Hello Guys,

I've been mostly a lurker for the last few years but I am an avid Porsche enthusiast and I just bought my 7th 911. This time I went air-cooled with a 2000 996 C2. I love a lot about the car but I have a driveability issue that is making me crazy. For some reason this car is not easy to drive smoothly. When I first bought the car everything seemed fine but shortly thereafter I noticed that it is very difficult to pull away cleanly from a stop in first gear. I need to give the car a pretty good push on the throttle pedal. If I don't do this as I'm easing out on the clutch the car starts to judder pretty badly. So badly in fact that it's embarrassing to pull away from a stop where people can hear me. I feel like an amateur! Also, when shifting from first to second gear I can hear a dull thud as in slides into gear. I don't know where it's coming from but it only happens in second gear. I thought that maybe it was a case of having to get used to the new car but I've driven a 2001 C2 recently and it was perfectly smooth. And frankly, I've never had an issue like this with any of my older cars ('87 Targa, '88 Coupe, '91 Targa, '94 Coupe, '95 C2, '95 C4) and I certainly would expect that this car would be smoother and more refined than any of those. What is wrong with my car? Any suggestions are very much appreciated. Thanks in advance!

 

if u want to get new clutch then get it from ebay. its about 50-60% cheaper compared to dealer. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/SACHS...QQcmdZViewItem

 

Another suggestion I heard was that maybe the hydraulic fluid needs to be bled. Is this a possibility?

 

If you do not know the history of service, bleed the hydraulic system for the clutch, clean the MAF (yes, an improperly functioning MAF can cause jerkyness from take off). Other possabilities related to clutch would be a bad release lever (TSB for early 2000 cars and 1999 cars), and/or clutch assembly. Both will require tranny to be pulled to look at.

Start with the MAF cleaning and clutch bleeding and see where you end up.

 

augdog959, how many miles on your car? does your clutch engage point pretty high on the pedal? do you feel slip? I feel the same when I first got my c2 with 40k miles 2 years ago. I just had my clutch replaced and man, what a big different... now I can launch the car smooth like silk. it drive just like my friends' 40th annversary... if you try all 1999porsche911 suggest and no luck, maybe it's time for a new clutch... to me, it worth every penny.

 

I would 100% clean the MAF and change the fluid, however with clutches being so cheap i would do that as well, good luck and let us know what you end up doing.

 

Thank you very much for these replies! I will definitely try the suggestions and report back with the results. To answer a few questions it is an early 2000 (1999 build) with 48k miles. The clutch doesn't feel like it engages high up but it does start to shudder badly if I ease up on it without any throttle input.

 

There is your problem.....your 996 is air-cooled.....

 

If the clutch is original, you're probly due for a new one at 48k mi.

 

your bad

 

maybe it already has a racing clutch? changed mine recently and it grabs a lot harder and "quicker" when I release the clutch... if I tried to release with little throttle like before, I would stall... just a thought.

 

How much is a clutch on e-Bay and how muuch should the install run?

 

you can get a set of Sachs for around $350 plus shipping on eBay. I got mine from Suncoast for $430. dealer quote me $775 to put it in. while they are in there, replace the RMS and some broken boot. SA told me they are using the gen-4 bolts/screws and tools for RMS job. but still not guarantee....I'm sure inde-shop will be cheaper...

 

Does anybody have the TSB for the bad lever or its release date?

My mechanic was looking for this TSB and could not find it in the database.

Thanks in advance.

 

You got a PM.