I've been having some problems with the manual power-train on my 2002 Z24. It all started with the small slit in my passenger side CV Boot where the grease was tossed out. From that point (a year ago, curse me later) things just got worse. After the nasty sound that the grease made when it sprayed the grease all over the back side of my engine bay, came a shudder from where I know the trans-axle to be. This shudder comes when starting the vehicle in 1st gear and usually worsens the more I drive, as the car warms up. This led me to two conclusions: 1. The CV Joint paired with my malfunctioning Boot is completely screwed and its rough mode of operation is causing the joint at the transmission to malfunction as well. However, the rumble feels as though it's coming directly from where I know the transaxle to be, not biased to either side. This led me to conclusion 2. The clutch on this 30k mile trans-axle is screwed. Granted I have mildly street raced on it, modestly drag raced on it, and barely auto-crossed on it, with most of those miles being highway miles. But it might be that oil has found its way to the clutch from a nearby seal, causing slippage that could produce a shudder. There is a third conclusion that I would rather not think about: The internals of the trans-axle are wasted. This happened to a buddy of mine with an 02 2200. He had to get GM to replace the gears. I would like the guru's thoughts on my situation and possible solutions. I am already planning on replacing the axles within a couple of weeks, the clutch and flywheel shortly after, and possibly putting in a Phantom Grip depending on the difficulty. For those of you I haven't lost at this point, your help would be appreciated and your criticism is unnecessary. Thanks.


That which does not kill you makes you stronger!