[kevinMario]

Hi guys,

Approx. 3 weeks ago I had my clutch replaced by Kmart, and last Friday I can sort of feel the clutch 'stiffen up' from the point of being tolerable until finally in Saturday night I couldn't even get the car into first gear ( or any gear for that matter )

This Monday I spoke to the guys @ Kmart and they said they're going to look at it as long as I tow it to their workshop. If the clutch is faulty then they're going to cover the towing & repairs.

Yesterday they said that it was only the Clutch Cable that needs re-adjusting... but somehow I feel a bit unsettled, do you-masters-of-zooks think that this might be a genuine one-off problem or should I take my car to another workshop to get a second opinion ?

Any suggestions or inputs whatsoever ? I'm driving down to Mandurah this weekend and I definitely dont want the car to stuff up again on a long weekend =(

Thanks in advance !!

[atari4x4]

you let K~Mart work on your car?

[Zook_Fan]

even if you dont get another workshop to look at that problem, go to another workshop from now on

[kevinMario]

Yeah I know... they just happenned to be directly opposite my office, so for convenience's sake I decided to go there..

..not the smartest decision. =(

Whaddaya think of Ultra Tune then ? They're 5 minutes away, that would be the next place I'd go.

[matty_wall]

my mate works for an untra tune workshop, and he reckons there pretty expensive.. but in saying that another mate took his car there to get a new engine put in and a new clutch and its still going strong after 4 years.

[royce]

go find all the trouble I have been having, then replace your melted clutch cable and get em to lift the clutch pedal height just a tad

I am sure its shit design in aftermarket clutches but I am not about to go get a genuine one to compare

[Rockhopper]

I used to work at an Ultratune an odd 15 years ago. As they are a franchise business, you get the good ones and you get the bad ones. I used to do a lot of warranty reworks for the other franchises, so I quickly got to learn who was good and who was crap. At the end of the day, a workshop is only as good as it's technicians. The beauty of going to Ultratune, Kmart, Midas or any other franchise, is that if you're not happy with the way your car was repaired, you can go to another franchise for your warranty repair, and hopefully they will do a better job.
On another note, had I done the clutch on your car, I would've asked you to return it to me after a week so I could recheck the clutch adjustment.

[royce]

and reword your thread title to something more usefull and truthfull like new clutch wont engage gears or something cause your problem has nothing to do with Kmart and as much as everyone thinks they are gurus chances are they still no more about cars than you so who are you to blame

[Saam]

never has to do with the branding of the workshop it has to do with who works there.

[4x4ish]

get racq(roadside assistance) for $60 then tow it there as long as its withing 10km. cheaper than 1 tow.

a maechanic anywhere should know how to put a simple clutch in especially in a sierra. its either a faulty clutch or careless/dumb mechanic, not really fault of kmart. mistakes can happen but if he makes mistakes commonly they should sack him.

[kevinMario]

Well... I guess it is wrong to point fingers at Kmart.. I was a bit biased as my housemate went to another Kmart near where I live and they screwed up his rims & lugnuts - when 2 guys got screwed by the same franchise I guess being biased is unavoidable... and for that I'm sorry =(

Oh, for an update, the clutch cable snapped 3 hours ago while I was driving back from a mate's house - and this happenned 1 day after they readjusted it.

I guess I won't point fingers at Kmart, but I surely can warn you Western Australians ( if there are any here ) that if you're thinking of going to Kmart in Claremont, don't.

[kevinMario]

BTW just wondering, is it common practice if when you ask a workshop to REPLACE your clutch with a new one - they replace your clutch cable as a package as well or do they usually just use the old one ??

I mean, it doesn't make sense if you replace a new clutch and still use a 5-8 year old cable... or does it ?

[kevinMario]

Rockhopper wrote:

I used to work at an Ultratune an odd 15 years ago. As they are a franchise business, you get the good ones and you get the bad ones. I used to do a lot of warranty reworks for the other franchises, so I quickly got to learn who was good and who was crap. At the end of the day, a workshop is only as good as it's technicians. The beauty of going to Ultratune, Kmart, Midas or any other franchise, is that if you're not happy with the way your car was repaired, you can go to another franchise for your warranty repair, and hopefully they will do a better job.
On another note, had I done the clutch on your car, I would've asked you to return it to me after a week so I could recheck the clutch adjustment.

@Rockhopper
Are you saying I can go to any Kmart with my invoice and they will fix it for me ( as long as its something to do with the clutch ) for free ?

Damn, thats something new... thanks for the info !!

[Rockhopper]

If it is covered by warranty yes. If it is your clutch cable as you mentioned, then no, because Kmart did your clutch, and not your cable.
It is not common practice for a mechanic to replace your clutch cable when they do the clutch. It would be like saying they should replace your brake master cylinder when the do your rear shoes and wheel cylinders.

[royce]

kevinMario wrote:

BTW just wondering, is it common practice if when you ask a workshop to REPLACE your clutch with a new one - they replace your clutch cable as a package as well or do they usually just use the old one ??

I mean, it doesn't make sense if you replace a new clutch and still use a 5-8 year old cable... or does it ?

seems to be something related to Vitaras, IMHO its a shit setup and whoever designed it was probably jsut fired before starting work on it

sierras are well known for snapping cables and cracking around the firewall too

[felix]

I had the same problem when I did my clutch. I had to replace the cable because the old one wasn't pulling enough for some reason. Probably a vitara thing, if you look where the cable goes its really a terrible design.

"hmm.. need somewhere to route the clutch cable.. I KNOW!!! Lets just get a really long cable and let it loop around in the engine bay! YEAH THATS A GREAT IDEA!!!!"