Hello,
I'm in the sad position of having to deal with the sale of my late fathers car.
Car is an 2013 (63) Hyundai i40 CRDI Premium (top spec) estate 46k. Lovely car, not tested all the toys yet and too miserable out to clean and prep yet!
Dad had mentioned that the clutch was heavier than his previous diesel Avensis but seem to had adjusted to it. I had driven previously earlier in the year ago running an errand for him and noticed that you had to really push your foot into the footwell and was stiffer than normal to change gear despite only having around 40k on the clock.
Having driven it to my house tonight to park up and prep for sale, it is heavy (compared to my similar engined Kia Ceed) and thinking to change the clutch so it has more chance of being saleable for a decent price. My mechanic who is a family friend of Dads (Came to his send off) confirmed at last MOT that it was heavy and probably the pressure plate. Think he said about £400 to change the clutch but did say it would hang out a bit. I would never question his judgement.
Having a quick AT search suggests a car of this type would be valued at £7.5k (with a good clutch) on a private sale and a WBAC type trade in around £5800. Obviously I want to avoid the trade in possible and get as much back on a private sale for a straight honest fault free car. Mum has agreed whatever I spend in preparing the car and selling fee I can take from the sale price. She (pensioner) doesn't drive and needs the money from it now since they saved a while to buy this last year. Shame really as Dad was so proud to go and look at it and over the moon when he got it. We (Mum, Dad, myself and my daughter) all went to the IoW this year for a week in it and didn't miss a beat, swallowed 4 people + luggage like a champ.
I will be popping up to mechanics house this week to have a chat and gauge best course of action as he has my mums best interests in heart.
Just looking for any thoughts? If anyone been in a similar position?
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I wouldn't bother having it changed before selling - just mention it being heavy to would-be purchaser and say you've dropped price to allow for repair (even if it's only £100- but don't tell them by how much unless they ask!) if they decide to, let them make that decision.
Last edited by: devonite on Sun 4 Oct 20 at 21:51
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Sorry to hear of anyone in that position.
As a 63 it's actually the same age as our Berlingo. That's on twice the miles of the Kia and has a heavy clutch too.
To be honest I don't see how spending £400 is going to get you a 'return' in terms of increasing it's value. If WBAC say £5.8k then they might use the clutch's heaviness to knock £200 off, and some more for any paintwork blemishes or other faults.
I'd guess £7.5 is the retail price in A1 condition.
Realistically, allowing for prep etc costs for a retail sale, I think £5.8 to £6k is as good as you'll get.
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You have two things to consider;
Value.
Just maths really.
Saleability.
How do I know a $400 clutch will fix it? I wouldn't touch it with a bargepole. I'd go and buy one of the other gazillion on sale that doesn't have a problem.
Change the clutch, or give me a big enough discount to not only replace the clutch but also to make.me feel good about the effort and the risk. 1500 quid, I should think.
The only people who buy cars with a problem are either buying something rare or seeking a massive discount.
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We Buy Any car (other organisations are available) do save an awful lot of hassle. That's it, you pays your money etc.
Sorry about your Dad.
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Condolences.
I'm of the same opinion.
Whenever I've advertised and sold cars buyers have not been queuing at the door. I like to present a car which has as few faults as possible so that potential buyers do not walk away. Nor do they try offering stupid money. For me a receipted new clutch would be a plus point. It would transform a car. It would indicate its been looked after.
Generally one of the first things people do is sit in the drivers seat, press the clutch and perform static gear changes. A bad feeling clutch would maybe put them off immediately.
£400 is not a bad price for a fitted clutch.
I completed 2 clutch changes over Lockdown on daughter's Kia Picantos
The benefit being I had quality time and didn't have to rush. 1 had a squeaky thrust bearing and the other was notchy and stiff. daughter reckoned it was fine :/ . Both under 50K.
Certainly the second one was transformed with a slick and light clutch feel.
Daughters didn't understand my methodology in that, other than being a maintenance issue, when they eventually come to sell, if we do it privately, light smooth clutches would be a bonus.
But I am a bit like a fleet manager and team mechanic at our house :)
It did remind me of one thing. I think I'm starting to get a bit old for for crawling round on my back heaving gearboxes in and out.
I did find this which helped enormously.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDxtLPBMPnM&t=1316s
Last edited by: Fullchat on Sun 4 Oct 20 at 22:29
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So 40-50k for clutch life on Korean cars? really? that's very poor.
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I have always reckoned the life of a clutch depends mainly on the type uf use a car gets. I never had a clutch replaced on any of my company cars, although a good few of them were over 100k miles when they went back, I have replaced clutches on my wife's car,my daughter's car and my mother's car over the years, all at much lower miles. All of these did far more town driving and far less motorway / long distanc driving than I ever did.
Part of the problem is also that both wife and daughter have a tendency to hold the car on the clutch at junctions, I don't comment on it any more, I value my life too much.
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It is poor.
The stiff clutch was a second hand 3 year old acquisition so I cant comment on the abuse it sustained in a previous life. The squeaky thrust bearing car has been with us from new and has been driven reasonably sympathetically. It was just the thrust bearing but if you go in there you might as well treat it to a clutch.
The easiest clutch change I've performed was on an Astra GTE.(Fwd) You could take off a cover plate on the end of the gearbox, pull the mainshaft, unbolt and extricate the clutch through a removable plate on the bellhousing. Instillation in reverse order. Easy peasy :)
Last edited by: Fullchat on Mon 5 Oct 20 at 00:48
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If I was selling a car and asking "the full price" I would invest in a clutch, oil & filter change at least & if there is on a few months MoT I would get a new ticket.
For Sale
2013 Kia .............. Just serviced, new clutch fitted, MoT'd till October 2021
Then spend 3 or 4 hours with a thorough clean inside & out. Show photos of service history in car advert .........condition, service history sells the car
Will attract attention & hopefully a good price
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>> The easiest clutch change I've performed was on an Astra GTE.(Fwd)
Took 40 to 45 mins, including having a cup of tea.
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>>>> The easiest clutch change I've performed was on an Astra GTE.(Fwd)
IIRC the clutch and pressure plates came clipped together which avoided the need to centralise the clutch plate. I know at least one person removed the clips before assembly and regretted it.
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Wasn't the i40 known for weak clutches when it first came out. Maybe this one needed some attention a while back (before the OPs father bought it) but didn't get it? Presumably a new clutch would show that the issue had been resolved.
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Is the clutch on the i40 hydraulic?
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Hyundai/Kia had clutch issues on a range of cars 7/8 years ago - not just the i40 - taxi drivers were up in arms as they failed on the i40 very early in the life of a taxi.
Last edited by: Falkirk Bairn on Mon 5 Oct 20 at 15:55
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Thanks for all the replies.
Not thought much more on it since posting but going to have a chat with mechanic tonight and see what he would suggest. He sees loads of cars through the sales are of the garage he spanners at.
WBAC easiest option although Evans Halshaw claims to be their prices like for like (probably just a pound!)
I don't want to offload something I'm not happy with to someone more so at that price point (under £2k maybe). Who want to buy a car knowing its going to be off the road for a repair.
Just doing some sums, say a private sale at £6750, but accept £6500 minus £600 for clutch and selling fees. Leaves £5900.
Now WBAC have come back at £6105 after leaving a few days, assume they knock £200 off for chips etc doesnt seem worth the sale route.
They will also buy the car with it not being in my name.
To be updated....
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My wife used WBAC to sell her MX5 recently. Painless process, she probably would have got a better price on e-bay or selling to the trade.
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There is a DVLA process for the transfer of title after a death.
Is there a will? This can ease matters as they know who is to inherit the estate especially if you are the executor..
It might be you need to take your mum along to WBAC if she is the owner.
A bit of a messy selling a car after a death but it must happen hundreds occasions every day - you would think that there would be a much neater solution.
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I had a Hyundai ix35. At 3 years old it needed a new clutch. Dual mass flywheel meant this was going to be over a grand.
Got a price from WBAC.
Evans halshaw guaranteed to beat that. They did, by £700!!
No mention by them of the clutch.
I remember walking home from EH relieved and happy!
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>> There is a DVLA process for the transfer of title after a death.
>> Is there a will? This can ease matters as they know who is to inherit
>> the estate especially if you are the executor..
Alternatively on intestacy on England and Wales a car is a 'chattel' and passes to the surviving spouse.
www.boltburdon.co.uk/blogs/wills-inheritance-laws-receive-makeover/
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If I went to look at a used car and the seller told me he'd reduced the price because it needed a new clutch (Or any repair) I'd walk. If that's all it needs why hasn't it been done?
I wouldn't want the hassle.
Last edited by: Robin O'Reliant on Tue 6 Oct 20 at 13:27
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Some cars, or some people maybe, must be very hard on clutches. I've been driving for 45 years and never had to replace one. Some might say, "ah well, that's because you spend all your time on the motorway", but then would that explain how my wife has been driving on mostly local, traffic infested trips for 39 years and never had to replace a clutch either? Luck of the draw or driving style?
I was told by the tooth suckers ( on another forum ) that the clutches on my Ford TDCis were a time bomb, but they never gave any bother over three cars and a combined 600,000 miles.
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>> If I went to look at a used car and the seller told me he'd
>> reduced the price because it needed a new clutch (Or any repair) I'd walk. If
>> that's all it needs why hasn't it been done?
Because they don't want the hassle.
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Is the clutch actually failing?
What we've actually been told here is that the clutch is heavy. It's not clear to me whether the 'stiffer than normal' comment relates to the clutch pedal or whether changes are actually stiff/baulked. If the latter and the plates are not clearing each other properly then, unless there's some manual adjustment, there's a problem.
If it's just the pedal then heavy is a subjective judgement. Clutches tend to get heavier over time; part of wear/tear. If I jump straight out of my petrol Fabia with 30k miles and into the Berlingo, a diesel on 100k plus, then the Berlingo's clutch feels heavy.
When I drove it everyday on holiday in France it was nothing out of the ordinary.
Anybody else think diesel clutches often seem heavier?
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Yes. Three manual cars in the family. Two petrols (Fiat Punto and Renault Captur) and one diesel (Mini Clubman). The Mini clutch gives ones muscles a big workout whereas the clutches in the petrol cars are barely noticeable.
I am astonished at the weight of the Mini clutch given it is most likely to be an 'around town' car.
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>>Clutches tend to get heavier over time; part of wear/tear.
Do they? I know cable operated clutches did, but I don't think hydraulic ones get heavier neccessarily.
Stiff pedal linkage, gummed up cylinder, stiff clutch lever, sticking thrust bearing shaft, damaged pressure plate.
Given that you said you trust the mechanic, I simply would not try to second guess his advice.
400 quid and the problem is gone. Now that's my kind of problem.
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>> Do they? I know cable operated clutches did, but I don't think hydraulic ones get
>> heavier neccessarily.
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>> Stiff pedal linkage, gummed up cylinder, stiff clutch lever, sticking thrust bearing shaft, damaged pressure
>> plate.
I'd say those in the second of our Berlingos (the first had a cable) and the Xantia got heavier as miles built up. The Roomster's probably did too though I bought that at 70k miles. On the latter I asked about causes and whether anything might improve it. Explanation included something to do with the clutch springs and changes as the plates wore.
Just a theory, I wouldn't die in a ditch defending it.
Last edited by: Bromptonaut on Tue 6 Oct 20 at 17:26
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At one point when I was living in Rio I had a Xantia. As an aside, a great car, I absolutely loved it. But the clutch was as light as light gets.
The only heavy clutches I remember were my Mk1 Escort, and that was cable, and an Audi 100, and that was a warped pressure plate.
Still, as you say, more of academic interest than a die in the ditch matter.
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>> At one point when I was living in Rio I had a Xantia. As an
>> aside, a great car, I absolutely loved it. But the clutch was as light as
>> light gets.
I ran mine, a 2.0/110 HDi, from new in 2000 until cumulative issues made in uneconomic in 2013. I think at new, compared to either the 205D it directly replaced or the BX 1.9D we kept as a second car, the clutch was pretty light. By the end of its service it was pushing 150k.
After about 75k one of the bearings in the clutch setup began to rattle, the pedal was substantially lower than the brake and it was heavy. It became a standing joke when it was in for service etc at the family run garage in town for the proprietor's wife who manned the front desk to say 'Simon - you need to get the clutch replaced'. As it was by then, having been elbowed out as family car by #1 Berlingo, mostly a station hack I wasn't too bothered.
Clutch was but one of the £1500 plus needs of work that saw it off in 2013.
Last edited by: Bromptonaut on Tue 6 Oct 20 at 19:01
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One of the diagnostics for heavy clutch is that it is worn. Certainly that was the case with the Picanto. Maybe work hardening of the pressure plate fingers or the angle of attack of the thrust bearing having changed on worn fingers??
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>> Maybe work hardening of the pressure plate fingers or the
>> angle of attack of the thrust bearing having changed on worn fingers??
That's pretty much what they said about the Roomster.
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Just to close this thread off, we sold the car today and agreed on £6k. This was back to the supplying main Hyundai dealer that sold him the car in January. As said before he bought the car expensive (approved used car) and parted with £7200 in cash (+ sub 1k trade in) 10 months ago. Not the worst loss and mum happy with the money she got back.
Just to add, mechanic said we would have struggled to better the offer made to us. He said had might have been interested in it himself but could have only gone to £5k, the £400 for the clutch I misunderstood and that was parts alone, total if flywheel was needed (worst case) would have been around £1200!
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Thanks for update. Did they know the clutch was cream crackered? :)
Cant recall if you said it was diesel or petrol and if diesel it may have a Dual Mass Flywheel. Then it gets expensive.
Sometimes its worth taking a bit of a hit for less hassle.
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Hyundai - Hyundai i40 - Clutch change before selling car - devonite
