Strange acceleration issue - any ideas before I go to the dealership?

dmhenderson

Wait or were you talking to someone other than me..?

shabarivas

... are you driving around w/ your AC on?

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DIGItonium

Haha, I brought it up for everyone to think about.

I've read a few complaints from Z owners since '07 about clutch burning smell and slipping after a few months of ownership. The dealer later concluded that the clutch failed and wouldn't warrant the repair. I think the CSC and/or master cylinder was to blame as well.

At least one owner here had both the CSC and clutch assembly replaced. When my CSC failed, my clutch disc was in good condition so it did not get replaced.

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dmhenderson

When I picked up my loaner today, one of the service techs asked which car was mine. When I told him, he laughed and said that their service center manager was on the phone with nissan for over 2 hrs yesterday.

Interested in finding out exactly what went wrong.

DIGItonium

That's really unfortunate. Did you notice any warning signs like burning clutch smell, strange noises, clunk, awkward pedal pressure, etc.?

When my CSC went out, I never experienced any warning signs. The only issue I had since first ownership was the annoying chatter and vibration when starting out in 1st. It didn't happen with my 350Z. After replacing the CSC, this problem went away 95% of the time.

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houkouonchi

I don't think this is true if 1) you use synchro rev match or 2) you are good at bliping the throttle when downshifting for engine breaking.


Some drivers will not give gas and down shift and let out the clutch slower than usual (which also usually slows the car down more/faster than blipping/synchro rev-match) but if you weren't doing it that way I wouldn't expect you to have more wear on your clutch if you down shift more often and just let the car de-accelerate rather than break.

I sometimes will rather downshift and have the rpm's up to 4500 or 5000 so the car lowers in speed quicker rather than ride my breaks.

dmhenderson

Yes,
Burning clutch smell quite often sometimes for odd reasons. Occasionally, if I tried to start very quickly in first, the clutch would slip and the engine would redline rather than making the car jump forward. Sometimes I would get out of the car and smell burning clutch under "less than spirited" driving conditions.

I actually went back to the dealership to ask about it and was told that "burning clutch smell is normal during the first few months of ownership". I probably should have gone back after a year.

My baby is currently in the shop. They gave me a Toyota Corrola S as a loaner. It sounds like a lawnmower when I step on the gas. Beautiful weather this weekend too.

houkouonchi

And just to add my dad's 350z Had 120k miles on it when the engine finally died. He is still on his original clutch and he does engine breaking all the time (like I do) and they said his clutch was in good condition when they replaced the engine.

His engine; however, always burned oil and they commented on how dirty the oil was so likely his engine has always had a problem with it.

dmhenderson

Verdict: The original flywheel was defective.

Clutch, clutch housing and flywheel all replaced under warranty (and they mounted the replacement left-front splash guard I had dinged up for free so I don't have to wallow around on my garage floor).

Clutch is stickier and more responsive than it was when I bought the car.

First time I've ever had a dealership really bend over backwards to make me happy. Too bad the loaner they gave me was a Toyota Corolla.

Case closed.

Red__Zed

Glad to hear that was so effectively resolved. Always nice when a dealer steps up like that.

Hugoneus

Excellent. Happy to hear it!

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