Clutch took a dump.

[SantiamJp]

That slave cylinder should not be considered a wear item, so I'd be shocked if they don't cover it.

It was covered; but I find it surprising that others have it fail in the snow as did mine.

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[bwright1818]

Oh, this is just great....I bought mine in late April so I haven't been through a cold season yet. Here on Cape Cod, it can get as low as minus ten, on rare occassions. I have not had a failure yet, per se; but I had an odd experience or two. First, although I have driven manuals nearly all of my 45 years of driving, every once in a great while, you have an instance where you have to slip the clutch more than usual. I recently had to do this with my JL. It was only a few extra seconds at a higher RPM. Done it before in other vehicles with ZERO problem. Well, in the JL, I seriously considered calling the fire department because the burned smell was unreal and seemingly unrelenting. God help anybody that has to work these clutches on a regular basis. There is no way I would ever take this thing wheeling. I don't know what material they use but they probably used Yugo's vendor.

Then, while having my Heep at the dealer's for engine running issues, they somehow decided that my problem was a vibration and decided to replace the clutch, flywheel and vibration dampener. Or so they charged FCA for. I am a mechanic myself. I got under the vehicle and looked....They never touched ANYTHING. Now I am thinking that there are enough clutch problems out there that they felt like they could get away with charging FCA for a job they never did....

 

[DanW]

Oh, this is just great....I bought mine in late April so I haven't been through a cold season yet. Here on Cape Cod, it can get as low as minus ten, on rare occassions. I have not had a failure yet, per se; but I had an odd experience or two. First, although I have driven manuals nearly all of my 45 years of driving, every once in a great while, you have an instance where you have to slip the clutch more than usual. I recently had to do this with my JL. It was only a few extra seconds at a higher RPM. Done it before in other vehicles with ZERO problem. Well, in the JL, I seriously considered calling the fire department because the burned smell was unreal and seemingly unrelenting. God help anybody that has to work these clutches on a regular basis. There is no way I would ever take this thing wheeling. I don't know what material they use but they probably used Yugo's vendor.

Then, while having my Heep at the dealer's for engine running issues, they somehow decided that my problem was a vibration and decided to replace the clutch, flywheel and vibration dampener. Or so they charged FCA for. I am a mechanic myself. I got under the vehicle and looked....They never touched ANYTHING. Now I am thinking that there are enough clutch problems out there that they felt like they could get away with charging FCA for a job they never did....

You need to contact FCA about that dealership so they can investigate.

 

[bwright1818]

At the time, I mentioned it to my Jeep Cares person and it seemed to go in one ear and out the other. Given the shellacking that FCA is giving me, I didn't bother pursuing it too much.

 

[anotherWS6]

This is scary. my BIL drove my Jeep last week and said that the clutch felt like it was stuck.... At least now I know about this issue if it happens to me.

 

[m0brando]

Add me to the new clutch club. 7,400 miles and it went from feeling different to not engaging in a matter of a few drives. Dealer put in a whole new clutch and flywheel. Said this was the third they'd done - the second "exploded" and took the transmission out. They're working with FCA and sent my old clutch for forensics. The service manager mentioned that JL's have PLASTIC throwout bearings. I'm sure it's not water bottle quality, but still sounds a bit weak. Also to note - clutch is only covered 12mo/12K miles. I was 6 days over 12 months ... they took care of it luckily!

 

[TPFilm1994]

Add me, too, to the clutch club. Last week I noticed there wasn't any pressure on the clutch pedal until the pedal was almost to the floor. As I drove the pressure would come back and the clutch operated more normally - but never tight like it was before. You know, as soon as you pressed the pedal there was pressure? The low pressure would occur after the Jeep wasn't driven for a few hours or more. Also discovered it would do the same thing when driving on the highway and not having to shift. Didn't have any issues with not being able to shift or start the Jeep.
Took her into Neuwirth Monday for routine service and to have them look at the clutch. Tech bled the line to no avail. Tech told advisor this Jeep is not leaving until this is fixed, not safe to be on the road. They decided to replace the slave cylinder. Had to order one (surprised, said no one). They got it in yesterday (10/22/19) and put it in. Service Advisor called me yesterday afternoon, still doing the same thing. They have now ordered a new master cylinder. Will update me when that gets in and installed.
They have been great and listened when I mentioned there have been others with this problem. Didn't blow me off. Also said they haven't seen this before. But that's not surprising consider the paltry number of Wranglers sold nationwide with manuals.
They gave me a Renegade as a loaner. I call it the baby Jeep.
(2018 JL Unlimited Sport S. Bought 2/25/18. 20,360 miles as of Monday)

 

[TPFilm1994]

Master cylinder replaced. Picked her up today. Clutch pedal is a little softer than before. Maybe I had issues all along and never knew it? They did it all under warranty.

Service write up mentioned that the fluid had just about all leaked out. I never saw any puddles or smelled any strange smells after driving. Just the pedal suddenly started going to the floor.

Add me, too, to the clutch club. Last week I noticed there wasn't any pressure on the clutch pedal until the pedal was almost to the floor. As I drove the pressure would come back and the clutch operated more normally - but never tight like it was before. You know, as soon as you pressed the pedal there was pressure? The low pressure would occur after the Jeep wasn't driven for a few hours or more. Also discovered it would do the same thing when driving on the highway and not having to shift. Didn't have any issues with not being able to shift or start the Jeep.
Took her into Neuwirth Monday for routine service and to have them look at the clutch. Tech bled the line to no avail. Tech told advisor this Jeep is not leaving until this is fixed, not safe to be on the road. They decided to replace the slave cylinder. Had to order one (surprised, said no one). They got it in yesterday (10/22/19) and put it in. Service Advisor called me yesterday afternoon, still doing the same thing. They have now ordered a new master cylinder. Will update me when that gets in and installed.
They have been great and listened when I mentioned there have been others with this problem. Didn't blow me off. Also said they haven't seen this before. But that's not surprising consider the paltry number of Wranglers sold nationwide with manuals.
They gave me a Renegade as a loaner. I call it the baby Jeep.
(2018 JL Unlimited Sport S. Bought 2/25/18. 20,360 miles as of Monday)

 

[DanW]

Master cylinder replaced. Picked her up today. Clutch pedal is a little softer than before. Maybe I had issues all along and never knew it? They did it all under warranty.

Service write up mentioned that the fluid had just about all leaked out. I never saw any puddles or smelled any strange smells after driving. Just the pedal suddenly started going to the floor.

When the slave cylinder on my JK gave up it mainly leaked out all the fluid when I was driving. I only saw a drip when I pulled off into a rest area and immediately looked under it right after stopping. I think it had been leaking for days but never dripped on the garage floor.

Hopefully they nailed it for you and you can enjoy it worry free for a long, long time. Keep us posted!

 

[LabradogOA]

Well, this just happened to my Rubicon JLU this weekend. I drove it on Friday and thought the clutch just does not feel right. At first, I thought it was just my imagination but it still persisted. Then it dawned on me that the slave cylinder could be bad.... a short search on the forum and I find that I am not alone. I will be calling the dealership tomorrow. I sorry that others have the same problem, but thanks for posting it helps others confirm what might be wrong before we head to the dealership for the repair.

 

[JeepCares]

Well, this just happened to my Rubicon JLU this weekend. I drove it on Friday and thought the clutch just does not feel right. At first, I thought it was just my imagination but it still persisted. Then it dawned on me that the slave cylinder could be bad.... a short search on the forum and I find that I am not alone. I will be calling the dealership tomorrow. I sorry that others have the same problem, but thanks for posting it helps others confirm what might be wrong before we head to the dealership for the repair.

Please keep us updated on your dealer appointment, Dean. If additional assistance is needed, our team is available via PM.
Alex
JeepCares

 

[TrailTorque]

Oh you don’t have to explain to me, I get it that yours just happened to be a POS from the start. It was kind of a joke on the fact that every time anyone posts about a manual transmission or clutch going out on almost EVERY type of automotive forum, smug pricks come out of the woodwork blaming the poor schmuck saying “Obviously the problem is the driver because I’ve driven 6.2 million miles since 1903 and never had to replace a clutch! It must be because you can’t drive a stick!” Or in this case, “Stop whining, FCA has sold 500,000 Jeeps and only most haven’t had clutch problems so don’t come in here and bitch about it, you whiny baby! What about Toyota accelerators sticking and Takata airbags!!!”

I love this HAHAHA Crying over here. That last part had me ROLLIN hahaha

 

[Inka]

I dropped my Jeep off a week and a half ago with a clutch and seatbelt issue. They are replacing the master and slave cylinders. Issue was that the clutch felt increasingly gritty and “stagey” in its travel. In October they replaced the slave cylinder and the hydraulic fluid. It helped a lot and made the Jeep much more drivable, but the issue returned. Unfortunately between waiting for parts, bad parts, and Christmas, this issue has been dragging on for nearly two weeks. Will post an update when I get one. 2018 Jeep JLUR 24k miles

 

[intentsrig]

I dropped my Jeep off a week and a half ago with a clutch and seatbelt issue. They are replacing the master and slave cylinders. Issue was that the clutch felt increasingly gritty and “stagey” in its travel. In October they replaced the slave cylinder and the hydraulic fluid. It helped a lot and made the Jeep much more drivable, but the issue returned. Unfortunately between waiting for parts, bad parts, and Christmas, this issue has been dragging on for nearly two weeks. Will post an update when I get one. 2018 Jeep JLUR 24k miles

My clutch has a similar gritty feeling once warmed up. Did yours make a loud squeaky sound as well? It’s not the pedal squeak. Only once warmed Up.

 

[JeepCares]

I dropped my Jeep off a week and a half ago with a clutch and seatbelt issue. They are replacing the master and slave cylinders. Issue was that the clutch felt increasingly gritty and “stagey” in its travel. In October they replaced the slave cylinder and the hydraulic fluid. It helped a lot and made the Jeep much more drivable, but the issue returned. Unfortunately between waiting for parts, bad parts, and Christmas, this issue has been dragging on for nearly two weeks. Will post an update when I get one. 2018 Jeep JLUR 24k miles

So sorry to read about all of this! If you would like assistance with your dealership, feel free to send us a private message. We are happy to get a case manager involved so they can ensure this process moves forward more smoothly.

Kaitlin
Jeep Cares

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