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I bought a Leon Cupra TSI 280 less than 2 months ago and done 1750 miles and the clutch has gone!

I took it back to them with around 900 miles on and less than a month old with the problem as the clutch had twice stuck down and the Rev counter maxes out and car goes no where until pedal comes back up! Then it started doing it intermittent revving when changing gear but going no where but fine when setting off!

When I took it back the senior technician said that the clutch was soft and would harden up after a few thousand miles... And it's gone!

They've looked at it today and said they want 5 hours labour to strip it down then if it's something that's caused the clutch to go they will cover it under warranty! I refused as I'd taken it back to them with my concerned and they brushed me off... They are now looking at stripping it for free but I will have to pay for the clutch if that's gone without any component causing it! Surely a clutch that's playing up in under 900 miles on a performance car is not fit for purpose?

Opinions and advice please...

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    Welcome to the site. How old is the clutch? Do you know if it is OEM or aftermarket? – Zaid Aug 21 '15 at 19:17
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    Do you rest your left foot on the clutch pedal when you drive? That could cause premature wear on your clutch, but I have never heard of a clutch going in 900miles. – rana Aug 21 '15 at 19:44
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    Did you buy it new? If it isn't, how many miles does it have? – George Aug 21 '15 at 19:52
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    If you bought it brand new take it back and don't pay a dime for their cardboard clutch or replacing it. 1750 miles is ridiculous no matter how hard you are on it. And even if you somehow did it intentionally it would be easy to tell by other worn components. – I have no idea what I'm doing Sep 29 '15 at 18:25
  • @IhavenoideawhatI'mdoing Bad advice right there. Clutch is a wearable item. It takes one bad engagement to destroy a clutch regardless of the miles on the car. If driven improperly, one can destroy brand new clutch in 1 mile. – Alexus Apr 26 '16 at 17:21
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Let's put it this way. You burned your clutch.

If your clutch got stuck, you could just take it back and may be get it fixed under warranty, because it would be engagement mechanism, not the clutch disk. But by doing this: "Rev counter maxes out and car goes no where until pedal comes back up!" you burned your clutch, and most likely flywheel as well, so you are in for an expensive, out of warranty job.

It really takes one bad time to burn a clutch, and if you feel it's slipping, the worst you can do is keep holding the accelerator.

I don't think you will get it replaced under warranty, so be ready to pay a a bit, and next time, remember that regardless of miles or age of the car, you can burn the clutch in one bad launch or engagement of you are doing it wrong.

P.S. I have a car with 139k kms on thesame stock clutch with a number of launches, track days and aggressive driving. Friend of mine with the same car destroyed his clutch at 2700 kms one day. It really takes little effort.

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  • I think you're quick to come to conclusions here. As I understood it the clutch was slipping initially. I doubt you could redline a TSI 280 Cupra with the clutch engaged without moving. Or any car, really. – I have no idea what I'm doing Apr 27 '16 at 7:01
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    Once you glaze and overheat the clutch, you can redline any car. Material on the clutch cooks and it starts to feel like ceramic bowl. No friction what so ever if it's severe enough. I have dealt with so many people buying brand new manual cars and talking about how bad the clutch is and how it went after a week. Yet to a see single defective clutch. Only user errors so far. – Alexus Apr 27 '16 at 16:55

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