My father in law's 2002 Legacy is experiencing intermittant slippage, almost feels like the clutch slipping. My experience with worn out clutches is that it is not an intermittant thing. The problem seems to fully correct it's self after a few seconds and the slip is completely gone. It has been to a dealer for diagnosis and after a test drive, the technican declared that the clutch is operating normally. This phenomenon has occured 4 times in the past month or so and has happened at various operating temperatures, any ideas on this one?

My father in law's 2002 Legacy is experiencing intermittant slippage, almost feels like the clutch slipping. My experience with worn out clutches is that it is not an intermittant thing. The problem seems to fully correct it's self after a few seconds and the slip is completely gone. It has been to a dealer for diagnosis and after a test drive, the technican declared that the clutch is operating normally. This phenomenon has occured 4 times in the past month or so and has happened at various operating temperatures, any ideas on this one?

 

 

There could be a restriction in the clutch hydraulic hose. I have heard of some of these collapsing internally when hot and causing slow clutch reengagement. The throwout bearing could be cocking & hanging up on a ridge on the sleeve around the transmission input shaft. There could be internal problems with the clutch slave or master cylinder causing binding or causing the fluid not to return properly. I don't even know if this is possible, but could the viscous coupling for the AWD have a failure mode like this?

If you can devise some means of monitoring the position of the clutch release fork when it is acting up, you'd probably learn a lot. Or you could just "shotgun" the entire clutch hyrdaulic system (replace master cyl, slave cyl, hose.) If it's still acting up, by process of elimination it's got to be something mechanical inside the clutch assy, so the engine or trans must come out, at which point careful inspection should reveal all.

 

good luck,

 

Nathan

Thanks Nathan. I had thought about the release bearing hanging up, but I hadnt thought about the hydraulic system. Thanks for the input, if and when the problem is resolved, I will post.