How to tell if clutch is worn?

[li21]

Hi all,

Just want to know if this is considered a worn clutch / slipping clutch in a Mk3 GL?

- Engages gears fine
- Starts rolling fine
- High friction point
- Driving up to 2500-2800 rpm is fine.
- Give the accelerator a bit.. the revs fly to 5000rpm quickly as it it was in neutral .. drops again.. accelerates a little, then revs fly again.. like its trying to catch the gear?

Im thinking its a worn clutch ? but wouldnt a worn one not let you engage that easily?

Or am I looking at much worse problems?

Are places like JAX, Ultratune and Midas safe bet to do clutch changes?

Cheers

[Bboy_Sparx]

The last point is a dead giveaway.

Any mechanical place should be able to do a clutch for you.

[Mrk_Mickey]

That's definitely a slipping clutch. It's not at the point that it won't pick the gears up and start you rolling, but if you put your foot down it slips as the clutch is too weak and worn to grab on under load.

My stepdad always said the easiest way to tell if a clutch is on its way out is to stick the car in 3rd while stopped and try to go. If you give it some and the car doesn't really move anywhere, or if the revs don't move much when you actually engage the clutch, then the clutch is slipping and therefore worn.

I've had better experiences at home than at Midas so I'd steer clear of them. I've heard good things about JAX, and haven't heard much about Ultratune. It's best if you can get it to someone that knows the golf, but to be honest a mechanic will always do a mechanical job fine. Places like that will have guarantees on their work too, so rest assured mate those places would be alright.

[li21]

The last point is a dead giveaway.

Any mechanical place should be able to do a clutch for you.

Thanks

Are there different grade/brands of clutches?
just for a for a daily drive.. i'm not too fussed if a cheaper option as long as it wont wreck my gear box ?

[li21]

Thanks Mr Mickey
I just got the car today.. where I did the test drive i barely got to go over 60kms so I couldn't tell it was slipping..

today I got on the hardbour bridge and was so annoyed I couldn't really give it any..

oh wells.. I got its cheap anyways.


Its still drivable for the most part.. slowly tho.. is it a bad thing to continue to drive on a slipping cluch? Can it wreck other bits like the gears?

[AGO41T]

rev the hell out of it and drop the clutch see if u can smoke it up

[Mrk_Mickey]

Thanks Mr Mickey

Its still drivable for the most part.. slowly tho.. is it a bad thing to continue to drive on a slipping cluch? Can it wreck other bits like the gears?

That's ok mate

Slipping clutch won't really do any damage to your engine. Unless of course, you try and flog it and let the engine rev way too high haha.

I reckon the best place to get a clutch is GAP (there might be better, but I haven't come across it). I got mine from there last october and it was SO much cheaper than other options available to me at the time. If you email gap, one of the service staff will contact you with shipping options before you make the order just so you're sure.

[dom123]

rev the hell out of it and drop the clutch see if u can smoke it up

such an easy solution!
when mine was on its way out i couldnt spin the wheels going into 2nd gear and when letting it out into first it made like a small squeaky noise.

[hokenmk3]

Changing a golf clutch is one of the harder clutches to change. Make sure the mechanic is experienced with changing clutches in golfs. It is necessary to centre the clutch with a micrometer when reinstalling. Old twin clutch bulldozers are the only clutches that are harder to align than a golf clutch.

[h100vw]

Changing a golf clutch is one of the harder clutches to change. Make sure the mechanic is experienced with changing clutches in golfs. It is necessary to centre the clutch with a micrometer when reinstalling. Old twin clutch bulldozers are the only clutches that are harder to align than a golf clutch.

I can't say I have had any problems centring the plate. I just use a 1/2 inch extension and get the splines in the middle of the cover before nipping up the bolts. You can look through the wheel arch and check it's good before putting the box on.

Gavin

[chris.]

abit off topic but what places in aus sell performace clutches for a mk3?
and also light wieght flywheel?

sorry for the hijack but didnt want to make another thread

[li21]

abit off topic but what places in aus sell performace clutches for a mk3?
and also light wieght flywheel?

sorry for the hijack but didnt want to make another thread

I ended up getting mine from Golf Loon but it was just a regular one.. Maybe try him any ways?

[Peter Jones]

Changing a golf clutch is one of the harder clutches to change. Make sure the mechanic is experienced with changing clutches in golfs. It is necessary to centre the clutch with a micrometer when reinstalling. Old twin clutch bulldozers are the only clutches that are harder to align than a golf clutch.

Nah, it's not that hard at all. All my clutches have come with a centering tool.

They look like this.



Pete

[Peter Jones]

abit off topic but what places in aus sell performace clutches for a mk3?
and also light wieght flywheel?

SPEC make Golf clutches and have an Australian distributor.

http://www.specclutch.com/

Most engine machiners can lighten and balance a flywheel. I got mine done at Crankshaft rebuilders. http://www.crankshaftrebuilders.com.au/

Pete

[balkanac]

Its still drivable for the most part.. slowly tho.. is it a bad thing to continue to drive on a slipping cluch? Can it wreck other bits like the gears?

I wouldn't drive it at all with the slipping clutch because if you wear it down too much (which is not hard to do since its slipping almost always) you could damage your flywheel. Im not sure if these need to be replaced when you do the clutch on mk3s, but thats what happened to me on a supra i once owned