I have been trying to diagnose my problem for a few weeks now. I researched a lot, and figured out that it is probably my clutch. My 97 Maxima has 85,000 miles. On cold starts, I have to rev it to about 1500-2000 rpms to get it going. I go to shift, while driving, and if I gun it, the rpm's go to about 5500. Is this the clutch??? If so, how much more normal driving do I have until it goes??? How long will it take my mechanic to replace it? I made an appointment to get it checked out, and inspected on Monday, January 27th. Will I be able to drive my car from now until then??? Thanks!
Matt

 

I drive a 5speed as well and I thought I had that problem. It went away. I had it checked out and it was nothing. If it is that however, you have the potential to mess some stuff up. I do not know if this is true or not, but it could be the rear main seal leaking oil in the clutch. Someone once told me that, I really do not know if it is true or not. If the clutch is worn out, you could mess up the pressure plate and flywheel, i think. Some of the more mechanically inclined here will know. Just hope it is not a clutch job. Big $$$!!! Good luck either way!


Just engaged 1-3-03 to the most beautiful girl.
Congrats!!

 

thanks, first of all.
Second, I just found out that when I try to downshift, the rpms go to about 1500 for a split second, and then proceed to go the rest of the way. This happens, for instance, even when I try to downshift from 3rd to 2nd, doing 25 m.p.h. Please help me... And for anyone who knows for sure, can I screw something up if I were to drive the car for the next week and a half??? Thanks again

 

no help, huh???

 

You need a new clutch. The more you drive it, the more it's gonna slip, the more damage your going to do to the flywheel.

 

If you mean the RPMs go up when you floor it after you've shifted, when the car is fully in gear and the clutch pedal all the way out, and this happens frequently and not just once or twice out of nowhere, then you need a new clutch.

The typical clutch replacement with labor runs up around $700-800. Don't know about the # of hrs the job takes.

 

You should take it to the dealer or a reputable mechanic. They should be able to tell you exactly what the problem is. Your further descriptions lead me to believe it is the clutch. You can save a lot of money doing it yourself!! A Haynes manual will HELP A LOT!! Good Luck!!!

 

This is crazy, I think I have the same problem you do... except my clutch is only 25k-miles-old! I can tell u that for the 10k-miles I've owned the car, I have not done crazy **** and only remember twice when I actually burned the clutch so far (yes, i drive like a po0saE). OK, so what the hell is goin on? I have differential bearings gone bad but I was hoping it wouldn't be related. When I'm gettin on the highway.. as i get off the ramp, i drive pretty hard and when shifting at about 3k RPM, it would like jump to 4k RPM then settle back down to 3k... my tranny obviously doesn't like me.


One more thing: I took Sprint's advice and floored it at a low RPM in 3rd gear... the car accelerated fine and I didn't notice the clutch slipping or any RPM jumps. what gives?!

Blah, one other thing: Could the tranny oil have any affect on this... ? I have been leaking tranny oil (a couple drops)and I'm sure that it still within reasonable levels tho. Perhaps the place I took it to put the wrong oil?