Clutch question - Troubleshooting - VWDiesel.net The IDI, TDI, and mTDI source.

• Clutch question by silvertdi on 11 Nov, 2007 19:24
• How do I know if my clutch is going bad?  It's not slipping at all.  It's hard to put in first.  Sometimes it crunches going into second.  And sometimes it takes a nudge to get it out of gear...kinda like it wants to stay in gear.  Is it the clutch, or does the cable need to be adjusted?  Thanks.
• #1 by burn_your_money on 11 Nov, 2007 19:28
• I'd start with the cable. What year car is this?
• #2 by silvertdi on 11 Nov, 2007 19:30
• 81 rabbit 1.6 NA.  Hopefully, I'll be going TD in the near future.  
• #3 by burn_your_money on 11 Nov, 2007 19:57
• Make sure the cable is moving freely and that there is about 1/4 inch play in it (check bentley for exact numbers)
• #4 by Ziptar on 12 Nov, 2007 01:28
• I wonder if the later type MKII self adjusting cable works in an MKI?
• #5 by Doug on 12 Nov, 2007 06:01
• The manually adjusted cable is dirt cheap compared to the self adjusted one. It is foolproof as well. Replace it!
• #6 by clbanman on 12 Nov, 2007 06:32
• Not to discourage you, but I just went through the exact same problem, and replaced the clutch cable with no improvement.  Never did get mine sorted out.  I did find some suggestions at BrokeVW's site that I haven't checked yet.  I checked my release arm but haven't checked the release finger thoroughly or the clutch pedal bracket in the car.  I have the manual clutch cable part number in one of my posts in case you need it.
  
  [/url]http://www.brokevw.com/releasearm.htmlhttp://link to my problem [url]http://vwdiesel.net/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=10646&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0[/url]
• #7 by VelocityConservation on 12 Nov, 2007 06:40
• I am having trouble with my automatic adjusting clutch cable and am thinking about retrofitting the manual cable.
  
  Do I need any other components/brackets besides the manual cable?
  
  Thanks,
  
  VelocityConservation
• #8 by burn_your_money on 12 Nov, 2007 09:51
• the auto cable is junk. I much prefer the manual adjusting one. I've never swapped them though so I don't know what is involved
• #9 by silvertdi on 12 Nov, 2007 19:39
• I adjusted my cable as describrd by burn-your-money and the bentley.  It works better, but not 100%.  Definately doesn't shift like butter.  Maybe it will improve with time.
• #10 by burn_your_money on 12 Nov, 2007 20:09
• The crunch going into second is most likely a dying synchro. Doing a tranny flush sometimes temporarily fixes the problem.
• #11 by jtanguay on 12 Nov, 2007 21:03
• i changed the oil in my tranny... helped the 2nd gear crunch but not completely.  i've nearly mastered the 2nd gear without crunches on launches... but i've crunched it so many times i'm surprised that it still works fine.