Wow--what a day. My son and I went for a drive/hike in the mountains to celebrate a gorgeous Mother's Day with the top down. We drove, maybe, 60 miles to a location at about 10,000 feet; parked the car and walked for awhile, then got back in to head home. I backed the car out of the parking space, and couldn't get it out of reverse (this is a 2006 MCSC 6-speed with 20K miles). The clutch pedal was stuck at the floor. After turning the car off and back on, I was able to pull it into neutral and coast for awhile, then it eventually went into gear and I was able to shift well enough to get us down the mountain (and thank goodness--we were so far in the wilderness with no cell phone coverage!). When we got back into Boulder, it failed again--in the middle of traffic this time. I couldn't shift at all. I got us into a parking lot and called for roadside assistance. We had to take a 40-mile cab ride to get home; the towing company will lock up my car overnight and take her to the dealer in the morning.

I am obviously not a mechanic and have no idea what's going on, although it feels like it must be the clutch. I've been reading threads here about clutches not being covered by warranty and suggestions that the problem might be the flywheel or master cylinder.

The clutch had been feeling kind of "sproingy" from time to time, and it was sometimes difficult to put into first gear. I'd been ignoring those symptoms, thinking it was just a quirky thing about the car, but maybe that was a mistake? I definitlely don't ride the clutch or hold it in at red lights--I don't think I've damaged it by stupid driving...

I guess I'm looking for any advice or information before I discuss this with the dealer tomorrow morning. It just seems like my car is WAY too new to have this kind of problem, especially one that may not be covered under warranty! Yikes.

Any thoughts or words of wisdom?

Holly

 

Yikees!!! Sounds like an eventful Mother's Day.
Clutch pedal stuck to floor is likely a hydraulic problem and it'll be tough for the dealer to weasel out of that. Fried friction plate? Yeah, they can deny. Leaky hydraulics? Much more difficult to blame on the user.
I'm assuming this is going to Schomp, whom I've heard very good things about. Rest easy, Holly; this should be a no-brainer for warranty coverage.

 

Sounds like the clutch slave cylinder went south. I've heard of similar instances with MINIs with low miles under their belts.

 

definitely a clutch slave cylinder. can you look under the car, remove the bottom shield and take a peak at the cylinder. probably leaking fluid all over.

good luck!

 

Clutch slave.
TSB out
Should be covered no questions asked by your dealer.

 

Clutch Slave should be the problem as stated.

 

...was, indeed, a leaky slave cylinder and air in the hydraulics. And all covered under warranty--whew.

It only took the guys at Schomp a couple of hours to fix it--which seems out of proportion to the amount of logistical brain damage we suffered as a result of the breakdown. Oh well, I'm just glad it's fixed.

Thanks to everyone for your input!

Holly