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Third clutch to fail and only 92,000 miles


gtistyle
02-23-2010, 09:33 PM
I am getting incredibly frustrated with Volkswagen. I have a 2004 GTI 1.8T, and it currently has 92,000 miles on it.
After putting about 50,000 miles on the car, the clutch went out. Had it towed to the VW dealership, cost me about $900 for new clutch, moved on with my life.
A few months and about 10,000- 20,000 miles later, the hydraulic master cylinder went out in the clutch. Same symptoms as happened the first time: car was revving with no power, broke down on the side of the highway, couldn't engage the gears. Had the car towed to an independent service station, replaced the master cylinder, $300 parts and labor, was very frustrated, and moved on with my life.
The M*** f**** clutch just went out AGAIN! Same symptoms: driving on the highway, turbo wasn't kicking in, then car slowly starts dying, engine revs, loses power, broke down on the side of the highway, had my car towed to a service station. This time it is going to cost me $1100.
From speaking with the technicians it is my understating that the clutches are supposed to last 100,000 miles. A guy at the shop said his '03 GTI's clutch lasted about 103,000 miles before he had to get it replaced. So here I am 3 clutches (well maybe 2 1/2) later over $2000 broker for a part that shouldn't have even gone out yet! http://www.vortexmediagroup.com/images/banghead.gif
I am extremely disappointed with this sh!tty product which was a top of the line GTI at it's time worth $25,000. I am a good driver, I usually go the speed limit on the highway, I don't race, I just want a car that will work. Who knows when the next clutch will go out, next year? I don't understand this. I take care of my car, get it serviced regularly, maintain it, drive it responsibly, and this is what I end up with. Has anybody else had such repetitive issues with clutches in this beast of a vehicle? Is there any kind of legal action I can take? I will never recommend a VW to anybody.
Thanks for letting me rant.

MagicRat
02-23-2010, 11:59 PM
VW clutches usally last a long time. My brother in law sold his Jetta at 130,000 miles with the original clutch, which was still working fine.

If the clutch simply wears out, you usually are not stranded at the side of the highway. Usually you will notice slipping, first at highway speed when you apply power. But you will still be able to get to your destination by driving gently.

So, if the car is leaving you stranded, either something has broken.... or you have simply not recognised the symptoms of a slipping clutch and have driven the car until the clutch slips a lot, overheats and destroys itself.

Clutches are simple devices and not much can happen to them. But it is very easy to develop bad driving habits which can shorten clutch life. My dad ruined the clutch in his first car by slipping it too much. He thought that a bit of extra slipping when taking off or when shifting made for smoother driving. But it wore out the clutch in the first year.

When you get the latest clutch fixed, ask a couple of your friends who drive standard to take a drive with you and observe your driving. Ask them if they think you are doing something wrong, such as slip the clutch too much or fail to match revs well when releasing the clutch when shifting. You might find the opinions of others to be helpful. :)

veedubmechanic
03-15-2010, 10:02 PM
according to what you posted the clutch has only been replaced 1 time @ 50k miles. the slave cylinder is not the actual clutch it a part of the clutch system. And if you did not replace the flywheel at 50k miles it probably just failed on you causingthe clutch to break. VW uses a dual mass flywheel.

I have replaced clutches on cars with only 1300 miles on them, because the person did not know how to drive a manual but couldnt afford an automatic.

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