Zimshimmy

I have a 2008 G37 Coupe 6MT with 26k miles on it. I went out to a restaurant on Saturday and because I was late I decided to Valet Park my car. I went inside the restaurant for approx. 5 minutes and realized that the people i was supposed to meet had changed the restaurant. Came back to get my car and they had already taken my car to the garage. When the valet guy brought back my car the car had a massive stink around it and inside the cabin, just like you get from welding or burnt electronics. If you smell the engine, the smell comes from the area where the battery is located. It's been 3 days and the smell hasn't gone away. It's not as bad as it was Saturday night but it's still there every time I switch the a/c on. I took the car the stealership today and they said that the smell was coming from a worn out clutch and quoted me $3,500 to replace the clutch. I did the clutch test to make sure it's the clutch...I tried to start the car moving in the 4th gear and it stalled out. I also got the car to 40mph and put it in the 6th gear and floored it. The rev didn't rise fast at all. It gradually rose as the car picked up speed. Because of that, I'm kinda convinced that it might not be a bad clutch.

I've searched through all bad, weird and burnt clutch smell posts and no one has had a similar situation. The one or two times I've "burnt" my clutch, the smell only lasts for a minute at most and it smelt different. Any suggestions on what it could be?

Black Betty

iTrader: (60)

Maybe he abused it really badly by revving it really high and dumping it? It sounds exactly like he fried your clutch to me.

blnewt

iTrader: (13)

Damn, tough spot to be in since it would be a "your word vs. the valets" situation. Guess you could trash the restaurant w/ some nasty online reviews but short of anything illegal not much you could do.
This thread got me pretty pissed and I don't even know the OP, hope it's something easier & cheaper to fix, good luck.

Yan141

iTrader: (3)

Time for new clutch...but look under just to make sure. I recommend Exedy stage 2 cerametallic.

dkmesa350z

iTrader: (3)

probably slipped your clutch

Zimshimmy

Even though the Clutch isn't slipping based on the tests that i performed, you still think the clutch is fried? The valet company is saying that it's not possible to completely ruin a clutch just by driving it for half a mile.

G37_Gio

Im a Valet myself and i would honestly never let any park my G Coupe 6MT no matter the situation. Us Valets get careless sometimes because we are in a rush. No doubt its the clutch

G37_Gio

Is it a sweet smelling scent?

Zimshimmy

No, the smell is more like the smell you get when welding something or the smell of burnt electronics.

G37_Gio

Thats weird usually a sweet smell is usually a burnt clutch. Take it to a transmission place and get another opinion from their perspective.

HoldmyMouse

This is the exact reason I never opt for valet especially when it's complimentary. Valets are careless and are always rushing to get you in and out and I don't want to stand there and inspect each panels for dings. It's your word vs theirs and the odds are always to the house.

GoFightNguyen

iTrader: (14)

If you get an Uprev tune, it usually comes with a valet map. It can prevent valet shenanigans

Brainchild

iTrader: (12)

But it won't save you from a bad driver who doesn't know how to drive a MT. The valet probably just didnt know how to drive a MT and rode the clutch while trying. Honestly, I wouldnt worry about it until you notice problems. I've seen way worse without any negative effects after.

JMS2000

That sucks man... that's why I'll never use valet, especially when driving a manual. I don't even like it when a service tech brings my car around, dealership or otherwise. Did you speak with the valet manager immediately? I wouldn't have left the place without at least filing a claim or something. It'll be much tougher after the fact. But hey, if it is the clutch, it's a good excuse to upgrade!

Zimshimmy

Yeah, I've learned my lesson - Never get your car valet parked no matter what. The restaurant contracts the Valet services to another company. The Valet supervisor guy that was at the restaurant was an A$$ to deal with on Saturday. He kept on trying to blame it on my car saying that it could have been like that before they took it even though the guy that took my car kept on saying that there was no smell at all when he got my car. The Restaurant Manager came out and the moment he got close to the car and smelt the stink, he told the valet supervisor guy to call the Valet Company's owner. The restaurant manager told the valet company owner that he was going to tell me to take my car to an Infiniti dealership and get a diagnosis of what was wrong and if it turned out that it was something that they (valet guy) had done, they were going to pay for it. I've been dealing with the owner ever since then and he's actually been really cooperative so far. He's asked me to go and get a second opinion at another mechanic shop (since he thinks the Infiniti dealership is a rip-off) and if it turns out that they come to the same conclusion that my clutch is fried, then we'll discuss a way forward. He needs to fire the dang Valet Supervisor though cos he's going to lose a lot of business because of him.