I've never had clutch problems so don't know if this is what's happening. I'll be driving normally and then suddenly I see the rpms are too high for the speed and gear I'm using. It'll stay like that but I can feel that I'm shifting gears. I turned the car off and 30 minutes later it was back to normal. It'll do that maybe once every two weeks. What could it be?

 

Just to be sure, is this a manual transmission?

If so, check your harmonicbalancer (crank pulley) to see if the rubber core has separated.

Otherwise check for an oil leak between transmission and engine as it could be that your rear main seal has gone and oil is getting onto your clutch plate.

Lastly, a worn clutch could also still be a possibility.

 

Thanks. It is a manual. Yes I do see some oil leak on the bottom of the oil pan but will have to do a deeper inspection to see if it's the rear main seal.

 

Try 70mph in 6th gear and floor it. Are your RPMs rising but speed is not? That's your clutch gone bad. A separated crank pulley would also include an easily recognized burning smell.

 

Thanks. Heres whatll happen. I'll be driving at 50 mph and see the rpms at 4000 and think I didn't shift gears but in reality I'm in 6th gear. When I stop and take off again I can shift gears but it reaches 3000-4000rpm very quickly. I haven't smelled any burning. I turned the car on and off and still the same thing. I parked for 30 min and when I drive it's back to normal. This happens like maybe once a week or less but it's enough to worry me.

One other note is that when this happens and Im at the light the idling rpmg is around 2000.

 

I would say clutch issue ... sounds like the flywheel side plate is glazed ... so not only will it be a clutch plate, pressure plate, and throw-out bearing but a new flywheel as well. (or plate if it is replaceable).

Best of luck.

Motor On!

 

Thanks. Anyone know an "easy" method to get the transmission out? Some comments on YouTube say they use some technique in England where they remove the cradle and sway bar.

 

There is no easy way unfortunately but its not that bad. You will have to take the subframe out. ModMini has on this.

In the first minute he also talks about symptoms of a bad clutch; slippage in high gears.

 

It's best to completely remove the entire air intake system and the components above the transmission (in the engine compartment). Those are easy to replace and give you much better access to the bolts (and the shift cables) you need to remove the transmission. Removal is not an easy task (you need a trans jack). Just take your time and make sure your lifted car is secure with jackstands. I also like to employ a 3-ton hydraulic jack as insurance against a fall. When reinstalling it can be difficult to get everything aligned. Have a friend ready to turn the crankshaft in order to more easily line up the input shaft. Removing the spark plugs makes turning the crankshaft much easier. Good luck.

 

All very valid points.

I double down on "get a transmission jack" I have the same as ModMini and I couldn't do it without. The gearbox is heavy and it's balance is very awkward.

 

all good advise above + get your hands on tis or bentley for suplimental information before you start. understand the entire process before you start. order all needed parts before you start

 

this could just be me, not able to read if you have clutch problems or other. you need to confirm that first. see cooper48 post #4 above

 

I tried this. The speed increases but the rpms are over 5000. And the idle rpms are around 1700. Now today I drove and the car is back to normal. Idle rpms below 1000. I'm doing 60mph on six gear and barely at 3000 rpm.

 

clutch will not effect idle. I'm still not sure you have a clutch problem. I would not move forward until you know

 

I had the mechanic come over and he said it didn't sound like a clutch problems either. He said based on what I described it could be throttle body, MAP sensor or even clogged catalytic converter.

 

To be honest your problem description is getting vague. Given a manual transmission, if your mph is not increasing lineair to your rpm then the clutch is slipping. You can easily test this using different methods.

If this is not what you're experiencing but it's just that sometimes the rpm at idle is higher then it's most likely a sensor sending a wrong signal.

 

With the vehicle's handbrake set, rev to about 2500, depress clutch pedal and shift to 2nd. Slowly let out clutch. If the car stalls, the clutch is good. If it slips, the clutch is bad.

 

Guys it turns out it was something else altogether. My mechanic suggested the car display is showing the wrong rpms. So today the problem happened again and I hooked up my OBD tool and it shows me the live RPM reading. If the car says 4000 the OBD will show at 2600. The idle rpms on the car display show 1200 but the OBD shows 760. Anyone know if they sell new displays or maybe I'll just have to get one at the junkyard.

 

I've had good luck with allmagautoparts.com

 

I hate to be the one but I don't think the display will be at fault here, assuming the display isn't showing artifacts.

My guess is that the signal to the ECU is bad. So either a sensor (crankshaft sensor) or a ground.
My advice is to clean these before opening the parts canon.

Also keep in mind that the clocks also carry things like your current milages. (depending whether you jave the chrono or navigation package)

 

If it's the ECU or the crank sensor why would the OBD read a different RPM?

 

Good point to which I don't have an answer.

It just seems odd to me that the clock would show a different (but sensible) rpm when it's broken. I would have expected no or erratic rpms.

 

I'll try to replace the crank sensor anyway. And check the ECU. I do have the oil pressure light coming on and off on the odometer display. The mechanic said the pressure was fine.

 

check your battery also. low or bad battery can cause the tach to freak out. could be an easy fix

 

Thanks. I will check it out tomorrow.