BigB02Z28

Hello guys!

Before I get started, I want to say thanks for any info/help. Anything is appreciated!

Heres the background...

I am 20 years old, just bought and fully paid off my 2002 Z28 about a month ago.

I learned to drive stick the day I drove this baby off the lot! (My dad did the test drive for me n such!). I have driven a 94 Mustang GT to the store once, and stalled a Porsche 911 Turbo once... Thats my background for driving stick.

The Camaro has about 95,000 Miles on it. (Anything lower mileage I couldn't afford). I am 99.9% sure that its still the factory clutch. The car just doesn't feel up to par. If I get the car rolling, and at about 3-5mph... I punch it, the car wont break the tires loose. I will get a chirp into 2nd...

If I dump the clutch at anywhere from 2000-5000 RPM, I will roast them through 1st... Shift into 2nd, and it will bog and just take off... No spinning.

If I power shift it, I will get like a 1.5 second tire spin, leave 2 marks about 3 feet long, and just bog and go...

My dad says that the clutch could be slipping and not putting 100% of the power to the wheels while WOT.

How can I test if my clutch is slipping? The car drives fine under normal conditions, but WOT the car just doesn't feel all that strong.

On my way home from work, I have been practicing launching at redlights (4am, so the roads are empty). I have been launching at 2400-2800 RPM, keeping wheel spin to a minimal and trying not to bog...

The other night, I tried it, and it just spun through the clutch, the car barely rolled and I got that nasty clutch smell in the cab.

I plan in the next month to order the LS7 clutch kit. I am wondering if this could be the cause of the car feeling doggy.

I have 2 friends, one a 2000 TA, and another a 2001 Z28... Both autos, Both nearly stock and both will roast them through 2nd, and both pull on me pretty good.

My mods are, K+N filter, FRA, Fabbed up Y-pipe with Dynomax bullet dump b4 axles. Tires are 245/50/16 Venturas Something. Suppose to be pretty good street tires...

I clean my MAF and Throttle bottle regularly, so its not oil on the MAF.

I also pulled the #1 plug to check the plugs, and they are the factory ones, and seem to show running a little lean. (I am changing the plugs when I do my headers) in the next few weeks. Could the plugs be the culprit? The car isn't missing, and it gets good gas mileage.

I apologize for it being so long, but I tried to give as much info as I could, and give all my situations.

And lastly, It does it with anybody driving it... So its not that I am a horrible driver! =]. I am pretty confident with my stick skills now, Its been a month.

Also, What is a "2 step, or Side Step" that I keep hearing people talk about? I have not taken the car to the track yet, since I have just been learning stick, and I am still worried about rolling through the staging lights! LOL

Thanks again,
Brandon!

redss454

It sounds like your having some clutch slippage. The one time that you pulled the hole-shot and got that clutch smell is a classic indication. When you pulled the hole shot, the power of the motor combined with the traction of the tires put to much stress on a possibly already burnt clutch. The clutch as probobaly weakened well before that because of A) the almost 100K on it, and B) You learning to drive on it.

When you hammer it, does the engine rev and the car feel like it's not really going there? That's a definate sign of clutch slippage.


And I've never heard of a "2 Step." Possibly double-clutching? But Side-stepping is basically pulling a hole-shot. Clutch in, rev it up, and slide your foot off the side of the clutch.

Chris

BigB02Z28

I have done the tests like... Put it in high gear while cruising at low speed, and see if RPM's climb faster than the car is moving, and those things, but it all seems normal to me.

Also, if I put it in gear, and let the clutch out slowly (no gas), With... Say, the E-brake on... the car will begin to move/bog after the pedal is about 60% released. I can shift gears when driving, by just pushing the clutch pedal in about .75-1 inch...

I have bled the system with new DOT 3 synthetic fluid. (The old stuff was nasty dark).

Also, the other day on my way to work, I was driving rather spirited trying to catch up to this Ferrari. I finally got up to it, but he got into the turning lane... So at the red light... I pushed the clutch in, took it out of gear, let go of the clutch, and sat there for a second... I then revved my motor to about 5k, let it drop to 3k, and blipped it to 5k again... Hoping the Ferrari would rev, because I wanted to hear it... He ended up not revving and just turning....

My light then turned green, so I went to push the clutch in, to put it in 1st, and I noticed that the pedal did not fully come back up. I still put it all the way down and put the Car in 1st and went to take off.... And it wouldnt go... I ended up having to bring the clutch 90% out, and bring the RPM's to ~1400 to get it to roll...

It shifted into 2nd fine, and 3rd fine... No pedal problems... And that was 2 weeks ago, and it hasn't done it again since... Just scared me... lol

I know the clutch is probably spent... And I am putting a new one in within the next month... I am just hoping that the clutch is slipping a little while I am WOT, and that is the reason the car feels sorta ball-less...

If its not the clutch, then I am hoping its plugs/wires...

**** Side Story ****

When I was 17, I bought a 1972 Skylark... Had a Buick 350 with a TH-350 in it. That thing wouldn't break 1 tire loose for nothing... Not even powerbraking trying to do a burnout..

It ran fine, drove fine, didn't hesitate or miss...

I changed the plugs/wires and it could instantly do a burnout, and spin the tires a decent amount when taking off...

I hope that my Camaro is having similar problems, and not nothing worse...

fiveptsevenftw

start in 1st gear and bring the RPM's up to about 4 grand, not flooring it or anything just get them up. once you've got them up, drop it directly to 4th gear, if the car bogs down and wants to stall, your clutch isnt slipping if it keeps the RPM's up without bogging, it probably is.

As for the Wires n such, we just recently replaced the coil packs and wires on my friends 96 Roush that was having the same problem. at first we thought it was the clutch slipping, and tried that test and just about stalled the car. so we changed the electrical stuff out, and now the car works perfectly.

Last week i was driving his car against an RX-7 and we went from a stop and i launched from about 3k the tires spun, then it just fell on its face. now with the new plugs, it launches like a pro

hope that helps

BigB02Z28

I will try that in a few minutes (I am about to goto the movie store). If I recall correctly, Whenever I goto shift, and the CAGS kicks me into 4th, it bogs really bad. But I will try it at the 4,000 RPM.

I really hope its the plugs at fault.

Whenever I change the plugs, I am going to post a picture of my old plugs, and ask how the burn looks. My dad said that (When I pulled the #1 to check) that it looks to be running lean... Which section should I post in without getting flamed?

Dex

iTrader: (5)

Might want to check the fuel filter while you at it.

BigB02Z28

***UPDATE***

I did exactly what fiveptsevenftw said to do, and it did not slip at all. Car bogged just as it should. I had my friend with me, who has had a lot of stick cars, and said the clutch seems fine (He is just riding passenger)...

Well, we went to Taco Bell, and after eating, I went to get on the main road, and I pulled out, and there was a newer corvette that pulled out just down the street, at the same time... He must have floored it, cause when I got on the road, I saw him flying up in my mirror, So I floored it in 1st, so he wouldn't have to slow down (1 lane road)...

I rung out first gear to about 5,500 RPM and QUICKLY shifted into 2nd... (this is the method I used)

I let off the gas... Toe'd clutch in about 5 inches, (plenty enough, I can actually move the shifter in about 1 inch or less and smoothly shift gears)... put stick into 2nd, Let the clutch out, but as I let the clutch out, I give it gas... (Just enough to if I was free reving the car while stopped, to bring RPM to about 1,500... Not much gas at all...) When the clutch was FULLY DISENGAGED, I put the gas pedal back to the floor...

ALL IT DID... Was Rev like crazy to about 5,000 RPM... Just a FAST free rev, the car did not pull at all, it was still just decelerating (like the clutch was pushed in)...

That is what I mean that it "just spins through the clutch"

My friend said that it could be driver error... That If I slipped the clutch a little bit while shifting, and then put it WOT, that I could make it just spin through the clutch...

**********

I bought a fuel filter, but it downpoured on my way back to the house, so I did not get to change it. I would put my money on that it has never been changed either!

Thanks for all the help guys!

And once again, I am sorry for it being so long.... I tend to write too much when I post, Hopefully it is all good descriptions for you, and not just nonsense!

BigB02Z28

I just had a QUICK brain storm...

Since my dad said that the plugs looked to be burning LEAN... (And from what I read, these cars are suppose to be "slightly rich"), and 100k on the factory fuel filter....

Could there be a possibility, that the fuel filter is super plugged... The pump is not giving sufficient pressure, causing the car to run lean, and be low on power? I get a SES light every once in a while, but when I got it scanned, it was some low catalytic something in bank 1 and 2.... The AUTOZONE guy told me to was my rear o2's or my cats r plugged...

Could that be a decent theory, or am I too tore up from these pain killers? (Broke my toe 2 days ago! lol)

ZTwentyAteU

iTrader: (12)

usually the factory clutch on our cars will do this slipping you talk of. My car, for example, will grab normal, but if you come off the clutch wrong, it will slip, and slip until you let off and give the clutch time to sync back with the flywheel. So I am guessing you just come off the pedal a little early sometimes.
Like, if you shift and hit the gas before the clutchis engaged all the way,it will try to slip.
I can (at the track) Launch at 3k and drop the clutch and chirp 2nd and third, but if I'm letting out slowly at 3k, sometimes it will grab great, and other times it will slip after takeoff,and never catch up to engine rpm.
My buddy tim raced my car one night and SMOKED the clutch after doing this and trying to grab 2nd. I waited about 10minutes, went out there and the clutch did not slip on me at all, and I do a lot of full throttle shifting at the track.

ConElite

iTrader: (6)

You have some Serious Hydrolic problems. Change your Slave and Master. Do the drill mod. All that stuff should help. Your clutch should be changed either way. Seems like all your doing is beating on your car. Its not going to last very much with that much abuse.

Dex

iTrader: (5)

From the sounds of it the clutch isnt dead yet but its getting pretty close. I would be a little gentle with it untill you can get a new one and while i was in there replace the slave cylinder and do the drill mod just because you have it out. There maybe a chance that is the original clutch with 100k on it depending on who drove it before you.
At 100k with the original fuel filter it WILL be clogged. When you take to off try to blow through it. I bet you cant if it original that just fun stuff we used to to when i was a mechanic to see how did maintenece to there vehicle.

BigB02Z28

Hey guys!

Heres the link to the "2 step" i heard of...

https://ls1tech.com/forums/drag-racing-tech/775332-2-step-question.html

Also, Dex, I changed my fuel filter... And NOPE! you could not blow through it! Also....

When I went to release the pressure from the Shrader(sp) valve.... No pressure came out?!

SladeX

if you only pushed in the clutch 5 inches and not fully depressed, for that instant you were RIDING THE CLUTCH. It's no wonder you got nothing when you let it go in second because at 5500rpm in 1st and riding the clutch you heated it up bad. It's bad enough you probably have not done the drill mod (fluid restriction slows the release of the clutch even more...) The only reason you got into gear was because you put a lot of stress on the syncros.