Help me trouble shoot an issue. Clutch problem?

[keca10]

I have been searching here and I think my issues point to needing a new clutch.
The reason why I am asking is I want to make sure the rest of transmission is OK (syncros and all).

Background:
Recently purchased as 2011 S4 with APR pulley and 93 tune (Stage II?). It has other mods too (short shifter kit, all kreuz, exhaust, eurocode sway bars and links...)
48,000 miles
Previous owner had some weird VERY heavy dapper wheels and drove with them with the APR stage2 tune for 10k miles.
He claimed the car accelerated much slower because of the weight of those wheels. I have stock wheels on now. Heavy wheels + stage 2 APR may have accelerated clutch wear IMO.

Here are the symptoms:
1) Going reverse uphill slowly (parking). Clutch fully engaged. Car struggles a little bit then the transmission jumps out of gear into neutral.
2) Hard acceleration 3->4 gear. Clutch seemed to slip at least once. when it happened the transmission jumps into N.
3) Sometimes difficult to get into gear. Especially under heavy acceleration. Also, downshift to 2 or 2->3 more difficult than it should be to a point where it's not enjoyable. Might be related to short shifter or clutch? Or I suck as a manual driver.
4) Car sometimes needs to have the clutch pressed really hard all the way to the floor to start the engine.
5) Seems like a long clutch travel and engagement.... doesn't feel 'crescent fresh'. Almost like a long engagement tail for the last 20% of the grip after the point at which it should have totally engaged.

It seems like every time the clutch slips it also bumps the transmission into N.

Question: Do I need a new clutch? Based on previous posts and reviews JHM stage 4 seems good? Could there be other damage and how to troubleshoot?

Kinda sucks I have to spend more money on this puppy right away. It was supposed to be a more reasonable purchase (lower maintenance and repair costs) vs. an E90 M3. Just got a set of peeler wheels for the summer (owner sold the OEM wheels, left 18" RS4 replicas) and 2 sets of tires (blizzak WS-80 and Michelin PSS). Also spent $1000 fixing little things that previous owner Effed up (badly installed aftermarket exhaust, check engine light, improperly installed wheel, other exhaust rattle at 1000 rpm...). It will need 55k service soon, too. I am getting this car to a perfect state though....

[mmm def]

Unfortunately sounds like you need a clutch. Upgrade time for sure.

[keca10]

New clutch at 48k miles seems really early. But who knows how this car was driven before I got it. You can wear out a clutch pretty quickly.

Forum consensus still on Stage 4 JHM with light flywheel being the best?

[JD S4]

New clutch at 48k miles seems really early. But who knows how this car was driven before I got it. You can wear out a clutch pretty quickly.

Forum consensus still on Stage 4 JHM with light flywheel being the best?

48k miles + 100whp from stock... Can totally need a clutch.. May also want to investigate further. Sounds like some slave issues in conjunction with the starting issues.

[jlaudio]

oem s4 clutch is the same clutch used in a4's. its weak even on stock power.

it's not abnormal to replace the clutch at that mileage. its the weak link in manual s4's.

[keca10]

I am going to try to run it through the winter and replace in the spring, since gentle snow/ice driving shouldn't tax the current clutch too much. It seems to only give out under high stress now.

Any risk of damage to other components if I do this, or should I replace right away?

[infinkc]

What gets me is your popping out of gear, I would try and adjust your shifter first. I would think if the clutch is going out all its going to do is slip with a high load, shouldnt pop you out of gear. To me if its not the shifter adjustment its a tranny issue before a worn clutch.

[S4'ed]

Popping out of gear is a linkage mis-adjustment, or an internal gearbox issue (not related to clutch issues). My guess is that the prior owner thought the S4 was a drag racing car.......

[DBFL]

New clutch at 48k miles seems really early. But who knows how this car was driven before I got it. You can wear out a clutch pretty quickly.

Forum consensus still on Stage 4 JHM with light flywheel being the best?

The stock clutch is very weak. Mine would overheat and slip at the track with only stage 1 tune and with only 5000 miles on the car. Stage two made it slip when driving aggressively on the street. It all depends on how you drive the car. If you go to the track and driving at 10/10 you will absolutely need to upgrade. If you are just driving normally on the street the stock clutch is adequate but will probably fail sooner if you are tuned.

The shifter popping into neutral is something else. A worn clutch shouldn't do this. Like others said, check the linkage. Perhaps the short shift kit wasn't installed correctly or something came loose.

If you need a clutch I'd go with JHM. I'm happy with my stage 4 and lightweight flywheel. A couple things to keep in mind though. If you are stuck in traffic a lot you may want to consider going with the stage 3 clutch. The stage 4 setup makes the pedal a bit firmer and would probably be a bit much if you are regularly in stop and go traffic. If you replace the clutch, I'd do the flywheel at the same time. You'll save a lot in labor. The only downside I have noticed is that it has a bit of chatter when stopped with the clutch depressed. It isn't audible inside with the windows up, but you can definitely hear it from outside. I feel it added a small amount of vibration as well.

Definitely add the USP stainless clutch line as well. It helps with pedal feel and is a must if you plan to race at all.

Just my two cents. Hope this helps.

[keca10]

Another note on difficult shifts.

It's super easy to row the gears when the car is off. When the engine starts to spin it becomes really hard to get into 1st 2nd 3rd.

[withENEMYin]

Maybe start with Engine mounts? I had a similar problem with coming out of gear with my B7 S4. Turns out my Engine mounts were shot but sensor never went off...
Easy way to diagnose: while in 1st, 2nd, or 3rd. Floor it, if the shifter moves while still in gear you need new mounts.

Either way your just delaying the inevitable with the clutch. When you do replace it, do everything in one shot. Clutch/Flywheel/Linkage/Trans and Engine mounts, and check that short throw installation.