I have a 2005 R53. I had the stock clutch replaced 115,000 miles. Now, at 122,000 that clutch is shot. Has anyone else had misfortune with a Valeo single mass clutch?

 

I read something about pre-tension or something and if that hasnt been done correctly the clutch will be shot within a very short timeframe.

Cant seem to find that info, but I remember I was searching for the DMF to SMF conversion

 

Thanks. I've run into other issues with that repair shop and their questionable work. It's become a pricey lesson.

 

I replaced my clutch 20,xxx ago and haven’t had any problems. I didn’t pre tension anything??

 

7,000 on a new clutch seems way off, pre-tensioned or not. Wonder what your symptoms are / were? Has it been confirmed that it is is the clutch and not something like an hydraulic issue?

 

Maybe you just answered your original question. Assuming the garage won't honor their warranty, or you don't trust them not to f*** it up even worse, do you have the ability and space to do the job over yourself? Everyone's favorite go-to Mod MINI has a two-parter treatise on the subject. He also has a separate video in his library on the subject of the Valeo and why it's far better than the dual-mass OEM:

 

define "shot".
Like walking into a doctor's office and saying "my body hurts" and hope the doctor can give you a Rx without any further detail.
Is it noisy? Slipping? Not engaging? Not disengaging?

Clutches are pretty simple to install. If they work for the first 500miles, then they likely were installed correctly, assuming the shop turned the flywheel (or used a new one) and installed a new pressure plate.

Noise? Could be a spring that failed on the clutch disk. Throw out bearing that wasn't replaced during clutch install. TOB not greased. Pilot bearing failed.
Slipping? That's likely user error.
Not engaging/disengaging? Could be slave cylinder, clutch fork, etc.

 

My problem is always at low speeds when I'm already in gear and then accelerate hard. The engine revs up but the car doesn't go nearly as fast as it should. One time a couple weeks ago it smoked like crazy and stunk for days. This has happened 3 times since.
Last year, about 2,000 miles ago, it did the same thing once. I took it to a shop that specializes in MINIs and they replaced the slave cylinder.
Thanks in advance for any and all help.

 

No noise. It acts as though it isn't disengaging. The Valeo clutch comes as a kit so whatever is included in that was installed...I assume.
I posted about it again.

 

My disability put an and to any crawling around underneath a car. Surprisingly, I don't really miss it all that much. LOL