Dear Tom and Ray:
I have a 1988 Honda Civic with a 5-speed manual transmission. The mileage on the car is 75,000 – all short trips in New York City. A mechanic told me that I need to replace the clutch. How can I tell if I do need a new clutch?
– William
Tom: Clutch wear isn’t based as much on miles as on how many times the clutch has been used. Specifically, how many times it’s been used to start the car from a dead stop.
Ray: When you drive in Manhattan, you could easily start from a dead stop 10 times over the course of a single mile. Or 100 times, if you’re in crosstown traffic during rush hour. Whereas if you drive on a highway, you may shift up through the gears once, and not shift again for 100 miles.
Tom: So even though you’ve got “only” 75,000 miles on the car, you’re definitely a candidate for a clutch job.
Ray: But here’s the test. Find something that absolutely won’t move – like, for instance, the Chrysler Building.
Tom: Pull your car right up to it, so its front bumper is touching it. Then put the car in fifth gear, give it lots of gas and slowly let out the clutch.
Ray: If the clutch is good, the engine will stall. Since a working clutch connects the engine to the wheels, if the wheels can’t turn, the engine will have to stop too.
Tom: If the engine keeps running, then we know the clutch has to be slipping.
…
Dear Tom and Ray: I just purchased a new 2005 Chevy Tahoe LS, and the entire time that I’m driving – and even after the car has been shut off and I’m no longer in the vehicle – there are very loud bangs that come from somewhere under the car. It’s extremely loud and sounds like gunfire. I’m told it’s the catalytic converter expanding (or something like that). The dealer says it’s normal, yet I don’t hear anyone else’s Tahoe making these noises.
– Steven
Ray: It IS normal for exhaust systems to expand and contract. When they do that, they often make popping or banging noises.
Tom: But you say the noise continues the “entire time” that you’re driving.
Ray: And that it’s extremely loud, and sounds like gunfire.
Tom: Your dealer says “They all do that.” So I suggest you test his theory.
Ray: Ask the service manager to take a ride with you.
Tom: If he sticks with his story that they all do that, ask to take a test drive in another ’05 Tahoe. If it’s quiet, then you can insist that they fix yours, because clearly they don’t ALL do that.
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