Clutch woes... expert diagnosis requested!

[silversleeper]

So, my E30 likes to act up in the city. Under normal driving conditions (city w/o traffic or highway) the clutch operated normally. But whenever I am in stop and go traffic and I am using the clutch more often (clutching in and releasing frequently) the car starts to act up.

What happens is when I start to get going out of first gear after about 5 minutes of stop and go traffic, the release of the clutch gets twitchy. Upon release of the clutch, the engine starts to shake violently and feels like the car is going to stall. To remedy this, I clutch in, rev a bit higher, and release the clutch. Keeping the RPMS up aids this problem. But I feel that will eventually prematurely wear out my clutch.

Anyone have a clue of what's going on? One of my friends said it may be a poor pressure plate. I don't have a clue, because I have never experienced this.

[jlevie]

What you are describing could be a clutch problem, or it could be an engine problem. I'd have to experience it to be able to tell which it is. As a long distance guess, I'd say that it is probably a clutch problem.

Take the car to a shop that has an experienced BMW tech and demonstate the problem to them.

[87-325ic]

i would think the clutch isnt working properly and is maybe contacting when it shouldnt be..., causing low rpm load on the engine, basically stalling.


if this is the case, it could be slave cylinder related problems..

how is the brake fluid level?

has anything been done to any related system lately that may help cause this?

[ivo316]

Once in my car i was told that the pressure plate was not pressing w¡th exactly the same strength all around, and that it should be replaced. I did it and it was cured.

Whe i released the clutch it sort of "stammered" at low revs, reving up to 1500 rpms and releasing the clutch avoided the problem.

[cowden_12]

Check you fluid and your slave cylinder. Mine did the same thing a while back and it was a bunch of crap in the slave cylinder. Cleaned and blead everything out and it was fine. Start with cheaper stuff and work your way up.

[Tangent]

You might have some "burned" spots on the friction surface that when the clutch heats up have different bite than the surrounding area. While usually not a problem, those can cause clutch chatter like you're getting. Whenever you end up replacing your clutch you'll probably find a few spots that look blued. Tiny fractures in the flywheel can also cause this. Take cowden 12's advice and start cheap just to be sure. While you're bleeding the clutch it's also the perfect opportunity to bleed your brakes. :up:

[silversleeper]

All great advice... I will do as cowden said and start with the cheaper stuff... so I guess bleed and clean it out first. Ill keep you posted with my results. But so far nothing has been done to fix the issue, and I haven't noticed it lately, but like I said, it only happens during excessive use (stop & go traffic).

[porsche gt1]

All great advice... I will do as cowden said and start with the cheaper stuff... so I guess bleed and clean it out first. Ill keep you posted with my results. But so far nothing has been done to fix the issue, and I haven't noticed it lately, but like I said, it only happens during excessive use (stop & go traffic).

believe it or not but I just started going through this exact problem in the last week after I fixed my Head gasket. It is not a clutch problem at all.

It is a fuel delivery problem. For me it was a leaking fuel line mixed with a bad fuel level sender. When the car is reved it gives enough fuel, but at idle in stop and go traffic it will die on you. I would check those two areas before pursuing a clutch problem.

[silversleeper]

believe it or not but I just started going through this exact problem in the last week after I fixed my Head gasket. It is not a clutch problem at all.

It is a fuel delivery problem. For me it was a leaking fuel line mixed with a bad fuel level sender. When the car is reved it gives enough fuel, but at idle in stop and go traffic it will die on you. I would check those two areas before pursuing a clutch problem.

Interesting idea... I bought my car with about 153k on the clock, which led me to assume that the clutch had to have been replaced not too long ago. But I don't know how long the stock clutch can last in these cars, let alone know much info on the previous owners and their driving style. Maybe when I swap in my 19lb injectors, I will replace the fuel filter as well and see how the car performs after that.