How long/how many miles does y our clutch last?

My 2002 with 88,000 miles had the clutch replaced by the original owner at 30,000 miles.

When the car was traded in and went through the reconditioning process at the dealership, the recon center said they put a new clutch in it and resurfaced the flywheel. That was at 86,000 miles. So my car is now on its 3rd clutch, and the original owner was a pretty old guy, but lived in an area that is a constant traffic jam.

I could not find any marks on bolts that would indicate to me that they actually did change out the clutch. What would be telltale tool marks that would make me think that work was actually done?

And lastly, how hard, and how expensive is it to change the clutch on our 5.5 Maximas?


The dealership charged me $1600 for the clutch, 2 Yokohama tires, set of tie-rod ends, new "O" ring seal in the oil filter base, brakes on all 4 corners, oil change, wiper blades, and safety check, I thought that was pretty cheap (if they actually did the clutch) for that much work.

 

My 6MT has 153,000 miles on it. The kid I bought it from was the 3rd owner.He said he just did regular maintenance and said he hadn't done the clutch. He had kept most of his records as well those from the previous owner and based off those it looks like the car had the original clutch, but who knows?

 

as long as you dont beat the crap outta the car the oem clutch should last a while. im only at 66K but my clutch is fine. 30k and a new clutch tells me the guy couldnt drive or beat the crap outta the car..

 

I'm wondering if he "slipped" the clutch all the time at stops and in stop and go traffic...

 

I'm at 64k miles with my original clutch. No issues. Keep in mind, Hotshot and I are both original owners, and I'm pretty sure we both take good care of our cars.

Honestly, I kind of would like it to crap out on me, so I could justify a clutch & flywheel upgrade.

Hotshot, you must have barely driven your car this year for me to be catching up to you on the odometer. I don't drive many miles year over year, but I fear I'll be passing you soon.

 

I'm still on original clutch and I am close to 110K.
Still pulls strong...

 

yeah, i think i drove the car like 2K in the last year..lol unemployment will do that to ya..the new job is only 5 miles away, so she will stay low mileage for a while

 

Rochester, with as nice a car as you have it's almost a shame you don't drive it more.
I'll probably put about 35,000 miles on mine in the next 12 months.

 

I have 105k on the original clutch. I'm kind of surprised it's lasted this long as the previous owner used the car to commute every day in traffic jams until I bought it at 55k miles.

 

Congrats on the job! That's awesome.

Nah, it's just another 6MT with standard mods. I just happen to take lots of pictures and post a lot, so it all seems more than it is.

But thanks, Troop. That's nice.

 

80000 miles on my clutch. Every manual car I've owned has never need a clutch replacement. If you know how to drive a manual you shouldn't even worry about your clutch going. Now 30,000 is way to soon for a new clutch. That person had no idea how to drive a stick......wow

 

I replaced mine at 70k miles. I bought the car at 25k miles and original owner was a 70 year old retired Dr. Traded the car because he had to have both his knees replaced. Bought a new Denali.. So I am sure it had some wear on it. And I admit that I do beat on the car from time to time. Clutch was just starting to slip but I wanted something a bit stronger.. So with normal driving I can see that these can go well over 100k miles..

 

The OEM exedy disk is an excellent disk, and I see no reason to replace one before 100K. If it is wearing out at 30k then someone needs some driving lessons

 

So is is a difficult job to replace the clutch ina 5th gen?

 

:metalmax: 6spd?

 

yes, 6MT

 

120k on original. 30k is waaaay too early.

I'm looking to grab the 350Z clutch / Fidanza flywheel combo when I do the motor this Winter. I think my clutch has a while to go, but my flywheel might be warped/off balance.

 

Interesting. The first owner of my car (middle-aged family man) also said the clutch was replaced at 30k. We both agreed that it was probably due to it being a dealer demo car. (Ugh! the thoughts of abuse at the dealership!) I bought it at 76k and I'm now at 102k on the second clutch.

Tell me about it. Due to a little chatter/roughness when I let out the clutch, I'm estimating (hoping?) it will get bad enough to warrant replacement within the next 5k miles. Of course, there are ways to speed up the process...

 

I just replaced mine and finally passed my suggested 500 mile break in time. I bought it from a big Toyota dealership with about 115k on it. A mechanic and the shop foreman both denied the clutch slipping even after a test drive, but I got a good deal on it anyway so I bought it. The disc still had friction material when I changed it a couple hundred miles later, but it had reached the rivets. This is most likely what caused the numerous hot spots on both the pressure plate and flywheel which led to the slipping. I have yet to call the general manager and let him know what I think of his service department. Both guys said it was normal for a 6 spd.

MHO is that Nissan should have designed a stronger pressure plate for the 5.5. As far as even the older drivers having short clutch life, I think it can be attributed to the bad habit many have of resting your foot on the clutch pedal. The static pressure of the fingers is too small. In Nissan's defense, they did have to think about pedal effort for the majority of buyers not just org members.

FWIW - My 4th gen 5 spd has a copious amount of miles on it and the clutch is still grabbing strong.

 

I have 130,000 miles on my 6mt and that ***** still chips third.

 

^^ LOL X2


nope, not difficult at all. no more than youre average FWD car.

 

should get atleast 100k on oem i would think

 

Let's not forget the early "Dying Squirrel" TSB for the 6mt's that probably can account for alot of these 30k clutch replacements.

It WAS real, and alot of guys had to have it done. if memory serves -- it was common for the Stealer to resurface the flywheel, burnish the frictions, or simply replace one or both.

If I rest my foot on the clutch at the engagement point I CAN get mine to make some minor screeching sounds....but it's always done this.

80k for me -- clutch is a bit finnicky, but holding just fine.

More third gear crunch than anything.....and i KNOW what that is.

gr

 

145K and still on original clutch. Throw out bearing has been making noise the last 3+ years or so.

 

Bought my 6MT Max september 1st replaced the clutch september 8 ripped all the way the F*Ck off but hey hope this one lasts my first car was a 1998 saturn sl coupe 5 speed got it at 74K miles drove it to 121K never had to replace the clutch Max's have a long throw gets retarded sometime I always slip third gear never had that in my saturn or my 02 TL 6sp swap which was stolen

 

Dude, just fix it. It's a free mod. Info all over the Org.

Search on "STS" and read up.

 

One thing that will kill a clutch prematurely is the traffic meter lights on the onramp of the freeway. Every once in a great while if everyone ahead of me drives right I can just coast in first while lightly braking all the way up the ramp but that rarely ever happens. I usually have to stop and then start out again about 50 times til I get to the lights. Anyways, my clutch had to be replaced at about 85k miles

 

Just stay a little further back and create a buffer zone. It's what I do and works in moments like this. I have the same exact problem creeping through the Lincoln Tunnel.

 

car washes are tough on clutches as well, trying to creep through them at very slow speeds...

 

who sells the cheapest clutch... yup the cheapest

 

Exedy OEM replacement...$200

 

i believe i saw that one... i was hoping for cheaper ... i feel like going with a used one first as all im going to do is burn it the **** up

 

I'll sell you a pressure plate, flywheel, and disc that just barely started to slip (two mechanics couldn't even tell), if you're just going toShould last you just as long as a new one if you're planning to fry it anyway. This will also help you to save money for the flywheel you'll have to replace or machine to get all the hotspots out. How about it?