Does my nearly new car really need a new clutch?

force_ten

jimmy_cricket wrote: »

Yes a Nissan main dealer, but not the one where the car was bought - at the other end of the country.

Will do on the nissan response

if you have another nissan dealers near to you then may be worth giving them a call and explain to them what problems you are having

emphasise the high biting point and the fierce clutch bite and tell them you have never had any clutch slip but wondered if there was anything that could be done to make the clutch a bit more user friendly

loskie

Why don't you test drive a similar micra at a garage to get a comparison?
I don't think you say how old the car is which would be relevant to any claim etc. OP I cannot believe how many time you have had to tell folks that there is no slippage.
Find a reputable back street garage ask them. If you see a driving instructor with similar car ask them too.
Clutches are all different my Volvo V50 has a high clutch from new and did take some getting used to.

jimmy_cricket

@loskie, Given my own experience as a driver and the comments on here, I'm sure that it is not a worn clutch and is probably just the way it is. I have got used to it which is why I never bothered with mentioning it until the first service, that and I have recently lost my mum, so mind on other things.

Reflecting on this, I'm just incredibly disappointed by the way that a Nissan main dealer has tried to get the better part of a £1000 for a new clutch. I guess I have been lucky so far. I used a Ford main dealer for a number of years and now use a mini main dealer. Both of these have been brilliant. Never suggested work unless it needed doing, charged reasonable prices. An example is that the air con went on the mini. The main dealer said £80 for a coupe of new seals. On fixing, a couple of the pipes had been corroded together and the bolts could not be undone, so the pipes had to be replaced. They stuck to the original quote and the whole thing was done, re gassed for the £80.

It does put me off nissan completely.

Edit to add, when I said I eoukd think about getting the clutch done, they said I wouldn't do thus as it could just go withou warning. Is this right, or would there be some indication that it is on the way out?

zaax

Is it still under warranty?
All main dealers rip you off, go to a local garage, also Nissan build quality at present is not very good.

jimmy_cricket

Yes, still under warranty which was why I mentioned it at the first service. It is one year old with less than 5,000 miles on the clock. Before taking it in, my view was that a minor adjustment was needed which I thought would be done under warranty.

I disagree that ALL main dealers rip you off. See my comments in the last post I made. I've been very happy with the ford and mini garages I have used. Although a different ford garage tried to rip me off once, but then again, I've been ripped off by independents too.

jimmy_cricket

Hi,

Thanks for the responses and helpful advice so far. A bit of an update.

Nissan HQ have been in touch now and have agreed to me taking the car to another dealership for fuller diagnostics. Following the link to honest john, kindly provided by force ten, this does describe the symptoms. So, we will say what is said. Nissan is being very accommodating at the moment.

Would welcome suggestions on whether to go with the flow on this, or to preempt any potential issues down the line by getting an independent report first?

missile

I would suggest you test another Micra to see if it is any better before throwing away good money.

enfield_freddy

the op says the car is stalling , if the clutch was slipping there would be no drive and the engine would be revving , but no drive to the wheels.


imagine a car on ice or in a muddy field , and the wheels are spinning but you do not go anywhere.


a slipping clutch would allow you to drive the car , get to say 20 mph , put your foot down and the engine revs climb , but the car speed does not increase. just like pressing the clutch whilst driving

borasiclint

The OP says that they use and trust Sytner's. Why not take it there and see if they can give you an opinion.

bigjl

You will struggle to get a clutch changed under warranty.

I did back in 1999 on a 6month old Seat Toledo Tdi, but only because it was making a sceeching noise.

I wonder if the clutch is similar in design to the Clio as they are related and shares engines etc.

The reason I say this is because the wifes Clio has always had a high biting clutch. It was an ex lease car with less than 30k on the clock and I figured it had been driven round town a lot, but the price was right.

It's also hydraulic so no adjustment.

6years later and another 100k or so and the clutch is still biting at the same point with no signs of slip, a bit of judder now and again but it is so minor and occasional that it can be lived with.