Hi guys, new here and new to these cars in general. Been a Honda guy all my life until now. Just trying to figure out what's wrong with my car, any help would be appreciated. I'll try to explain the symptoms as clear as possible.

My car has ~98k miles and it still has the stock clutch. Recently I've noticed that the clutch is giving me issues, usually almost exclusively in the cold. The clutch pedal feels "sticky" right at the top, (let's say 1/4 travel left). 1st and 2nd engage fine in the cold from a stand still but when I take off it's really hard to get into 2nd. The only way that it goes in sort of smooth is if I granny shift it and that works only sometimes.


Once the car warms up the clutch feels better and all the gears work fine but i still have that sticky pedal feeling at the top of the pedal. 1st to 2nd feels fine but it does feel a bit "notchy". Doesn't flow through as smooth as all the other gears


I'd like to know exactly what's causing this before I go and throw money at my car. Is it the clutch itself? bad clutch fluid? Slave cylinder? etc? Help

 

bump. This forum is inactive

 

Your car seems to be doing the opposite of the norm. Usually the pedal sticks and doesn't come all the way back up once it gets hot out. That is what mine is doing. Mine has 98k as well and will be getting the clutch master and slave cylinder replaced on Monday. I’m also having the trans and rear differential flushed. Has the oil been replaced in your gear box? I have read that some people have issues when they replace it and don’t use OEM oil.

 

Thanks for the response man.

And no It hasn't been replaced. I'm really trying to diagnose this without having to pay a mechanic or a stealership. I don't wanna throw money at it and end up not fixing anything

Should I flush or drain the clutch fluid? I wanna start with cheap options first.

 

Definitely would start with a good flush and fill of the clutch fluid - it should be crystal clear in the reservoir. ALSO, replace the MT fluid as well. Be sure you check the specs on the tranny fluid to get the correct type.

 

Yesterday was a really warm day in my area and the pedal did stick right at the top a bit, I had to flick my foot under it lightly to get it back up. Does that pinpoint anything? Does that fit with the possible bad clutch fluid diagnosis?

 

That's the typical problem. The clutch acts up and sticks when its hot and it will get worse. You can try flushing it but it needs to be flushed from the slave cylinder to ensure you get all of the old fluid out. Then you have to be careful not to induce any air in the system or it will be worse. If it's the seals in the slave and master cylinder then you are going to have to repeat the flushing steps from the master cylinder when you replace the master and slave cylinders.

I just had my clutch master and slave cylinder replaced. I also purchased a new SS line with heat shield that replaces the OEM rubber line. The line runs close to the CAT which gets extremely hot which is bad for the fluid. Not all of the SS lines out there have the additional heat shield so I paid a little more but I wanted the extra protection. If you are paying to have the work done shop around because all places don't have the same labor rate. I went with the Nissan dealership because their labor rate was less than Infinity.

Car shifts great now and no sticking pedal.

 

I just bought this car and the old owner had a new clutch put in by a shop, now its sticking at the top.... Did they do something wrong? I read in the haynes manual that its a malfunction but i have no clue how to fix it... Is replacing the fluid something I can do at home?

 

I don't think think sticking pedal has anything to do with the clutch replacement. I believe bleeding the clutch fluid takes two people and if you get any air in the system it will be worse.

 

It's perfect now, thanks!