I will be bringing in my ’05 MCS, 13k miles, to have some items taken care of. One of the items is addressing a chattering flywheel. I found a TSB for this, and it sounds like they will be replacing it.

Is it a good idea to have the clutch replaced at the same time? Or does it really depend on the condition of the clutch?

I’m was thinking that I pay for the new clutch and they could just throw it in while they’re doing the flywheel, without adding any labor.

 

It depends on the condition I would say,. 13k is not very much wear for a clutch but it very much depends upon how it was driven. Have then review the condition of the plate while they are in there. A new clutch kit (clutch plate, clutch cover and release bearing) is about $300.

 

Would it be better to let this go until I'm closer to the end of my warranty? Are there any issues besides the rattle?

 

The rattle is really just an annoyance, to be honest. Heck, if you can live with the rattle, I'd try to postpone the replacement right before your 36k mile service warranty is up. The only thing I'd caution you about is whether they would try to give you the runaround later when you wanted to get this work done. Also, since they'll have to remove all the clutch components to get to the flywheel anyway, I'd just have them replace all those parts. I've always been a firm believer that if you are planning to replace something and you have the possibility of replacing other parts that might be associated with the problem area, I'd just go ahead and get that done just to have peace of mind.

GotMINI

 

Word of advise, if you can get the info on the TSB (#, reference, or even a copy) take it with you, so there are no doubts.

Last service I had they wanted to charge me for a leaking motor mount. I had to give them a reference # for the TSB and they replaced it under warranty after that. Go figure.

 

Definitely postpone this for as long as you can. If you have the dealer change your clutch later on, it will likely cost you over $1500. I would wait until you are almost out of warranty if you can, then have them stick the clutch in while they are doing the work. You'll save a lot of money and you won't be needlessly changing a clutch.