I had to get the clutch replaced in my '06 Matrix at 32K miles.
The slippage was quite subtle and I had it serviced right after I noticed.
So no long term damage.
I bought the car with 8,100 miles. I think the PO sold the car early because they didn’t get the hang of manual shifting.
The reason I say this is because the clutch was not worn out, but had suffered severe overheating before I took the car over.
The old clutch disk lining was as thick as the new, but it had charred patches.
The pressure plate and flywheel had discoloration.
Cause of final failure was springs weakened from the heat.
Previous cars I owned the clutches lasted well over 100K miles and were only replaced in one case while replacing transmission bearings in the other a leaking crankshaft seal.
My '88 Accord had a clutch cable and a mechanic showed me you could tell how worn the lining was by looking at how far the cable adjusting screw was turned.
A good driver and prior conditions is what correlates to decent clutch life along with an decent design. Civic’s have a decent design.
My wife managed 200k on OEM clutch it was fine when sold and then has 2005 Legacy GT with 180k and original clutch in it.
A clutch is obvious if worn. Inspecting those items you list you may as well replace if you look at them as they hard to see without removing everything.
Circuit is spot on, the worse thing for a clutch is to overheat the clutch material by improper shifting technique. Allowing the clutch disc to needlessly spin for lengthy periods against the flywheel. Overheating can destroy a clutch in an hour or two of driving. It’s like rubbing sandpaper on a piece of wood. Rub slowly, and you can rub a long time before the wood is all rubbed away. Rub fast enough, and the wood gets hot enough to quickly burn up.
One thing not mentioned above, I don’t recall it being mentioned anyway, that is good for a clutch is to drive on flat roads. If you could drive on the Bonneville salt flats that would be perfect for a clutch, and driving in the city of San Francisco? Not so much.
Do not let anyone else drive it, unless you’ve seen them drive theirs and you are impressed with their clutch technique. Nine out of ten times when I brought mine to a garage, the technicians often rev up before releasing the clutch even when putting around in a flat parking lot. If professionals drive like that, you can imagine how others will drive your car when they have to squirt around other traffic.