Slipping clutch - what's the problem?
 

The clutch has begun slipping in my car ('96 I30 with five speed manual tranny). In 4th or 5th gear, if I floor the gas peddle, the clutch will slip for a bit (engine speed will climb faster than car speed) and then it will grab and the car will accelarate normally.

What is the cause? Is this because the clutch disc is worn out, or could it be because a seal in either the engine or transmission is leaking oil onto the clutch disc? I would think that if the disc were worn out, it would start making noise during engagement because you'd have metal on metal instead of disc pad on metal. Conversely, if the disc is worn down and has gotten thinner, perhaps the clutch assembly can't grab it as tightly and so it slips for a bit then heats up and expands and grabs again.

Anyone who's been there/done that, I'd really appreciate your input.

Max

Sounds like your clutch is going out. Get a new one.

metal to metal noise generally is the throwout bearing and sometimes the differential. Your clutch is going, get a decent clutch and while your at it a lighter flywheel

It is most likely just your clutch. But you will know for sure when you take it out. If you wanted you could adjust your enagement point of the clutch pedal and it might stop slipping for a while.

How do I adjust clutch engagement point?
 

I'd love to try that -- please point me in the right direction.

TIA,
Max

Read the 4th gen FAQ's

Hope the 4th gen walk through was helpful.

(Being a '96, I'm guessing you're well over 100K miles & it's the original clutch. That's pretty daggum good in my book.)

An adjustment will help, but only buys some time until it fails completely. (and doesn't grab in any gear or reverse). I been there, done that.

Once adjusted, how much time will depend on how gentle you are with it. (It could still go for years depending on the terrain you live around.)

3rd gear is gonna be next to slip though.

I would start looking into the parts and how to go about getting it fixed.

I don't want/mean to imply you don't know how to drive it but...in case you've never had to baby a clutch...
- Don't downshift coming to stops, (brakes only)
- Once moving, let the clutch out quicky and then accelerate slowly (to minimize the time at friction point)
- Keep the left foot off the pedal if not changing gears
- Minimize use of 5th gear when possible.

Good luck

slipping clutch - how adjust engagement point?
 

DoubleE,

Thanks for the tips. Actually, my car has about 145k miles, and I bought it used with about 80k miles on it in 1999. I think that it is the original clutch; it was very tough to get a smooth clutch engagement in first gear when I got the car, and I really suffered with it for the first couple years. Finally, the clutch slave cylinder went out, and then the clutch line, so I had to replace those and bleed the system. After bleeding, clutch engagement was MUCH smoother, but not perfect. Next, I lubed all the mechanical linkages for the clutch under the dash (used ATF fluid) and then it was almost perfect.

I'm sure the disc took a lot of abuse before I did all that, so I suspect that my problem is mostly just a worn disc.

Max

Almost forgot -- I looked thru the 4th gen FAQ's, and don't see anything about adjusting the clutch engagement point. Please hepl!

Truthfully, I've never gone over there as I haven't needed to.

Today I do though...my sunroof broke & I need to replace parts. I'm hoping it will have the info I need. If I run across the clutch adjustment, I'll get it to you.

Word to the wise...clean up all that crap and old grease from your sunroof rails and lay down fresh grease on the areas that slide. Look closely at this mechanism as it is going to be a PIA to replace I'm discovering...

Found a link that should lead you to the clutch adjustment process.

http://forums.maxima.org/showthread.php?t=376972

I also found out that you DO NOT want your sunroof to break. The Maxima section has the process & links to others who did write ups on it and it is not gonna be quick & easy. Parts are cheap but it's gonna be a "tear-down" to get to.

Ya'll clean those things up now and get them to where the grease is clean, bugs & tree leaves are out
...and soon I'll write on the ordeal I had that will really make you think about your sunroof maintenance next time you your I-ride up again...

your clutch is slipping, the car is almost 10 years old

Thanks to all who offered advice. This past weekend I dove in, and pulled the tranny. It was a royal pain, and the factory service manual (FSM) is not complete WRT all the things that require removal, but I got through it.

Once the tranny was out, I found that the rear engine seal was weeping, and I had a replacement in hand, so I decided to take care of that to. FSM says that the lower and upper oil pan need to be removed to do this, but I did it with the oil pans in place. Not very pretty, but I've got about 75% confidence that the new seal will not leak. If you plan to do this job, the seal/retainer is one part, and then there is a half moon rubber gasket that goes between the retainer and the aluminum oil pan, which is sold separately.

I also found that the outer boot on the right drive shaft is leaking, so I've got to fix that first (more tools required!) and install that before she'll be back on the road. Also, the position sensor/switch on the bottom of the tranny was leaking and came apart when I removed it to drain the tranny, so I've got a new one of those on order ($40, dealer only item) which should arrive by Thursday.

The clutch was slipping because it was too thin -- it had reached the wear limit listed in the FSM (0.012 inches from face of disc to rivet head).

Right now, after about 24 hours of labor over three days, my body is aching but I'm happy because I've probably saved a couple thousand dollars in labor and parts by doing this myself.

Max