Ok so when i was driving to school today i noticed that it became really hard to shift into gears. especially 1st and reverse. when i got to school i couldn't even go into first or reverse. it felt like the clutch was not engaging. so i drove it down to acura after class and they checked it out. they said that my clutch is gone and it probably needs to be replaced. they quoted me $1700 to change the clutch but the thing is, i just made 30,000 miles on the car. its a 06 and i bought it brand new a year and a half ago in may of 07. ok so i burned out a couple of times and raced some friends but nothing too serious that would cause the clutch to end so soon. Other than those times, i drove the car normally. the thing is, just out of no where the clutch goes bad. it never slipped or anything before today and seemed like it grabbed good still. i used to have a turbo integra and i could tell when the stock clutch went bad. it would start slipping then after a while it would get even worst. but for the TL, it just happened all of the sudden. is this normal? any info would help because i don't want to pay $1700 for a new clutch but they are going to tear open the trans and if they say its from abuse or riding the clutch then i will have to pay but if its from a faulty part, then its covered under warranty.

 

i would order a aftermarket clutch now.

 

^+1 agreed! I think your pretty much stuck on this one dude

 

has acura checked to make sure that the clutch is even engaging? I don't have much expereince with MT, but it could be the master cylinder that does the stuff to actually engage the clutch, so your clutch could be perfect, but its not moving...

 

Aloha~

Its not uncommon for clutch wearout anywhere over 20k miles- I have seen 17 as the lowest posted here, and it was wear- not bad part, prior tennage owner.

There is a possibilty that the pressure plate or disc has a defect in making- not just normal wearout.
The dealer has to remove the trans and the clutch to inspect the parts before they know that for sure.
Trans removal is a lengthy time/procedure, and really special tools required to change this trick pressure plate and adjuster system,, are crazy-
Its not a normal clutch- its an Acura clutch!!

The reason you didnt feel anything before sudden stoppage is part of the design, where a self adjuster keep everything working for you-
Wasnt that nice of acura to build in!!
On the mainland they are getting $2500 with new disc, pressure plate, and bearing

Make sure when its fixed- you dont down-shift without purpose- use brakes to slow the car!
And put in Nuetral at stoplights- foot off clutch- thats a killer
Stop and go traffic is a clutch eater

Mahalo and Aloha-
May the Breath of Life Be With- and Go With You

 

Should make that my new signature:

I only burned out a few times and raced some friends....other than those times...

 

well they checked the master cylinder to see if there was a leak in fluid but it was fine. so they said it was the clutch and they would have to take the trans apart to see for sure.

 

i hope there's some type of defect with the pressure plate or disc. because i can't be going through $1700 clutches every 30k miles =/
yeah i never hold the clutch in at the light and i hardly downshift to slow down unless i have to. well thanks for the help. idk if i should get a aftermarket clutch? who makes clutches for the TL again? was it clutchmasters or something?

 

Just an FYI-If the pilot bearing freezes up it would make it difficult to shift into first/reverse as the transmission/disc will be constently turning even when the pedal to the floor.

 

Same thing happened to me at 18k, without the burnout part.
They replaced it under warranty, but I had to ask a lot of questions.
When they take it apart, the disc will probably not be worn past it's service limit.
The 'wearout item', the disc, won't be worn out.
You need to ask "If the disc isn't worn out, how is it that I can't get in gear?"

 

A clutch disc could have no friction surface remaining and you still could get into gear. When the pedal is depressed, the plate pressure is released from the disc, so the disc hangs on the input shaft, so to speak The car may not move or slip, but it won't cause it not to shift.

 

Yes, it sounds like total BS to me.
A worn out clutch slips, what the clutch does is connect the engine to the trans, so when shot, they slip under load.
No matter what shape your clutch is in, you should always be able to press the pedal down and shift the gears easy.

It sounds like when you push the pedal down, the master or slave cylinder does not push the clutch open all the way and you still have drag.

So I think its a warentee item, not a worn clutch, and there is a tsb on the master cylinder (for noise).

They are trying to rip you off.

(what a surprise!)

Brett

 

before you get your panties in a bunch you gotta realise that they are going to quote you worse case scenario for repair........wait and see what they say after inspection before you get all bent out of shape............

you certainly did not help the life of your trans by doing burnouts and racing your friends....

 

Unless there was a defect in one of the clutch components, the only way to wear out a clutch is by improper shifting techniques and/or hard driving. I'm pushing 59K and mine still shifts like a charm. Have you tried switching to the GM fluid that almost all of us 6MT owners here have?
.
.

 

More than likely you are dealing with either a locked up pilot bearing or defective pressure plate. The reason it will not shift into gear with the clutch depressed is the clutch is not fully disengaging. Which means the gears in the Transmission are still turning which makes 1st gear very difficult to get into. If the clutch itself was bad, you would have slipping in any gear and it would go into gear just fine. More than likely your clutch is fine but it will be associate equipment that has failed. Be glad you are not stateside, I just had my clutch replaced, $2300 total...I learned my lesson on buying a used MT. Good luck and keep us posted.

 

yeah i'm pretty sure the disc if still good, it never show any sign of slipping. i guess i just have to wait till they remove the trans.

 

hmm that sounds like the problem... thanks for the info.

 

yup i'm going to have them show me the clutch if i have to pay for it and if it's still good then i'm making sure i aint paying..

 

couple of minor 2 second burn outs and a little racing on the street, not track wouldn't burn the clutch out that fast. i can see if i was drag racing or holding some 30 sec. burnouts... besides that was only short period of time before i started going for the vip look. now days i just cruise um but yeah im just going to have to wait.

 

no i never yet because i never really have any 3rd gear problems and the trans shifted really smooth so i thought everything was all good.

 

ic ic. did you have the same problem as me or did you just have to change your clutch because it was time? dang thats $600 more.. that sucks man. i'll keep everyone posted

 

One other problem which would cause the harsh engagment would be if the clutch hydraulics are on their way out, master or slave cyl.
The reason I didn't mention this in my original post is that it was stated Acura looked at the vehicle and said the clutch needed to be replaced. Sounds like the normal off the wall remark.

Not saying the dealership would stoop to such a low level, but if they wanted to make you pay, they would just show you a worn out disc from another vehicle, but let's hope they'll stand behind the warranty and all is well with a new assembly installed, if that's the problem. Would love to be there when they pulled it apart!

 

and racing with friends is a clutch destroyer

 

This is not your civic where you can beat the car up and expect it to last. It is a heavy car and beating the clutch a little can cause major issues. I own a 6mt and this clutch is different from any other car I have driven. I hope you dont have to pay but I would make sure you bring your credit card with you when you pick it up. With 95k on my original clutch and running, you gotta drive normal all the time and take it easy in between the shifting. Once engaged mash the gas and have fun, but don't ride hard on the clutch between gears. This is one expensive ass fix. Especially at 30k.

 

damn that sucks dood. If you have to get a new clutch i suggest just going aftermarket.

Oh and some of those races was him racing me with my s2k gettin SMOKED!!!! actually I lost but that was from dead stop 3.2L > 2.2,V6 > 4 banger,9Krpm > 8Krpm..I would have owned you on the freeway brad. and you know it!

 

haha walker your a funny guy.

Ok so i talked to the service manager yesterday and he told me that it looks like the spleens on the clutch were damaged so it is most likely covered under warranty. but he has to get his head mechanic to look at it and he was off yesterday so i won't know for sure.

 

Spleens on the clutch disc? New one on me. Have seen discs disintegrate, flywheels blow, pp compress, but have never have seen a clutch hub spleen go as it just rides on the trans input shaft. Maybe someone else has seen this.

 

As long as they cover it, who cares what happened. That is a big nut to pay for. Let us know. You might want to find the head mechanic and buy him lunch or dinner.

 

I think you vent your spleen, but damage your splines....

Brett

 

yeah i have never heard of spleens getting damaged either... but we shall see exactly what happend in a couple of days hopefully. i'm starting to miss my car already! i'll keep everyone updated when i get it back.

 

That's just the point. If they cover it under warranty no problem, but if the "Head Mechanic" deems it damaged from overzealous driving, then I would want to know more about the damage so as I could raise objections.

 

These cars have self-adjusting pressure plates. There's a mechanism in the pressure plate that takes up the slack when the disc wears.
I found a web article after mine died that talked about how these were used in large trucks for a while, but they quit using them because of reliability problems.
I am sure mine over-adjusted, and I'll bet yours did too.
When you pushed the clutch down, it felt the same, right? like it did when it was fine, except you couldn't get it into first gear, right?
I don't think Honda got the reliability memo.

 

Yes, the clutch felt the same as i could recall. Except when it was getting really bad, the clutch grabbed very low to the ground which was unusual considering the tl's clutch grabs high. The clutch would also feel like it's not fully engaging. Yeah it sounds like this self-adjusting pressure plate is rubbish! After this next clutch i'll be sure to order a after-market one.

 

didnt I say self adjusting clutch at the beginning of this thread?
And the splines could have been poorly machined- resulting in loose fit and eventual seperation of some part to the next.

The dealer has to keep the part for acura to inspect,because its warranty,
so it should be in parts dept for you to see-
Tell them you just want to understand the failure, and make sure of anything you can do to help prevent future problems
Check out how much disc was left- there should be wear holes - if those are gone its worn past limits

 

ok so i finally got my car back today. they said that the pressure plate was the problem and that they usually don't cover it under warranty but they will cover it this time... =/

 

glad everytihng worked out for you............see being a little patient always works to your advantage