And the dealership just called me up to let me know it 'may not' be covered under warranty. I have never really abused the clutch, no dumping of it, nothing like that... there are 25k miles on it, but a clutch should last longer than that, no?

Let me know what you guys think... I don't want to wind up paying what looks to be >$500 for the fix It should be under warranty if the clutch can't last 25k miles.

 

Unfortunately a clutch is a wear and tear item. Ask them to let you see it before they change it, and make sure it just wore down normally (if they will let you) otherwise ask for the used part back and inspect it after the fact. If you can prove (if it doesn't get covered) that it was due to manufacturers defect then it'll be covered.

Good luck

 

I do have a problem shifting from 2 to 1... not sure if this is any cause of my clutch problems or any symptoms of it.... but I read in another thread that it's a known problem. I just called the dealer and bought it up with them as well, so I guess we'll see what happens.

Thanks!

 

You can't shift from 2 to 1 at certain speeds, the synchros won't allow it (this is normal)
Unless you match the revs well.

 

Herc,
Took my stock clutch out at 25,000 miles when I changed to a lightweight flywheel. It still had the majority of clutch disc material intact -- very little wear.

I'd guess the stock clutch should last over 75,000 miles based upon how mine looked.

 

That's what I would expect as well... my (autocrossed) Miata's clutch at 75k had over half the material left on it. It would take a tremendous amount of abuse to burn through a clutch in 25k miles.

 

So should this be covered under warranty then? It's been a gradual thing, but I only noticed it when a friend bought his RX-8, and the clutch is MUCH softer than mine... when I went back to drive my car, I felt it to be rock hard in comparison.

The car pulls fine, doesn't grind, nothing seems wrong when I drive it, it's just getting tough to depress, at least as compared to a new RX-8. Any advice would be helpful here, I don't want to pay for these repairs, and my dealership is a bit 'suspect' when it comes to doing fair treatment of customers. I took it there because I assumed it was covered but now who knows

Help!

 

Are you talking about depressing the clutch pedal? Maybe your shift fork is bent of the clutch cylinder isn't working properly.

 

That's exactly what I'm talking about. It just gets tough to depress, but it seems to operate perfectly fine. Should that be covered under warranty?

 

Is this related to the squeaking sound that you posted about last week? My clutch is now squeaking at idle and goes away when the clutch is depressed.

 

No, that's something else altogether.... I am just talking about the clutch being hard to press in. It works fine.

 

The Clutch engages using the Brake Fluid from the Master Cylinder. If your brake fluid level is OK, take it to the dealer for warranty fix.

Let us know what you find out Herc.

 

Will do, thanks for the info

 

I vote for warranty coverage.

herc- is this your first manual tranny vehicle? just curious. I have drievn them all my life, but have noticed that the RX-8 clutch is very sensitive to slippage by the burnt smell.

 

My first OWNED manual, yea... but I've driven manual for about 4 or 5 years prior so it's not like I am going to be abusing the car by negligence.... I called them up today and they've had my car 3 days now.. the guy on the phone says "The tech thinks you may need a new clutch..." so it seems to me that they still haven't even figured out the problem

I'm irritated at the idea of paying for a new clutch when I don't need one.

 

have you checked you leg, herc?

 

Yeah. As previously stated I would demand to see the removed clutch disc to inspect for issues. You bought two new 04 Mazda from the same dealership (the RX-8 and Mazda3)? If so, I would talk to the sales rep you deal with, or sales manager, and explain how irritated you are with this situation. You buy two new Mazdas, and not 25k miles later you are told you must pay for a new clutch on a car that hasn't been abused. Explain that you just want the truth- either you abused the car and the clutch problem is your fault, or the clutch or clutch assembly was faulty and will be covered under warranty- either way, they will be able to prove their claim bsed on the removed parts. Also add that you don't want to have to get an outisde certified technician involved.


Anyways- why did you stop posting at C&D? Just curious.

 

Thanks for the info man, I appreciate it. As per C&D... I just read once in a while, don't have the time I used to given my new job and stuff I'm pretty busy lately and I barely have enough time to get online at all, and when I do it's only because I want to frag people in Quake3 or something :D

 

One leg is supposed to be bigger than the other, right? :D