Do I have a clutch problem or transmission problem?

Question

I have a 96 chevy / geo prism. Front wheel drive, 4 cyl, 5 speed manual.
About 6 months ago, I let a friend, who owed me money replace the clutch. He did a piss poor job, and I had to take it to a mechanic. The mechanic told me that there were several bolts missing from the transmission and the motor mounts. He replaced the bolts, but it still had a rattle when sitting still out of gear. The rattle stops when the clutch is pressed.

Now I have lost all ability to smoothly take off in first and reverse. No matter how slow I let out on the clutch, or how low the RPM when I let out on the clutch, the whole front end jumps and shakes violently like it would if you popped the clutch without giving it gas. It dosen't go dead, but I expect to find parts on the ground after every launch.
Do I need a new clutch? a new car?
What causes this, and how do I fix it?

I can nurse it up to speed by taking off in second with no problems, and the rest of the gears are fine also.. just first and reverse.

Answer 1

Well, the good news is your tranny is going to live. The bad news is, it's going to have to come back out again. You need your clutch fixed,,,,,, right. The shuddering is most likely due to the fact that your friend didn't bother to turn, or resurface, the flywheel and it has hot spots on it --- which in turn will make it chatter on engagement. The rattle when sitting in nuetral is most likely cause by your throwout bearing and/or pilot bearing. These BOTH should have been replaced when the clutch was being done ---- it's standard practice by any reputable trans man. Hopes this helps you out --- sorry about your luck though.

Answer 2

Im no mechanic but I think you gotta get someone to check the work on the clutch again

Answer 3

sounds to me as a transmission problem, your better off selling the prism its gonna cost a lot to fix ur transmission

Answer 4

Take it to the dealer to fix it right.And give you a warrenty for the repair.