Clutch Not Disengaging: Causes & Fixes

In my A3, the clutch is no longer disengaging properly, especially when the engine is hot. It starts to engage almost immediately.

After bleeding with air bubbles inside, unfortunately, there was no change .

After swapping both cylinders, it still looks exactly like this .

Woran kann das liegen? Gibt es irgendwo Einstellmöglichkeiten? Clutch failure?

Best regards,
Uwe

Hi Uwe,

Does the clutch still engage properly while driving? If, for example, the clutch disengages with a slight delay after the pedal is pressed, and the hydraulics are working correctly, it's possible that a faulty seal ring is causing oil to leak onto the clutch, which could cause it to stick.

Uwe wrote:

On my A3, the clutch is no longer disengaging properly, especially when the engine is hot. It starts to engage even with the first millimeter of pedal movement.

Hello fellow sufferer...

I'm having a very similar problem.

When the engine is extremely hot (especially when towing), there's a loud bang when shifting from 4th to 5th gear.
If I wait a very long time before releasing the brake pedal after pressing the clutch, there's no grinding noise.
The clutch engages smoothly and relatively early.
I don't have any problems when shifting down.


Is that the same error you're experiencing?


Last week, I had the feeling that there was a smell of transmission oil after the car wash.

Marco wrote:

Hi Uwe, Does the clutch still engage properly while driving? If, for example, the clutch disengages with a slight delay after the pedal is pressed, and the hydraulics are okay, it's possible that a defective seal ring is causing oil to leak onto the clutch, which could cause it to stick.

The clutch disc itself seems to be fine. There's no sticking or jerking. The problem is simply that the pedal travel is insufficient. If I release it even a millimeter, the car starts to move.

When the engine is warm, the pedal travel changes again, to my disadvantage, making it difficult to engage reverse gear.

Could it be due to the thrust bearing?

Best regards,
Uwe

Steam bubbles in the receiver cylinder?

It really shouldn't get that hot there...

Best regards, Rainer.

Replace the clutch and pressure plate!!!!

Thank you for the comprehensive answer!

Best regards,
Uwe

Hi,
It might be worth removing the slave cylinder and checking its function. Is it seated correctly in the transmission, or perhaps protruding too far? If this is an air bleeding issue, you'll usually notice it by an extremely light clutch pedal.

@Bertil
The input shaft of the gearbox is mounted in a needle bearing on the flywheel side. If this bearing is damaged or starting to fail, the symptom you described could occur, as the shaft would still be driven even with the clutch properly disengaged. However, if only one gear is not synchronizing correctly, it's more likely to be a problem with the gearbox itself.

Regards,
Olli.

Hi Olli,

olli wrote:

@Bertil The gear input shaft is located in a needle bearing on the flywheel side. If this bearing is damaged or starts to deteriorate, the symptom you described could occur, as the shaft could still be driven even with the clutch properly disengaged.

... da hab ich noch gar nich dran gedacht ... Thank you.
I've been experiencing this phenomenon for over 10,000 kilometers.
Can this defect persist for so long?

Quote:

However, if only one gear is not shifting properly, it's more likely to be a problem with the transmission.

Shouldn't that be more relevant/also come into play when shifting back down?
If the synchronization is faulty, wouldn't the problem be resolved by pairing twice? However, that doesn't work.

It could also be due to hardened grease (or even a lack of grease), or contamination on the gearbox shaft, which I experienced once. The clutch wasn't disengaging properly, and there was a slight creaking sound every time I shifted gears. I could only engage reverse gear with the engine off. If the car is parked on a slope and you depress the clutch with the gear engaged, the car will still remain stationary. However, for this test, the car needs to be cold.

Here's a suggestion, although this was the case with the Golf 2 as well.

Okay, the old clutch is out, and the new one is in.

Two friction plates had disintegrated and were floating around inside the clutch bell as debris.

Now it shifts properly again and is also easier to use. The only thing that's not working is the cruise control, but I think I can fix that.

Best regards,
Uwe