While I fully agree the dealer cost to replace a clutch is ridiculous (dual mass flywheel FTL) no car manufacturer in their right mind would cover a clutch burn out under warranty.

There may indeed be instances of mechanical/hydraulic issues effecting the engagement/disengagement leading to a burn but the single biggest issue effecting engagement/disengagement is the driver.

Some people are just not meant to drive MT's

 

I agree. It the driver is mostly the common problem when comparing all cars.

This is also the same argument that can be made regarding tire and brake wear...

first 2 years of the X sedan, the brakes were wearing out quickly. Enough people complained. Infiniti acknowledged that it was underspec'd and addressed it (can't remember if it was a recall, a TSB, or something else)

first 2 years of the coupe, the front tires were feathering. Same deal. Infiniti acknowledged that it was setup a little too aggressively and addressed it.

There's just too much documentation online to ignore the potential that there is a design flaw to this system which causes it to wear far quicker than it should while driven properly.

 

i work at a car dealership as advisor and used to as a tech......27k damn learn how to drive stick. stop riding the darn clutch......

 

Advisor? The guy with the white coat who doesn't actually do hands on work any more? How many miles have you put on your 350Z or G35 Coupe?

350Z _____ miles
V35C _____ miles

Unless the answer is more than 27k, you don't have anything to contribute here, you're not speaking from experience. Well, actually that's obvious with such stellar advice as "learn to drive a stick..". As an "Advisor" the irony makes that particularly humorous.

Bottom line is the clutch is underspec'd.

Sure there are people who abuse their clutches, ride the clutch. But there are plenty of others who drive the car correctly and hard. The OEM clutch is marginal w/re to clamping force for handling the peak torque of the motor, there is more very subtle slippage when fully engaged, even with 10k miles than I would expect. The Value Line level OEM clutch is not really robust enough for the car unless you just don't drive it that hard. By "hard" I mean yes, you will make quick 2-3 shifts and 3-4 shifts under near WOT, I do not mean 1st gear clutch drops or other abuse.

This seems to have been cured in the G37 Coupe I drove, the clutch engages early and with good positive feel, probably why one of the local mags complained their long term test car was too hard to drive with the MT, they kept stalling it. Either the linkage or the clutch must be different from the OEM G35 unit.

There's just not quite enough clamping force and under hard driving the stock clutch lacks really positive engagement even when used properly. Also it tends to foster misuse with a high engagement height on the pedal for "user-friendly" shifting. JWT comes in much sooner and the potential for a long and slipping engagement is about nil.

I have 37k miles so far on my JWT Stage 2 clutch which handles more power than the car can produce, it works great. It is not hard to use. If I like many others were "riding the darn clutch" it would also be prematurely worn out. As it is I expect it to last easily another 50k miles, no problem.

I've owned plenty of cars in the 32 years I have been driving on public roads and the track, my G35 Coupe is the only street car I've owned where the clutch lasted less than 80k-100k miles (racing cars tend to be a little less friendly). It has that distinct feeling of "not quite enough clutch here unless you drive the car at less than 5/10th's".

 

Bro,

I just replaced my 04 coupe 6mt clutch two days ago at 55k miles. Dealer gave me the same "wear and tear" bit despite the Elite Warranty I just bought--f'ers trying to charge me $2400

If you feel that your car starts lagging while accelerating, that is, you're in motion and your rpms revs before it actually pics up speed--then you're f-d! That's a clutch problem since your splines are not grabbing. You'll need a new clutch assembly!

I went with an Exedy OEM replacement kit. It's softer than stock but still cost me $1100-still bank but better than $2400.

Take it to a pro, but f the dealer. I suggest you take care of it before you break down on the road.

Good luck