Chirish

iTrader: (1)

I'm swapping out the plugs and changing the oil tomorrow to see if that helps. I just went for a drive a short while ago in fairly cold weather (50's) and on a 3rd gear WOT run, the boost settled down around 16psi, but in first gear it spiked and held (for as long as 1st gear goes by) 19psi.

I'll post an update tomorrow when I do the changes. Thanks again for the replies.

EiEVO

iTrader: (9)

Why is it a strange suggestion?

Lets say the clutch was adjusted by the previous owner. The previous owner may have adjusted it because when the car was brand spankin new off the show room floor or whatever the case may be... He may have noticed a notchy engagement when shifting because it was new and not totally broken in. "Just like many others on this forum / and from what I have seen locally" have noticed. So he/she may of had the idea of adjusting the clutch pedal would fix the issue.

They could have adjusted the rod further out of the bracket that is attached to the pedal assembly therefore making the pedal higher. If so, in this case the clutch engagement would be very touchy and make the distance of travel from the T.O.B to the pressure plate less. And when the engine and drivetrain heats up along with the fluid it will expand..Thus causing T.O.B to press against the pressure plate slightly and it would release the pressure of the clutch disc on the pressure plate and the flywheel. "Allowing the clutch to slip under a load".

Who knows exactly what the previous owner has done or has had done to the vehicle. I was simply suggesting that he check it. All he had to do was pay attention to the play of the clutch pedal when he first pressed it. Making sure there is roughly 1" to 1.5" of play before he noticed any tension. And also paying attention to when he could start to feel the car move when letting off the clutch when in first gear. The clutch should first start to move the wheels close to 3" off the floorboard. The proper way to check this is to have the car on a hoist and pay close attention to when all 4 wheels barely start to move and when they stop moving.

Also make sure that it has either DOT 3 OR DOT 4 brake fluid. The DOT 4 fluid is suggested for mainly racing or heavy use of the clutch such as autocross. The DOT 4 fluid has a higher boiling point.

Just to check and see what type of play he has with the pedal up at top and when the clutch engages would only take a few moments and should be checked when the vehicle is warmed up and or after a 10 mile drive or so.

As for DSM's having issues with improper clutch adjustment... Well I will say that a lot of 2g's with aftermarket clutch kits are not adjusted properly and many have had issues with this because of faulty clutch master cylinders and also I have seen where some have purchased clutch slave cylinders from their local parts stores and had the wrong slave cylinder rods. They were too long.

I hope this helps for anyone that has had any un-answered questions or didn't know this.

To the original post to this thread.. I hope you get it figured out. Let us know what the outcome is.

Chirish

iTrader: (1)

I'm pretty sure it isn't the clutch, but thanks for the informative post about them. My clutch right now shakes/vibrates upon first drive in the morning, but with a few starts and stops, it subsides. My clutch now engages about 3" from the very top, I haven't really taken notice of how far it engages from the floorboard.

I've had a slipping clutch in my previous MR2 turbo, and I can tell you that these symptoms have no relation to my problem (as I can see).

Thanks again.

Chirish

iTrader: (1)

Oh, and just to mention; I've been searching around the forum trying to find similar symptoms, and mine seem to match up pretty close to the intake snorkel problem when the clips are missing - but both of mine are nice and snug. All the threads I've read say that the boost begins to fall flat and the car doesn't feel as fast. What would happen if I removed the snorkel entirely? Just seems like it wouldn't suck in as cool of air, but then again I could eliminate the possibility of it posing a problem all together.

EiEVO

iTrader: (9)

Have you looked at the rubber hose that is right next to the fan shroud. They tend to rub a little bit and can wear thru. You may have a small hole that is just big enough to cause your problem.