Recently my '99 has been feeling different when using the clutch. It seems to be very slow to "catch". So if I rev to 3000 rpm and shift it will take 2 seconds or so before the rpms drop and it catches the next gear. Also the clutch pedal seems a little softer. Is this a sign of my clutch going out? Are there any ways to check and see if my clutch is going bad? If so I want to catch it before catastrophic failure. By the way my '99 has 112k miles on it and I'm pretty sure its the original clutch. I'm the 3rd owner so I don't know any history on the first

 

sounds like it might be slipping... put it in 5th gear and take off from a dead stop, if it stumbles and tries to take off it should be ok but if the rpms rise but the car doesn't move then it is slipping... do you have any leaks coming from the rear main seal area?... oil leaking onto the clutch can also cause slipping

 

I will give it the 5th gear test here in an hour once I leave work. Sorry I am kind of new to this so where would I look to see if there were leaks in the rear main seal? Where is the clutch located so I could see if any oil was leaking. Last time I checked I didn't see any leaks but I will check again.

 

your clutch is at the rear of the engine just like any other car but our trans is in the rear of the car... you can check between the bellhousing and torque tube to see if there are any leaks... you can also take off the inspection cover from the bellhousing and get a better view of the clutch area, it's just a few bolts to take the cover off... if you have factory exhaust manifolds it's real easy to get to but if you have longtubes you will need to drop those and remove your midpipe... if your clutch is slipping or the rear seal or gasket is leaking I would recommend changing all 3 due to the amount of work involved... I would also look into an upgraded aftermarket clutch especially if you decide to add more power down the road, it is definitely not a job you will want to do more than once if you don't have to

 

Thanks for the info. I did the 5 th gear test and it didn't slip at all it caught right away and chugged along. I will pull off the inspection cover on the bell housing this weekend and take a look. What will I be looking for other than fluid leaks? I'm not sure I will add much more power down the road maybe 50 hp or so to get to around 400. All I currently have is a K&N intake. I've heard the LS6 or LS7 clutch assemblies are good

Also is this a job I can do myself in my garage ? I have a jack and jack stands. I've heard I might need to get 2 tranny jacks but I've also heard the mufflers are tough to get out and you need 40" of clearance? Anyone done this and know?

 

if you do decide to replace the clutch I would stay away from the ls6 and at least go with the ls7 setup... I had nothing but problems with high rpm shifting in my c5z with the factory clutch since I owned the car and up until the point that I replaced it... it is do-able, I did mine in a single car garage mostly by myself... I had to suck it up and ask for help to get the torque tube lined up properly so it definitely helps to have an extra set of hands when you get to that point... I used an atv jack instead of a trans jack, they are far cheaper and hold more weight... I just put some 2x4's across it and strapped the trans/diff to the jack so it can't rotate on the jack and lowered the whole cradle and suspension on it and used my floor jack under the front of the torque tube... you can just leave the mufflers in place, there is no need to remove them just use zip ties to keep them out of the way... if you are wanting to do an aftermarket setup that would be a good time because the factory mufflers are super easy to remove with everything out of the rear of the car... if you do the clutch I would suggest replacing the rear main seal and rear gasket even if they don't appear to be leaking since you are already there... it's also the perfect time to check your torque tube bushings while the driveline is out, especially with higher mileage... there is a big writeup on here somewhere that has some good tips on doing the clutch job, try doing a google search for it

 

Thanks for the advice. I think I will attempt it myself. I will look into the atv jack that may be a good option. Good to know about the mufflers that should simplify things. I will look into the rear main seal and rear gasket too I've heard about those leaking and don't want to have to go thru this again.

Also tonight I started smelling a burnt smell while driving home and I'm assuming this has to do with the clutch. What could that burnt smell be? It also seems to be revving rpms way more than necessary in between shifts.

 

Having just gone through a replacement...

...before you dive into the idea of replacing the whole thing, since you said it did catch fine in 5th, is to do the poor-man's clutch fluid flush. Pop the top on the reservoir, suction everything there out, wipe down the reservoir interior, add fluid to fill it, slowly pump the clutch about 5 times and repeat. -- Chances are good that the fluid in there will have picked up some clutch residue. This process helps you remove some of it from the system while also introducing fresh fluid. Its not as good as flushing the system, but it may help your pedal woes. Your next concern is the slave cylinder, but if you're going to dig that deep then time to swap it all out.

I am running the McLeod RST on a stock engine with ram air, headers and full exhaust. And while my car is acting up right now, the 15 or so miles I've had with it give a very clear impression. The pedal force is less than factory. The engagement is very smooth. There is no learning curve involved. I have not done any WOT due to break-in period, and again my issues with fuel or ignition right now, but it is rated for up to 800 ft lb and if you happen to wear it out then for half the original cost you simply order the replacement pads or you can upgrade to the RXT internals.

I'm a BIG BIG fan of lightweight flywheels if you're in there. Fast revs, seamless rev matching on downshifts. Toss in an MGW shifter and you have a whole new beast.

GL with the car

 

Thanks I will definitely do a clutch fluid replacement this weekend. I think I remember reading something about a Ranger method or something for bleeding the clutch fluid. I'll have to google that again to find out what it was. Has anyone done a factory clutch bleed? It doesn't look too difficult just more time consuming. Is this much more effective than the ranger method?

I am really curious what that burning smell was yesterday, I am going to jack it up tomorrow and take a look from underneath. Everyday though it seems a little worse I drove it to work today to see how it felt when it was cold and its definitely slipping or something. It feels like a powerless automatic right now. I can let off the clutch all the way and press the accelerator and it will go after reaching 3000+ rpms or so