Clutch Gone?

[93EmeraldMTX]

alright, on my way to town today a car was turning, so i slowed down and started to do a 5-3 downshift. anyways, it wouldnt go into 3rd very easily, i had to get the revs pretty damn close, even with the clutch pushed in, and it kinda clunked in. it did this the rest of the way to town (about 5 miles). i stopped to pick my sister up, and started to leave the driveway, and i couldnt get it into any gear, the only gate i could get it into was 5th and it would grind. i took a walk to my dads office, came back about 20 mins later, shifted right into first no problum. I then took it home, still having to match revs closely, and being careful to not stop at all until i have it into a gear.

The clutch has 160k on it. Think its time for a replacement, or is it something else?

 

[sdpatt]

No, it's still there.

93EmeraldMTX:
The clutch has 160k on it. Think its time for a replacement, or is it something else?

160,000 miles? You would have gotten much more than your fair share of service from the throwout bearing and pressure plate long before covering that sort of mileage. First try lifting on the clutch pedal with about 10 pounds of force to set the tension on the clutch cable. If no change, then your supposition about the clutch needing replacement is correct.

By not being able to change gears easily, the problem would be in the decoupling of the transaxle from the engine. That would be from a worn out throwout bearing and/or pressure plate. A slipping clutch would indicate that the friction material or spring pressures have retired.

 

[93EmeraldMTX]

sdpatt:
No, it's still there.

93EmeraldMTX:
The clutch has 160k on it. Think its time for a replacement, or is it something else?

160,000 miles? You would have gotten much more than your fair share of service from the throwout bearing and pressure plate long before covering that sort of mileage. First try lifting on the clutch pedal with about 10 pounds of force to set the tension on the clutch cable. If no change, then your supposition about the clutch needing replacement is correct.

By not being able to change gears easily, the problem would be in the decoupling of the transaxle from the engine. That would be from a worn out throwout bearing and/or pressure plate. A slipping clutch would indicate that the friction material or spring pressures have retired.

Tried it, no change.

EDIT: by "no change" i meant i didnt hear a click or anything at all that would make me suspect that it tightened up. im gonna take it around the block in a couple minuts here and see if i just might not have heard it, etc.

<small>[ August 20, 2003, 07:34 PM: Message edited by: 93EmeraldMTX ]</small>

 

[93EmeraldMTX]

alright, maybe it did adjust and i didnt hear it? I took it for a 15 mile drive and it ran like it always has. wasnt hard to get into gears at all.

i guess this thread is null and void then.

 

[Zap]

Is there any way to tell if a clutch has been replaced before, or when?

I'm curious if my '95 is on its first, second, or .. ? Clutch. It has about 148k.

The reason for my curiosity is that the disc is slipping, which means that the PPlate and TOB outlived the disc, correct? Since this usually isn't the case I am left curious. Also, the clutch pedal is very very firm to depress.

 

[jelloslug]

I had a very similar problem not too long ago. I drove through some very deep water and after that it was very hard to get it into the lower forward gears. After a few weeks of driving around it became an intermittent problem and finally it cleared up all together. I assume that either water or a foreign object got up around the TOB area and was not letting the clutch disengage all the way.

 

[sdpatt]

If the clutch is slipping and the pedal is firm then you have worn out the friction disk, pressure plate and throwout bearing. You should shop around for a replacement clutch and service possibilities. The indications to verify that the clutch have been touched before are usually found during the removal and disassembly of the transaxle in the form of stripped threads, excessive RTV or similar shoddy workmanship. Only a service log entry could tell you the exact mileage of the last service.

 

[autobahnsho]

sdpatt:

By not being able to change gears easily, the problem would be in the decoupling of the transaxle from the engine. That would be from a worn out throwout bearing and/or pressure plate. A slipping clutch would indicate that the friction material or spring pressures have retired.

It's been awhile since I've posted- I was at Army training w/ no days off for a month..

My 91 is not "decoupling" now. It never had any problems at all (except for a little grinding in reverse sometimes) until I did a Crank PS changeout. Then once the car got warm the clutch wouldn't do it's job, now it won't let me put it in gear at all when the engine is running.

Is the TOB/ pressure plate cheaper than a clutch set? What is a good source for parts, and how do I know for sure that they're shot but the disc is ok??

ps- I have 165k on my SHO. The original owner kept religious receipts and all I have is a clutch pedal adjustment..

Thanks for all your help,

<small>[ August 31, 2003, 05:15 AM: Message edited by: autobahnsho ]</small>