20k+ and still going strong. **knocks on wood**

 

up on 17k with its fair share of hard burns and glazes. Still grabs second HARD.

 

29,000 still good, i drive it like i stole it....

 

changed mine at 12k.


its all how you drive.


J, were you spinning your tires right before you shifted?

 

stay out of boost for 2 weeks.
shift the car at 3500 rpms. nothing lower than this.

make sure the clutch is fully engaged before pressing the gas pedal down.

mine was doing the same thing about 3k miles ago. i have done what i posted above. i can now hammer it through all the gears just fine.

im over 20k miles with over 270 to the tire. it's not the power. it's the driver.

 

I'll be the first to admit that I'm a novice when it comes to driving a standard transmission. The first time I got behind the wheel of a standard transmission car was about a year and half ago. I was the proud owner of a brand new Ford Focus ZX3... I know, spare me the insults and shameful looks because it was what I could afford at the time.

Good news is I totalled it after 4 luxerious weeks of ownership.

I went from the Focus to an Impala.

I've been in my SS s/c since August 31 and I'm concerned about the wear my novice driving is having on my clutch.

Sometimes I'm smooth with my shifts out of first and into second... and sometimes im not... and sometimes I still stall on a hill. My clutch to gas ratio in this car seems more difficult to master than I remember it being in my hot rod (joke) focus.

Would anyone care to describe basic clutch operation from a standstill and then swtiching from first to second?

Once I get off the line shifting through 3rd, 4th and overdrive are cake.

Under normal driving conditions (ie not showing off for the ladies) should I be letting the clutch out slowly while pressing the gas or should this be a quick motion bring my left foot quickly up from the floor and quickly pressing down lightly on the gas?

Same question for switching from first to second. Split second quick or let it out slow or somewhere in between.

Help me help my poor car.

 

I had the same issues with this car becuase I to didnt have much experience with a 5spd before this car, It just takes practice, you will find that sweet spot between the gas and clutch and it will become second nature to you. Hills blow when you first start trying to learn to drive this car, believe me I know the feeling becuase I bought the car in Jacksonville which is flat and has no hills, then the next day I had to drive to Pensacola for school, Pcola is full of hills. Just when going on a hill, release the clutch slowly and press the gas slowly until you feel the car moving a bit you will have to give it more gas than clutch , as soon as it begins to move proceed to release clutch a bit faster and add more gas and there you go.

Just be careful that you are not giving too much of either or you will mess this clutch up, and no it wont happen after a lil bit of driving, it will happen over time if you dont find the sweet spot between the gas and clutch.

 

The clutch is definately different in the cobalt 2.0L system.

It is very hard to bleed correctly, and also the aftermarket clutch kits are slim to find a good one. The only 3 good clutch kits IMO is the Exedy Hyper Single, SPEC Stage 2+ and SPEC Stage 3+...

 

please dont take this as an insult....its to help you.

but you need to realise that your clutch slip is happening because of your feet
you have added mods recently, and you need to adjust your driving style to accomodate.

there are 2 very very simple things that will stop it happening.
#1 do NOT shift to second if you wheelspin through first and expect it to grab.
#2 give your clutch just a hair splitsecond more to grab before you throw the torque at it.

this video i made has helped alot of people with this issue
https://www.cobaltss.net/forums/show...p+driver+input
hope it helps ya.

 

at the hills... I go to college in the heart of the Texas hill country. All of my classes are in the same area of campus and any route to get there means taking a big long and steep hill with at least 2-3 stoplights.

I'm comfortable enough to stall maybe one out of 20 but sometimes that means giving way more gas than I know I should have to.

You're absolutely right about time. The more I'm in the car, the more second nature shifting and clutch action will become. I think my biggest problem is overthinking my actions as I'm doing them. Seems I'm much smoother when I simply "do it" so to speak.

Hopefully I'll find the sweet spot before my clutch finds my wallet.

 

im going to baby the hell out of my car, sometimes i get on it, but i never do burnouts or shift hard, when i beat on it i just stay in one gear till i can gear out and thats all no racing for me besides like 2x which were from a roll. im buying a new clutch asap and having it on standby for when mine goes. jkennedy i think you should get the clutch warranteed but buy a stronger one next time it goes

 

mine went yesteday, 13,000 miles on the car and GM DOESNT COVER THIS, unless there is a part broken they wont replace a worn clutch, will cost me 1100

 

what do you mean there arent any good aftermarket clutch kits? your telling me that gm makes the best clutch for the car?

 

GMs clutch is fine in this car if you drive it properly.
the only problem is, its unforgiving if you dont drive it how it needs to be driven.


IMO most of the aftermarket clutches installed in cobalts is to give it enough strength to make up for drivers mistakes.
not to hold any extra power

 

good thing i have yet to do a burnout or launch in my car. im def buying a aftermarket stronger clutch tho just incase w/e my clutch decides to **** on me

 

This works, I don't think you need to 3500 rpm but 3000 will work aswell. Mine started to slip at about 17,000 miles going into second. Did what was mentioned above and it was fixed. as fare as after market clutches go I have always prefer spec. I think the Exedy is way over priced for a clutch and fly wheel combo. You can buy them separate from another company and save some money.

 

You should be able to get the Excedy clutch for a decent price if you talk to a local speed shop of sorts. Usually they can get a discount, when mine goes that will be the direction that I go.

 

I had the same problem with my cobalt. For the 26000 miles I had it. I never had the clutch die, but my 1-2 shift was so slurrrred. Sometimes I would get lucky and chirp it, other times I would hear my supercharger slowly slow down until the engine caught up with the transmission. Now I got my stang and I chirp 3rd... Hard. I can chirp 4th if i wanted to.

But, the cobalt really does need to be driven hard to grab right.

 

i am just wondering if a good test to see if the cluch is still good would be driving at 45mph, pushing the cluch in, putting it in second, stalling the motor to 7000 while dumping the cluch at the same time... It will spin hard...

 

this is directly related to the amount of tread on the tires.

 

AND your awareness of the fact.....
and ability to drive accordingly

its not fair to have bald tires...roast first, slam to second, and then blame the clutch for your poor driving. know what i mean?

 

wow...i think im the only one here with 50k on my stock clutch that works perfect

 

nah im sure there are countless people actually they just have nothing to complain about, so we dont hear about it
I have 30k on mine and it will chirp second on a sticky track.

 

i can hammer first, hit second, and continue to roll smoke off the tires. blad tires are fun.

i do not recommend this for the new people. the timing has to be perfect to achieve this, along with power levels, which a stage 2 car does not have.



there is always exceptions to the rules

 

yeah but we both know your smart enough to realise that your ability to dance on the peddles is what decides how your clutch reacts

Im just trying to help people understand that.