DMF failure & replacement with flywheel

[alfaholik]

51k miles in and my clutch pedal has just started to stick a little on the way up. About an inch from the top.
Local Alfa specialist believes the DMF is at fault, but has booked car in for full investigation next Thursday.
Anyway, the technician also mentioned that they fit normal flywheels now, rather than the DMF type. Anyone know if this is a good idea?
Or anyone done it?
Any advice at all would be great. !!

[coxy1]

Would love to know how the DMF can make the pedal stick. The release bearing has a spring built into but its the tines on the clutch basket which pull it back as its a pull type. Check your floor mat has not slipped forward under the pedal and is getting trapped, mine did this but the pedal stuck much lower down.

[Moel]

Mine did this a few months ago, see my issues..had to pull it back up.

It's not the DMF. It might be the release bearing..but I suspect as I found out yesterday, your hydraulic fluid will be fairly badly contaminated. Dave at Intaservices changed it for me £61 and said that the seals in the master cylinder tend not to be as effective at keeping moisture out of the brake fluid. After that it's still a 'bit loose' at the top end, but everything feels much much better!

I am at 54k, and i suspect that as mind started doing it a few months ago...that it would have also been around the 51k mark!

Replacing the DMF, with a normal flywheel would be a bloody awful idea! The DMF is designed to iron out the extremely lumpy way in which a diesel engine turns the crank, in surges of torque. Replace it with a non DMF, and you'll transmit that horrible constant loading, unloading onto the clutch and the gearbox..it'll drive like dog poo!(and sooner or later the £200 you'll have saved on the flywheel will turn into about £4000 for new flywheel, new clutch, new gearbox)

[cj romeo]

No its a **** idea.

1) increases vibration no end
2) weighs 7KG more than the DMF, the engine isnt designed for this and will kill throttle response
3) quite a lot of vehicles have ended up with cranks and gearboxes broken due to the usual diesel power spikes and extra mass

The most common cars to have these 'kits' offered were Ford transits and VW Golf's, you will find all this woe if you have a Google!

[alfaholik]

It's all a bit over my head to be honest. Carpet mat is definitely not at fault.
Technician did suggest it could be hydraulics but also said this is as rare as the preverbial rocking horse ****e.
I'll reject the non DMF though if it does need replacing.

[Moel]

Get them to bleed your system! Worth a try! It'll at least get all the dirt and crap out! (don't forget the brakes and the clutch share the same system)

[alfaholik]

Originally Posted by Moel

Get them to bleed your system! Worth a try! It'll at least get all the dirt and crap out! (don't forget the brakes and the clutch share the same system)

Now there's a thing. I just bought new Brembo discs and pads for the back. I'm going to fit them on Saturday, maybe I'll bleed the system then!

[Moel]

I'm not 100% how you bleed the clutch..because obviously if you bleed the brakes you are going to just bleed from the reservoir, down the brake lines, not the clutch line which is where your manky fluid is going to be!

[cj romeo]

You bleed it at the clutch slave cylinder

[alfaholik]

Where is the slave?

[cj romeo]

At the clutch end, not sure ifvyoubcan get to it from outside the bellhousing though on the Jtd, you can on a V6, you can't on a twin spark.

[Moel]

You must be able to! I suspect you have to pull the battery to get down there as everything was reset on my car when I got it back yesterday