I bought my car last summer and I haven't had any real problems with it since. Since purchase the clutch has been grabbing very high, I'd say 3/4 to the top. It never slipped or anything and grabbed fine so I didn't think anything of it as this is my first manual car until I drove a few of my friends hondas.. I was thinking it could just be an adjustment but a few times over the past couple weeks I would shift and the RPMs would climb after the shift, almost as if I was just revving it. Now it feels like the car is slipping in the higher gears on the highway. It's still fine driving around town. I didn't sodomize the clutch when learning and I rarely get on the car, plus it has 35k so I really dont think its the clutch. I'm don't know that much so I can be wrong but does anybody have any ideas on what it could be?

 

My clutch was ruined by my S2K's previous owner at only 8K ! From what you've written, imo your clutch is slipping. Test it by egaging 4th gear and try to move off keeping the parking brake on. If the clutch is good, it should grab and stall the engine. If it's slipping, the engine won't stall immediately but the revs will climb a bit and you'll get that awful burning smell associated with a stock clutch.

Get it professionally checked and fit a street competition clutch kit since the standard kit (especially the pressure plate) isn't up to the job on such a performance car. Ensure that the flywheel is not damaged. If it is, replace it and not resurface it. I tell you this not to go through the same nightmare I've just been through : I had bought a street competition clutch kit and got the Honda dealership to install it and the a**-holes didn't have the decency to check the flywheel (which was warped) and this ruined the whole works within 2 weeks and after a lot of arguements they pulled it all apart again and fitted a stock clutch kit and new flywheel (i.e. I paid for a street competition clutch kit for nothing just to see it being burnt out in 2 weeks because of negligence on their part by not checking the state of the flywheel). The car is fine now but having a stock clutch kit and not a street comp one doesn't inspire much confidence....

I hope this helps. Good luck !

 

Anybody have any other ideas or good ways the average driver can check for a slipping clutch? Like I said before, this is my first manual car so I don't know exactly what a slipping clutch feels like

 

It feels exactly as you described. If it revs fast while engaged, but doesn't pull the car as it should, then it's slipping. It is possible that the surface may be glazed or contaminated in some way which would also cause it to slip.

 

When it's slipping a lot, you can be driving around at around 4,000 rpms, and when you mash the gas, the revs climb and the car doesn't go any faster.

I don't agree with the post saying replace flywheel no matter what when changing clutch, most of the time resurfacing/machining the flywheel is all that is needed.

 

^ I agree I would resurface the fly wheel at least once or in my opinion your just wasting money on a brand new fly wheel (unless you want to get a lighter one)

 

35,000 miles is plenty for a clutch in an S2000. .many last longer but 35K isn't an unreal expectation.

 

^^^^^ thats encouraging.

 

it's the truth.. AP2s will last longer because of the Clutch Delay Valve

 

mine lasted 148k

there's no reason to replace a flywheel though, unless it's been machined to the point it's out of thickness tolerance