clutch on new to us Aston

[xcentric]

Clutch pedal has very high biting point on new to us Aston..... car is 7 years old with 7k miles on it, which seems low for a clutch to be on its way out.

There is no slip when accelerating hard or on a hill, so is it just a matter of adjustment? Or TADTS? Any way of telling how worn it might be?

[vernierMike]

It's not a lot of miles but many here have tales on here of low miles clutch wear. On the manual there no way of telling by inspection although for some reason there is an indicator on the robotised 'auto' version.

I was advised by an Aston dealer that my clutch was worn by having a light and high biting point although he didn't know it had just been fitted with a twin-plate conversion... (newly fitted by a specialist)

Drive it 'till it slips? DITIS?

[xcentric]

DITIS is okay but as it's a week and from Aston dealer, may make some noises.....

[Manx V8V]

Raise it with the dealer and ask them to have a short test drive with you or even just a prod on the pedal from an experienced foot, even if they say it feels fine to them ask them to log your visit and the fact that you raised it as a potential concern.

Then if it does become a problem in the near future you have an audit trail.

[bogie]

Ask them to check it out. If you have timeless warranty on it and it goes within the year and additional 10k miles Im sure they will offer something towards it. There is no way a new clutch should "just" last less than 15k miles.

My first 2006 Vantage clutch lasted to 73k miles then traded in for a 2012 car that was 3 yrs/32k mile old that had just had a fresh clutch at 30k miles so thought all would be fine. It lasted to 59k miles. It wasnt actually worn out, the release bearing failed ...so a another new clutch. Now 66k miles on 3rd clutch and hope this one gets past 100k or at least until I trade it in for a V12

[ds666]

Is it a v8?
Mine had a high bite point and no slip . I understand there is no way of telling a v8 clutch is on its way out until it starts slipping . There may be a bamford rose video on the subject
Pretty sure the clutch isn’t covered under warranty anyway .

[Manx V8V]

ds666 said:

Pretty sure the clutch isn’t covered under warranty anyway .

Yes consumables or wear and tear items tend to be excluded, I'm no legal expert but I think there is some provision under the sale of goods act of something like 90 days in relation to major faults, and given the amount of money involved in replacing a clutch on a Vantage I would argue that it is 'major' so possibly could be covered if required, hence the advice to put it on the dealers radar early.

All the above is in the event of worst case scenario of course, just pop it back and let them have a look/feel for now, then enjoy the car and see what happens.

Edit - It appears to now be the Consumer Rights Act 2015, and 30 days to flag it up.

Edited by Manx V8V on Sunday 8th March 13:08

[vernierMike]

If it's from an Aston Dealer and particularly with Timeless then the advice above is sound! At least register the concern and if you can get them to have a go, sounds like it might be some distance away. Found Timeless warranty to be pretty sympathetic.

[RiknRoll]

bogie said:

Ask them to check it out. If you have timeless warranty on it and it goes within the year and additional 10k miles Im sure they will offer something towards it. There is no way a new clutch should "just" last less than 15k miles.

My first 2006 Vantage clutch lasted to 73k miles then traded in for a 2012 car that was 3 yrs/32k mile old that had just had a fresh clutch at 30k miles so thought all would be fine. It lasted to 59k miles. It wasnt actually worn out, the release bearing failed ...so a another new clutch. Now 66k miles on 3rd clutch and hope this one gets past 100k or at least until I trade it in for a V12

Good luck on getting money off a clutch on the timeless warranty, if they say its wear and tear they won't do anything - as i've just experienced. Instead i've taken mine to Bamford Rose, where they seem to know what they are doing far more, and are much more open about pricing (being I believe also a bit cheaper). Personally I would drive until slips however (but mine is slipping, so... yeah lol).

For info, mines gone after about 20,000m. Mike said that was really early (on a V12V).

Edited by RiknRoll on Monday 9th March 10:21

[Loteuk1]

My clutch was high on the bite point (manual) and under the Timeless warranty, before it starts to slip.
Had a small discount on the replacement parts as the purchase date was fairly close to when it started to slip - full power in 6th.

Changed for the AM twin plate and blown away by the difference in gear change and engine response.
If only AM would cover this part..........

[xcentric]

update: driving back last Sun evening and funny noise - metallic clanging like fan hitting shroud - but when you get a feeling that's worse than that......

Long story short: roadside assistance is very good, so is recovery, so was dealer and AM as car has to have new engine as major bottom end failure. Decided to get money back and find another, as who knows what else may go.....

So by bye silver Aston. Now for another, but Covid-19 may drop prices a chunk so may wait a bit. Or may not.....

[Manx V8V]

Oh dear!! is it a V8 or V12? I wonder what exactly has happened as both motors are generally very tough and reliable, I guess you'll never find out now if you have sent it back, but it would be interesting to know just what has gone wrong.

[blueg33]

A 7000 mile Aston needs a new engine!

Aston’s move further down my want list.

[ds666]

Can you just reject a car that simply ? I know you are suggesting a serious issue but isn’t that what the warranty is for ?
Do you have any custard ?

[xcentric]

It is indeed what the warranty is for. But my concern was that something so catastrophic is unusual, and so most likely caused by s change in things - perhaps in style of driving. If a car's been sitting doing <1k miles a year, then some spirited driving is quite likely different - we did half it's previous annual mileage in a week.....

And this is possibly going to be the same for the gearbox, diff, etc. - thus there's always a worry there. And a car that is bought only for joy shouldn't;t be a background worry.....

Re rejecting it, it's part of the consumer rights act. Not that I needed to wave my rights around - the dealer has been excellent in looking after me. No complaints there, and would happily buy from them again if they had the right car.

[ds666]

I fear all old cars always have an element of worry about them .
Still that’s a good result and you’ll probably get a better car cheaper now due to world issues . If we are allowed out ...

[bogie]

Wow, never heard of a failure like that before on a Vantage, regardless of age. At least you were well within time to reject it...versus it being out of warranty in a years time.