Questions and Answers
Mustang Needs A Clutch?
Q. Hello! I have a 1998 Mustang GT with the 4.6 liter V-8 engine and a 5 speed manual transmission. It has 47,500 miles. I am new to the whole manual transmission thing and I have noticed some changes in the performance of the clutch.
I first noticed that it seemed to "slip", I guess for lack of a better word, when going up inclines, but I attributed it to my timing and I have made some changes to my driving style and it seems to have stopped. Sometimes, though, it seems disengage/engage sharply (kind of like a little lurch) when pressing in the clutch pedal to change gears. And this evening, I noticed a smell like something was hot when I got out of my car when I arrived home.
I have been told that when a clutch is going bad, that sometimes you can smell it. And you can have problems with it grinding when shifting into second, third, etc. gears. I am not having this problem. Just the occasional difficulty when putting it into reverse, as I described. It is sometimes hard to get into reverse, but I have been told that it's a Ford thing. Other than these issues, the clutch seems to be tight and engaging at the proper point (about halfway out).
I bought this car used about 4 months ago and it has had some performance modifications done to it, which makes me think that if this is the original clutch, that it may have had a hard life. Do you think that the clutch may be wearing out? What are the signs that a clutch is wearing out? Is there anyway to have a clutch inspected without having to drop the transmission?
Also, I have to drive over a lot of speed bumps to get into my complex, so I have to use the clutch a good deal through my apartment community. Would this cause the clutch to smell even if it is not going bad?
If I need a new clutch, I would like to catch it before it does any damage. It's a lot cheaper to replace a clutch, than a clutch and transmission!!
Thank you in advance for your help!
StuartA. The general symptoms of a clutch going bad are slipping from a standing start of after shifting gears. Grinding of the gears when shifting and hard to get out of a gear. A burning smell may or may not be noticeable.
This is not the kind of car your Grandmother would buy to go to church on Sundays. With the modifications made to it by the previous owner, I agree with your assessment that he drove it hard, probably doing 0 to 60 between traffic lights.
There is no way to visibly check the clutch without removing the transmission. For the sake of piece of mind, maybe you should replace it now and then you'll know that everything is all right.
Additional Information provided courtesy of ALLDATA
