Kizashi Club

Hello all,

Recently I have noticed a burning clutch-like smell coming from the engine after driving short or long distances. I usually don't drive the car aggressively but whether I do or not the smell is still there. Also I have noticed a whine coming from the engine upon harder than normal acceleration that gets louder the harder I press the gas, which has never occurred before. It sounds almost like the spooling up of a turbo. Furthermore, if I take my foot off of the gas pedal during this type of acceleration I briefly hear a clicking noise that seems to be coming the from under the car that stops after a second or two. The whining noise also occurs as the rpms decrease after harder than normal acceleration. It's a 2012 with 20,500 miles on it. I have had the car for 14 months now. Any help/feedback would be appreciated, thanks!

Is it safe to assume yours is a manual transmission?
Does the whining noise stay or go away when the clutch pedal is depressed (assuming it's a manual)?

I left out the most important piece of information! *facepalm* I have the CVT

Just for you

Get it to a service center, you're still under warranty. Nothing good about whinning or burnt clutch smell on a new car.

Agree with Ronzuki. Nothing do-it-yourself from the sound of it. Get it checked by the dealer.

Just got back from the dealer. The clicking is coming from the transfer case. As far as the whine he couldn't say if it was related to the transfer case or not. And of course the smell wasn't very strong when I was there so they had no information on that. It's probably nothing but my paranoia. Will post an update soon.

kizashijayy wrote:Just got back from the dealer. The clicking is coming from the transfer case. As far as the whine he couldn't say if it was related to the transfer case or not. And of course the smell wasn't very strong when I was there so they had no information on that. It's probably nothing but my paranoia. Will post an update soon.

I don't have the AWD, but my understanding is that it's engaged with an electronically-controlled clutch. Assuming the clutch is anything like a transmission clutch, could the smell be coming from the AWD clutch? Just throwing ideas out there especially since you mentioned the transfer case.
I was originally thinking this could be a source of the smell if the car was not a manual and was an AWD, but I assumed it was a MT from your original post.

Other than MT clutches and brakes, not sure where else materials that could make this smell would be used other than the AWD clutch.
Just a guess as I don't know the details.

the awd clutch pack is located at the rear differential input shaft (back end of car). The xfer case and driveshaft spin constantly in all modes (awd active or not).

oh, and one other thing...have you changed your rear diff fluid yet? if not, it was due for an initial replacement at around 7,500 miles.

Could the rear diff. fluid not being changed have something to do with the odor? I was never told it had to be changed at 7500. Ill mention when I go back. Also, are you saying that the smell isn't coming from the awd clutch because it's located at the rear of the car?