Things to Know About Your BMW Clutch

The BMW brand is known for its impressive design, optimal performance and utter reliability. Car enthusiasts rave over how the BMW is made, often focusing on its durability. Since this car is so renowned, it’s safe to conclude that there is a lot of information available on its history, parts and engineering. Countless forums are dedicated to discussing owners tips, tricks and reviews on handling BMW parts. One of the foremost parts is the clutch. This piece is significant in manual BMWs and its function can make a drastic difference in this car’s performance.

What Role Does the Clutch Play?

The clutch is an extremely important piece of your vehicle. It is the piece that helps the transmission tell your car which direction to go. The clutch is the middleman between the engine and the wheels. When the engine spins, the clutch makes sure the wheels and transmission systems are disengaged from the engine so as to avoid failure. Should the engine engage with the wheels, it could cause severe issues with mechanics of the vehicle. It can even make switching gears nearly impossible.

The clutch makes sure the engine communicates effectively with the transmission. This communication ensures a smooth drive with minimal slipping. This piece works off of friction and helps the driver switch gears in a smooth manner without causing damage to the transmission.

How This Piece Can Malfunction

Sometimes your clutch can experience failure or become jammed. This could result from a number of problems. Two of the most common are switching gears while your car is in motion and shifting gears to park before turning off your car. When this happens, the disconnection within the cars mechanics heighten. Often times, the first sign of a damaged clutch is transmission grinding with an extremely loose feel.

Another symptom is your car not moving even when shifting gears. This could be due to the lack of communication between the clutch and engine. When trying to shift between gears, your car simply will not move. Your car may even give off loud vibrations or clattering noises once it finally experiences movement. BMW vehicles are known for a quieter drive. Therefore, any loud rumblings can indicate a serious internal problem.

Since the BMW brand is so advanced, some cars have automatic release systems that help to release the clutch when it is under stress. This helps to alleviate possible engine or transmission damage from a jammed clutch. This system can be compared to a hydraulic release system that effortlessly moves the clutch. Finally, if your clutch is jamming unnecessarily, you may have a malfunction. This occurs when you try to switch and the piece is simply stuck. It may be increasingly hard trying to get this piece to move.

How to Avoid Clutch Damage

One of the best ways to avoid clutch damage is to keep your car maintained regularly. Although the clutch is a significant piece, often times it can mimic the symptoms of other problems. Make sure your auto mechanic thoroughly checks the health of your clutch, transmission and engine. In addition, make sure you are shifting gears when it is appropriate. Avoid handling this piece too hard so as to avoid damage.

Another way to avoid this issue is to avoid burning the clutch. This means utilizing the parking brake, especially when parking on steep hills. When you don’t utilize this piece, your car is more susceptible to drifting or sliding. This could cause significant damage to your clutch system. Therefore, avoid this by always using your parking brake when you are parking on an incline.

How We Can Help

Although clutch repairs seem to be an easy fix, it’s important to let the professionals handle this repair, especially on a vehicle as carefully engineered as the BMW. Our wonderful mechanics at Hayes European have been helping European vehicle owners in the Santa Cruz, Aptos, Soquel, and Capitola, CA areas for years. If you are experiencing issues with your BMW clutch, let us handle this repair for you. We have specialized mechanics who are skilled in German engineering. They can provide you with an honest and reliable solution to your car challenges to get you back on the road with the smooth drive BMWs are known for.