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Well the problems just keep coming. Someone is coming today to look at the car and cut me a check (hopefully) so I'm just getting the car ready and figure I'll pull it into the garage to get warmed up and thawed off so it's easier to look at.. So I clear the snow off it, jump in, push the clutch in, turn the key and *WHUMP* it tries to start while in gear. wtf? i say to myself. The clutch is already fully depressed but I shrug and push harder. Turn the key again. *WHUMP* So with the clutch still depressed I try to take it out of gear. No dice. Basically the car is "ignoring" the clutch.


Well the car worked fine when I parked it. The only solution I can think of is sitting in arctic temps froze something up. The insurance guy will be here a little later today and now I'm unsure what to do. I'd rather not wait until summer before I can start my car again.... and to fully survey the damage the car needs to be moved as it is up against a hillside and some bushes right now.

..any suggestions?

Check the clutch fluid resorvoir, first. Is there fluid in it? Is there fluid on the ground? That's a place to start. Visual inspections go a long way. Look for anything else out of the ordinary.

snaab wrote:Check the clutch fluid resorvoir, first. Is there fluid in it? Is there fluid on the ground? That's a place to start. Visual inspections go a long way. Look for anything else out of the ordinary.

Good start. Open the reservoir cap and pump the clutch. The fluid should drop slightly than rise back to it's original level. If it drops and doesn't go back up you likely have a leak. DOT3 fluid absorbs water very readily, it is possible that if it has not been changed in a long time and it's very cold (like now) that the water in the fluid is freezing and the clutch isn't actually moving any fluid. However, while this is possible, I have not heard of a recent case of this in years. But hey, it's been really freakin cold lately.

Since there is no load on the transmission, you should be able to move the gearstick out of gear without issue, clutch or not. Try rolling the car back & fourth a bit and then move the shift lever. If this does not work, then you might need to lift the one side of the car up and move the free rear wheel around and then try shifting.

This should get you to be able to at least start the car, and the residual head should melt frozen components after a long while.

Well it's currently warming up around here. So I went out to see if the warmer weather has solved my problem.

*drumroll*

Problem solved. The most likely scenario is the fluid has not been changed in some time and the water froze or gelled. As of now it's back to normal.