o.k ive had this car for 3 years ... 150k miles well serviced and looked after ... runs like a dream

during our cold weather was driving and heard a slight whirring sound ... not loud was under engine noise .. i was thinking at the time that it may have been ice on the drive shaft

suddenly clutch peddle dropped to the floor and now has movement to floor and fully up ... no stopping in between

was thinking it was retaining clip or clutch cable that are directly connected to the clutch peddle as there was no bang that would be associated with clutch plate going and no burning smell before hand ... it just went

but haynes manual says says that 2.1td only has retaining clip and fully enclosed (no service required) hydraulic clutch system with the pushrod system that must be replaced as a unit

the retaining clip holding the push rod seems to be o.k

all fluids and oils have been checked and are at correct levels ... all hoses and pipes seem to be connected and in good condition

i managed to get the car to drive home by changing gears during high revs without the gears "crunching" ... but now the gearbox will not select a gear ... im supposing clutch plate is either stuck in one gear or it has disengaged completely

im unsure if its just the hydraulic clutch system that needs replacing or if its the clutch itself

any help would be appriciated

john gibson, January 2010