Clutch problems in 1986 Spider

["Brad Harris" <brad.harris@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I am about to take the clutch apart in my 1986 Spider and I thought I would
get some input before I take everything apart. I have e-mailed Fred a little
while ago on this subject and got a good response but I thought that I would
try to get as many opinions as possible now that I can post on the digest
again (I have been forced to only read the digest for around 6 months due to
my firewall).

Here is the history:

Clutch was replaced just over 1 year before the trouble began (flywheel was
turned at the same time and a new engine main seal). I only had about 2k
miles on the new clutch when the problem started.

Here is how the damage was done:

I was on my way to work one morning. On the ramp of the highway I was
quickly accelerating to get to 65 mph and also having some fun on the way to
work. When I went to shift gears from second to third (at around 6500 rpm's)
the gas pedal got stuck under the edge of the floor mat. The engine of
course began to rev up freely and I quickly reached down with my hand and
pulled the pedal up. It took me at most two seconds to get the gas pedal up
and the clutch was engaged the entire time. It felt more like two minutes as
I watched the tach go up. When the pedal was up and the rpm's were back to
idle I put the car back in gear and drove to work. I immediately heard a
slight buzzing sound from the bell housing area. It shifted fine the rest of
the way to work. On the way home it started to shift worse and worse. I
finally drove it home by taking off from second gear. When I rev the engine
up without the clutch engaged (pedal not pressed in) I can hear a buzzing
sound like something is loose in the clutch area (more noticeable when I am
going through a tunnel or underpass where the sound waves can bounce back).

The car will shift fine if the engine is off. When the engine is running I
can't shift into first or reverse due to grinding. Second is stiff but I can
get it in there without grinding (most of the time). Third and higher gears
are not that bad. Double clutching does not help. The clutch feels as if the
throw out bearing or something has gone and when I engage the clutch the
transmission is still spinning slightly with the engine speed. I have
checked to make sure the hydraulic systems are working correctly and they
are.

I have a feeling that when I take the clutch out I will be able to tell what
is wrong but any suggestions are welcome.

The engine made it through this drive to work with no problems with thanks
going out to Sperry Valve works for previous work that let the engine spin
at high RPM's without tearing anything up in the head.

Brad H.

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