Also, I notice in the cold when I'm starting. Clutching in to start....and when you release the clutch....it's actually grabbing slightly, but enough to rock the car slightly ahead when in neutral! I don't know why it's grabbing like that....and I'm not sure it's normal. Ona side note, when I had it up on the lift and start, when in neutral the front tires were spinning a bit. So this indicates there's some grab in neutral.

Can that be part of the problem?

Myszkewicz

iTrader: (2)

The grab in neutral you saw is just the tranny fluid. When it was up on the lift, there was nobody holding the clutch pedal down, so the clutch was engaged. Clutch spins the input shaft, which constantly meshes with an intermediate shaft, which constantly meshes with the diff (to simplify it a bit). When you shift into a gear, you make that connection solid via the gear hub, but the tranny fluid provides a little bit of resistance even when there's no solid connection. You could have reached up and stopped the spinning wheel with your hand, if you wanted.

In other words, that particular event is totally normal. The clutch slipping or chattering is not. FWIW, mine chatters for the first couple starts in the morning. It's not as bad if I start in 2nd gear, so I usually do the first two times.

Jars1000

Oh, I don't doubt that I could've stopped the wheels from spinning by just holding it. But the clutch wasn't held in while it was doing it, which is odd enough. But it's good to know that it is normal.

As for the clutch slipping, it's supposed to be fixed this time. So we'll see how that goes...

can04rali

HEY!!! Mine did the chatter thing until I pressed the clutchin. I had this problem with another vehicle before so I knew what it was ( throw bearing ). I had the clutch replaced at 30,000kms due to the throw bearing noise( warranty!!!), and the tranny at 50,000kms due to syncro wear in third gear( warranty also!! wew!!) . All I have to say is baby those stock clutches guys!! They sure don't last long!! LOL!!

Jars1000

I'm almost entirely sure that an extended warranty won't cover clutch. But if that's the case, then sweet. If I were you though, you better bring it in and have it documented that you are seeing it right away so that they can't say that it's been jsut from hard driving. The longer you let it wait, the harder it will be to get your warranty work done on a clutch.

And I don't think that it's a case of the stock clutch just being really crappy (although, I'm sure it's not a strength with our cars) but that there happens to be a lot of factory flaws either in materials or workmanship that is causing this. Otherwise, we'd be seeing every single lancer owner on here complaining about the chattering.

Myszkewicz

iTrader: (2)

Every clutch I've ever had chatter on me (including this one, I'm sure) was because the flywheel and/or pressure plate had been hot-spotted. Slipping the clutch builds up heat from the friction, too much heat can change the hardness of the metal. What you'll get, then, is spots varying in size from 1/4" to 3/4" (from my experience) that are harder than the surrounding metal on the flywheel or pressure plate surface. Over time, the surrounding metal wears away quicker than the hard spots, so they are raised very slightly. The raised spots catch on the edges of the grooves in the clutch disc material as it spins, causing the chattering. I'll have to see if I can find some pics of the flywheel of pressure plate out of one of my old cars, showing the spotting.

In any case, the clutch restrictor (modulator, whatever) doesn't help any. When you're trying to shift quickly, and get the clutch engaged again so you can get back on the gas, the restrictor won't let you. Then your clutch slips more than you wanted it to, and gets hot...

I removed the restrictor from my car, but by then it was too late. My clutch was already chattering. For now, I'm living with it. Next summer, I might change it.

Jars1000

Excellent information. Thank you. I will look into removing the slave modulator ( think that's what it's called....or whatever it is.) I'll probably look into RRM's SS clutchline then, as that's supposed to eliminate it right?