How's your clutch holding up?

[Moderato]

Originally Posted by lucid

But I do know people who have gotten 4 sets of front pads/rotors in 5 years. Same applies to the clutch. They'll do the clutch once, but I don't know that they'll do it twice as others have mentioned.

"I know people who have gotten 4 sets of pads/rotors in 5 years."
"Same applies to the clutch."
"They'll do the clutch once, but I don't know that they'll do it twice."

4 pads/rotors = 5 years
Same = Clutch
Clutch = Once
Clutch does not equal more then Once

Thanks for clearing that up.

[lucid]

Originally Posted by lucid

Everything needs to be within reason. If you show up twice a year with worn out pads/rotors, they most likely won't cover it. But I do know people who have gotten 4 sets of front pads/rotors in 5 years. Same applies to the clutch. They'll do the clutch once, but I don't know that they'll do it twice as others have mentioned.

Originally Posted by Moderato

"I know people who have gotten 4 sets of pads/rotors in 5 years."
"Same applies to the clutch."
"They'll do the clutch once, but I don't know that they'll do it twice."

4 pads/rotors = 5 years
Same = Clutch
Clutch = Once
Clutch does not equal more then Once

Thanks for clearing that up.

Stop acting like a 5 year old and taking my post out of context by deconstructing it and partially referencing it.

"Same applies to the clutch" clearly refers to the first sentence you selectively did not reference, which says, "Everything needs to be within reason."

I don't have a credibility issue on this forum, but you do after making the following post:

Originally Posted by Moderato

The clutch is most certainly NOT covered under the 50K warranty.

Several people called you on it--3 even said their clutches were replaced free of charge--and rather than simply saying "I didn't know, great" and moving on, you are being defensive and deliberately trying to come up with ways of misinterpreting other posts.

[Moderato]

Originally Posted by lucid

Stop acting like a 5 year old and taking my post out of context by deconstructing it and partially referencing it.

"Same applies to the clutch" clearly refers to the first sentence you selectively did not reference, which says, "Everything needs to be within reason."

I don't have a credibility issue on this forum, but you do after making the following post:



Several people called you on it--3 even said their clutches were replaced free of charge--and rather than simply saying "I didn't know, great" and moving on, you are being defensive and deliberately trying to come up with ways of misinterpreting other posts.

I don't doubt your credibility and I certainly love your car and can't wait to get one myself when the time is right, however I just think the threshold of getting a clutch replaced under warranty for something other then a manufacturing defect is much higher then you're representing. Changing a clutch is a somewhat expensive and labor intensive job, compared to regular maintenance and routine warranty issues that come up. BMW loses money everytime they change a clutch and to take it a step further, if BMW keeps having to change clutches under warranty for people who treat it like it's a brake pad, hill holder or just generally don't have the slightest clue how to drive stick - then that just increases the likelihood BMW will do away with a traditional manual in many of their cars. It's unfortunate that may be the route they're taking anyway but we who enjoy driving a proper manual can at least try to buck that trend. IMO, BMW should not replace a clutch for anyone who doesn't know how to drive, any other reason is just a warranty defect claim and for that I'm in full support of BMW's policy to warranty the clutch for defects.

BTW -

Originally Posted by Moderato

The clutch is most certainly NOT covered under the 50K warranty.

- This statement that I made, you are taking it out of context as well.

[kbk_75]

The one time I took part in an organised 1/4 mile drag event and did a couple of small burn-outs before running, my clutch got really, really hot and by the end of my second run was making a slight clunking sound. Just let it cool off nicely, and it's been absolutely fine since then.

[lucid]

Originally Posted by Moderato

I don't doubt your credibility and I certainly love your car and can't wait to get one myself when the time is right, however I just think the threshold of getting a clutch replaced under warranty for something other then a manufacturing defect is much higher then you're representing. Changing a clutch is a somewhat expensive and labor intensive job, compared to regular maintenance and routine warranty issues that come up. BMW loses money everytime they change a clutch and to take it a step further, if BMW keeps having to change clutches under warranty for people who treat it like it's a brake pad, hill holder or just generally don't have the slightest clue how to drive stick - then that just increases the likelihood BMW will do away with a traditional manual in many of their cars. It's unfortunate that may be the route they're taking anyway but we who enjoy driving a proper manual can at least try to buck that trend. IMO, BMW should not replace a clutch for anyone who doesn't know how to drive, any other reason is just a warranty defect claim and for that I'm in full support of BMW's policy to warranty the clutch for defects.

BTW - - This statement that I made, you are taking it out of context as well.

Yes, you are right that the clutch should experience less relative wear and tear than the brakes when driven properly. But I am not offering opinion if BMW "should" replace a clutch for wear and tear. I am offering opinion on what BMW would be "obligated" to do if the clutch does wear out based on their description of the service plan. A few things to keep in mind:

1. If you drive the car hard, and it is possible to drive it hard without abusing it, it is not that far fetched that the clutch can wear out before the warranty/service agreement expires. It is a friction device after all, and the car has 400+hp. Yes, the M3 clutch is beefed up for that reason, but it can still wear out without abuse even when you rev match etc. The majority will not drive the car that hard, but a few people will attending driver schools very frequently, etc. If that happens, it would become just another worn out mechanical part the service agreement needs to cover.

2. Some will abuse the clutch and ask for a new one anyway. Is that sensible? No. But will the dealer be able to differentiate that from non-abuse related wear? Most likely not unless the ECU is recording lots of details to clarify that, which I doubt. At that point, it is an ambiguous situation, and they will give you the benefit of the doubt and replace it once, which is what people are saying based on their personal experiences. If they don't replace it, and if they can't provide evidence that you've abused the clutch, which again would require the ECU to record detailed info, legally you could win a case against them if you really try.

3. If you show up with a second worn out clutch, there is either something systematically wrong with the car, or you are clearly abusing it, so who knows what might happen, but you can still argue for the former as the wear and tear argument would most likely not hold water at that point.

4. When the pads are replaced, the rotors must be replaced as well. As you can imagine, that is costly. For all corners of the car, I can see that being a ~$2k job. And they will definitely do this more than once in 4 years. The clutch replacement is probably around $2.5k-$3k, so I don't know that there is a huge difference in relative costs when you add it all up.

I hope this clarifies what I've been saying.

To my credit, I referenced your post in its entirety. To your credit, you did follow up on your post and offered more opinion that I did not reference.

[argonboy]

My car is at the dealership right now to get the clutch replaced. I took it in at 7000km, until they got the part in it's got a little over 8000km.

It still works fine, but the syncros grind if shift fast at high RPM, and it takes a second for the syncros to alight between gears.

Dealer's service dept said it doesn't work like it should and that they'll replace it. I'm sort of pissed off that I drove a non fully functional clutch since I got the car. This however was a problem with it since it was new, at first I though I was doing something wrong, but it was exactly like that since I got it. Don't consider it like the clutch died, it works exactly like it did when it was new.

Oh, and my car was delivered early November of last year.

[Moderato]

Originally Posted by lucid

I hope this clarifies what I've been saying.

Yes, definitely. I respect your posts and you certainly make a good contribution to this forum.

[lucid]

Originally Posted by Moderato