[farmboy]

Received this from the dealership today:

Hi Doug looks like the parts have been released from Kentucky. Has to clear customs yet and then from fca. No exact eta. Have a great weekend Dave.

I could freaking drive to Kentucky and back in a day (maybe a day and a half if I need to rest). I’m baffled why this is taking so damned long?!?

 

[farmboy]

I haven’t heard from Dodge yet but my father told me he saw my Dart on a hoist when he went to pick up his Ram from some tailgate warranty work. Guess the parts came in finally.

 

[farmboy]

10 weeks later, my Dart is repaired and ready to be picked up this evening. Total cost is $2580.xx CAD. About what I figured...would have been nice if they’d split the bill due to the excessive wait time though.

 

[35900]

I just moved from GA to CO. On the trip out, I had the same problem. I made it to the new house, parked my dart I and could not get it out of gear the next morning. It had to be towed to the closest Dodge dealer where they replaced the clutch master cylinder. My dart is a 2013 limited with the 1.4.

 

[farmboy]

You’re lucky it took that long to need replacing. My original one was replaced at 67000km less than 2 years after buying the car. Glad it was nothing worse for you.

 

[dad's dart]

I'm repeating myself here, but today's manual systems are just not heavy duty in any respect. Not just the Darts that were built. Even something like a Golf GTI and a Civic type R are having issues. You'd only know if you visit other forums or Google specific questions. The manual components are constantly moving under incredible stress created either buy the driver or just by the natural laws of physics. None of the later models are built with the same gusto as the 70's thru about the early 90's. Of all the things to cut corners on, it should not be the manual drive components. Even the friggin' linkages are cheap and generally feel like plastic toys.
Unforgivable .

 

[farmboy]

Couldn’t agree more Sir...well said.

 

[Huisj]

Add me to the club. 2016 Dart GT with 13,500 miles on it. Driving on the highway today, and when I got off at an exit, clutch dropped to floor. Had to pry it up and pump it to get it back. Worked ok again for a few mintues, got back on highway, did it again next time I got off. Drove it to the nearest dealership (in Durant MI) and currently sitting in their waiting room. They say they can't replicate it and have never heard of such a thing happening. Grrrrr. This is a fun way to start a trip across the state on the way to a meeting and then a funeral. I might be stranded here.

 

[Mokonu]

Hey guys, added me to the Concentric Slave Cylinder replacement team. My clutch fell the the floor also and would not come out of gear. I didn't know it was my slave till I filled my Master Cylinder and pumped the clutch a few times. Looked under the car and saw the leak from inside the Transmission. I didn't want to pay someone to repair it, so I did the repair myself. I tore my battery out, and fuses. I removed both wheels and cv joints attached to the transmission. I removed the frame attached to the front bumper next to the transmission. I removed the (2) clips on top of the transmission, well actually they broke. Removed the Shocks and springs on the drivers side. Removed all the bolts attaching the transmission to the engine and dropped the transmission. The Slave Cylinder was blown. Huge hole in the side. Replaced the Cylinder and put everything back together. Realizing that I forgot to bleed the Slave Cylinder prior to attaching everything again. I learned of a crazy bleeding method for those lines without bleeder valves. I talked with a mechanic that knows that Chrysler don't have bleeders on their slaves, so they pump the clutch really fast for 15 sec, and slow pump for another 15 secs allowing the air bubbles to travel to the Master Cylinder. Keep the Master filled with DOT3 fluid or you are just putting air back into the system. I did this for about 30-45 mins and my clutch was starting to get pressure. It was the most amazing feeling of not having to rip the transmission out again cause I forgot to pre-bleed the Slave Cylinder. I now got my clutch back and my car is back on the road and I saved myself a few grand.

If you guys every need any assistance with this operation, I can definitely pass some knowledge.

 

[Huisj]

An update on my car:

The dealership says they ordered a new clutch master cylinder, though they also have not actually done anything to diagnose that that is indeed the problem; the car hasn’t been looked at since I was there last Thursday. They thought it might come in today but didn’t know for sure. In the meantime I’m driving a rental from Enterprise that I’m paying for and will have to submit paperwork for to be reimbursed later. They didn’t have any loaners and said their allotment from Enterprise was full or something (?).

Not thrilled with how this is playing out, especially since my car is stuck 60 miles away and my rental is from a place 15 miles from the dealership.

 

[Dartanyion]

An update on my car:

The dealership says they ordered a new clutch master cylinder, though they also have not actually done anything to diagnose that that is indeed the problem; the car hasn’t been looked at since I was there last Thursday. They thought it might come in today but didn’t know for sure. In the meantime I’m driving a rental from Enterprise that I’m paying for and will have to submit paperwork for to be reimbursed later. They didn’t have any loaners and said their allotment from Enterprise was full or something (?).

Not thrilled with how this is playing out, especially since my car is stuck 60 miles away and my rental is from a place 15 miles from the dealership.

Yeah.. With all this being said, what is the status of the lawsuit at this point? I know the last update was that the California judge stated that it MAY not be able to move forward as is because the lawsuit was for a broader range but focused on California laws, but does anyone know any news of if they are repositioning theirselves with it? We need a fix for this badly.. I am holding my breath in hopes that it may be at least a year or so before this almost inevitably happens to my car but I don't want to just hold out hope that I can be in a better financial situation before it hits me... I'm currently at 27,000 miles and no issues, but still too early to count myself out by any stretch..

 

[Huisj]

Got the car back today...and brought it back in by the end of the day. Went and picked it up at the dealer out of town, drove it home on the highway, and 45 miles later the clutch only came halfway up when I got off the highway. Felt extra soft coming up a few other times after I got off the highway, like it doesn’t want to return through the friction point at first before it finally slowly engages. As before, after a few pumps of the pedal it’s back to normal for a bit.

Brought it to another dealer closer to home and work this time. They took more info and were thorough in listening to the description at least, and didn’t act too surprised, but also had no timeframe for when they’d be able to look at it. Also, no loaner for me - they’re out of cars.

So now I just have no car for some unknown amount of time, and the first dealer has to figure out how to help me get reimbursed for the rental I paid for myself last week when they were out of loaners too. Things are swell. All this at 13,500 miles. I’ve put hundreds of thousands of miles on manual transmission cars over the last 20 years (I’ve never owned an auto) and this is the first clutch/trans issue I’ve had.

 

[dad's dart]

Got the car back today...and brought it back in by the end of the day. Went and picked it up at the dealer out of town, drove it home on the highway, and 45 miles later the clutch only came halfway up when I got off the highway. Felt extra soft coming up a few other times after I got off the highway, like it doesn’t want to return through the friction point at first before it finally slowly engages. As before, after a few pumps of the pedal it’s back to normal for a bit.

Brought it to another dealer closer to home and work this time. They took more info and were thorough in listening to the description at least, and didn’t act too surprised, but also had no timeframe for when they’d be able to look at it. Also, no loaner for me - they’re out of cars.

So now I just have no car for some unknown amount of time, and the first dealer has to figure out how to help me get reimbursed for the rental I paid for myself last week when they were out of loaners too. Things are swell. All this at 13,500 miles. I’ve put hundreds of thousands of miles on manual transmission cars over the last 20 years (I’ve never owned an auto) and this is the first clutch/trans issue I’ve had.

Guess they didn't diagnose, nor did they have many Dart clutches in for repair before. Since it's usually the slave cyl.

 

[farmboy]

So they replaced the clutch master cylinder, which (temporarily) resolved the issue, now your clutch pedal is soft again and it’s back at the dealership? If I understand that correctly, it sounds like your slave cylinder is leaking. I just went through all this with mine, the dealership had it for 10 weeks waiting on parts.
How many miles on the car? If you are higher mileage, you might consider replacing the clutch disc too since they will have to remove the transmission anyway to get at the slave cylinder. Think of it like replacing the water pump when you do a timing belt (or visa versa). You’re already paying the labour to remove the tranny, no point in doing that twice.

•Edit• I just re read your post and saw you’re at 13500 miles. Clutch disc “should” be ok unless it’s been soaked by brake/clutch fluid leaking from the slave cylinder. Best of luck to you and I hope things work out for you.

 

[Huisj]

The clutch has always grabbed fine aside from just feeling a bit sloppy from the weird CDV. It felt like it still grabbed ok when I drove it on Wednesday once I pumped it back up at each stop, so fingers crossed that the plates are ok.

 

[Bullfrog]

Might i just add that bleeding the whole system with good quality fluid may, MAY fix some issues as well, but it would seem that once problems are showing its to late... its worth a shot though.

 

[dad's dart]

Got the car back today...and brought it back in by the end of the day. Went and picked it up at the dealer out of town, drove it home on the highway, and 45 miles later the clutch only came halfway up when I got off the highway. Felt extra soft coming up a few other times after I got off the highway, like it doesn’t want to return through the friction point at first before it finally slowly engages. As before, after a few pumps of the pedal it’s back to normal for a bit.

Brought it to another dealer closer to home and work this time. They took more info and were thorough in listening to the description at least, and didn’t act too surprised, but also had no timeframe for when they’d be able to look at it. Also, no loaner for me - they’re out of cars.

So now I just have no car for some unknown amount of time, and the first dealer has to figure out how to help me get reimbursed for the rental I paid for myself last week when they were out of loaners too. Things are swell. All this at 13,500 miles. I’ve put hundreds of thousands of miles on manual transmission cars over the last 20 years (I’ve never owned an auto) and this is the first clutch/trans issue I’ve had.

I find it hard to understand that FCA would keep using essentially the same manual components on the entire age groups of Darts they made from 2012 forward. That really "takes some brass" on their part.
I can only assume that they don't care about consumer confidence and word of mouth. I wonder how the Fiats with manuals are doing. Same, I'd bet. Good luck with yours.

 

[PDJennings]

I find it hard to understand that FCA would keep using essentially the same manual components on the entire age groups of Darts they made from 2012 forward. That really "takes some brass" on their part.
I can only assume that they don't care about consumer confidence and word of mouth. I wonder how the Fiats with manuals are doing. Same, I'd bet. Good luck with yours.

Still working out how to post here...

Hydraulic clutch seems to be a design deficiency on these cars. I have a couple questions to those with sad experience.

Are there any aftermarket hydraulic parts (master cylinder, slave cylinder and throwout bearing) that solves the problems of poor design? An all metal design would be a step in the right direction.

The main complaints in this thread were that the clutch pedal falls to the floor by itself due to leaking fluid. I haven't seen leaking fluid or the falling pedal yet, but I do have trouble with the pedal springing back the first time I use it in the morning sometimes. Question to the other posters -- did you have that happen as an early symptom of cylinder failure? How long did it take to go from that to total failure?

For those who repaired, how long has your OEM replacement cylinder lasted? Any recurrence of problems?

 

[alpinegreenneon]

You can try replacing all the brake fluid and it might give your components a little longer life:
https://www.dodge-dart.org/forum/dodge-dart-tweakers-anonymous/28426-exploring-dissecting-dodge-dart-clutch-master-cylinder-2.html#post760204

RockAuto is supposed to have something on Nov.1, but it may be about the same as OEM:
https://www.dodge-dart.org/forum/rockauto-com/63454-more-transmission-parts-rockauto-com.html

 

[PDJennings]

You can try replacing all the brake fluid and it might give your components a little longer life


RockAuto is supposed to have something on Nov.1, but it may be about the same as OEM

Thanks, I am thinking of ordering parts in advance of need, since several posters shared that they had problems with parts availability when their car was already nonop. With no aftermarket new design existing, it looks like a Hobson's choice.