Burnt Clutch Smell
 

Does it EVER go away? I am at 1000km now and every time I slip the clutch at ~1800rpm it SMELLS. 1200-1300rpm is fine, which is what I try to do, but it is not always possible (hills) and I sometimes rev it up a little more by accident as it is my first manual car. As far as I understand, a single 1800rpm launch should not be burning my clutch. The smell is definitely related to slipping to clutch.

why are you shifting at such low rpm?

I am strictly talking about launching the car in the OP. I shift at 3k and I am pretty sure my shifts are good.

OK I'm probably dense here but when you say launching, are you just talking about 1st to 2nd shift? Yeah, I like to shift it around 3k, that seems like the sweet spot to me as well.

In 1st gear from stop just to get the car moving.

RPM to X and clutch to friction point.

Hmmm, I still bring it to around 3k from 1st gear. Seems to work, no clutch smell since new. I currently have about 2600 miles on her.

What RPM do you bring the car up to before starting to release the clutch when the car is stopped? This is what I mean.

Ah, now I getcha. I honestly have no idea, lol. I'd be willing to bet you are babying it too much and the clutch is slipping a bit. I say give it more!

If your clutch was previously damaged, i.e. from a very high RPM launch, then it will continue to burn a little and smell even at fairly casual RPM for some time afterward. If you've been getting this since new then the dealer damaged it (or a test driver) before you got the car and the clutch should be replaced.

If you did something yourself then just try to take it easy on the clutch for a while, your car only has 600 miles on the clock.

Thanks. Yeah the dealer possibly burned up the clutch and I was aware of this possibility when I got the car. Quite frankly I kind of wanted an aftermarket clutch/light flywheel from the start anyway, which is why I didn't care too much. I can hardly stand how horribly slow the RPMs drop and how slowly I have to shift from 1st to 2nd to make it smooth.

Mine was the same and it's definately got a lot better. (got car at 300 miles now have 3500) I sometimes burn the clutch creeping into my driveway! (stupid hill and curb)

Why is this dealer issue only coming up now? That was not mentioned in the OP. And you say this is your first manual, but now say you "want an aftermarket clutch/light flywheel from the start". How did you become aware of the possibility that the dealer had damaged the clutch? I'm not trying to beat on you man, just trying to get the whole story.

How many miles/km were on the car when you bought it?

Had only 18 miles on it when I got it, but it was in a minor accident. Could have been an honest accident (hellish December in Canada + summer tires + 330hp + rwd) but more realistically I am guessing one of the dealership's employees did a burnout on the slightly icy roads and crashed it right as it came off the truck. I got it at about 3k less than the next best available price and had it fully inspected at a third party shop.

I set aside $1500 for a new clutch/flywheel right as I bought the car.

It honestly sounds like you are tearing yer clutch up, and that the 370 is not a good 1st manual car for you. It should only smell when it is burnt, then is will normally dissipate in minutes (my personal experience). If you are constantly smelling it, its because you are constantly burning it. Poor Z.

werd. i havent smelled the clutch on my z. actually you gotta really suck to get it to smell because ive slipped it quite a bit to get the car going from a steep ramp and no smell.

concentrate on your right foot input cause the clutch input is pretty linear.