>>I can quite see how you could use up a clutch quite often.
In my experience it's pretty difficult to wear out a clutch in anything like normal use. I say this because I have never had to replace one, even on the many old bangers I had as a young adult, some of which by the law of averages I must have acquired with a well worn driven plate (certainly everything else about them was well worn).
Normal use does not include using the clutch as a friend used to do though - he would always hold the car on the clutch at uphill junctions and traffic lights, even for several minutes. He could wear out a clutch in as less than 10,000 miles.
I think I'm very easy on clutches, and take care not to get heat into them, even more so now I have a DMF as well!
A recent clutch experience may be worth recounting though. Sorry for the length.
At about 68,000 miles, the clutch on the diesel CRV started slipping. The revs would rise when at maximum torque (i.e. foot to the floor and around 2000rpm). I really couldn't figure this at all. I couldn't believe I'd worn it out, and thought maybe it had become contaminated by an oil leak. It didn't do it all the time, maybe only once every day or two, so I monitored it for a couple of weeks. It didn't get any worse - curiouser and curiouser, you'd expect a worn out clutch to go from bad to worse fairly quickly. Anyway, I then went on holiday for 2 weeks and towed a 1200kg caravan about 1,000 miles. This seemed to effect a cure. Given that towing necessarily works the clutch harder, this led me to wonder if the problem had been a glazed plate, and if the extra work had maybe roughed it up a bit and stopped the slipping.
I forgive you if you don't think much of this theory, but stay with me if you can -
All was well for couple of months, and then it started again. Now a clutch job on a CRV is £1000+ if you take the recommendation for a new DMF and pressure plate, so with nothing to lose I "roasted" the clutch at about 3000rpm, in gear, stationary with the brakes on.
That was 5 months ago and it's been fine since.
Now, I reckon if I'd just taken it to a Honda dealer, they'd have pulled it down, replaced the flywheel, clutch and cover and charged me £1400 or so. Would they have bothered to tell me that the plate was nearly full thickness, and that there were no signs of damage to the flywheel and pressure plate, were that the case? I don't think so.
Maybe my theory was correct. Then I found this thread on Civinfo, the Civic forum -
goo.gl/eusC
so I've decided I might have been right. I'm now at 79,000 miles and it's behaving perfectly.
I would have posted this before but for it being such a long story, and at the time it was topical the old place was shut for repairs. Anyway, make of it what you will.
Last edited by: Manatee on Sun 9 May 10 at 20:38
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Land Rover Discovery 3 - How many clutch.. 
