Squeeking Clutch
 

Hi Guys

Hope you can help me out here. Sounds like a question for the technically minded like Taka and Gomez.

I was stuck in slow moving traffic for over half an hour and noticed after a while that as I was releasing the clutch quickly and under a bit of load that there was a sqeeking noise, but the clutch did not seem to be slipping at all.

I noticed that if I was bit lighter on the clutch then there would be no squeek at all.

On the return trip with no traffic, the squeek had dissappeared .

I rang the service department at Brighton mazda and was told that this is a common problem with Mazdas dating back to the first series MX5. Apparently it has something to do with the composition of the clutch and given I was stuck in traffic the extra heat in the drive train caused it. They told me that if I was still concerned about it to take the car in and have them listen to the sound.

Has anyone else heard of this or are they yanking my chain?

Greg

I am having the same problem... Mine just started 2 weeks ago out of nowhere and I got white lithium grease and got under the dash below the steering clumn and sprayed the cluthand kept spraying while pumping the clutch. it went a way for awhile but keeps coming back

If it is not slipping, chances are they are not worn out yet. It does sound like the clamp of the clutch making noises.

Taking it out to have a look at takes a lot of labour. I saw the whole thing happening when I got the new racing clutch installed.

Have you change the brake fluid lately. If not that may be a start, since brake fluid is used to operate the clutch. If that not solve the problem then .... hmm.

if you clutch pedal is squeaking, that might mean your pedal is bout to snap, mine did a lot of sqeaking then it finally broke, the weld spots on the pedal are WEAK

Since jormatom has the car for a long while, I think it is unlikely. If it were going snap it will be due to metal fatigue rather than welding issue :cwm27:

I've had this problem too, it isn't a squeak but more like a creak sound.

I looked under the pedal and noticed that all the metal flanges around the bolts going into the firewall looked clean and new.

The sound was coming from the little blue plastic rings that separates the spring from the aluminum bracket. Please refer to pic. It looks like this plastic ring is cracked and is moving every time i press the clutch down, the creak sounds corresponds to the little blue ring moving.

WHERE CAN I REPLACE THIS PLASTIC BLUE RING PLEASE?

https://www.rx8club.com/picture.php?...ictureid=13110

Mine squeaks also, I was considering this.
http://raceroots.com/media/catalog/p...dscf0011_1.jpg

http://raceroots.com/index.php/produ...t-bracket.html

Just remember the Right Hand Drive Clutch Bracket is NOT the same as the LHD USA Version.

We so far have not seen the "epidemic" of failures in Australia...

I know of one that has failed...

The Clutch Switch is also Different for the Australian Model, so the US TSB may not apply.

That's interesting to hear Ash... what is different with the pedal (besides where its mounted) that makes it not likely to fail like ours in the US?

The pedal squeaking is not a direct corollary to the backplate welds becoming weakened. The squeaking is an indirect symptom and is caused by the nylon bushings failing. In extreme cases, the pedal return spring will actually wear through the bushing and into the metal, causing the hole to turn into a slot. While all this is going on the backplate-to-mainframe welds happen to be weakening and causing a host of issues, some noticeable and some not.

Although BHR pioneered the reinforcement-welding as a fix, we are also in the process of taking the fixes to the next level and will debut them as soon as we can.

I guess Jon it may have something to do with Pedal Pad alignment (remember we have the smaller foot area, but I really do not know the Exact Different...the Part Number are Different.

I contacted my contact at Mazda Australia about the US breakages in Clutch Pedals, he came back to me saying it was not an issue here (a few months back), they had not sold one nationally.

Trivia.... the Accelerator Pedals are the same World Wide, Left or Right Hand drive and is the same Acc Pedal used on the NC MX-5.

So, if you ever need a new acc pedal/electrics you have a choice of Junk Yard cars to choose from, or if you want brand new the Acc pedal is about $200 cheaper without the Aluminum Pedal, but with the Standard Plastic pedal face...

My clutch is squeaking all the time now.
Keep us posted Charles.

My clutch pedal started to squeek and its getting really annoying now... I can hear it over my music even when my sub is on...

Did anything ever become of this? I am suffering from nylon bushing failure. It seems like I am going to have to order a new assembly, but it seems unfortunate that there is no real fix to this problem, and the new unit could fail in the same way.

Hey Greg,

It has been a problem with all the Mazda's I've owned. My RX8 developed it at around 40000kms, which was very early ... considering my other cars had done more than 100000kms before they developed the squeek.

It only happened when hot. Total speculation, but it must something to do with tiny air bubbles forming in the hydraulic fluid at a certain temperature and they seem not to go away. Funnily enough, the braking system in the RX8 started to develop a similar squeek as well which was a little more concerning ... though a change in brake fluid and lines muted it somewhat, although only temporarily.

You could try rebuilding your master cylinders and flexi hoses in your hydraulic systems to make sure you have a good seal ... but I've already done that on a previous car and it didn't help the cause for long.

At the end of the day, it's now an old car so it will develop some idiosyncracies ...