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clutch rattle?

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clutch rattle
8K views 3 replies 2 participants last post by  zero_gravity 
#1 ·
Hi everyone,

so i have a CPO ms3 with 39k on it (bought at 36k) it has been fine, aside from the funky intake manifold issue (which got resolved). I had not driven the car in a few days and so when i started it up today, released the clutch in neutral and it seemed to bog down for about a second or so and then resume normal warmup idle. it has never done this before; normally i'll just hear the clutch grab in neutral right after i start the car.

also, now it feels like the clutch is a little noisy, almost like a faint rattle at the grab point, and then quiets down, but sounds different compared to when fully pushed in. i've been seeing a few posts about the class action lawsuit. Am i being paranoid since it's my first stick car or is this a normal thing?
 
#2 ·
shouldn't hear a rattle from the clutch, that's generally the clutch bearing making some noise. IF this is the case, there's no telling how long it'll last. if it breaks, you have no clutch. my old hyundai accent i think i replaced that thing 3 times over the time i owned the car. that's another story though.

as for bogging down, that's not a clutch symptom unless maybe you engaged a little too harshly or something ;) since you're in neutral when this happened that's really a non issue - neutral trans does not put any load on the engine. bad clutch will start slipping meaning when you try to accelerate the engine RPM will jump up sharply but you won't go much of anywhere. check for DTC's from the computer and keep an eye on it for now, see if it happens again. sometimes little glitches can happen and never repeat themselves.

my guess is that since it sat for a few days you had some condensation in the intake or something. throws off air/fuel mixture and boom it bogs or misfires for a brief time. can't really say much of anything for sure without more info.
 
#3 ·
Gotcha. the noise is very very faint from the cabin, and i normally don't hold the clutch in for too long in traffic. if its more than two seconds, i'll put the car in neutral and release the clutch. i'll try to be nicer to the bearing. the clutch doesnt grab high, still grabs midway, and grabs well!

DTC? and yeah, i know neutral doesnt load the engine so i was caught off guard. BUT it was very humid in New York last night and there was condensation all over the car, so that was my guess as well! i split the daily driving with a '01 Celica and a '99 Town Car, so sometimes the MS3 can sit for a few days without being driven.
 
#4 ·
Dtc = diagnostic trouble code. Your check engine light in other words. You'll need a code scanner, but fear not. Amazon sells little Bluetooth ones very cheap called elm327. Just need your smartphone and an app called torque.

The rattle noise... Does it change if your foot is on or off the clutch? If it is indeed this bearing it will need to be dealt with at some point. Bearing failure can be a bit of a wildcard. Once it begins to fail there's no saying when ultimate failure will happen. Could be tomorrow, could be years.

Heavier bearings can get destructive. With the rotational energy they store they can explode or 'grenade'. I have personally pulled a transmission out of an old jetta to find a hole the size of my fist punched right through the aluminum housing. Fun times.
 
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