Hi all,

Firstly I'd like to say hello to everyone.

Just joined this site as it was recommended by a friend. Please bare with me as I'm not mechanical at all.

Can someone please tell me what to do? My clutch is barely off the floor and the gears engage already. I imagine it's about an inch or so off the floor. It feels very soft to push and it's worrying me.

I've got a Carisma 1600 1998 model (S) I think. I'd like to try and sort out the problem myself as garages are always so expensive and as soon as they see a women (especially a thicko like me) they automatically add on extras.

Thanks in advance,

Ursula

Hi and welcome aboard. There can be 2 things causing this , in most cases the clutch pressure plate and disc are extremely worn out. The pressure plate has not alot of tension and causes a very soft pedal and quick engagment with little pedal travel , and low pedal .

The other can be in the hydraulic system of the clutch. If yu press and hold teh clutch down for a period of time , does the car stay stationary , or yu can feel it slowly wanting to move after the clutch is being held for a amount of time , like 30 seconds? If so there is a definate issue in the clutches hydraulic system. have yu checked the clutch master cylinder resevior to see if its topped off with fluid?

Hi,

Thanks for the nice welcome.

The car doesn't want to move forward when it's stationary and the clutch engaged. So I take it, it's something to do with the hydrolics? Is this a garage job or could I do it myself?

Ursula

Upon depressing the clutch , can yu get the shifter into gear?

Firstly check the fluid level in the clutch master cylinder , and verify its level. If it seems a bit low , there is a leak in the system. First check is , inside of the vehicle , where the clutch pedal bracket is , there is a thru rod that connects the clutch master cylinder to the clutch pedal. Where the bracket mounts and the thru rod enters , check the surrounding area around the bracket and wall area for fluid , leak of fluid . when clutch master cylinders start to leak they leak against the inside the vehicle where they enter to connect to the clutch pedal. Usually visual signs of fluid leakage will show where the upper carpet ends on the inner fire wall , the clutch bracket area etc.

If all seems well in that area , do a visual inspection of the clutches hydraulic line as it runs to the transmission , and inspect the clutch slave cylinder on the transmission , and look for signs of fluid around the transmission housing area of the transmission or the slave cylinder.

If all checks out well in these areas, and the fluid level is adequate , there is an issue with the mechanical portion of the clutch system (pressure plate/disc etc)

i think I blew up my clutch!!!