How to know if the car clutch is slipping?

One of the clearest symptoms that you have a broken car clutch are problems with acceleration. One indication can be that despite switching to higher gears, the car does not accelerate in proportions that it should. If you have been in this situation, it is likely that the car clutch is slipping. This happens, because the engine power is not delivered to the drive shaft and has power loss in the gears. And this loss of torque and power is similar to “slippage” and in mechanical terms called clutch slip.

Though you might not notice it much, but it becomes prominent when driving on slopes or overtaking. The engine would lag when you need more power from the car. For the meanwhile, you can reduce your gear to a lower speed where the car runs smoother without trouble.

In general, it is recommended to drive below 100 kilometers per hour, as well as to go to a workshop as soon as possible to have the vehicle’s condition checked.

Another symptom that may indicate a slipping clutch is the smell of burning from the engine housing.

You can sense the smell when you keep the clutch pressed for too long or force it too much on different terrains. This causes increased friction in the internal parts of the car, including the clutch mechanism. This friction is what causes this characteristic burning smell.

If this is not fixed in time, it can damage other parts of the vehicle or make it worse.

On the other hand, it cannot be ignored that the main function of the clutch is to change the gears of the vehicle. If when you change from one gear to another you notice that the clutch does not respond as it should, that is, the gear does not change easily or, even when it does, the vehicle accelerates and makes strange noises, it is most likely that the clutch is damaged .

These damages can be of different types. One of the most common cases is that the gear wheels inside the mechanism have broken or deformed as a result of forcing the clutch. In these cases, it will be necessary to go through the workshop so that they carry out a revision and can repair the vehicle.

Finally, another symptom that can help you know if the car’s clutch is slipping or damaged is the presence of noises that shouldn’t be there.

In fact, although the presence of noises such as squeaks and forced friction can occur when changing gear, these noises can also appear during the use of continuous gears, that is, when the clutch is not being used. In these cases, it is important to be aware of the sounds and possible strange noises made by the vehicle, as well as the moments in which they are heard more clearly. Some examples are:

• Annoying noises when the car goes up a hill
• Annoying noises when the car goes down a hill
• Strange noises when the car accelerates
• Strange noises when the car is braking

If the noises persist over time and there is no apparent cause, it is also possible that it is a clutch problem, regardless of whether the noises appear when this pedal is used or not.

If this article has been useful to you and you want to discover more about your vehicle, don’t miss this text on When should I change the clutch in my car .