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2017 s550 gt 6 speed won’t shift into gear

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Apologies if there’s another post that already addresses this. I searched repeatedly with no luck.

I drove my mustang at an HPDE at VIR 2 weekends ago. Halfway through my last session on Sunday afternoon, the car would not go into gear while the engine was running and it started making a high pitch whining noise.

I got a uhaul and towed it home. Now it’s sitting at the Ford dealer. They said it would be about 2 weeks before anyone could even check it. (It’s been there a week so far.)

The car has less than 18k miles and 4 track weekends - about 16 twenty minute sessions.

Any thoughts/suggestions?
 
Throw out bearing and or clutch are the likely causes.
Should be covered under warranty
Good luck with repairs.

Thanks! That’s what I was thinking too. Also, wondering if it’s just gonna break again. (For comparison, my last track car was a 60k mile BMW Z4 6 speed, with original clutch, transmission, and all related parts. Of course it didn’t have near the power or torque of the mustang, but I drove it harder than the mustang and it never gave any sign of a mechanical problem.)

Is the s550 really up to long term track use, without having things breaking?
 
Last edited:
1,040
1,088
Monaca Pa
My clutch came apart at 5000 miles. Ford dealer installed the Exedy clutch kit which I bought. Dealer told me they ate the labor $$ saying ford said it was a consumable item. They found out after they pulled everything out of my car.. Good Luck
 
My clutch came apart at 5000 miles. Ford dealer installed the Exedy clutch kit which I bought. Dealer told me they ate the labor $$ saying ford said it was a consumable item. They found out after they pulled everything out of my car.. Good Luck

I get that the clutch is a wear item. BUT, I’ve never dropped the clutch, never done a burnout, and rev match my downshifts. I don’t think I’ve done anything that should cause a clutch, or anything related to the drivetrain, to fail.

Do you know why your clutch failed so soon?
 
@JeffV8, I appreciate the additional info and pics. Sure hope your new Exedy clutch holds up better for you.

@steveespo, Thanks for the insight re oem clutch not liking high rpms.

It still seems odd to me that my 10 year old bmw with more than triple the miles had zero mechanical issues with all stock/standard parts and my practically new “performance pack” mustang is already having issues that make it undriveable. If anything, I drove the bmw harder than the mustang and for more track events.
 

steveespo

Lord knows I'm a Voodoo Child
Moderator
4,008
1,924
Exp. Type
W2W Racing
Exp. Level
10-20 Years
Cookeville TN
They don’t like back torque from high rpm downshifts, that’s what fails the disc facings. The high rpm also causes the diaphragm on the pressure plate to overcenter and that is the pedal to the floor symptom. 2015-20 GT350/2018-20 GT dual mass flywheel and clutch seems to perform better at high rpm but it is real heavy and involves swapping a lot of parts.


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@steveespo, That’s helpful. Does rev matching on high rpm downshifts address the problem?

When mine failed, my clutch did go to the floor with only minimal resistance near the end of the normal clutch travel. Almost like the brake feels with boiled fluid and the associated fade.

Considering that I do want to continue tracking my car, what upgrades are recommended? I’m guessing an aftermarket clutch. Maybe one rated for much higher horsepower? Does anything else need to be upgraded?
 
Update: Ford dealer looked at my car yesterday. They said clutch friction material came off. Ford is covering under warranty.

I was thinking about asking them to install an aftermarket clutch. Service advisor said he thought they’d do that, similar how Jeffv8’s was handled. But, he also said if anything went wrong related to the aftermarket clutch parts, Ford warranty would not cover it.

Then he told me about another customer who’s clutch came apart. One of the springs in the clutch came loose. When he tried to start the car, the spring somehow jammed the starter. The torque from the starter trying to spin broke the piece off the engine block that the starter mounts to. Since the problem was due to oem parts failure, Ford fixed it under warranty, including a new short block.

So, I’m going to stay stock until the warranty expires. Then I’ll learn how to install an aftermarket clutch.
 
1,040
1,088
Monaca Pa
Wotfun I would put in the after market setup. You would have to buy it yourself. They wouldn’t put a Ford performance clutch in it. That’s when they said if I bought my own they would install it. After they did all the work on it they found out ford wouldn’t pay them for warranty work. I didn’t pay them a dime for labor.
 
Update #2: The clutch was covered under warranty because the friction material just came apart in chunks. If it had just worn down, similar to the way brake pads wear down, it would’ve been treated as a wear item. Interestingly, the service advisor wasn’t sure if the 5 year/50k mile power train warranty would provide the same coverage.
 
Wotfun I would put in the after market setup. You would have to buy it yourself. They wouldn’t put a Ford performance clutch in it. That’s when they said if I bought my own they would install it. After they did all the work on it they found out ford wouldn’t pay them for warranty work. I didn’t pay them a dime for labor.

My understanding is parts and labor for mine are being covered under warranty. Mine looked like yours though - pieces of the friction material just broken off the rivets. My service advisor said my driving didn’t cause the failure. He said it was something defective about the clutch.
 
Update #2: The clutch was covered under warranty because the friction material just came apart in chunks. If it had just worn down, similar to the way brake pads wear down, it would’ve been treated as a wear item. Interestingly, the service advisor wasn’t sure if the 5 year/50k mile power train warranty would provide the same coverage.

How do you like your Exedy clutch so far?
 

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