General Maintenance & Repairs - '98 camaro M6 idles high + maybe need a clutch.

My '98 camaro M6 has been sitting in the garage for about 4 months since i last started it. The battery wasnt complety dead but not enough juice for it too start soo i had to jump start it. I unhooked the battery while it sat, thinking it would keep the battery alive, i'm not soo smart huh.

I get it started and it idles alittle above 2000rpm and it does that the entire time, i let it sit for 10mins. White smoke only appeared for 15 seconds and thats it, soo the motor seems healty. I give it a couple quick jabs at the throttle and it the rpms drop slowly when i let off. Soo i take it out for a ride, i just installed my pro 5.0 before i started it up. I got to say that getting into reverse is a pain in the ass. Seems like 1st gear makes some chattering. The shifting seems sloppy along with the high idle. I'm thinking i might need a clutch ? It likes to grind when i go into gears sometimes. I know i didnt get you much info but its late and i just came in from inside.

If i get a clutch what clutch should i go with that wont break the bank ? My car is stock and i plan on doing some bolt ons this summer. I heard something about ram clutches? I will probably get a slave cylinder for it, and i heard alot about ticks adjustable master cylinder?

I have no clue if the pcm was relearning because i unhooked the battery or not, but i let it idle for about 10 minutes i drove it down the road several times, did a few WOT runs, but still idles high. And i could defently feel the heat from the tranny when i got into the garage, i left the console off.

My buddy works at a shop and hes going to see if his boss will let us work on it during the weekends for a small price, but i still dont want to throw alot of money at it if i dont need too.

I still need to see when my driveshaft is still leaking, i just replaced a rear pinon seal.

your high idle is not going to be caused by your clutch, they sound like two completely different issues. for the idle problem, i'd try letting it run a little more. shut it off, crank it up, drive it, shut it off, crank it up, drive a little more. i know my car had idle issues after the battery was unhooked until i ran it a bit. if it doesn't clear up, i'd look at your idle air control valve and for vacuum leaks.

did your shifting problems just start out of nowhere or did they come about after you installed your shifter? i'd check to make sure you have the 2 adjustment screws on the shifter adjusted right. then bleed your clutch fluid so it's all fresh. try those 2 things first and go from there if that doesn't fix it.

as far as which clutch to get if you need one, if you just do bolt-ons and no cam, nitrous, etc. i'd recommend an ls7 clutch kit. it'll drive like stock but have quite a bit more holding power. i'd for sure replace everything while your doing it. and i'd highly recommend the tick master cylinder. it's pricey but well worth it.

I Know the high idle has nothing to do with the clutch, i was just saying i have two issues with the car. It's snowing again soo i wont be able to take the car out for awhile, but when i do i'll try that trick when i take it too my friends work (small shop) about 7 miles away. How long should i drive it before i shut it off?

I just bought the car this fall and never drove it, i just parked it in my garage. It ran fine before i let it sit for several months in my garage.

I can't really tell if the clutch was really doing anything because im not really use to a manual, i know when i try to shift fast it would miss a gear or actually just throw it in N. And i have an extreamly hard time getting it in Reverse, my friend that was with me had to help me. When i installed the pro 5.0 it seems alittle better i only hit N once when i was speed shifting and i dont ever drive a stick. When we first installed the shifter we got the stop bolts too close soo we only had 2 and 4th soo we adjusted it. I also bought a skip shift eliminator that i havent installed yet. I'll do that when i send the car to my buddy's work.

I would like to get the LE2 cam and heads maybe this winter maybe next spring soo should i just go and get a bigger clutch ?

When I picked up my 98 it had been sitting for between 3-5 years in a junk yard. I purchased it on a hope and a prayer that the engine ran. When I fired it up, it too idled very high. I immediately shut it off and looked at the throttle body. I disconnected the throttle cables the noticed that it was not closing all the way. After messing with the throttle body for a little while it loosened up. Then when I fired it up it idled high for a few minuets and eventually returned to a normal idle, that was the longest few minuets of my life!

Yeah having the car idle above 2k is scary. It almost seems like the throttle cable seems sticky, i can take quick jabs at the gas and it doesnt idle down like a normal running motor.

Well after another winter storage its doing it again, i just bought a new battery last summer and i started it once a month this winter, accept for febauary and thats when the battery was pretty much dead, soo i jumped it a few weeks later and it ran fine, and another 2 weeks later (today) i had to jump it again, this time the idle stayed at 2500, almost sounded like it was cammed then it smoothed out and it only stays at 2500, only let it idle for less than 5 mins, i hate seeing it idle that high for long. Also got alittle light smoke around the intake. Now is this my pcm relearning since the battery is dead and why is my new battery dead ? im thinking a alternator. i have a new stater, have new sensors on my potz ported tb. I'm gonna bring my battery in tonight and fully charge it before i test the alternator with my multimeter.