Puma eating clutches for breakfast

[alittlebitconcerned]

I'm in need of good advice and a stiff drink.

My 2008 puma defender is on its third clutch which was replaced under warranty only a month and a half ago. The clutch before that was only in for maybe three months. The current one has started slipping about a week ago and is getting worse by the day. My car has so far had an easy life (cant get the damn thing out of the wirkshop long enough to go anywhere) and certainly had not been abused. Since the last clutch was put in the driving has been all onroad highway and around town driving.

Why does my puma eat clutches?

[weeds]

driving style.....i'm assuming you would not be doing either of the following

i have seen others do things like ride the clutch when waiting on a slight rise/hill for lights to change or give way to traffic, a friend on mine will not get out of the habit resting her foot on the clutch pedal all the time i.e never takes if off

on a technical side i cannot help out sorry...what had been the condition of the flywheel each time? have they been throwing in a new clutch with the existing flywheel?

[canblogerra]

sounds highly unusual. I don't know the mechanism in the Puma, but could there be something blocking the release of the clutch pedal fully, or are the springs in the pressure plate shot resulting in insufficient pressure on the clutch when released? Or maybe oil leaking through and onto the clutch plate.

In any case, for the clutch to be worn out so quickly I 'd have thought it would stink and smoke when you drove. any evidence like that?

Best of luck ... and remember it is mechanics not magic ... cause and effect ... warantee should reasonably cover this recurrent issue which you raised earlier and appears not to have been resolved.

[PAT303]

Maybe it needs a mechanic,not a dealer monkey to see what the problem is.I would have thought they would have noticed something wasn't right by now. Pat

[TimNZ]

Do you know if they are replacing the whole clutch or just the friction plate? Would be nice to know what the flywheel looks like, it could be glazed???

If you had the cash/inclination I'd agree with Pat and get an independant to have a look. With my experiences with LR the dealers seem to be forced, (by LRA), to just fix the fault, not find the acutal cause, with vehicles under warranty.

Cheers,

[PAT303]

Is there any slack in the peddle?,can you let it out a bit before take up?. Pat

[alittlebitconcerned]

Is there any slack in the peddle?,can you let it out a bit before take up?. Pat

Cheers Pat, There is no slack in the peddle that I can feel, in fact but it grabs much earlier than a couple of other Pumas that I have driven.

[alittlebitconcerned]

Do you know if they are replacing the whole clutch or just the friction plate? Would be nice to know what the flywheel looks like, it could be glazed???

If you had the cash/inclination I'd agree with Pat and get an independant to have a look. With my experiences with LR the dealers seem to be forced, (by LRA), to just fix the fault, not find the acutal cause, with vehicles under warranty.

Cheers,

Hi Tim. The workshop said that they replaced the whole clutch each time. I spoke to a real mechanic today who said the same thing you did about the fly wheel. After three clutches, whether it is the cause or not, he suggested that I push to get it replaced under warranty when they do the clutch.

[alittlebitconcerned]

Maybe it needs a mechanic,not a dealer monkey to see what the problem is.I would have thought they would have noticed something wasn't right by now. Pat

I completely agree. I've booked it in with an independent LR mechanic a week before the dealers get their paws on it again.

[alittlebitconcerned]

sounds highly unusual. I don't know the mechanism in the Puma, but could there be something blocking the release of the clutch pedal fully, or are the springs in the pressure plate shot resulting in insufficient pressure on the clutch when released? Or maybe oil leaking through and onto the clutch plate.

In any case, for the clutch to be worn out so quickly I 'd have thought it would stink and smoke when you drove. any evidence like that?

Best of luck ... and remember it is mechanics not magic ... cause and effect ... warantee should reasonably cover this recurrent issue which you raised earlier and appears not to have been resolved.

If it's possible to tell through the feel of the peddle when I drive whether its being blocked or not, I would have to say no, it feels normal; but can't really say. Also, There's no evidence of smoke that I've seen. Thanks canblogerra.