Hello,

I'm new to this forum and I need some help/advice.
My car is 2006 Stilo 1.9 diesel multijet, with 97000 km but I can't be sure of mileage since I didn't bought it new.
I have read previous threads about gearboxes but I couldn't find information I need.

I have a problem with gearbox when shifting speeds.
There are no strange noises and car drives and accelerates as usual.
When I'm parked and motor is not running, shifting gears goes smooth without much force needed to change gears.
When I turn the engine on, and try to change gears, but still being parked, putting into first or reverse needs some force. Second needs less force, but still a bit more than usual, 3rd, 4th, 5th all seem to be fine.
When driving, from 1st to 2nd and so on, no problem. It goes smooth and without need to push hard, but not as easy as when motor is not running.
I have noticed another thing, when driving say 60km/h in 4th. If I press the clutch and try to shift into 2nd, it just won't, it feels like I will need to pull with both hands. When I slow down, still in 4th, I can manege to put it in 2nd and it feels like it is easier to shift if I'm going slower.

Any ideas what could be wrong?
This all started few days ago, and I drove about 20km each day since then.

Any help is most welcomed,
Thanks!

Hi Hansolo

Firstly are you losing Clutch / Brake fluid,check the resevoir to see if level has dropped and check for any signs of fluid leads from master / slave cylinders and associated pipework.
If above is O.K try bleeding the clutch slave cylinder If you look in Stilo Guides Section above you will find an excellent guide By Deckchair in how to do this on a Stilo 1.6 although I believe the procedure is similar for all hydraulic clutch Stilo`s.

Hi Taif,

I have checked the fluid level, it's at the MAX level, so I don't think anything is leaking.

I do see that clutch pedal has some free movement downwards, like 1-2cm. It does go up all the way when I release the pedal. But when I step on it, frst cm or two it goes without resistance, after that when I keep pushing it starts to feel like it's doing something.

Could the air in hydraulic system cause pedal to move like that?
It feels easier to select gear if motor RPM is better matched with car speed and gear I'm tying to select.

if there is air in the system you'll get a "spongey" pedel

Sounds to me like a worn clutch. When the autoadjustment runs out, the clutch will drag a little, this drag is like trying to put the car in gear when you don;t have the slutch all the way down. Sounds like your problem. New clutch, plate and release bearing should sort it out. Mileage is about right for it being worn out too.

Well, today the clutch pedal dropped almost to the floor few times.

I tried "pumping" it by stepping on it several times and it got better.
After that it felt much better and gear selection wasn't that hard.
It stays up for couple of minutes and then it drops again, I pump it back and so on....

Now I have the "spongy" pedal like scottie2065 mentioned.
I hope he is right and that all the problem is just because of air.

I'll let you know what it was when I finally fix that.
Thanks for help!

Andymacselespeed said:

Mileage is about right for it being worn out too.

Click to expand...

What 63,000miles ish

Could that be the issue with my Stilo then? Worn clutch? Thats sometimes stiff to change gear and if accelerating fast that'll sound like I haven't fully pressed the clutch when changing into 2nd & 3rd etc

If the clutch pedal drops to the floor a few times but then pumps back up again then it will be the clutch hydraulics and not a worn out clutch

Unfortunately, if it's the slave cylinder leaking as it so often is and you have one of the internal concentric type clutch slave cylinders then it's a mammoth job involving gearbox out to change it. An external slave cyliinder is 30mins to change

Most Easterly Pandas said:

What 63,000miles ish

Could that be the issue with my Stilo then? Worn clutch? Thats sometimes stiff to change gear and if accelerating fast that'll sound like I haven't fully pressed the clutch when changing into 2nd & 3rd etc

Click to expand...

Oh yes! Clutches are now much better than they once were, but 60k plus, on a car driven in town a lot, especially if its seen a lot of stop start will see it fried!

My mother in law, who only ever does little stop start journeys fried her clutch on a Ford Fusion at 55k. It ain't unusual. Main symptoms where having to press the pedal all the way to the floor, then getting little in the way of drive until the pedal was almost all the way back up. I think this was a combo of a stuffed clutch, and a stuffed pressure plate though.

However, getting better engagement after pumping the clutch is a sign of the cylinders being stuffed. As a plus, labour rates out in Serbia are significantly cheaper than in the UK so should help the price head downwards. Also, as the clutch bits are all mechanical, then it doesn;t need specialist tools to deal with. A back street garage will do it for a fraction of the price of a main dealer.

Just an update in case someone else has the same problem.

I have changed the clutch cylinder under the pedal.
I had some instant improvement but after a day clutch got spongy again.
At the mechanics shop they told me that there must be some air left in the installation and they bled the hydraulic fluid again. Also they said that it might happen again until all of the air is expelled from system.

Clutch feels good again but I'll see how long will it stay like that.

They didn't do the complete fluid change, they only bled the valve on the gearbox. The mechanic also told me that this type of clutch should be able to expel some small amounts of air by itself, so I should expect to see some improvement in next few days as I drive the car.
Does that sounds right to you?

If you have a concentric type slave cylinder this is true, however it could also be that air is entering the slave cylinder. This can happen even without leaking any fluid.