I've given up re my sticking clutch pedal

I’ve known about the LS1 issues since I started researching this. Unfortunately, from what I’ve read, they all claim it’s because of this, or that, that and this (i.e. nothing especially conclusive).
I’ve had the SAC reset, the entire thing taken apart, etc. to no avail. After 7 months, I’ve pretty much tried everything there is to try.

A clutch stop might indeed help by not getting into that situation in the first place (i.e. not fix the problem but not get to the point where it would trigger it) but no one’s made a clutch stop for the B7 that I can see. I guess I could try making my own lol

Oh, and regarding those LS1 problems, most seem to be lazy pedals not coming back fast enough. For me, it’s not lazy. It’s just stuck 1" from the floor with the point of friction about 1/2" from the floor. Technically, I could drive the car perfectly fine like that if I wanted 1" of travel (since everything works as it should).
Then, when I pull the clutch pedal back out, I feel resistance until a certain point where the pedal suddenly snaps back into place. The pedal is never lazy. There’s simply something stopping it from returning into place (as there’s resistance when I pull it back until I pass a certain point where it bounces all the way back into its normal position). And again, when it’s down, the entire stock travel is simply reduced to 1". When it’s stuck down, the clutch isn’t as if the pedal was pressed down. The clutch grabs and everything. So it’s contracting the pedal’s overall travel.

Yeah, they were launches from just under 4000 RPM, ripping through to 7000, then shifting and starting each gear down around 4500-5000 RPM.

Yeah, that’s what I figured. Really freaking weird eh?

my brother’s T/A had issues with the lazy pedal, next time I see him I’ll ask him what he did (he had awesome success with some fix, I just can’t recall the details whatsoever). It may have been separating the brake system from the clutch system.

are rods going into the cylinders replaced when you swap the cylinders?

RS4 having the same problem

http://forums.quattroworld.com/rs4b7/msgs/93519.phtml

what about brake fluid?

axel did you have any work done on your brakes when you started having this problem? same fluid.

Not sure if we discussed that above.

Has nothing to do with brake fluid. Still had OEM brake fluid when it started happening. Since I’ve switched to RBF600 and nothing’s changed.

I’m curious about this “rod” thing. I have no idea what that’s about. Is it part of the cylinder itself?

Edit: Just spoke to my mechanic and he says it is part of the cylinder itself. Another possibility is the fork inside the clutch assembly. Next step is to replace the fork and pressure plate and take it from there. What a PITA.

I asked what the relationship is between the jhm setup and the oem rs4 setup

Anyone?

I don’t think it has anything to do with the JHM setup. And if an OEM RS4 is also having the issue (and from my search, it seems other car makes as well), it seems to be a more generic issue.

I had the exact same issue, especially when running the car hard. I replaced my OEM fluid with this and GONE. My clutch has never stuck since, no matter how hard I drive.

http://i1295.photobucket.com/albums/b629/sobers4/21678245-4592-40A9-A1B1-38029F426CFB-6830-00000771E3E41EFC.jpg

^^ Thanks for your input but I’m using Motul RBF600 which has similar boiling points and nothing changed so I’m guessing we weren’t having the same problem.

http://www.hrpworld.com/index.cfm?tpc=Motul-RBF-600-Racing-Brake-Fluid&form_prod_id=138&action=product

Are you sure that JHM doesn’t use any oem rs4 parts on their clutch kit?

How much was it?

I believe only the actual clutch is JHM. All the supporting parts are OEM. Could be wrong I guess but that was my impression.

Edit: You’re referring to the OEM RS4 Pressure Plate. Interesting. I guess that part could be the cause for my and other RS4 stuck pedals. Would make sense.

Almost positive it uses a oem rs4 pressure plate.

Jay told me if I could pull everything and ship to him he’s inspect and replace whatever he could. But I haven’t had the motivation to pull the teams and have it sit for a month. Plus headers seem like pulling the trams would be a real bitch! I can’t even slide the trans out from under the car if I do it on my jacks as there isn’t enough clearance (measured during motor pull).

I doubt it’s the “bent rod” due to the amount of people who have had this issue and amount of replaced parts relating to the slave ( both oem and aftermarket)

JHM already gave me a pressure plate so when I do get around to swapping them, I’ll send them the old one for inspection.

Castrol SRF runs about $75 a bottle in the US, but you can find it online for a bit cheaper (lets say around $60 if you look). You need 2 bottles for a full flush. So, much more expensive than Motul or SuperBlue but the wet boiling point is simply unmatcheable.

When it comes to dry boiling point, all high perf brake fluids are relatively close. It is the wet boiling point that really sets SRF apart and allows it to last much longer (and perhaps be less susceptible to this clutch problem, which I also have at times).

I have used ATE fluid in the past as it is sufficient for my track needs. But, I might try the SRF next spring/summer as I’ll need to at least bleed (might as well flush then) before tracking again.

Hi everybody! First post, registered specially to answer your question. Found it when I was looking for pedal adjustment; my clutch is a Sachs.

When I had the original clutch I had the same problem. There is an upgraded vacuum line that solves 90% of the problem. It was really a pain and very worrying, not to mention frustrating, seeing that pedal stick to the floor…

Order a clutch vacuum line and make sure it comes new and it’s not sitting at the dealership’s stock, so it’s surely the new version. It’s a quick job, so don’t let anyone stiff you for that.

Well, quick intro, I’m Alex, from Brazil, living near Turin in Italy. Got a 2007 RS4 Avant, Milltek exhaust (less cats, non resonated) and recently had a Revo remap. It’s my dream car and my daily driver. Back in Brazil me and some friends, including Bruno Senna, founded the Audi S Club, for S/RS/TT owners, almost 10 years ago… I’m also building a prototype road car with the A8’s V8 and a Porsche GT3 transmission. :slight_smile:

Cheers!

Alex,
thanks for the tip. I will be interested to see if anyone has given that a shot.

That prototype race car sounds mental!

p.s. pics of your avant?

Hi Alex,

Thanks for chiming in. However, according to my mechanic, there is no vacuum line in the clutch hydraulics.

There is a pressure hose between the clutch master cylinder and the clutch slave cylinder which has been replaced with a SS braided line.

There’s also a feed from the brake master cylinder to the clutch master cylinder but if that feed had issues, I wouldn’t even be able to drive the car.