So I have owned a 2007 s2000 for 5 years, and recently a friend purchased a 2006 s2000. Both cars are bone stock, my s2000 has 46k miles and his has 55k miles. Both cars have recently had the same items serviced by me: new Honda MTF, new clutch fluid, gravity bleed slave cylinder, slave rod polish, urea grease applied to slave rod and clutch fork, new spark plugs, redline 75W-90 diff fluid, synthetic 10W-30 oil change. When I drive both cars I can’t help but notice a difference in the clutch feel.

My clutch feels pretty light, the engagement point is high on the pedal, roughly 1 – 2” from the top. When I release the clutch I have to pull up my foot and have the pedal follow, it feels like the pedal pressure to return isn’t very strong. It’s a little jerky starting from a stop, as a small difference in foot pressure relates to a larger pedal travel and clutch engagement. I don’t have any issues with full clutch engagement/disengagement, nor do I have any gear grinding. From what I can research the engagement point of Honda clutches are pretty high. As far as I know everything is working fine, and I would have never known a difference.

However now when I drive his car, the pedal is noticeably firmer, and the engagement point is a little lower than mine. I really like the feel of his clutch, the feedback is better. When I disengage the clutch, the pedal pressure kind of pushes my foot back up. I feel that the car shifts better and I am able shift faster. Starting from a stop is smoother as I can feel the pedal pressure and release more consistently.

I bled both clutches with the same fluid in the same way, so I don’t believe air is in the system. To my knowledge both cars have the original clutch master, slave cylinder, clutch disk and pressure plate. I am hoping to gain some insight into which car is proper? Is it possible that one of our clutch master cylinders is bad? Could this be indicative of a worn clutch disk or pressure plate? Is better for the clutch pedal on these cars to be on the lighter side or the firmer side. Hoping Billman could help chime in possibly.

 

Probably pedal adjustment. That said, I swear every S I've driven (15+) seen to have different clutch feels

 

Every clutch in ANY car is going to be different. No two clutches are exactly the same in any model of standard transmission car, the S included.

 

I wonder if you adjusted both to remove the freeplay in the clutch rod , if that would make a difference. But I agree the few different s2000's I've driven have all had there differences in clutch feel & quirk's .

 

The higher the clutch pedal grabs, the more the disc is worn. This also affects the fulcrum point, which affects pressure. In your car, the disc is worn to what I call "past fulcrum". So your pedal pressure will be less.

Grease on the fork tips also has a large affect on pedal feel. In your case it is simply disc wear.

Right after I do a clutch for a customer, they stall the car, as the clutch grabs considerably lower (just under halfway released)

It will grab even lower than this with an ACT PP.

 

Thanks all! Is it common for a car with 46k miles to be past the "fulcrum point" already? Would this much wear in the clutch disk be indicative of aggressive driving by the previous owner? Roughly speaking how much clutch life (in miles) would be remaining once past the fulcrum point?


It sounds like I should start budgeting for a clutch replacement. I am also beginning to worry about the previous ownership and wear on the car.

 

You could make it another 10k, or 100k. It all comes down to the driver. Clutch wear is normal, it doesn't necessarily mean abuse.