AlbertD
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Jun 18, 2016
- Threads
- 74
- Messages
- 627
- Reaction score
- 366
- Location
- Tucson, AZ
- Vehicle(s)
- 2016 GT/PP
- Thread starter
- #1
Background:
2016 Mustang GT with 29.5k miles. Frequently tracked in HPDEs every month with about 50+ 20 min sessions in the car's history.
At my last track outing... hit about 120mph in the straight and did my normal heel toe downshift from 5-4 to prepare for the upcoming turn, but after lifting my foot off the clutch pedal I noticed the clutch pedal did not return as fast as it normally does. I pulled it off track at that point as the pedal just didn't seem right. I also noticed it was now a lot harder to get it into any gear with the clutch fully depressed, but no grinding. The engagement point for the clutch is now at the floor making it extremely difficult to take off from a stop.
Diagnostics:
Inspected the transmission inspection hole and didn't notice anything out of the norm. Fluid level was fine, no apparent signs of leakage anywhere. I inspected the clutch pedal and didn't see anything that looked suspicious. The plastic connection on the rod that goes through the firewall that typically breaks on these cars was fully intact.
I suspected that I possibly blew some clutch material and lodged it into the pressure plate causing issue with disengagement. I do generate a good amount of heat on track and ring the car out to 7k quite consistently so it seemed plausible that the clutch material overheated and finally failed.
I pulled the transmission today to get a closer look. To my surprise, the only thing that looked out of the norm when removing the clutch assembly was the clutch disk had a slight mar with a crack through the disk material. The pressure plate also had a some slight marring, but... nothing that explains the clutch disengagement issue. The condition of the clutch looked OK. I'm still unsure at this point whether or not I will replace the clutch since if the problem persists I may very well mess up the new clutch by not properly breaking it in.
I'm quite confused at this point... the only other thing I can think of is perhaps I blew a seal in the master cylinder? The issue with that thought is the brakes work just fine and as far as I understood they work off the same system?
Anyone have any thoughts or experience similar symptoms?
My last resort is to take it to the dealership...
Pictures of the clutch -
2016 Mustang GT with 29.5k miles. Frequently tracked in HPDEs every month with about 50+ 20 min sessions in the car's history.
At my last track outing... hit about 120mph in the straight and did my normal heel toe downshift from 5-4 to prepare for the upcoming turn, but after lifting my foot off the clutch pedal I noticed the clutch pedal did not return as fast as it normally does. I pulled it off track at that point as the pedal just didn't seem right. I also noticed it was now a lot harder to get it into any gear with the clutch fully depressed, but no grinding. The engagement point for the clutch is now at the floor making it extremely difficult to take off from a stop.
Diagnostics:
Inspected the transmission inspection hole and didn't notice anything out of the norm. Fluid level was fine, no apparent signs of leakage anywhere. I inspected the clutch pedal and didn't see anything that looked suspicious. The plastic connection on the rod that goes through the firewall that typically breaks on these cars was fully intact.
I suspected that I possibly blew some clutch material and lodged it into the pressure plate causing issue with disengagement. I do generate a good amount of heat on track and ring the car out to 7k quite consistently so it seemed plausible that the clutch material overheated and finally failed.
I pulled the transmission today to get a closer look. To my surprise, the only thing that looked out of the norm when removing the clutch assembly was the clutch disk had a slight mar with a crack through the disk material. The pressure plate also had a some slight marring, but... nothing that explains the clutch disengagement issue. The condition of the clutch looked OK. I'm still unsure at this point whether or not I will replace the clutch since if the problem persists I may very well mess up the new clutch by not properly breaking it in.
I'm quite confused at this point... the only other thing I can think of is perhaps I blew a seal in the master cylinder? The issue with that thought is the brakes work just fine and as far as I understood they work off the same system?
Anyone have any thoughts or experience similar symptoms?
My last resort is to take it to the dealership...
Pictures of the clutch -
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