Spec Stg 3 Clutch failing? sticky clutch pedal!

jamiebennett81 · Aug 20, 2008

well I was driving home tonight when the clutch pedal started sticking

by this I mean when accelerating from 1st the clutch is staying pressed against the floor, which then to change to 2nd I have to flick the clutch pedal up so it goes back to its normal position and then change to 2nd and the same again to 3rd

gears 3rd - 6th seem to be fine and the clutch pedal does not stick

it is alot worse in reverse, the clutch pedal stays completely pressed down and the bite point is instant, making it very hard not to stall the car straight away

now when I had the clutch installed, Storm Developments commented that it possibly had a faulty clutch release bearing, due to excessive rattle

now I have a lightened flywheel, and when I phoned TTS roadsport they said this is normal for the "rattle". Since the car has been in 2 garages for tuning work to be done, both have commented that despite the lightened flywheel the sound is not normal and the bearing is faulty

despite the above, could it be the clutch cable? although in the lower gears the cable seems to be working fine, so it cant be this as I cant imagine this would cause the "stickiness" and for the pedal not to flick back into it's original position

your thoughts please, as I need to phone TTS tomorrow and get this sorted asap

and of all the times, I have been looking forward to showing the car at E38, and its very doubtful I will if the clutch is on its way out

roly · Aug 20, 2008

Was the release bearing replaced with the clutch kit ?? we've had a few failed release bearings through work on the 6 speed boxes (standard clutches and bearings)

Could also be clutch master cylinder on the way out

jamiebennett81 · Aug 20, 2008

roly said:
Was the release bearing replaced with the clutch kit ?? we've had a few failed release bearings through work on the 6 speed boxes (standard clutches and bearings)

Could also be clutch master cylinder on the way out

the clutch is not slipping, and seems to be running fine

how much is the master cylinder and what does it exactly do?

RobDon · Aug 20, 2008

Spec has a really bad reputation for clutches failing, there are more bad stories than good.

jamiebennett81 · Aug 20, 2008

RobDon said:
Spec has a really bad reputation for clutches failing, there are more bad stories than good.

I will call Storm Developments and TTS to see what they say could be the problem

I am really hoping now it is the master cylinder and get this replaced asap

I have next thursday off, and I was supposed to be prepping the car for E38, but not now if I can get it fixed on time

roly · Aug 20, 2008

jamiebennett81 said:
the clutch is not slipping, and seems to be running fine

how much is the master cylinder and what does it exactly do?

Was the release bearing replaced with the kit though as im not sure if it's part of a spec kit on the 02M box

Master cylinder is what the clutch pedal attaches to, this then pushes the fluid through the system as the clutch pedal is depressed, approx £55 from main dealer (i think)

jamiebennett81 · Aug 20, 2008

roly said:
Was the release bearing replaced with the kit though as im not sure if it's part of a spec kit on the 02M box

Master cylinder is what the clutch pedal attaches to, this then pushes the fluid through the system as the clutch pedal is depressed, approx £55 from main dealer (i think)

to be honest I dont know Roly

so if it is failing to push fluid around the system, which I presume works on a type of back pressure to make the clutch pedal flick back in place?

roly · Aug 20, 2008

We've had probs with both in the past (im talking genuine/original fitted ones here) the master cylinder has caused pedal sticking problems with the cars we've worked on

The slave cylinder/release bearings have developed leaks which then tend to throw fluid over the clutch and cause slipping etc

jamiebennett81 · Aug 20, 2008

roly said:
We've had probs with both in the past (im talking genuine/original fitted ones here) the master cylinder has caused pedal sticking problems with the cars we've worked on

The slave cylinder/release bearings have developed leaks which then tend to throw fluid over the clutch and cause slipping etc

I dont think it's slipping as it seemed to accelerate fine in the lower gears, just sticking in the higher gears

will see what Storm or AMD say tomorrow. This car might eventually get sorted with this now and the on going boost issues

roly · Aug 20, 2008

Could be worth getting it bled again to make sure there's no air locks in the system, if not i think master cylinder would be the next part to look at

jamiebennett81 · Aug 20, 2008

roly said:
Could be worth getting it bled again to make sure there's no air locks in the system, if not i think master cylinder would be the next part to look at

thanks for your help mate, much appreciated

hopefully this can be sorted quickly and before next Friday!

ibizacupra · Aug 20, 2008

sounds more like pedal related and cylinder than clutch itself

DPJ · Aug 20, 2008

ibizacupra said:
sounds more like pedal related and cylinder than clutch itself

I agree. (Not that Bill needs my agreement on anything :redface:

jamiebennett81 · Aug 20, 2008

ibizacupra said:
sounds more like pedal related and cylinder than clutch itself

thanks Bill

now that I have had time to think and seen from what people have posted, yes it seems like its the cylinder related rather than the actual clutch

vwbassett · Aug 20, 2008

As said above try new fluid(with pressure bleeder/and mine needed bleeding 4-5 times!) and clutch master and slave cylinders. Easy but tight work - few hoses and two bolts i think they are about £32 for bosch ones from GSF. Rattle is most likely the release bearing but ive heard a lot with rattley bearings over about 40k but if its really loud replace it but surely this should have been done with the clutch?

stewbie55 · Aug 21, 2008

I had something similar recently.... when I had new clutch fitted 6 months ago the slave cylinder was changed as it was leaking and I feared it wa sthe same again.
Fortuately for me it turned out to be a leaking hydraulic pipe, between pedal and master cylinder I think.
Jamie - are you losing any brake/clutch fluid? My brake warning light came on after a couple of weeks of these symptoms.

jamiebennett81 · Aug 22, 2008

stewbie55 said:
I had something similar recently.... when I had new clutch fitted 6 months ago the slave cylinder was changed as it was leaking and I feared it wa sthe same again.
Fortuately for me it turned out to be a leaking hydraulic pipe, between pedal and master cylinder I think.
Jamie - are you losing any brake/clutch fluid? My brake warning light came on after a couple of weeks of these symptoms.

no warning light came on, but vehicle is sat in the garage now, so it could well be pissing out fluid as I have not taken a look since wed evening

I will have a look tonight to see if anything is leaking. cheers for the info

Mitchy · Aug 22, 2008

Might sound very stupid, but make sure it's not catching on the footmat on its release

I've read a few threads where this has been the case and the driver has just not realised rather than clutch cylinder problems

jamiebennett81 · Aug 22, 2008

Mitchy said:
Might sound very stupid, but make sure it's not catching on the footmat on its release

I've read a few threads where this has been the case and the driver has just not realised rather than clutch cylinder problems

lol unfortunately not mate, i dont even have any mats yet!

I wish it was something this simple, it would be a lot cheaper to resolve **pulls mat back**

Willie · Aug 22, 2008

Take a look in the foot well you might see some fluid that has leaked pointing toward a leaking master cylinder

Spec Stg 3 Clutch failing? sticky clutch pedal!

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