Strange Clutch & Engine Behavior Out of Nowhere

[SALEM_JL]

Hey Guys,

This morning I started up my 2018 2 Door Sport and let it warm up and when I came back outside ~5 mins later I noticed that the idle tone sounded different. The pitch was a bit lower and it sounded like a tractor.

Figured it was acting up because of the freezing temps we had here but then on my way back home the clutch started to feel super light with very little resistance and when pulling into my driveway the jeep felt like it lost all power for a second but it did not shut off or stall.

No warning lights on the dash indicating check eng /trans etc but I did noticed a couple things out of wack.

The outside temp is stuck at 52 even though it was 6 degrees out.
Battery voltage seemed a bit high(14.7V)
Stop/Start Not Ready Battery Charging

After reading similar stories I tightened up the negative battery connection and the eng tone seems to sound better and feels like its back to full power but the clutch resistance is still like a feather.

This is my third manual jeep wrangler.... I sold my 99' with 120k miles and never replaced a clutch or anything transmission related and wheeled the shit out of it. Is this clutch really about to go at 15k miles???

Car was driving totally fine yesterday. Took it for a car wash then stared at it in my garage for hours and now this... I work from home and really only drive the jeep to grab bagels and coffee in the morn and the supermarket at night. I really hope this doesn't call for some major repair.

I'm a nerd and pretty handy so if anyone has some troubleshooting ideas please share.

Cheers,

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[garyji]

Soooo, is it "normal" after the battery terminal clamp-down? Electrical stuff can really be a bitch.
What engine??
G.

 

[SALEM_JL]

Soooo, is it "normal" after the battery terminal clamp-down? Electrical stuff can really be a bitch.
What engine??
G.

3.6 V6.

The clamp down did need some tightening but it wasn't like incredibly loose to the point it would lose contact.

Need to drive it around some more to be sure but it no longer sounds like a john deere @ idle and throttle response seems to be back to full strength but the clutch is throwing me off.

 

[ErAcEr]

You say that you do small runs. Does this mean that in these small runs the Oil/Coolant temps do not get up to "operating" temp? While this is more important for aged vehicles over 5-8 years. IT does help to make sure that these runs get up to temp. As for the clutch we know these have been finicky since the get go. Maybe cold-er fluid on the hydraulic clutch line is causing some weirdness.

You have a salamander or space heater? Try heating the garage overnight to see if that changes the startup for the next time.

 

[SALEM_JL]

You say that you do small runs. Does this mean that in these small runs the Oil/Coolant temps do not get up to "operating" temp? While this is more important for aged vehicles over 5-8 years. IT does help to make sure that these runs get up to temp. As for the clutch we know these have been finicky since the get go. Maybe cold-er fluid on the hydraulic clutch line is causing some weirdness.

You have a salamander or space heater? Try heating the garage overnight to see if that changes the startup for the next time.

Probably get like 30 mins of drive time each day, but that's mainly stop / go traffic since I'm in north jersey. Def need to get it out on the highway more often but the drivers here suck. Speeding BMWs galore

Good call with the space heaters, going to give that shot tonight and see how it feels in the morning. Thanks!!!

 

[Punknhed]

that is rather odd.... I have a v6 w 6 spd and it has been very cold in va. and have had no weirdness with my clutch.

 

[zakaron]

Perhaps air has gotten in the clutch hydraulics? It may not be a bad idea to bleed the clutch to see if you get any air bubbles through.

 

[SALEM_JL]

UPDATE - Opened up my fuse box to check if they were all snug and found about 15 not fully seated in position.

Highly recommend checking yours. Only takes about 5 minutes.

I also disconnected both negative ground leads from the battery and separated them for about 15 minutes.

Started up the jeep and went for a ride and to my surprise it felt 10x better than yesterday. Clutch seems to be okay, don’t think i have any air or leaks because the resistance is the same after pressing down multiple times.

Voltage still over 14 but it takes a couple days for that to settle after disconnecting so i’m going to keep a close eye on that.

Thanks for all the help here!

 

[roaniecowpony]

UPDATE - .... Clutch seems to be okay, don’t think i have any air or leaks because the resistance is the same after pressing down multiple times.

Voltage still over 14 but it takes a couple days for that to settle after disconnecting so i’m going to keep a close eye on that.

Thanks for all the help here!

The clutch fluid may have some moisture in it that is freezing. You might let it cold soak then try it again. If it has a difference between cold soaked and a warm vehicle, it is likely moisture.

I don't quite understand you comment that voltage takes a couple days to settle. Can you elaborate?

 

[SALEM_JL]

The clutch fluid may have some moisture in it that is freezing. You might let it cold soak then try it again. If it has a difference between cold soaked and a warm vehicle, it is likely moisture.

I don't quite understand you comment that voltage takes a couple days to settle. Can you elaborate?

Sure. This thread explains the re-learning process after fully dissconnecting the battery.

https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/forum/threads/ibs-clear-reset.67955/

 

[zrickety]

Sure. This thread explains the re-learning process after fully dissconnecting the battery.

https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/forum/threads/ibs-clear-reset.67955/

If you are on the original battery, it may be time to buy one. Modern car electrics are very sensitive to a weak battery, my VW will throw all kinds of errors and dash lights. You think it's falling apart but a new battery fixes all of it.

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