What does a clutch do? And what is a clutch kit?
The clutch is a solid metal disc that couples the crankshaft and flywheel to the gearbox’s clutch shaft. The clutch is located between the engine and transmission to temporarily disconnect the engine drive from the gearbox.
A clutch kit usually contains all the elements to replace and rejuvenate your clutch and its performance: usually a clutch disc, pressure plate, flywheel and a throw race or release bearings. A clutch kit will contain the correct parts for a particular make and model of car and is often cheaper than buying the components individually.
How often should a clutch need replacing?
There isn’t a typical time or set mileage suggested to replace a clutch kit, as it can depend on both the car and your driving style. Most clutches are designed to last approximately 60k miles, yet they can have a healthy life covering mileages anywhere between 30k and 100k.
The law, vehicle regulations and your MOT
A damaged or broken clutch will affect your car’s driving ability to the point where it could fail its MOT. Testing doesn’t include an examination of the engine, clutch or gearbox, so if it appears to be working adequately, then it shouldn’t affect the test result.
What causes a clutch to stop working correctly?
A clutch will wear out over time through continual use. The disc thickness reduces, which affects the amount of force the pressure plate can apply to the clutch disc against the flywheel. Incorrect use over extended periods will impact the lifespan and cause unnecessary problems. Slippage can also be caused by reduced tension in the pressure plate’s springs.
Symptoms of a malfunctioning clutch
The clutch slips while driving
If you feel a loss or inappropriate delivery of power when using the accelerator, it could be due to a damaged or worn clutch.
Changing gears is a problem
If you can’t change gears or it feels like there is unusual grinding and friction when trying, your clutch isn’t separating the engine drive from the gearbox sufficiently.
The car doesn’t move
If there is no delivery of power to the engine from the accelerator, then your clutch could be the problem.
Your gearbox makes unusual and unhealthy noises
If the transmission makes unhealthy grinding noises when you try to use the clutch to engage or disengage the engine, there’s a strong chance that your clutch isn’t operating as it should.
Hyundai
The Hyundai Motor Company (or Hyundai Motors) is a South Korean multination automotive manufacturer, founded in 1967, with current divisions that include Kia Motors and Genesis Motor.
How popular is Hyundai in the United Kingdom?
Since arriving in the UK market, Hyundai has made a steady and consistent rise in sales, to the point where there are now over 850k of their cars on our roads today.
Well-priced luxury cars with a fantastic warranty
Predominantly producing an extensive range of smart looking hatchback cars of quality and price to compete with Ford, Vauxhall and Volkswagen, perhaps their rising sales figures can be partly put down to holding one of the best warranties for a new car in the business.
Their 5-year, unlimited-mileage warranty offers the peace of mind any new car owner would be thrilled to receive, given that most marques only offer 3 years with around 60k miles of cover.
Hyundai doesn’t solely offer a range of varying hatchback models; the current full line-up features tourers, coupes and of course, as the leading trend in today’s market, a selection of SUV models of varying sizes, trims and price tags.
Hyundai electric hybrid technology
Hyundai, as have most marques during the growth of new fuel technologies, has shown a strong entry into all electric and hybrid motoring. The brand’s Ioniq Hybrid model proved more efficient than Toyota’s Prius, the world’s first mainstream and possibly the most popular hybrid car on the road today.
Motorsport: Hyundai’s subcompact rally car
Entering motorsport in the late 1990s, Hyundai unveiled its Accent WRC (world rally car) to compete in the World Rally Championship. It achieved its first top-10 result in the 2000 Rally Argentina and continued to finish well throughout the season, but not quite well enough to compete with the top 3 or 4 teams.
In 2014, Hyundai made a return to world rallying after a 10-year absence, with the introduction of their i20 WRC; a rally car based on the i20 subcompact and was unveiled at the 2012 Paris Motor Show.
Hyundai’s reliability and reputation
Hyundai ranked 9th place out of 30 car brands in the What Car? Reliability Survey in 2018. The top ten places were littered with Japanese and Asian manufacturers, so to see the Korean marque featuring amongst them gives even more power to this brand’s rising reputation.
Recent Hyundai recalls and reliability issues
Various recalls have been made on Hyundai models throughout their motoring history. The following are a list of the most recent in the UK and Europe.
26/04/2019 – Hyundai i30 (2018)
Possible defective electric motor on the glass sliding roof
26/01/2019 – Hyundai Ioniq (2016–2017)
The main relay of the power relay assembly under the rear seat may have been insufficiently tightened
25/01/2019 – Hyundai Santa Fe (2017–2018)
The mounting bolt of the curtain airbag in the rear side protrudes too much
31/08/2018 – Hyundai Ioniq (2015–2017)
The inner housing of the hydraulic clutch actuator may have burrs
06/07/2018 – Hyundai Santa Fe (2017–2018)
The steering wheel assembly may break and become detached from the steering column
30/03/2018 – Hyundai Tucson and Hyundai Santa Fe (2011)
A faulty fuel line may lead to fuel loss in the engine compartment
02/02/2018 – Hyundai Ioniq (2016–2017)
The aluminium housing of the EPCU may contain voids
19/01/2018 – Hyundai i40 (2011–2012)
The clutch witch may be faulty
All recall information sourced from gov.co.uk data.
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