OEM expected clutch life? only13800 miles

SATX370Z · 10-09-2011, 09:09 AM

Hey all. Well i think i may need a new clutch soon already. car has 13800 miles and a few mods but the car has been tracked at the drag strip one time and is pushed hard on the street. i have tried searching for an expected clutch life for our cars but have not had any luck getting a good answer. im sure i have accelerated my clutchs wear though. im looking at doing a clutch/flywheel combo all at once and am on a budget. i ran a 6 puck clutch and flywheel combo from Z1 motorsports in my 06 350z and loved it. does anyone know if running a 6 puck sprung clutch in our cars is comparable to what it was like in the 350z? this is my daily driver as was my 350z but like i said i loved it. when i drive my z now i feel like it slips slightly when getting into high rpm under WOT but only every so often. i have had slipping clutches before in other cars so i am familiar with the feel. however i dont ever smell the clutch like its burning up. has anyone else had clutch failure at so few miles? sorry for the long paragraph. thanks for reading!

N8GTOL · 10-09-2011, 01:30 PM

OEM should definitely last longer than 15K unless you're constantly launching the car from a stop or you have a habit of riding the clutch pedal. You might want to get the CSC and/or master cylinder checked for leaks as these are known to be failure points. I went through 2 CSC's within the first 6 months of owning my Z (replaced under warranty) and I wasn't pushing the car. A faulty CSC or master could keep the clutch from fully disengaging and cause premature wear. In a scenario like this you can often have the dealer replace the disc under warranty even though its a wear component.

How many miles were on the car when you bought it? If there were several hundred miles prior to purchase, then the clutch could have been abused prior to your ownership.

Methodical4u · 10-09-2011, 02:47 PM

maybe you just don't use the clutch properly.... which is not a crack at you, but most people think they can drive a manual, but they aren't really doing it properly.

As said above... the clutch could possible have been abused.

Maybe you got a lemon clutch.

There's a lot of possibilities.

SATX370Z · 10-09-2011, 05:39 PM

the car had 350 miles on it when i got it. and the only time i really launched it from a stop was at the track. i usually get on it after second gear. i understand what youre saying about knowing how to drive it but i have been driving manual trans sports cars (including 3 previous Z's) as long as ive had my license. and no i dont ride the clutch when i drive. i got rid of that habit long ago. im confident my driving technique isnt the issue. i will take it and have it checked. i drove perfect on the way home. it just feels like a slight slip every so often.

Methodical4u · 10-09-2011, 06:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SATX370Z

the car had 350 miles on it when i got it. and the only time i really launched it from a stop was at the track. i usually get on it after second gear. i understand what youre saying about knowing how to drive it but i have been driving manual trans sports cars (including 3 previous Z's) as long as ive had my license. and no i dont ride the clutch when i drive. i got rid of that habit long ago. im confident my driving technique isnt the issue. i will take it and have it checked. i drove perfect on the way home. it just feels like a slight slip every so often.

hmmm.... mine actually occasionally also feels like a slip as well when taking off slowly, but I don't pay much mind to it. My car has 3500 miles on it too... I don't think you have a problem but obviously no one can tell you unless it was looked at.

Are you gonna go to the dealer? If so are you going to take off your mods so they don't blame you or would you just go with an aftermarket clutch anyway?

fuct · 10-11-2011, 11:11 AM

im at 28k on my factory clutch but i had my CSC replaced under warranty. they saidf the clutch looked good and left it alone.

i RARELY abuse the car..

Tjames8864 · 10-20-2011, 07:55 AM

Take it to Nissan and argue. I'm not 100% on their clutch warranty and it also depends on the advisor that you have but I work at Infiniti and we can warranty clutches 4 years/60,000 miles. That is our factory warranty. You never know the clutch or slave cylinder could be leaking and might have soaked the clutch disc, I've had it happen with G35's and G37's.

John@Z1 · 10-20-2011, 08:56 AM

You can run our full face disc set up. I don't think you need the six puck unless you just use the disc with the stock set up. Mostly because we are running the full face on our Z1 car and it has been through the ringer. We have all parts in stock.

Ryan@Forged · 10-20-2011, 09:33 AM

I would definitely have the dealer check it out first. Sometimes you get lucky and it gets covered under warranty. That sounds like extremely low miles for a clutch to go out. If you do end up needing a new clutch/flywheel setup we have several to choose from depending on your goals. let us know if you need any help.

home :: online store ::...

cheshirecat · 10-20-2011, 09:37 AM

Definitely take it to Nissan. The OEM clutch can last over 100k miles if you're careful about it.

The more you feather the clutch, the more wear it will see. Given the amount of clutch failures from bad slave cylinders, though, I would think that is more likely than you having already eaten through the entire thing.

6MT · 10-20-2011, 10:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SATX370Z

Hey all. Well i think i may need a new clutch soon already. car has 13800 miles and a few mods but the car has been tracked at the drag strip one time and is pushed hard on the street. im sure i have accelerated my clutchs wear though. has anyone else had clutch failure at so few miles? sorry for the long paragraph. thanks for reading!

I think you've explained why your clutch may have failed....

Sharif@Forged · 10-20-2011, 12:04 PM

With the track and drag use, the OEM clutch is going to fail really quickly. It's unlikely the dealership will fix under warranty nor would I suggest they replace it with another stock piece. It will likely fail again.

Best bet is a good high performance aftermarket clutch, such as the JWT Clutch and Flywheel combo. This setup has proven itself on countless 350Z and 370Z's over the years and very streetable. We have them for $799 including shipping...in stock: home :: online store ::...

If you are looking for something that can hold up to extreme track and drag racing use, then you may want to look at the OS Giken Twin Disc. It's quite a bit more expensive and not quite as friendly on the foot. Only you can decide if it's overkill for your usage patterns with the car. home :: online store ::...

Let me or Ryan know if we can help.

zpower86 · 11-15-2011, 09:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fuct

im at 28k on my factory clutch but i had my CSC replaced under warranty. they saidf the clutch looked good and left it alone.

i RARELY abuse the car..

Why did you need the CSC replaced? Did it fix your problem??

fuct · 11-15-2011, 11:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zpower86

Why did you need the CSC replaced? Did it fix your problem??

because the factory CSC is a POS!!! it has a plastic body for crying out loud. do a lil research on failed CSC. i printed out 20 some odd pages on others CSC issues and my dealership replaced mine when it went out.

zpower86 · 11-15-2011, 03:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fuct

because the factory CSC is a POS!!! it has a plastic body for crying out loud. do a lil research on failed CSC. i printed out 20 some odd pages on others CSC issues and my dealership replaced mine when it went out.

Nice. So did replacing the csc resolve your problem?

10-09-2011, 09:09 AM	#1 (permalink)
SATX370Z Base Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: SAN ANTONIO Posts: 53 Drives: 2011 Base Sport Pack Rep Power: 15	OEM expected clutch life? only13800 miles Hey all. Well i think i may need a new clutch soon already. car has 13800 miles and a few mods but the car has been tracked at the drag strip one time and is pushed hard on the street. i have tried searching for an expected clutch life for our cars but have not had any luck getting a good answer. im sure i have accelerated my clutchs wear though. im looking at doing a clutch/flywheel combo all at once and am on a budget. i ran a 6 puck clutch and flywheel combo from Z1 motorsports in my 06 350z and loved it. does anyone know if running a 6 puck sprung clutch in our cars is comparable to what it was like in the 350z? this is my daily driver as was my 350z but like i said i loved it. when i drive my z now i feel like it slips slightly when getting into high rpm under WOT but only every so often. i have had slipping clutches before in other cars so i am familiar with the feel. however i dont ever smell the clutch like its burning up. has anyone else had clutch failure at so few miles? sorry for the long paragraph. thanks for reading!

10-20-2011, 08:56 AM	#8 (permalink)
John@Z1 The370Z.com Sponsor Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: GA Posts: 1,589 Drives: Turbos Rep Power: 20	You can run our full face disc set up. I don't think you need the six puck unless you just use the disc with the stock set up. Mostly because we are running the full face on our Z1 car and it has been through the ringer. We have all parts in stock. __________________ Z1 Motorsports will beat any advertised price on Nissan OEM Parts! 770-838-7777 ext 311 AIM: JohnatZ1 email: John@Z1motorsports.com

10-20-2011, 12:04 PM	#12 (permalink)
Sharif@Forged The370Z.com Sponsor Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Marietta, GA Posts: 840 Drives: 2009 GT-R, 2010 370Z Rep Power: 18	With the track and drag use, the OEM clutch is going to fail really quickly. It's unlikely the dealership will fix under warranty nor would I suggest they replace it with another stock piece. It will likely fail again. Best bet is a good high performance aftermarket clutch, such as the JWT Clutch and Flywheel combo. This setup has proven itself on countless 350Z and 370Z's over the years and very streetable. We have them for $799 including shipping...in stock: home :: online store ::... If you are looking for something that can hold up to extreme track and drag racing use, then you may want to look at the OS Giken Twin Disc. It's quite a bit more expensive and not quite as friendly on the foot. Only you can decide if it's overkill for your usage patterns with the car. home :: online store ::... Let me or Ryan know if we can help. __________________ Sharif@Forgedperformance.com General Manager/Certified Tuner/NASA-PCA-BMWCAA Instructor JRZ RS1's Available NOW...PM me Cobb ProTuner, Uprev ECU Flash, FCON Vpro, Haltech, Motec Certified Last edited by Sharif@Forged; 10-20-2011 at 12:12 PM.

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10-09-2011, 01:30 PM	#2 (permalink)
N8GTOL Base Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: San Diego Posts: 228 Drives: and flies Rep Power: 23	OEM should definitely last longer than 15K unless you're constantly launching the car from a stop or you have a habit of riding the clutch pedal. You might want to get the CSC and/or master cylinder checked for leaks as these are known to be failure points. I went through 2 CSC's within the first 6 months of owning my Z (replaced under warranty) and I wasn't pushing the car. A faulty CSC or master could keep the clutch from fully disengaging and cause premature wear. In a scenario like this you can often have the dealer replace the disc under warranty even though its a wear component. How many miles were on the car when you bought it? If there were several hundred miles prior to purchase, then the clutch could have been abused prior to your ownership.

10-09-2011, 02:47 PM	#3 (permalink)
Methodical4u A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Maryland Posts: 1,393 Drives: 11 370 6mt pw w/sp Rep Power: 17	maybe you just don't use the clutch properly.... which is not a crack at you, but most people think they can drive a manual, but they aren't really doing it properly. As said above... the clutch could possible have been abused. Maybe you got a lemon clutch. There's a lot of possibilities.

10-09-2011, 05:39 PM	#4 (permalink)
SATX370Z Base Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: SAN ANTONIO Posts: 53 Drives: 2011 Base Sport Pack Rep Power: 15	the car had 350 miles on it when i got it. and the only time i really launched it from a stop was at the track. i usually get on it after second gear. i understand what youre saying about knowing how to drive it but i have been driving manual trans sports cars (including 3 previous Z's) as long as ive had my license. and no i dont ride the clutch when i drive. i got rid of that habit long ago. im confident my driving technique isnt the issue. i will take it and have it checked. i drove perfect on the way home. it just feels like a slight slip every so often.

10-11-2011, 11:11 AM	#6 (permalink)
fuct A True Z Fanatic Join Date: May 2009 Location: Sugar Land Posts: 3,692 Drives: 97' Ranger :) Rep Power: 25	im at 28k on my factory clutch but i had my CSC replaced under warranty. they saidf the clutch looked good and left it alone. i RARELY abuse the car..

10-20-2011, 07:55 AM	#7 (permalink)
Tjames8864 Base Member Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Odenton Posts: 2 Drives: PW Z34 6MT Rep Power: 15	Take it to Nissan and argue. I'm not 100% on their clutch warranty and it also depends on the advisor that you have but I work at Infiniti and we can warranty clutches 4 years/60,000 miles. That is our factory warranty. You never know the clutch or slave cylinder could be leaking and might have soaked the clutch disc, I've had it happen with G35's and G37's.

10-20-2011, 09:33 AM	#9 (permalink)
Ryan@Forged The370Z.com Sponsor Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Marietta/Kennesaw, GA Posts: 1,527 Drives: Evo 8/Evo 9 MR/GTR Rep Power: 0	I would definitely have the dealer check it out first. Sometimes you get lucky and it gets covered under warranty. That sounds like extremely low miles for a clutch to go out. If you do end up needing a new clutch/flywheel setup we have several to choose from depending on your goals. let us know if you need any help. home :: online store ::...

10-20-2011, 09:37 AM	#10 (permalink)
cheshirecat A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Florida Posts: 1,428 Drives: N54 135i Rep Power: 293	Definitely take it to Nissan. The OEM clutch can last over 100k miles if you're careful about it. The more you feather the clutch, the more wear it will see. Given the amount of clutch failures from bad slave cylinders, though, I would think that is more likely than you having already eaten through the entire thing.