mushy sticky clutch from snow storm??

[ManDogFish]

So,
For the first time I got to drive the 350z in a snow storm.
for tires, I have 40% nokian hakkapelitta R at the front and 90% hercules avalanche at the rear, with an open differential.

At the start of the storm, about 1-3 inches of snow, the car was fine... it would drive at angles a lot but all the angle flickering from driving on uneven snow and canadian winds seemed to be very fixable, I mean I didnt rotate more than 45 degrees.

Next morning, the storm was a lot worse on my way 40 mins way to work. The snow on the road was anywhere from 3" to 10-12" I almost got stuck in snow but luckily I could maintain my momentum just enough to break out of half a street of deep snow. but yea scary s*** cuz I didnt wanna get stuck while low on gas and the car kept slowing down and I couldnt be late for work.

But yea, the car drove amazing, I did have harsh impacts with deep patches of snow on some parts of the highway.
There was one cleared lane on the highway and cars were going 50-55km/hr on it so I took the snow covered lanes.

I made it to work, only 18 mins late....

but when I left work and cold started my car, the clutch felt very mushy...for the first time

I could remove my foot back off it before it could receed back in place and this did not happen before. It felt almost like a sticky clutch but it moved back in place.

It got a little better when the car warmed up but is not going away now. The clutch fluid was on low and I topped it off.


Has anyone ever experienced any clutch issues from the cold?? and the air vents smells like burning plastic when the car gets warm but the clutch doesnt seem to slip.
Can snow damage the clutch cylinder?? btw...the clutch fluid was dirty but then the service manual doesnt say flush fluid, neither do most other manual cars manuals


I am paranoid about the clutch cylinder failing cuz ive heard, read I mean.

[Razi]

Have you crawled under there and checked the condition of the lines and the slave cylinder?
Perhaps one of your lines got damaged.

[Ace2cool]

+1. If there's a pinched hard line, it'll do what you're describing. So can a pinhole in a soft line.

[BusyBadger]

My bet, like everyone else's, is a compromised line. I routinely see light snow in the winter and have no problems driving in it, but once it gets so deep one of the main reasons I drive the Xterra instead of the Z is because of the problem you're having.

And for what it's worth...My recommendations for snow-worthy all-season tires are for.the 350Z are the Bridgestone 970 AS, Continental Extreme DWS and the Micheln Pilot Sport AS.

Keep us posted on what you find out, it might help out someone else in the future, remember...all of us are smarter than one of us.

[ManDogFish]

Hi guys, sorry for the late reply

Ive been busy and stopped going to my mechanic cuz he smoked a lot of crack and lost track and turned greedy...
which is why I have not been able to look at the clutch line or do a fluid flush

The odd thing about the problem is that it disappears, when the car heats up

and it appears when I leave my car parked in the snow at work....it was very significant when we hit -20 in GTA like a week ago...

but yea, the clutch fluid was on the low mark, and it was cloudy, I couldnt flush it so I just added more for now. If it goes down ill know I have a leak otherwise I would like to believe its a pinch but then why would the pinch be temp dependent...

[BusyBadger]

Clutch line gets more pliable with the temp increase maybe. If that's the case a crimped/pinched line makes more sense than one having a leak, but that doesn't explain the fluid loss. I'll be interested to find out how this one winds up.

At this point you may want to start shopping around for a steel braided line..they're cheap and you won't have to worry about this again. Keep your receipt when you buy it, I'm stuck with one from Agency Power that has a crushed core because I didn't keep my receipt.

[ManDogFish]

true, the temperature here has been hovering around -3 C to -11 C now and its not noticeable....

I am starting to get annoyed by the existence of 350z tax....put on us by some mechanics

knowing the prices of mechanic labour and stuff, I see that every mechanic I meet wants more money because they see it as a new looking sports car.... from what this other mechanic justified his pricing with... "apparently" the stock 17" wheels need a "Special " machine to balance the wheels which costs more
I got recommend this place that this guy claimed installs exhausts on hondas for $50... I got a $150 quote for bolting and hanging this 3" exhaust on a 350z


Ive maintained quite a few cars and Ive seen the difference how much people want to charge for simple work on this car.... even oil change prices go up

I should rent a hoist...