97SC2 M/T intermittently slips under heavy throttle on uphill slope
 

My 5spd tranny has been very intermittently doing the following:

There is a particular highway on ramp near my house (2 mi). I can put my foot into it in 1st and 2nd all I want and everything is fine. No speed shifting, just shifts at 3500 rpm and some gas when I shift up to 3rd.

Sometimes, once in 3rd gear, if I put my foot down gradually to speed up, the rpms rise slowly and I of course lose some power as I assume the clutch is slipping. At an appropriate speed, I shift to 4th. If I smoothly wind the rpms up slowly to 2500 it's fine but if I try to put my foot into it the rpms rise again and the car loses some power. I've had the same thing happen when shifting into 5th, but never once while already in 5th.

I can beat the crap out of the clutch by intentionally shifting at too low a speede/rpm and it just will not slip.

It started only with shifting into 5th, then 4th + 5th (in same shifting session), then 3+4+5 in same shifting session.

I did not smell burning indicative of an overheated burning clutch.
My M/T fluid is a clear red and is full.
I have a valve cover gasket leak but it is on the front side of the engine.
I do not believe I have a rear main seal leak as I do not have to add any oil between changes (5k SYNTHETIC) plus the oil is not there.

Is this just a case of me overheating the clutch disc with too much pedal, or is it signalling a warning for the beginning of the end of my clutch?
It only has about 70K on it and was a Saturn replacement.

Hydraulics are original at 255k but those tend to go down hill quickly and there are no shifting problems.

Might it be the fingers on the clutch becoming weak and not quite pulling the clutch plate away far enough, leading to premature clutch wear? My clutch pedal has slowly crept upwards in engagement point.

Waddya think?

I have considered cold clutch to be the issue but I have baby shifted my way to this on ramp in the dead of winter with and beat on the gas trying to recreate but to no avail

It's probably just your lead foot on the gas!
No really if it is oil on the disc you should be able to burn the oil off by slipping it. If there is no improvement by burning it then a replacement is in order. Did you replace all the components or just the disc?
I purchased a complete LUK kit for my L series, now that I am back from my 4000 mile trip to Kansas I can start on my L200/5.

Actually I haven't touched the tranny yet.

I'm asking just to be 100% sure I need to do the clutch because once I crack it open, I'm committed. If it is a rear main seal then I would of course have to open it up to fix it and for $300 in parts and some "learnin style labor" replace the the whole shebang including the flywheel which I am not sure they did at 180K.

Thought about maybe glazing on the flywheel and the clutch disc hitting it just so that it starts to lose friction, and once it does, everything heats up very quickly until I take and leave my foot off the gas.

My ankle is almost healed enough for me to handle a full day of standing to be able to complete this work -- plus I still have the front wheel bearings to do.
When you press out the old one, what do you use as the "pusher" to drive the old bearing out of the hub? Is the answer "something with reasonably close outer dimensions? I can see lots of fun trying to get a damaged bearing out of a hub after you've pressed in the innards but the outer edges are still in place.....

Pressing the new one in, I assume you just use the old one as the dimensions are an exact match so you will not damage the outer race on the new one

If there is no oil on the clutch and they replaced the pressure plate your disc is worn too thin. As the disc wears the clamping force gradually decreases. Either way it needs to come apart, definitely replace the rear main seal while it is apart. I am not replacing the flywheel on my L200/5.

Alrighty then.
Thank you sir.

Already had purchased a new rear main seal ;)

And I'm also using a LUC clutch :)

You will need access to a press to change your wheel bearings. I remove the complete strut assembly and press the hub out first. Then remove the snap ring and press out the bearing assembly. I press in the new bearing, install the snap ring then install the hub. If you remove the complete strut you will not need an alignment when done. I remove the strut assemblies to get them out of the way to access the transmission. I sometimes cut the brake hose bracket to slide the hose out without disconnecting it. I know you have some salt issues in your area.

I do indeed have access to a press and an experiened user.

Thanks for the bearing replacement tips

Derf, do you have access to a garage with a lift? I'm just wondering because you say your ankle is healed enough to tolerate a day of standing. Another week or two isn't going to make much difference in that clutch. Unless you really need the car, I'd suggest waiting. You REALLY don't want to damage that ankle again by trying to do too much too soon, buddy.

Point taken, sir.