Hesitation or clutch slipping when cold??

[ofgofg]

1995 talon tsi awd. Seems like a bit of engine hesitation,, or possibly clutch slipping when cold cold. I have to drive at night, so this winter the car sits outside. I usually only warm it up for a couple minutes,, just long enough to scrape windows. On take off in first gear everything seems O/K, because Im not into the throttle at all. Now, shift into second gear, and accelerate,, and it seems to either hesitate a bit,, or clutch slipping. Cant tell which. Put her into third,, and its not as bad. Come to a stop light,, start out in first,, clutch grab is a bit awkward, its hard to be smooth,, shift into second,, and there it is again,, either a little bit of hesitation,, or clutch slip. By now,, were warmed up more and the problem literally goes away. Seems to pull great from here on out.

I have adjusted my clutch pedal the correct way, has the proper linkage play. No leaks in the system at all. Its original OEM clutch,, as the car has only 64k miles.

 

[mx730md]

is the rpm climbing really fast with out accelerating? if so id say its a clutch problem other wise probable something with the motor

 

[DSMlover2011]

Start diagnosing the car by testing the clutch. You can do this by going out on the highway. Accelerate up to around 55 mph, shift the transmission into 5th gear, and push the gas pedal to the floor. If you notice that the rpms climb faster than the acceleration of the car or if the car doesn't accelerate then you'll know your clutch is slipping.

 

[YES]

When a car is cold and you start driving it, it will hesitate when shifting but when its fully warmed up like after 10 minutes of driving it should shift normal.

When you let the car idle for a few minutes to warm it up, the motor itself its warming up and not the drivetrain. The drivetrain warms up as you begin driven it, oh and add warm water to your windows if theirs ice, its easier everytghing comes off right way. NOT HOT, JUST WARM.

After a couple minutes of driving get on the highway and at about 50-55 mph on 5th gear go full boost/throttle and if you see anything funny in your rpms then your clutch is going bad. If not, your clutch is still good.

 

[99ECLIPSEGSXDSM]

My car is having the same problem. It's definitely a hesitation and after it warms up for awhile it doesn't do it anymore. Wondering if anyone found a solution to this problem.

 

[ofgofg]

I think its a temp issue. Winter again, and it seems like the clutch system has to warm up as well to get the smooth shifts. Mine still does it, but I had re adjusted the clutch pedal, and it does it a bit less now. Seems like the pedal adjustment from summer to winter is different,, or perhaps the clutch system should be bled twice a year to give consistent performance?? I dont know, other than a dsm hydraulic clutch system is basically the worst hydraulic clutch system I have ever driven. My car does not leak clutch fluid,, and its about as good as I think its gonna get. Possibly a real pro could flush and bleed the system and make it better. For now,, It works better to double clutch the shift into 1st from a dead stop when its cold, then as it all warms up the whole car gets to being happier. Cold blooded cars for sure.

Consider that Im on the OEM clutch at 70k miles too. Its probably showing a bit of wear in the system,, but during the summer its (.)(.)

 

[99ECLIPSEGSXDSM]

Ill have to wait till spring to see what's going on and if it still does it ill readjust it.

 

[ofgofg]

Mine only does it when its real cold, and only on first 2 or 3 shifts from a cold start. After that its fine. Its a little better than last year. How long is an oem clutch supposed to last?