Hi all. When I reverse my Ducato 2.8jtd Burstner motorhome, I get quite a bad judder. Last time it also smelt badly. Is this the clutch slipping. Why only in reverse?

Hi , sounds like clutch judder to me , strange it only does it in reverse . Normally clutch judder starts when in first gear when pulling away . Do you have problems selecting gears etc ?

Hi, No seems ok going forward. What I have noticed since I got it, is that I only need to rest my foot on the clutch and the revs go up

bigbag said:

Hi all. When I reverse my Ducato 2.8jtd Burstner motorhome, I get quite a bad judder. Last time it also smelt badly. Is this the clutch slipping. Why only in reverse?

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there WAS an issue with a HUGE range of SEVEL built motorhomes , all juddering in reverse, it was engineered-out of later models by different gear ratios IIRC,

not much help if you've got an earlier version though,



charlie

If the clutch is only "biting" at the very top of pedal travel it looks like you need a new one. How many mls/Klms has it done?

I have a tag axle 5 tonne MAM Burstner on the 2.8 JTD (2003 model). I can reverse mine up my sloping drive to park it. The reverse gear is fairly high but I get no clutch burning smell as long as I take it steady.

I read somewhere that you need to be careful with the Ducato due to the Clutch design. Apparently you should never sit with the Clutch depressed and in gear either. I don't slip the Clutch if I can help it, even inching forward in traffic, I move forward and knock it out of gear to let it coast.

Clutch slip is usually worn clutch, judder is normally contamination,
Reverse is a crazy high ratio on most vehicles i don't know why just is, it's a kinda in between 1st and 2nd ratio so that could be why it's more noticeable.
Again im pretty sure yours is FWD, if so when driving forward all the weight is sent to the rear as it theoretically tries to tip back, when you put it in reverse all the weight is pushed into the engine and box. Just a theory

Thanks for all your input. I'm hopefully getting it checked next week, will let you know what they find. I did wonder if the handbrake was adjusted too high and catching when reversing. Smell did seem to come from front tho

in some respects I hope they find a leaky seal and oil in there,
because if it is just "one of those things" , you'll be stuck with the fault,

modern friction materials can behave strangely, our FIAT car only juddered in reverse,
had 3 x new clutches under warranty,
- common fault on modern cars , "MINI" had the same issue = Material.!!

We need asbestos clutch plates back, material of the gods . . .

What build year is the vehicle?

Hi the reg year is 56 plate