BenCarson 7 Posted January 3, 2015 Report Share Posted January 3, 2015 Afternoon all, and happy new year Insured and taxed my new 52 plate v6 4motion today. Took her out for a spin, drove beautiful for around 25 minutes, pulled well in every gear. After around half an hour I went to shift from 3rd to 2nd, and upon trying, couldn't.. I rolled to a stop, and couldn't get the car into any gear atall, eventually i shut her off and all gears were now easily accessible, I shifted to 1st and started her up then struggled home. The car is now making a ringing/rattling noise from the lower passenger side of the engine, sounds dreadful Can anyone suggest what sort of bill I am looking at for this, fairly mechanical minded as I've worked on motorbikes, but struggling where to start with this. I am assuming clutch as engine and gearbox seem fine. Look forward to getting to know a few of you on here:) had a 4 motion in the family since 2003, so saw it as a reliable investment, hopefully this won't be too painful!! Thanks, Ben VR6Pete 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Bealieboy 1,625 Posted January 3, 2015 Report Share Posted January 3, 2015 Mmm, clutch and flywheel? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk BenCarson 1 Link to post Share on other sites
BenCarson 7 Posted January 3, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 3, 2015 That was my verdict also! And more specifically the clutch release bearing? I can hear a ringing from what sounds to be the bell housing.. Once it was in gear earlier it drove like a dream, engine and gearbox seem perfect. What vehicles do you own Bealieboy? Thanks mate Link to post Share on other sites
craggsy 91 Posted January 3, 2015 Report Share Posted January 3, 2015 Clutch release bearing, mine has also shit its pants on my R32 BenCarson 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Big J 283 Posted January 3, 2015 Report Share Posted January 3, 2015 Start it up in neutral, just rest your foot on the clutch pedal and see if it's making a groaning noise then. If it is, itl be release bearing.Does the pedal feel ok with the engine stopped? Or does it feel sloppy and abnormal? If it feels ok then once again, release bearing.It won't be the clutch itself or you wouldn't of driven it home. More likely to be something related to clutch operation like bearing or fork. Link to post Share on other sites
BenCarson 7 Posted January 3, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 3, 2015 (edited) Clutch release bearing, mine has also shit its pants on my R32 Start it up in neutral, just rest your foot on the clutch pedal and see if it's making a groaning noise then. If it is, itl be release bearing.Does the pedal feel ok with the engine stopped? Or does it feel sloppy and abnormal? If it feels ok then once again, release bearing.It won't be the clutch itself or you wouldn't of driven it home. More likely to be something related to clutch operation like bearing or fork. Thank you for your replies, really appreciate it guys. I tried resting my foot on the pedal and no groaning. In fact if I fully press on the pedal the noise almost goes away fully. When fully disengaged the noise is at its worst, very loud when shutting off the motor. I have uploaded a small video if it helps, EDIT: pedal itself feels fine, we have another 4mo in the household with only 50k miles on and it feels almost better than that.. Thanks again Ben View My Video Edited January 3, 2015 by BenCarson Link to post Share on other sites
cactusjackslade 146 Posted January 3, 2015 Report Share Posted January 3, 2015 (edited) As the guys above said Definatly sounds like clutch release bearing has failed.. Probably chewed its way through the fingers on the clutch pressure plate. It will not disengage the clutch properly hence gear selection problems. A new cluch kit with brearing should do it. Might be worth inspecting the release fork as I know they are prone to cracking/flexing on some vr6 gearboxes. Not sure if 4mo are the same . Edited January 3, 2015 by cactusjackslade BenCarson and daveyboy 2 Link to post Share on other sites
BenCarson 7 Posted January 4, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 4, 2015 As the guys above said Definatly sounds like clutch release bearing has failed.. Probably chewed its way through the fingers on the clutch pressure plate. It will not disengage the clutch properly hence gear selection problems. A new cluch kit with brearing should do it. Might be worth inspecting the release fork as I know they are prone to cracking/flexing on some vr6 gearboxes. Not sure if 4mo are the same . Thanks for your reply, would this be a very quick failure? (i.e the only prior signs was a slight clutch plate chatter on tick over with pedal not pressed) as it went from perfect to unusable in the space of attempted gear change The clutch also felt very snatchy between changes the short time I was driving, but I assumed it was getting used to the new clutch after my worn 1999 gti one.. Is getting a tow with engine on safe, or even to drive a few miles to a garage? Or worth paying for a flat bed truck? Link to post Share on other sites
daveyboy 897 Posted January 4, 2015 Report Share Posted January 4, 2015 You could drive it if it's just the release baring that has failed. Although it's not really recommended but a couple of miles would probably be ok, you just need to get the revs right for it to drop in gears. Obviously if you have to stop you'll have to turn the engine off put it in gear and literally start the car to pull away. BenCarson and cactusjackslade 2 Link to post Share on other sites
BenCarson 7 Posted January 4, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 4, 2015 You could drive it if it's just the release baring that has failed. Although it's not really recommended but a couple of miles would probably be ok, you just need to get the revs right for it to drop in gears. Obviously if you have to stop you'll have to turn the engine off put it in gear and literally start the car to pull away. I think for the sake of a few ££ its worth getting a flat bed out, drove about half a mile with it like this and couldn't bear the grinding of gears Cheers! daveyboy 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Mk1 Vr6 james 103 Posted January 5, 2015 Report Share Posted January 5, 2015 If the gearbox has gone let me know as i have one and will sell it fairly cheap Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to post Share on other sites
BenCarson 7 Posted January 5, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 5, 2015 If the gearbox has gone let me know as i have one and will sell it fairly cheap Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Hopefully I won't need to take that offer up But very handy to know if so, what sort of price would you be after and where about's are you in the southwest? Link to post Share on other sites
Mk1 Vr6 james 103 Posted January 6, 2015 Report Share Posted January 6, 2015 I'm in Newton Abbot mate Devon Tq122ax. £150 Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to post Share on other sites
BenCarson 7 Posted January 9, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 9, 2015 Garage have rang me, flywheel, clutch, and transfer box have all fallen apart! Transfer box appeared to be off a 4cylinder VAG car, 1.8t audi tt trans box? Big bill:( Link to post Share on other sites
craggsy 91 Posted January 9, 2015 Report Share Posted January 9, 2015 Mine goes in to get sorted on Friday, hired a flatbed to take mine in Link to post Share on other sites
Mk1 Vr6 james 103 Posted January 10, 2015 Report Share Posted January 10, 2015 You interested in a box mate? Would have to be collected though!Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to post Share on other sites
craggsy 91 Posted January 10, 2015 Report Share Posted January 10, 2015 You interested in a box mate? Would have to be collected though!Sent from my iPhone using TapatalkWho me? If so I had my gearbox rebuilt last year so is as new and only done about 5000 miles on it Link to post Share on other sites
Mk1 Vr6 james 103 Posted January 10, 2015 Report Share Posted January 10, 2015 No mate ben Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to post Share on other sites
BenCarson 7 Posted January 11, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 11, 2015 Mine goes in to get sorted on Friday, hired a flatbed to take mine in I have greenflag cover and gave them a rang, but as always despite me explicitly saying 'I need a flatbed' they still turn up with a normal tow truck I'm awaiting trans box then 1 hour labour to fit, and fingers crossed she will run like new You interested in a box mate? Would have to be collected though!Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Gearbox or trans box? If gearbox I'll say no this time, but thanks for the offer mate, I think (hope) it was the only part that hasn't blown itself to bits.. Cheers all Link to post Share on other sites
Mk1 Vr6 james 103 Posted January 11, 2015 Report Share Posted January 11, 2015 Whole lot £120 collectedSent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to post Share on other sites
BenCarson 7 Posted January 14, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 14, 2015 The 4motion is back today. brand new clutch kit, flywheel and airgon gas, Has also got a second hand transfer box fitted. All is good until I full lock and turn the car, the rear wheels lock and then spin suddenly, a lot of noises also, Haldex unit blown? Or sound like it needs a service? I'm certain this car will be great one day... soon.... Link to post Share on other sites
BenCarson 7 Posted January 15, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 15, 2015 I'm dreading the possibility that someone has welded the rear differential, surely no one would do that to a 4motion? I see no benefit.. Link to post Share on other sites
craggsy 91 Posted January 15, 2015 Report Share Posted January 15, 2015 What codes does vcds show?What kind of noises does it make? Link to post Share on other sites
cactusjackslade 146 Posted January 15, 2015 Report Share Posted January 15, 2015 My dad is currently suffering the exact same problem with his r32, we are still trying to resolve it. It sounds to me like the rear diff (Haldex unit) is locked in or constantly engaging. It is designed to only engage the rear wheels if you are loosing traction during hard acceleration for example then at slow speeds or normal driving should revert to front wheel drive only. With the rear wheels constantly engaged at slow speeds turning or on full lock it causes the transmission to wind up like a spring because the rear diff is not designed to allow the rear wheels to turn independently in tight corners. Suddenly the rear wheels spin around causing the banging and the car to violently jump and skip at the rear. Doesn't do any part of the transmission any good.. To confirm this pull the fuse out for the haldex unit and leave the car sit for an hour to allow the hydraulic pressure to release... Leave the fuse out and go for a drive testing it in tight corners. If the symptoms go away then u have a problem with haldex system. Was it like this before you had the work carried out?? Link to post Share on other sites
BenCarson 7 Posted January 16, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 16, 2015 What codes does vcds show?What kind of noises does it make? Getting it hooked up later, will report back, I suppose ABS and haldex are the controllers to look at for this case? My dad is currently suffering the exact same problem with his r32, we are still trying to resolve it. It sounds to me like the rear diff (Haldex unit) is locked in or constantly engaging. It is designed to only engage the rear wheels if you are loosing traction during hard acceleration for example then at slow speeds or normal driving should revert to front wheel drive only.With the rear wheels constantly engaged at slow speeds turning or on full lock it causes the transmission to wind up like a spring because the rear diff is not designed to allow the rear wheels to turn independently in tight corners. Suddenly the rear wheels spin around causing the banging and the car to violently jump and skip at the rear. Doesn't do any part of the transmission any good..To confirm this pull the fuse out for the haldex unit and leave the car sit for an hour to allow the hydraulic pressure to release... Leave the fuse out and go for a drive testing it in tight corners. If the symptoms go away then u have a problem with haldex system.Was it like this before you had the work carried out?? Thats exactly what i feels like, both rears are locked together, hence why the more lock, the bigger difference between both rears speed. The old transfer box in the car was blown to bits, and I'm now worried about blowing the new one up.. With fuse 31 out the car is perfect to maneuver,feels massively less 'tight' also, but traction loss is present up to 3rd gear in the wet (as expected) Will running her with fuse 31 out completely cause any major issues? And if so are they greater issues than this "bouncing" rear end will cause? She didn't do this prior to new transfer box/clutch/flywheel.. Going to try a full haldex service and then move on the expensive bits failing that.. Cheers both! cactusjackslade 1 Link to post Share on other sites
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