This is my first mini and I don't know if this is normal . My car is a 05 r50 5 speed with 90k on it .

My problem is that when I first take off in the morning the clutch engages really rough . It's only on take off for the few stop and go's then after that the clutch will engage smooth as silk .
When I take off , it's very jumpy and its like the clutch is coming and going . It jumps enough to cause the tires to break traction . I've tried let the clutch out very slow but it doesn't help.

It seems to do it after the car has set for more then 10 hrs even if its 85 degrees outside . Gear changes aren't effected , only take off and only for the first couple of stop and go's .
Is this normal or is this a sign my clutch is going.
My clutch starts to let out 1/2-3/4 of the ways up.

Any help would be greatly appreciated .
Thanks

 

I once had a car (Honda) with a similar problem. It got progressively worse, and the next symptom was that it would begin to creep forward when at a stopsign in 1st gear with the clutch held to the floor. It was the clutch master leaking.

I always thought that if the clutch slips when one's foot is not on the petal, then it's the clutch. And if the clutch won't disengage when the clutch is on the floor (difficult to get into gear etc..) then it's the hydraulics. -A guy recently had a thread "How can I tell if clutch is not okay" -which seemed to be an exception to my above thoughts.

I'm wondering if when it's cold, what will happen if you start it, put it in neutral, pump the clutch pedal several times in neutral, then put it in gear and go. If that makes a smooth take off, then I think it would indicate that the piston is leaking in either the master or slave cylinder. Could also be just a little air in the system. Another possibility is that the clutch disk is glazed a little, is very grabby when cold, and after a few take offs it warms up and smoothes out. If it were me, and that was the case I would probably just live with it until it begins to slip, then replace the clutch, pressure plate and all. (You could still have tens of thousands of miles of life on the clutch even if it's just glazed a little)

If it were me I would do things in this order. Bleed the system replacing all the fluid (do brakes at the same time -easier than the clutch part actually, and unless you know this has been done recently, it's just good maintenance anyway). There's a special tool needed to bleed clutch on an R53, and I'm guessing r50 is the same. Google it and you're sure to find lots of threads and/or how to guides. Along that path you *might* discover a leaky slave cylinder or something along those lines, if so then you found the problem.

Hydraulic part is cheaper and easier than removing the transmission and replacing the clutch, so I would check hydraulics first.

 

Ill try pumping the clutch pedal and ill let you know what I find . Thanks

 

Ok . I tried pumping the clutch pedal before I took off in it this morning . It really seemed to help . I didn't get all that bucking and jerking from the clutch that I had before.
I un bolted the slave cylinder and pulled it out of the housing . I couldn't find any signs of it leaking externally . It was dry .
Could it leaking internally ?
My clutch pedal feels good to me as far as firmness and it doesn't have any play . It starts pulling about half way up and it starts grabbing hard at 3/4 ways up.

I'm stumped .