Clank/clunk at clutch engagement

[GerGa]

Hi, have had a 06 93 aero(42000miles) for a month now. My first manual transmission car. On my first drive home I slammed 2nd gear. Was going about 25 mph and let the clutch out fast in 2nd. Not good. Ever since there is a clunk everytime I shift, more noticable at lower than highway speeds.
Any ideas and solutions are greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Ps. On a side note, here is a picture of my jack kit. What am I missing? The tire wrench is too small for the wheel nuts, and I do see some empty spaces in than foam form.

[cadcamjim]

I'm surprised one bad clutch engagement bothered anything, but it doesn't sound good. When do you hear the clunk? When you are letting the clutch out?
Not sure if the V-6 has a DMF or not?

Your pic didn't come out, but I suspect that you have the black plastic lug-nut covers atop the lug bolts. There should be a small "U-shaped" tool to remove them in either the glove box or the spare-tire area. If not you can carefully pry them off with a rocking motion using either a pair of needle-nose vise grips or a pair of screwdrivers wrapped with tape to prevent marring the wheel. The lug bolts take a 17MM hex.

[GerGa]

Picture fixed.
Your right now that I think about it, one bad engagement might not do it, and im not sure if it made the clunk before that bad engagement. The clunk is when I engage the clutch.

['97 Saab SE Turbo]

Check out youtube and search for DMF. You can raise the front end, put the transmission in 6th and see how much the front wheel rotates. i saw one that rotated 1/4 turn which indicated bad DMF. The DMF is $1100 plus labor... Ron

[GerGa]

I find the clunk happens when the shift is less smooth, like when I let the rpm's drop too much before engaging the clutch between shifts. I jacked up the car, put it in 6th and the wheel rotated probably less than a 16th of a turn.

[cadcamjim]

If it's your lucky day, maybe you've got a failed motor or trans mount, but at only 42k that doesn't seem too likely. In general, I find today's drive-by-wire throttles to be far more difficult to rev-match and thus achieve smooth clutch re-engagement with their the old cable-actuated counterparts. The amount of load that the a/c compressor is under also makes a dramatic difference in how fast the RPM's drop between shifts. With the compressor off or under a light load, the rev's take what seems like forever to drop. But on a hot day with the compressor at maximum displacement, the engine speed drops very quickly. Just makes it a bit more difficult to get consistently smooth shifts, especially when driven hard.

[GerGa]

Originally Posted by cadcamjim

If it's your lucky day, maybe you've got a failed motor or trans mount, but at only 42k that doesn't seem too likely. In general, I find today's drive-by-wire throttles to be far more difficult to rev-match and thus achieve smooth clutch re-engagement with their the old cable-actuated counterparts. The amount of load that the a/c compressor is under also makes a dramatic difference in how fast the RPM's drop between shifts. With the compressor off or under a light load, the rev's take what seems like forever to drop. But on a hot day with the compressor at maximum displacement, the engine speed drops very quickly. Just makes it a bit more difficult to get consistently smooth shifts, especially when driven hard.

I 100% agree on the rpm matching difficulties.

Does anyone know anyways to check for a failed motor or transmission mount? Where to look(are they all easily visible)?

[GerGa]

Originally Posted by '97 Saab SE Turbo

Check out youtube and search for DMF. You can raise the front end, put the transmission in 6th and see how much the front wheel rotates. i saw one that rotated 1/4 turn which indicated bad DMF. The DMF is $1100 plus labor... Ron

I take back what I posted. I lifted the left front wheel again, put it in 6th, and I can make the the wheel turn all the way around!!! When spun freely, it doesnt go far, but with enough effort it spins around and around!
The transmission is under warranty, do you think the dealer will do anything for me?

[felchi80]

Originally Posted by GerGa

I take back what I posted. I lifted the left front wheel again, put it in 6th, and I can make the the wheel turn all the way around!!! When spun freely, it doesnt go far, but with enough effort it spins around and around!
The transmission is under warranty, do you think the dealer will do anything for me?

any updates?

[GerGa]

Originally Posted by felchi80

any updates?

Nope, just been driving. I took it to my mechanic, he put it in gear and rolled it back and forth. That is the sound that I am hearing sooo..

edit: I also figured out the wheel nut problem. I figured out that there are caps on the nuts. You can pry them off with a screw driver but that will mess up the finish on the wheels. A tool can be bought from saab usa parts dot com for the tool and caps.

[felchi80]

Originally Posted by GerGa

Nope, just been driving. I took it to my mechanic, he put it in gear and rolled it back and forth. That is the sound that I am hearing sooo..

edit: I also figured out the wheel nut problem. I figured out that there are caps on the nuts. You can pry them off with a screw driver but that will mess up the finish on the wheels. A tool can be bought from saab usa parts dot com for the tool and caps.

ic... I'm having a rough engagement too, have to be really gentle when releasing the clutch. Not sure what's causing this or if it's normal...

[GerGa]

Originally Posted by felchi80

ic... I'm having a rough engagement too, have to be really gentle when releasing the clutch. Not sure what's causing this or if it's normal...

Mechanic said its normal. I dont like the metallic clank sound but I have been getting better at shiffing lately.