Average clutch life ?

Caporegime
Joined
25 Nov 2004
Posts
25,812
Location
On the road....
tJTqGMC.jpg
This is the wear level on my 2017 280k mile HGV, ok a trucks clutch is far beefier than that on a car but it gives you an idea as to a clutches life with an automated shift mechanism as an hgv uses, ie it’s computer controlled and optimised for maximum life.

Equally I’ve known drivers destroy a truck clutch during a single shift (driving shift not gear shift ) , as said it depends entirely on who’s driven it and how….
 
Soldato
Joined
9 Dec 2009
Posts
5,163
Location
Bristol
tJTqGMC.jpg
This is the wear level on my 2017 280k mile HGV, ok a trucks clutch is far beefier than that on a car but it gives you an idea as to a clutches life with an automated shift mechanism as an hgv uses, ie it’s computer controlled and optimised for maximum life.

Equally I’ve known drivers destroy a truck clutch during a single shift (driving shift not gear shift ) , as said it depends entirely on who’s driven it and how….

That's pretty impressive, I love on board data and have set up my android head unit on Torque to display lots of sensor data.

Any other on board displays which you wouldn't normally see in a car?
 
Caporegime
Joined
17 Jul 2010
Posts
25,659
How do you know it's on the way out if it isn't slipping ?
The clutch on my 306 GTI-6 got so bad you couldn’t get it into first with the engine running and you had to Rev match up and downshifts to get it into gear. That had around 120k miles. I’m pretty sure that is the only clutch I’ve had to replace. My old focus had 72k miles and nearly ten years on its original.
 
Soldato
Joined
5 Mar 2010
Posts
12,305
Surely at 116k it couldn't be on it's first clutch? It's a 2010 Hyundai i20

just to note, a large portion was motoroway miles early in it's life.

Thanks guys,

Mart

As others have said, all depends on the work the car has been doing. My A3 is still rocking the original clutch, and that's coming upto about 110k with maybe 90k motorway miles, so it's had a pretty easy life clutch-wise.

When my missus is driving (her car) and she has to stop on a slight hill (traffic lights/roundabout) she'll leave it resting on the biting point until she can go. No matter how many times i tell her that she'll wear the clutch out quicker.
 
Soldato
OP
Joined
7 Aug 2009
Posts
4,900
Location
London
Thanks a lot for the info guys really appreciate. Just heading out to see this car now.

It's a tossup between the i20 2010 with high miles but Full service history and an MOT until Feb 2022 which is perfect for me.

Or a Mazda 2 2010 with only 79k but zero service history and no MOT, which I would have to sort myself.

Will report back!
 
Soldato
Joined
18 Jun 2010
Posts
6,566
Location
Essex
More food for thought, have a 59 plate alfa mito, 111k miles, had it since 34k miles in 2015, as far as I know it hadn't had a new clutch and in the 77k miles I've driven it, it hasn't needed to be changed.
 
Caporegime
Joined
17 Jul 2010
Posts
25,659
Thanks a lot for the info guys really appreciate. Just heading out to see this car now.

It's a tossup between the i20 2010 with high miles but Full service history and an MOT until Feb 2022 which is perfect for me.

Or a Mazda 2 2010 with only 79k but zero service history and no MOT, which I would have to sort myself.

Will report back!
At this age and price always buy on condition and service history. Forget the Mazda, get the i20 would be my advice. Have you checked the MOT history on both? Also done a VCheck to make sure they weren't written off or repaired without being written off?
 
Associate
Joined
26 Oct 2007
Posts
1,266
I had an octavia with 135k on it before it needed a clutch replacement, whoever had it before me looked after it well.

But when it gave up it went quite quickly, ie: 3 days.
The garage said it was the most worn bare clutch they'd ever seen.

I didn't feel a thing until right before it started slipping.
 
Soldato
Joined
25 May 2008
Posts
3,738
Location
North Wales
It really depends, i had a Toyota Yaris that i sold at about 130k and 15 years old and the clutch was juddering and felt quite worn out by then but it didn't slip at all, just a very narrow biting point.

My dad had a Peugeot 106 diesel which did about 180k on the original clutch 'till it gave up, it was actually the pressure plate which failed on that as when he took it to bits there was loads of life left in the clutch disk itself.

Then if you've got something turbocharged with lots of torque and driven hard you can go through a clutch in 60k fairly easily, ask any Subaru Impreza owner.
 
Associate
Joined
20 Nov 2016
Posts
764
Civic 2.2CDTI ~90k (renowned for being a weak clutch/was revised on multiple occasions)
Peugeot 107 ~125k

Essentially, as others have said it comes down to so many factors
- Driving style
- Town, urban, motorway
- Torque
- Weight someone using a car to and from work only versus a family of 5 towing a caravan
 
Soldato
Joined
30 Mar 2007
Posts
2,723
Location
Essex
All depends how the car is driven .

If Doris is driving with her Stilletoes on and riding the clutch then as low as round the corner . I’ve never replaced a clutch on any car I’ve owned in 35 years of motoring- it’s all about how you drive it .
 
Back
Top Bottom