Oh soddit - need new clutch
Discussion
Well, I knew the amount of travel on the clutch pedal couldn't mean something cheap, and my local dealership confirmed that they'd like to relive me of ~£800 to replace the clutch and slave cylinder.
It's still driveable, but it's definately something that needs doing very soon... however, £800 is more than I want to spend (£100 is more than I want to spend, but YKWIM) So does anyone have any recommendations, I'm in Kent, so I was going to phone B&D in Hythe (Saab specialist) to see what they'd charge, but has anyone good/horror stories of just going to a clutch/gearbox specialist?
Cheers, CH
It's still driveable, but it's definately something that needs doing very soon... however, £800 is more than I want to spend (£100 is more than I want to spend, but YKWIM) So does anyone have any recommendations, I'm in Kent, so I was going to phone B&D in Hythe (Saab specialist) to see what they'd charge, but has anyone good/horror stories of just going to a clutch/gearbox specialist?
Cheers, CH
What model Saab is it, what year, etc.? That'd help. Other than that, all I can add is that I'd NEVER get a clutch changed at a main dealer unless they are competitive on price with independents. Check out independents locla to you and then decide, but you should be able to get away with less than that.
Dr Bob said:
has anyone good/horror stories of just going to a clutch/gearbox specialist?
Cheers, CH
I've not had experience of a clutch/gearbox specialist, but if they have stayed in business for any length of time they are probably good. I used an autobox specialist (on a recommendation by a trusted mechanic) , who rebuilt an autobox for me using all new bits and guaranteed his work for 12 months. It was a LOT cheaper that any other place I tried.Cheers, CH
Hi NCOT, well I spoke to Rowan, and I have to say I was really impressed at how knowledgeable he seemed over the phone, also took the time to explain what he'd do, and why he'd do it - really left me with a lot of faith in him...
BUT, on the way home, I dropped into Mr Clutch (I know, but they do a free check, and I wanted a 2nd opinion and to see what the outfit looked like)... Anyway, the guy in there came back and said - "I can't find a problem, the pedal's sitting too high, but that's all, looks like the clip that restricts the pedals upward movement has broken"!
Now, it's definately been that twice in the last 4 months, I've pushed the clutch all the way in and there's been no pressure, but apart from that, currently the bite position is correct, so I think it's possible that my recent problems could just be that I'm not pushing the pedal in far enough because it's sitting too far up in the first place (if you see what I mean, Clutch, Brake, Accel. positions are: - _ _ )... OK, this makes me sound a bit of a numpty, but I'm not a mechanic, and the way I have the driving position in the Saab does seem to insulate small changes like that... anyway, I think that for the sake of IRO £600 for a new clutch this is a problem that can wait until it's due a service in 4k and I'll get the indy that I take it to, to give it a check over.
The thing is, whilst I'm not criticising the Main Dealer I took it to, the fact is that they never mentioned the pedal position, and I'm now a bit concerned as to how they diagnosed the slave cylinder (unless there is some way to inspect - I believe that there is an inspection hole on the clutch, and I assume that after 120k it's worn enough to warrant a replacement next time that any significant work is going on in that area), but when it's over £800 of work to do, I'd be mortified if the problem turned out to be something else.
Well, we'll see - if in 4k when it's serviced I manage to find out the problem, it'll be interesting to see how it compares to the MD diagnosis.
CH
BUT, on the way home, I dropped into Mr Clutch (I know, but they do a free check, and I wanted a 2nd opinion and to see what the outfit looked like)... Anyway, the guy in there came back and said - "I can't find a problem, the pedal's sitting too high, but that's all, looks like the clip that restricts the pedals upward movement has broken"!
Now, it's definately been that twice in the last 4 months, I've pushed the clutch all the way in and there's been no pressure, but apart from that, currently the bite position is correct, so I think it's possible that my recent problems could just be that I'm not pushing the pedal in far enough because it's sitting too far up in the first place (if you see what I mean, Clutch, Brake, Accel. positions are: - _ _ )... OK, this makes me sound a bit of a numpty, but I'm not a mechanic, and the way I have the driving position in the Saab does seem to insulate small changes like that... anyway, I think that for the sake of IRO £600 for a new clutch this is a problem that can wait until it's due a service in 4k and I'll get the indy that I take it to, to give it a check over.
The thing is, whilst I'm not criticising the Main Dealer I took it to, the fact is that they never mentioned the pedal position, and I'm now a bit concerned as to how they diagnosed the slave cylinder (unless there is some way to inspect - I believe that there is an inspection hole on the clutch, and I assume that after 120k it's worn enough to warrant a replacement next time that any significant work is going on in that area), but when it's over £800 of work to do, I'd be mortified if the problem turned out to be something else.
Well, we'll see - if in 4k when it's serviced I manage to find out the problem, it'll be interesting to see how it compares to the MD diagnosis.
CH
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