ClioSport.net

Register a free account today to become a member!
Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

  • When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Read more here.

Clio 200 cup hard to shift close to redline



  2009 Clio 200
So I got this car used at about 100k kms a few months ago and shifting kind of sucks especially close to redline. It gets notchy and I have to apply a noticeable amount of force to get it in gear. It's doing it in all gears, also doing it when downshifting, and rev matching makes no difference. Replaced the clutch master cylinder (Sachs I believe), clutch kit (Luk) and gearbox oil (Motul), with no improvement whatsoever. Garage adjusted and regreased the linkage and it became smoother at low revs, but higher rpms is still kind of notchy. I also noticed the problem at a standstill just going through gears, but it occurs randomly. They also checked engine and gearbox mounts at my request and there isn't excessive play, and they're now suggesting new linkage cables. Another thing, 5th and 6th have noticeable lateral play. It's not loose, but noticeably more lateral movement than other gears. Any advice / suggestion is welcome, thanks for reading!
 
  2009 Clio 200
Cool, I'll replace the linkage because it feels off regardless. Will go with oil and clutch bleed next if things don't improve. I'll come back with an update. Cheers!
 
  2009 Clio 200
Thought I'd test for clutch drag again at redline just to be 100% sure fyi @Bertie Smalls Junior, and turns out it does drag indeed. Hitting about 6k, the clutch bites just a bit and the car will jolt forward. It's not happening every time, which explains why some of the times the car would shift fine at redline and sometimes it feels like I'm breaking the box in half. Not sure how to proceed about this, should I still replace the linkage, or just see what I can do with the clutch and change the oil to Redline? :/
 

RSRowe

ClioSport Club Member
  Megane 250 Cup
Bleeding the clutch should be the first thing you do.
The clutch dragging when you're sat still on the redline is pretty normal for them.
 
  2009 Clio 200
Currently on vacation, will do the whole package: bleed, box oil and linkage. Hopefully one of these will sort out the issue. If not, maybe it's time for a replacement box..
 
  2009 Clio 200
Coming back to this - bled the clutch again, replaced oil with Redline MTL and replaced the linkage cables. Clutch still drags, or more like bites just a bit when revving it in 1st with the clutch pedal down. Still hard to shift. Rev matching on downshifts makes it go in no problem. So I don't know, synchros or clutch, or a combination of both.
 

Martin_172

ClioSport Club Member
my 200 cup done it, and my 197 r27 done it, but my current 197 doesn't! I've just done a clutch and slave cylinder on it with all genuine parts, the ONLY thing aftermarket is a braided clutch line rather than the old factory one!
 
  Renault Kangoo
Well the clutch drag is the origin of your issues. So i would suggest fixing that first. The clutch dragging will cause all your syncros to wear so that just causes the shifting to feel even worse.
 
  2009 Clio 200
So if all, or most 197 / 200s have clutch drag, this leads to premature synchro wear, which means synchros are not actually crap on TL4 and they fail because of clutch drag? :D
 
  2002 Clio II Ph2 172
My 172 felt imprecise at shifting at high rev's also. Ocasional grinding too.

My lower gearbox mount was not fully tightened to the subframe.
The clutch drag near redline thing was severe for me, it shaked a lot as it moved forward!
Its very easy to get to that bolt. And its only 40nm.

 
  2009 Clio 200
I've booked another visit to a motorsports garage in the area. Will make sure to check this as well, thanks! Mine only shakes, it's not really moving forward but I guess these problems are on a spectrum.
 
  2002 Clio II Ph2 172
If i recall correctly after tightening the bolt, there was still a little, barely, and only after 6250,6500 rpms. And no more shaking.

Everyone tells me its no big deal to have a bit of it at really high rpms. Now if my car was dragging badly after lets say 4000 rpm ou something like that, and keeping me completely out of gear at higher rpms, that would make go straight to the workshop.
 
  2009 Clio 200
Went to the motorsports dude and said the gearbox and engine mounts are fine. He took it for a test drive and said all Clios shift just the same, he doesn't see a problem. Or maybe just a little, but "you have to let the synchro do its job". He saw the clutch drag, said it's normal for a stock clutch to do that and to look for a performance kit if it really bothers me. Not sure what to do, I thought maybe replace the master cylinder with OE and braided clutch lines, that is cheap to rule out and then try an uprated clutch kit. If that doesn't fix it, I'll just drive it till I break it and that's the end of it.

Clutching at straws here, but could a worn crankshaft pulley not balance crankshaft vibrations leading to excess vibration resulting in the flywheel pinching at the clutch disc?
 
  2009 Clio 200
Reviving this thread to say I've done it 😄. I did the whole clutch assembly + flywheel and bolts - all OE. There is still some clutch drag, but barely noticeable and almost no resistance in shifting at redline. I've been seeing some posts on cars being rough to shift on cold mornings, or even refuse to go into gear. Mine was the same before but got rid of that now. I'm thinking of also doing the clutch master on OE as well, see where that takes me.
 


Top