Spiffyjiff

ok boys and girls, since i dont like surpises i'd like to hear your thoughts before i get the dealer call with the devastating news. please put on your thinking caps:

i was dropping off to dealer this a.m. for track maintenance (oil, brake/trans fluid...ironic, eh?) and right as i pulled into the lot, clutch pedal felt soft. as i tried to put it in 1st to inch up to the service line, i couldnt. suddenly it wouldnt go into any gear (when engine running, but would with engine off). fyi, up until this a.m. i've had zero problems with it. through searches on here, i've seen pressure plate issues and shifter cable issues explaining this. your thoughts? could it be something simple or am i probably looking at high $'s to repair?

thanks all!

TerpsRED

cluch slave cylendar failure maybe. I doubt it is the linkage if it actually moves into gear with the engine off. With nothing spinning, it might be easier to move into a gear since the syncro's don't need to do anything. Hopefully it is just a simple fix for ya. Good luck.

sin911

I don't think it's the shifter cables. I had broken shifter cable myself and the car was stuck in 1st gear. The gear **** was moving back and forth without resistance but it wasn't moving to the sides. There was no gear change feel when it was moving back and forth.

If it was a broken shifter cable, it wouldn't make any difference if the engine was running or not...

Sorry to hear about your problem, you're lucky you didn't have to tow the car there

Spiffyjiff

well THAT didnt take to long to get the bad news - dealer says it's clutch. my indy, who i trust completely, isnt convinced from my description of the symptoms/issue so i am flat-bedding it to them for re-diagnosis. i was planning on doing this anyway if it turned out to be the clutch since i'd rather them do any invasive stuff. ...plus, i might get LWFW etc, etc

thanks for the feedback. will keep you posted (whether you want it or not!)

997_rich

Usually the pedal wouldn't get soft if the clutch plate was burnt out (though it might if you broke the clutch spring). Sounds like failed or leaky master, slave or line.

when you turn the engine off, put the car in first, step on the clutch, no brake, turn the key for just a second, does the car lurch forward? if so, that means failed or leaky master, slave or line. If the car doesn't lurch, then it probably means burnt clutch or broken clutch spring.

Skibum

My guess would be slave.

Spiffyjiff

interesting...one of the things i DID try was: put it in 1st with the engine off, then started it (with clutch depressed of course), then i let clutch out a bit to see if car moved "like normal". altho i didnt let the clutch fully out, the car did start to move fwd like normal - no grinding of trans, no abnormal symptoms. but again, i only tried to move car a bit, and really didnt let clutch fully out. (and fyi, when i pulled out of 1st into neutral, it was slightly difficult, etc.)

so from 997_rich, it seems maybe the dealer IS right, maybe it IS the clutch internals related as opposed to slave, fluid, etc.

sigh...

Spiffyjiff

oh well...looks like it is the clutch (or a part thereof internal, because it's nothing they are able to deduce otherwise without tearing it open). will be getting OEM replacement since i dont mind the stock feel and dont think the LWFW will do that much for me.

thanks all.

MBX5

Sorry to hear about this. Hopefully it is fixed quickly and relatively inexpensively. How many miles on your car, if you don't mind my asking?

tpenta

Remember I posted the exact same thing 4 months ago? Was driving perfectly on my way to work, and as I exit the highway and get to the first light, had the exact same behavior. It was a clutch. Why it fales so suddenly and behaves like that, I don't know.

However, four months later, I am now in for a complete transmission replacement. So, maybe it never was just the clutch in my case. I am having synchro failures due to some carbon-based parts that were used in early 997s that apparently wear out and create progressively worse problems.

Hopefully you will be fortunate. I certainly don't wish for you to have the same issues I'm having...

I'm so fed up with it, I'm debating just telling them to keep it and get a newer one..

-T

Spiffyjiff

35k, but prob a few thou on the track.

oh man oh man, please dont jinx me! but in truth, these are my thoughts too, as in "what if the problem is not just the clutch" and am wondering what will happen a few mo's down the road. sigh. whatever, roll with the punches, right?

Hella-Buggin'

this sounds similar to my clutch failure as well. Mine went out of nowhere at 31k. It ended up being the clutch as well as the slave cylinder.

Tacet-Conundrum

Was it the slave too or did they just replace of for giggles because they were replacing the tranny?

yossarian

Why not just rebuild? You can get away for half the price or less. I know the newer 997.2 they do not have parts for but I thought there were parts for the early one.

Unless you shred the gears, granny parts should be replaceable.. its just not environmentally friendly to have so much scrap.. its not like they wont take the core and build a new one.

Hella-Buggin'

It was some piece that attaches to the pushrod on the slave that broke off. I was told it was made of plastic and it's common. They replaced the whole slave system under CPO.