My engagement point is pretty far out, always has been, even after 3 new clutches. Always seemed normal to me.

 

I would possible look for a new friend.

 

3 clutches? how many miles do you have on your car? and why was the clutch replaced the previous times?

 

embarrassment if someone else hears it!

 

As others have said, it's the dogs that grind, not the gears, and I'm not sure I'd believe anyone who said that they had never experienced a light grind with the car. By "light grind" I mean one that you can just hear, but not feel (or barely feel) through the shifter. The grinding takes place when the shifter is pushed or pulled so hard that it overpowers the lockout ring and the dogs try to engage without being synchronized. Sometimes you'll feel the dogs engage, as a single "thunk" you feel through the shifter, and that's OK, as long as it's not a violent jerk.

As long as the clutch is releasing fully it can be too worn out to move the car and still won't contribute to gear grind. Slip or disengagement lets you shift while a failure to disengage fully will cause a grind. I think the "friend" may have it backwards and doubt that the car actually needs a new clutch. If the engagement point was low rather than high, an adjustment might be in order, but a good mechanic should know that the symptom that points to a worn out clutch is slipage.

 

The car "asplodes."

 

LOL, when I grind a gear I often utter a profanity.

 

Even slippage is not the end all and be all of a worn out clutch although it is probably the best one we have aside from looking at the clutch plate. The reason is because if you did a hard launch and it "glazed" the clutch, it can cause slippage for a little giving similar symptoms to a worn clutch.

 

Just hit 30k on the clock.

But, the car has spent more time in the shop than I have driving it. That's all changed now that the tuning is done though.