Clutch Noise

Just saw this thread, I had the same clutch issue. Although, I told the guy it sounded like a dead cat. They couldn't replicate it, I even drove the mechanic around for 20 minutes, continuously stopping and going. They kept the car, and called around for a day. They finally found out that it was a K own issue, but they (this dealership) have only seen it once before. Long story short, was under warranty for an ongoing investigation, so entire clutch system replaced for free. This was in December 2014, about 25k miles, bought brand new in Aug 2012, and also included me being away for 9 month deployment.
 
Opened a case today with Honda's Customer Service line directly since my dealership is telling me that it is not worth it to replace with the same OEM part. Recently I have been able to feel the vibration between almost any gear change if I let the clutch out slowly, and have heard the noise between 1st & 2nd, and 2nd & 3rd, as well as out of 1st. Either I am more sensitive to it now and it has been really bad this whole time, or it has gotten significantly worse in the last month.

bill silvis said:
i had this problem a while ago but i never got around to sharing my experice since ive been inactive for a little, they replaced my clutch flywheel and all for free and said theyve heard of this with other people i had it done at 29k miles those 4 springs in the clutch disc were loose and you could see the excessive wear and heat that it took surprised it lasted that long
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Where did you see excessive wear? Around the springs, on the friction plate, on the pressure plate? I want to know what to look for, and what the tech is going to be looking for, when they do the tear down.
 
Wednesday I was near the dealership and stopped in to see if I could recreate the noise for a tech, and was quickly successful. After a short wait while they called the tech line, I was told I will be getting a new clutch assembly and flywheel on Tuesday!
They gave me the same line about if they find signs of abuse that I will be paying for the tear down, but I am absolutely positive that will not be the case. I also clarified that this would be fixed under warranty, and not as a "good will" item, and was told that unless I was paying for the parts there would be no additional warranty on the replacement parts, regardless of how the fix was being described.

I was surprised how agreeable the dealership was this time around after getting so much flak before; perhaps opening the case with corporate helped light a fire under them.
 
What up 9th Gen! I brought my car in for warranty repair on a pass. frt. wheel bearing, and while they were diagnosing the car, they found the clutch noise. The other day when they called me to confirm what issues they found, they mentioned that and also said they will be replacing my clutch assy. It's been two days, and I "supposedly" getting it back this evening. I'll share my invoice to let you guys know the details. I have a 2013 Si Sedan w/ 53,xxx miles btw. Crazy how many folks are experiencing this.

Wonder if my extended warranty (120k mi/7 yrs) will cover this defect if it reoccurs....
 
Hitokiri Battousai said:
Wonder if my extended warranty (120k mi/7 yrs) will cover this defect if it reoccurs....
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It probably will not. When I mentioned that this should also be covered under the 50k mi/6 yr powertrain warranty they scoffed at me. Either way, anyone who has gotten a new clutch on Honda's dime is getting it done as a "goodwill" fix; the part is not warrantied after the fix and they will not replace the clutch again for the same reason - even if your replacement ends up with the same problem as I have seen confirmed by one person thus far.
 
I got my car back yesterday, the new clutch feels smooth as butter. I had requested that they show me my old clutch so that I could see for myself where the problem was, take pictures, and possibly a video - all of which are posted below; Thursday I got to stop in and see the parts.

My friction plate looked fantastic, the tech said it looked like it only had 5-10k miles on it (I passed 33,333 mi earlier today). The flywheel was in great shape too, though it had some minor scoring so that you could see darkened rings running around where the clutch contacted it; it looked exactly like a broken-in brake rotor.

The dampening springs inside the clutch assembly were clearly loose: two more than the others, the third had a tiny bit of play, and the last didn't move at all when wiggling it (the two pink colored springs were not as loose). The two darker springs had multiple scorch marks on them, some quite deep, and the tech took the time to point out that those should not be there, as those springs should never come in contact with other parts inside the assembly. The pink springs were not spared, they both had the same scorch marks, though fewer, and the spring that would not move only had one that I saw. The tech also confirmed that the new clutch he put in (I did not get to see the new part to compare) was the exact same as the old part, just minus the wear.


View: http://youtu.be/TmRiscPgZKI


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In this last image on the right end of the spring you can see one of the bigger scorch marks. There is a smaller one on the left end, and the edge of one poking out from behind the housing on the first coil in from the right.
 
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JonnyRotten said:
Thats's great information @PainlessCandy!
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Thanks! I was pressing my dealership really hard to get to see these parts in person. This is what I had been looking for since I first diagnosed the problem, but only one other person I have come across has been able/allowed to see - much less photograph - the faulty parts they had replaced. Hopefully this helps other owners who are working with less-agreeable dealers to be able to show them what the problem really is.
 
My 2013 Si sometimes makes a low pitched howl when I am backing into the garage with the clutch partially released. This is going up a slight incline. At least until now, I have never heard it at any other time and everything seems to work fine. Does this sound like the same issue? I am just under 22000 miles. Thanks for any help/advice.
 
BlkSi said:
My 2013 Si sometimes makes a low pitched howl when I am backing into the garage with the clutch partially released. This is going up a slight incline. At least until now, I have never heard it at any other time and everything seems to work fine. Does this sound like the same issue? I am just under 22000 miles. Thanks for any help/advice.
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Yes, that sounds exactly like the same issue. Check out the videos posted previously in this thread and see if they sound the same as the noise you are experiencing. Have you ever had the noise occur when doing the same thing moving forward?
 
BlkSi said:
My 2013 Si sometimes makes a low pitched howl when I am backing into the garage with the clutch partially released. This is going up a slight incline. At least until now, I have never heard it at any other time and everything seems to work fine. Does this sound like the same issue? I am just under 22000 miles. Thanks for any help/advice.
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PainlessCandy said:
Yes, that sounds exactly like the same issue. Check out the videos posted previously in this thread and see if they sound the same as the noise you are experiencing. Have you ever had the noise occur when doing the same thing moving forward?
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I've only heard of this issue and had the issue myself on my 2012 Civic Si when starting off from a dead stop in first gear.
I'm not saying that what @BlkSi is not the same thing but I've never hear of this happening when people are in reverse. I'm wondering if @BlkSi is because the clutch is only partially released and the clutch is slipping and the car is on an incline.
 
JonnyRotten said:
I've only heard of this issue and had the issue myself on my 2012 Civic Si when starting off from a dead stop in first gear.
I'm not saying that what @BlkSi is not the same thing but I've never hear of this happening when people are in reverse. I'm wondering if @BlkSi is because the clutch is only partially released and the clutch is slipping and the car is on an incline.
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While researching this problem I came across one other person who was experiencing the noise in reverse, and if I remember correctly he was doing the same sort of thing (backing the car in every day up an incline). It is definitely possible that this is something else, but if the clutch feels like it is engaging and then you are getting the noise further in as you release the pedal more, I would bet that it is the springs and not a lack of pressure causing the friction plate to slip off of the flywheel. Also, the noise a clutch makes when it wont engage fully is similar but much worse than the noise caused by the faulty springs, and does not stop until you push the clutch pedal all the way down again.

I personally experienced the problem between other gears, not just from a dead start into first, but never had it in reverse. If the symptoms are the same, I would bet it is the same problem, but would like to see it recreated going into first just to be sure.
 
Thanks for the info. I have only experienced the noise in reverse and going into my garage up an incline. I can't reproduce it under any other condition. I will definitely pay closer attention to see if it gets any worse. The noise is the same as the video posted earlier in this forum, only not as pronounced.
 
BlkSi said:
Thanks for the info. I have only experienced the noise in reverse and going into my garage up an incline. I can't reproduce it under any other condition. I will definitely pay closer attention to see if it gets any worse. The noise is the same as the video posted earlier in this forum, only not as pronounced.
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If you can reproduce it that way for a tech at the dealership it should be good enough. All you need is to reproduce the sound, I don't see that it matters what direction you're moving while you do it.
 
OMG!!!!!! I have the same ****!!! Lol I just got my clutch replaced at a tranny shop because im to low and honda won't relalce it for me!! I just picked it up and still same issue!!! Replaced the throw out bearing, pressure plate, and friction disk and noise still there just not as bad:((((
 
They wouldn't do the clutch work because of your suspension?
 
Yes sir, unfortunately due to my mods coilovers, full bolt ons and tune they gave me trouble for 2 months and it kept getting worse...weird thing is I just drove it home and not one noise...im so lost now lol
 

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None of your mods would affect this problem, or the clutch for that matter. That intake manifold must make them **** their pants, lol. If they did a tear down I bet they would find the exact same things we have seen on other cars. I hate when dealers try to blame problems on aftermarket parts. Do they really think we would be using aftermarket parts if Honda offered comparable options?
 
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