Tailhook

Hi all,
Brand new to this forum and have a problem that I hope someone can help me out with.

My 2007 S2k was stolen and recovered by police about 4 miles from my home. When the car was recovered it had to be towed because it would not start. The clutch would not depress at all and the car was towed to my Honda dealership for evaluation/repair. My problem now is that my insurance will not pay for repair unless the repair shop can show in writing that the damage to the transmission was done as a result of the theft and not normal wear and tear. The service rep at Honda is telling me it will be very difficult to determine that the damage is due specifically to the theft.

This car has 113k miles on it. I had to replace the master clutch cylinder at 90k and at that time the repair shop told me the transmission looked fine. I have had zero other problems with the clutch or transmission on this car.

Does anyone one have any experience with this sort of problem? In general is it really difficult to tell if the transmission was damaged due to misuse/abuse or normal wear and tear?

Appreciate your thoughts or suggestions on this matter.

s2000ellier

was it towed in gear?

Tailhook

As far as I know the gear was set in neutral for towing and it was on a flatbed tow truck. When I inspected the car at the tow yard I could move the shift in and out of the neutral position but the clutch would not depress and the car could not be started.

windhund116

When you say wouldn't depress, do you mean the pedal won't move. Or it moves all the way to the bottom, without the clutch being activated?

Thanks!

Tailhook

The pedal would not move.

windhund116

Sounds mechanical (in the clutch mechanism). Like a seized throw-out bearing. But, to rule out hydraulics, you'd need to remove the brake slave cylinder and see if the pedal is still frozen. If so, it's the hydraulics (master or slave). If not, it's in the clutch mechanism.

Good luck!

Orjinal

Did the insurance company specify the writing needs to be from that honda dealership or it can be from any state certified mechanic?

HarryD

By the powers of logic and deduction, it was derivable before they stole it? And now it's impossible to drive now (because you can't press the clutch down at all)?

Hopefully you'll find someone with common sense at your insurance company... Or get the dealer to write that up for ya...

Car Analogy

This. Exactly what I was thinking. The reason they left it was they couldn't drive it anymore.

Unless insurance is thinking maybe it was total coincidence and clutch/trans happened to die right when it happened to be being driven by thief on same day he stole it.

That or more likely ins thinks you are lying about theft to get them to pay for worn parts.

freq

Who is the insurance carrier?