Hi, I have a very strange issue with my '95 NSX-T, as I have a new RPS clutch that slips INTERMITTENTLY 
. I've never experienced a clutch that slips unless it's worn down.
I have several ASE certifications, and I usually do the work on my own cars, but with my newborn son, I've been busy of late
, so I had the clutch master and slave cylinders replaced by a trusted and highly skilled tech (30 year master tech) who is a friend of mine. This restored my car's shifting to being smooth as butter, and made the car very enjoyable to drive again, and restored its engagement to the normal location (near top of pedal travel).
However, the second day after I got the car back from him, the clutch started slipping pretty badly if I gave it more than 15-20% throttle, so I let the car sit a week in my garage, and had the same friend install an RPS clutch. Oddly enough, as I drove to his house BEFORE the install, I tried to make the clutch slip during the last two miles to his house by going WOT at around 2000 rpms. This was a surefire way to make the clutch let go the week before, yet I could not duplicate this slippage in a half dozen pulls. Nevertheless, I went ahead with the clutch replacement.
Since the RPS install, I've broken it in with gentle driving for over 300 miles, and yesterday at around 400 miles since the install, it began to slip during normal driving (modest acceleration). It got to the point that I could BARELY gas the car without slipping and I began to worry I was about to be stranded in the road. It was a hot day with the heat index at 102 degrees. After the car sat for several hours, I drove it 10 miles home that evening with NO issues or slippage. I even went WOT several times on my street to see if the clutch would let go, but it would not. Yet just hours before, anything over 15% throttle would cause it to let go, and taking off from standing stops was tremendously challenging.
I believe something in the hydraulic system is not letting the clutch completely re-engage as I let off the pedal. There is just no way that a new, completely unabused clutch would slip, even though it slips EXACTLY like a worn clutch does. Could it be the hose that runs from the slave cylinder collapsing and in essence, acting as a check on the fluid pressure, leaving the clutch only partly engaged?
Today the car drives perfectly, which is ridiculous. I even gave it some gas accelerating several times with no slippage.
As a side note, I've owned 17 cars, and 16 of them have been manual transmissions with anything from stock full face friction surfaces to 3 puck disks. I usually get 100-175k miles out of my clutches, so I understand how to minimize or avoid clutch wear. I have changed numerous clutches myself, and understand how to drive and engage a clutch in such a way as to cause minimal wear. The RPS clutch grabs pretty hard and abruptly, but I've made a very conscious effort not to worry about smooth take offs, which would require slipping in 1st gear to start moving. I am also 100% positive that I'm letting off the pedal before gassing the car in other shifts, so there is no way that driving technique has worn this clutch.
Tonight I plan to check clutch fluid level, and to pull out the old clutch from the box to see how worn down it really was. If it isn't worn-out, then that would offer further confirmation of something else causing my slipping problem. It will also mean I didn't need to drop the coinage for a new clutch, lol
. I've never experienced a clutch that slips unless it's worn down. I have several ASE certifications, and I usually do the work on my own cars, but with my newborn son, I've been busy of late
, so I had the clutch master and slave cylinders replaced by a trusted and highly skilled tech (30 year master tech) who is a friend of mine. This restored my car's shifting to being smooth as butter, and made the car very enjoyable to drive again, and restored its engagement to the normal location (near top of pedal travel).However, the second day after I got the car back from him, the clutch started slipping pretty badly if I gave it more than 15-20% throttle, so I let the car sit a week in my garage, and had the same friend install an RPS clutch. Oddly enough, as I drove to his house BEFORE the install, I tried to make the clutch slip during the last two miles to his house by going WOT at around 2000 rpms. This was a surefire way to make the clutch let go the week before, yet I could not duplicate this slippage in a half dozen pulls.
Nevertheless, I went ahead with the clutch replacement.Since the RPS install, I've broken it in with gentle driving for over 300 miles, and yesterday at around 400 miles since the install, it began to slip during normal driving (modest acceleration). It got to the point that I could BARELY gas the car without slipping and I began to worry I was about to be stranded in the road. It was a hot day with the heat index at 102 degrees. After the car sat for several hours, I drove it 10 miles home that evening with NO issues or slippage. I even went WOT several times on my street to see if the clutch would let go, but it would not. Yet just hours before, anything over 15% throttle would cause it to let go, and taking off from standing stops was tremendously challenging.
I believe something in the hydraulic system is not letting the clutch completely re-engage as I let off the pedal. There is just no way that a new, completely unabused clutch would slip, even though it slips EXACTLY like a worn clutch does. Could it be the hose that runs from the slave cylinder collapsing and in essence, acting as a check on the fluid pressure, leaving the clutch only partly engaged?
Today the car drives perfectly, which is ridiculous. I even gave it some gas accelerating several times with no slippage.
As a side note, I've owned 17 cars, and 16 of them have been manual transmissions with anything from stock full face friction surfaces to 3 puck disks. I usually get 100-175k miles out of my clutches, so I understand how to minimize or avoid clutch wear. I have changed numerous clutches myself, and understand how to drive and engage a clutch in such a way as to cause minimal wear. The RPS clutch grabs pretty hard and abruptly, but I've made a very conscious effort not to worry about smooth take offs, which would require slipping in 1st gear to start moving. I am also 100% positive that I'm letting off the pedal before gassing the car in other shifts, so there is no way that driving technique has worn this clutch.
Tonight I plan to check clutch fluid level, and to pull out the old clutch from the box to see how worn down it really was. If it isn't worn-out, then that would offer further confirmation of something else causing my slipping problem. It will also mean I didn't need to drop the coinage for a new clutch, lol
