[SMWLN]

I have an i10 iRDE2 and it has clocked around 27,000 KMs on the ODO. The clutch has play and it's quite hard.

1. There's no significant loss of power when I accelerate. The moment the RPMs reach 2,000 the car is at about 28km/h. There's a very minor lag.

2. There's no clutch slippage. If I am in third gear and at 30 km/h. The moment I put the car in second gear, the RPM rises and the car slows down almost instantly.

3. When I put the car in fourth in fourth gear, it stalls even if I release the clutch really slowly.

4. The clutch pedal on my car has to be pressed all the way to the floor and it's nearly around an inch from the floor when it gets engaged. The biting point is that low.

I happened to drive a colleague's i10 and to my surprise the clutch felt quite smooth as compared to mine. That car has done around 60,000 KMs, and I am not sure if t went through a clutch overhaul.

Although I am used to the hard clutch, when I compared it to the other car I took my car to a local garage. And I asked him to change the clutch cable, and it didn't make any difference. He's suggesting that most probably the bearings and pressure plate need to be changed. He's given me a quote for about Rs. 4500, and he said that the expense could be less depending on the state of the clutch once it's opened.

I think he'd be using the aftermarket clutch set. Should I be worried about anything?

[auto_enthusiast]

Originally Posted by Jeroen

Good luck

Originally Posted by dhanushs

That's true. I had a similar experience recently with my Jeep and my Fiat. Both cases air in clutch lines. Bleeding sorted out the issue.

Hi Jeroen & dhanushs

I've a Ford Aspire diesel done 70k kms. The car was driven mostly in the city by various drivers but is still on stock clutch. For the past few thousand kms the clutch has become hard but there is no drop in mileage, no drop in pickup and everything else is fine. What could be the possible reason for this? Will replacing only the pressure plate help or I need to replace the whole clutch assembly? Pls advice.

[honeybee]

Clutch becoming hard could point to the release bearing gone bad, pressure plate worn and hardened or the clutch oil being bad.

Change of oil or bleeding should be relatively simoler.

With release bearing or pressure plate, you have to see how much you will pay as labour, as it involves opening the clutch assembly, which in turn involves removing many other components to gain access to the clutch.

If you are spending half the cost on labour, you may want to consider a new clutch as well. Using a new pressure plate on a 71k kms old clutch will be inferior to getting a new clutch. If for e.g. your clutch goes bad in another 10k, you will be spending anoyher huge amount opening up the clutch assembly.

So the decision to replace the entire clutch assembly is more driven by the costs.

[Jeroen]

Originally Posted by auto_enthusiast

I've a Ford Aspire diesel done 70k kms. The car was driven mostly in the city by various drivers but is still on stock clutch. For the past few thousand kms the clutch has become hard but there is no drop in mileage, no drop in pickup and everything else is fine. What could be the possible reason for this? Will replacing only the pressure plate help or I need to replace the whole clutch assembly? Pls advice.

Originally Posted by honeybee

Clutch becoming hard could point to the release bearing gone bad, pressure plate worn and hardened or the clutch oil being bad.

Change of oil or bleeding should be relatively simoler.

With release bearing or pressure plate, you have to see how much you will pay as labour, as it involves opening the clutch assembly, which in turn involves removing many other components to gain access to the clutch.

If you are spending half the cost on labour, you may want to consider a new clutch as well. Using a new pressure plate on a 71k kms old clutch will be inferior to getting a new clutch. If for e.g. your clutch goes bad in another 10k, you will be spending anoyher huge amount opening up the clutch assembly.

So the decision to replace the entire clutch assembly is more driven by the costs.

To add to the points made by Honeybee:
Where I come from the cost of labour is such that always the complete clutch assembly will be replaced. clutch plate, pressure plate, thrust bearing etc. On nearly all cars it is a quite a job to take the gearbox off the engine and back on. Even though in India with low labourrate it might work out differently you might want to consider changing out everything. Unless you have changed out individual parts before, everything will be as old, with as many running hours and mileage. So if there is a need to replace one part, another part on the clutch is likely to go in the not so distant future. For peace of mind, if not just practicality (you dont want you car breaking down) you might want to consider chaning out all the bits and pieces.

Not sure about India, but in the West most part dealers will have complete sets with all the parts included.

Good luck

Jeroen

[Sanzen]

Originally Posted by SMWLN

Although I am used to the hard clutch, when I compared it to the other car I took my car to a local garage. And I asked him to change the clutch cable, and it didn't make any difference. He's given me a quote for about Rs. 4500, and he said that the expense could be less depending on the state of the clutch once it's opened.

I think he'd be using the aftermarket clutch set. Should I be worried about anything?

Get the vehicle inspected at Hyundai ASS for this issue. Yeah, actual expenses would depend on condition of friction disc, pressure plate and release bearing.

Using aftermarket clutch & sub-assemblies is not advisable for personal vehicles as the OE clutches are made using standard materials with controlled hysterisis properties. Local parts could cause clutch judder as well as driveline induced booming noise.

Clutch friction disc need to be aligned carefully with the flywheel, as even slight run-out could spoil a brand new friction disc as well as the pressure plate.

This would waste time as well as money. IMO better opt for Hyundai ASS.

Regards,
Sourabh

[SMWLN]

Originally Posted by Sanzen

Get the vehicle inspected at Hyundai ASS for this issue. Yeah, actual expenses would depend on condition of friction disc, pressure plate and release bearing.

Using aftermarket clutch & sub-assemblies is not advisable for personal vehicles as the OE clutches are made using standard materials with controlled hysterisis properties. Local parts could cause clutch judder as well as driveline induced booming noise.

Clutch friction disc need to be aligned carefully with the flywheel, as even slight run-out could spoil a brand new friction disc as well as the pressure plate.

This would waste time as well as money. IMO better opt for Hyundai ASS.

Regards,
Sourabh

Guess what? I showed it to another mechanic and he adjusted the cable. All well now. Clutch is not hard anymore and there's no issue at all. I've read in many threads that the issue resurfaces at times if the clutch is indeed gone. Let's see how it goes for me.

[Sanzen]

Thats great! Enjoy your drive!
Anyways what adjustments did he perform? play adjustment etc.??
Regards,

[SMWLN]

Originally Posted by Sanzen

Thats great! Enjoy your drive!
Anyways what adjustments did he perform? play adjustment etc.??
Regards,

Yes, he adjusted the cable to remove play and he adjusted the pedal as well.
Pedal was touching the steering column when pressed.
As a result of this adjustment the biting point has come up from the floor and is around the middle now.

[honeybee]

Originally Posted by SMWLN

Guess what? I showed it to another mechanic and he adjusted the cable. All well now. Clutch is not hard anymore and there's no issue at all. I've read in many threads that the issue resurfaces at times if the clutch is indeed gone. Let's see how it goes for me.

Dang, the cable clutch! I was thrown off track by my own experience with the hydraulic clutch.

With a cable clutch the first thing, as rightly donw by your mechanic, is to adjust the cable.

In the Santro I remember I was able to set the pedal play using a nut near the gearbox that would adjust the cable play.

Sorry for not having asked this earlier and missing this.

[Sanzen]

That's a good learning indeed! No rocket science, just a few adjustments and its done!

[SMWLN]

Originally Posted by honeybee

Dang, the cable clutch! I was thrown off track by my own experience with the hydraulic clutch.

With a cable clutch the first thing, as rightly donw by your mechanic, is to adjust the cable.

In the Santro I remember I was able to set the pedal play using a nut near the gearbox that would adjust the cable play.

Sorry for not having asked this earlier and missing this.

But hey, your suggestions were absolutely helpful had it been really the clutch that's bad! I really appreciate it.

Originally Posted by Sanzen

That's a good learning indeed! No rocket science, just a few adjustments and its done!

Exactly! And also if we're lucky enough to come across ethical mechanics.

[lancer_gypsy]

Originally Posted by honeybee

Clutch becoming hard could point to the release bearing gone bad, pressure plate worn and hardened or the clutch oil being bad.

Originally Posted by Jeroen

To add to the points made by Honeybee:
Where I come from the cost of labour is such that always the complete clutch assembly will be replaced. clutch plate, pressure plate, thrust bearing etc.

Hi, I have a similar problem in my 2004 Lancer petrol. It has run nearly 1.4 lakh km and the clutch was replaced at around 95k at ASS. Now the clutch has suddenly become very hard to press. It was butter soft to press a couple of months earlier. The mechanics say the clutch has gone and needs to be replaced. I doubt whether the master/slave cylinder have suffered some breakdown and hence the hardness. I asked one mechanic to bleed the clutch (it has a separate circuit from brakes) but he said its risky and the master/slave cylinders could bread down. He also said these parts usually don't break down and hence most likely the clutch plate / pressure plate / bearings are gone.

What makes me doubt that are two things: 1) It was working fine and I am a good user of the clutch. It seems to have gone bad suddenly. 2) The clutch actually works fine even now under cold condition, say when starting in the morning. After about half an hour to an hour of driving, it progressively becomes hard to press. (It also starts to make some squeaking noises.)

Couple of more points to note: The travel of the clutch doesn't change when it becomes hard. Its just that its very hard to press. Also the engaging point (biting point) doesn't change. There is no clutch slippage or loss of power.

Any pointers on what could be wrong , how it could be investigated further, and last but not the least, any recommendations on where to get it done in Bangalore would be very helpful.

Thanks much in advance!

[honeybee]

If it's normal in the cold of the morning and hard in the hot day or after prolonged use, the clutch fluid may be contaminated.

Bleed the clutch fluid and see if the problem goes away. If the problem resurfaces, check the cylinders as the seals may have gone bad leading to contamination.

If the release bearing or pressure plate has gone bad, the clutch will always be hard, no matter cold or hot.

[lancer_gypsy]

Originally Posted by honeybee

If it's normal in the cold of the morning and hard in the hot day or after prolonged use, the clutch fluid may be contaminated.

Bleed the clutch fluid and see if the problem goes away. If the problem resurfaces, check the cylinders as the seals may have gone bad leading to contamination.

If the release bearing or pressure plate has gone bad, the clutch will always be hard, no matter cold or hot.

Thank you! I'll get that done and revert. Is it true that bleeding the clutch (esp on an old car, according to the mechanic) might damage the master/slave cylinders? In case that happens, any idea how much replacing those might cost?

[Jeroen]

Originally Posted by lancer_gypsy

Thank you! I'll get that done and revert. Is it true that bleeding the clutch (esp on an old car, according to the mechanic) might damage the master/slave cylinders?

No, shouldn’t be a problem at all.

No matter the age of the car, all hydraulic fluids (brake and or clutch) need to be replaced/refreshed every 2-3 years regardless.

Jeroen