Adding to Derek's comments for additional troubleshooting help:
1) Clutch is terrible, feels as if the flywheel or pressure plate is out of round. More pronounced on decelleration shifts.
2) Power loss will be commented on in #4. IAC replaced idle fine now, occasional "blip" in RPMs with no driver input. Normal?
3) Tapping sounds as if it's coming from the lower end. I took a mechanic's stethoscope to the valve covers, heard nothing. Put the stethoscope to the lower end of the timing cover, could hear tapping. Not an ingnition sound- Metallic. Possibly out of tolerance bearing, not loud enough to cause concern just yet, but makes me wonder what else may be wrong.
4) Power loss associated with the hissing/scraping sound. This appears to be coming from the transmission/engine meeting point, lending further evidence to a defective clutch. SPEC says shaking & chatter is "normal"?! Puh-lease! My Fidanza/Centerforce is as quiet as can be- No chatter, even with the clutch out, and definitely no shaking! Clutch was installed with the supplied alignment tool.
5) Oil coming from valve cover breathers, both sides. Oil is not leaking from aft of the throttle body- It's pooling in the MAF, and the trail comes right from both breathers. PCV valve checked and is clear of obstruction.
6) No idea, except I know my hybrid heats up like this thing does. And this is only a 10:1 motor. Possible clog in rad?
7) Put a gauge on the test port of the A/C, read 0 psi. A/C clutch not engaging (no surprise there since no pressure in the line). When I swapped the motor, I removed the compressor from the side of the engine and tucked it out of the way. I did not touch the system other than that.
I believe at this point we need to drop the transmission again and remove the clutch for inspection and replacement. I believe the hissing sound is the clutch itself slipping or otherwise being its stupid self. The hissing also comes when the clutch is depressed- Leading further to possible defective pressure plate evidence?!
