Hey guys,
Okay so we recently went through and redid the whole car ('87 75/Milano 2.5L V6 - single plate clutch) including a basic overhaul of the engine, along with some rear end work including replacing the old worn gearbox and clutch with one we had from a wreck we also picked up when we bought the car. Now the wreck was supposed to be in perfect running condition when it was written off (smashed in the rear), and we have the original log books that showed everything was fine.
Anyway so to start with we had problems bleeding the clutch, after finally getting the whole system apparantly air free, started it up and tried putting it into gear, no go, clutch wasn't engaging and all I could get was grind. So we bleed the system some more, tried it again and to our success I could get it into first with no issues, wheels would turn (rear on jacks, front on ramps) so we thought all good. Put it on the ground, went to move it outside but suddenly we couldn't get it into first. So we tried bleeding again, trying transmission, and have repeated this process three or four times to no avail. We then suspected maybe the clutch fork wasn't on properly, pulled it off and noticed it was a bit worn, so we replaced it with the 'old' fork that was in better condition, tried again, still to no avail.
Now does anybody have any idea what it could be? We're almost absolutely certain there's no air in the system, and seeing as it worked once it appears the plates aren't stuck. Is there something we're missing? Or could it simply be that the clutch or gearbox is well and truly stuffed? I believe the gearbox oil is a synthetic variety, worked beautifully in my old box.
Anything that could be suggested would be great - any more details needed just ask!
ROCK ON
R~R
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Greg Gordon
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I need a little more information here. Can you put it in first with the engine turned off? If you can and it engages properly then the clutch disk is probably rusted to the pressure plate.
If that's the case, start it in first (it's a little rough so do with with plenty of room around the car) drive it up to about 5-10 mph. Then hold the clutch pedal down while applying the brake and push down the gas pedal to maintain speed. Yes you will need three feet for this so come up with a plan to do it before you start the car. The clutch will break free and work fine.
If you have a bleeding issue, and you might....Have a helper work the clutch pedal while you observe the clutch fork action. If it doesn't seem to move properly with pedal motion it's either a bleeding issue or a bad clutch slave or master cylinder. Bleeding these things is somewhat tricky. I spin the slave cylinder so that the bleeder is at the top and push the piston all the way back in with the bleeded open. Then it tends to bleed pretty well.
Greg Gordon,
www.hiperformancestore.com
If that's the case, start it in first (it's a little rough so do with with plenty of room around the car) drive it up to about 5-10 mph. Then hold the clutch pedal down while applying the brake and push down the gas pedal to maintain speed. Yes you will need three feet for this so come up with a plan to do it before you start the car. The clutch will break free and work fine.
If you have a bleeding issue, and you might....Have a helper work the clutch pedal while you observe the clutch fork action. If it doesn't seem to move properly with pedal motion it's either a bleeding issue or a bad clutch slave or master cylinder. Bleeding these things is somewhat tricky. I spin the slave cylinder so that the bleeder is at the top and push the piston all the way back in with the bleeded open. Then it tends to bleed pretty well.
Greg Gordon,
www.hiperformancestore.com
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Rookie ROX
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Greg,
The bleeding issue we originally solved the way you suggested, I've been doing this with my Dad so there's two of us there. After little success in bleeding he experimented with turning the slave cylinder so the bleeder was at the top, and it was 'fine' from there. From what has been said and done, it does appear the clutch fork is moving, however it is starting to sound like it may not be enough, and the clutch just isn't moving as much as it should.
It will happily go into gear with the engine off, but will bunnyhop if started in gear, regardless of clutch in or not. We had mentioned by his brother in law (rebuilds Corvettes as his hobby) that it could be rusted to the pressure plate, however the fact we could get it into gear the one time baffles me?
The more it's discussed the more it sounds like it could be the slave or master. I believe we have spares of both (slave at least) so we'll see how it goes.
Thanks for the speedy reply (as usual!
)
Edit: After sleeping on it, it seems less likely the master or slave has failed, considering the clutch worked fine when it went into the shed for maintenance, but I'll keep it in mind. Most suggestions are pointing to rust on the clutch
ROCK ON
R~R
The bleeding issue we originally solved the way you suggested, I've been doing this with my Dad so there's two of us there. After little success in bleeding he experimented with turning the slave cylinder so the bleeder was at the top, and it was 'fine' from there. From what has been said and done, it does appear the clutch fork is moving, however it is starting to sound like it may not be enough, and the clutch just isn't moving as much as it should.
It will happily go into gear with the engine off, but will bunnyhop if started in gear, regardless of clutch in or not. We had mentioned by his brother in law (rebuilds Corvettes as his hobby) that it could be rusted to the pressure plate, however the fact we could get it into gear the one time baffles me?
The more it's discussed the more it sounds like it could be the slave or master. I believe we have spares of both (slave at least) so we'll see how it goes.
Thanks for the speedy reply (as usual!
)Edit: After sleeping on it, it seems less likely the master or slave has failed, considering the clutch worked fine when it went into the shed for maintenance, but I'll keep it in mind. Most suggestions are pointing to rust on the clutch
ROCK ON
R~R
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Rookie ROX
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Okay so a late update, it appears a rusted clutch was the issue, the clutch works perfectly, gearbox is great and I feel like I'm driving a new car now. I must admit though that it'll take me a while to get over my habit of slowly edging the gear in to see whether it's going to crunch or not! I almost feel like I'm driving a new car!
Thanks for the help again Greg
ROCK ON
R~R
Thanks for the help again Greg
ROCK ON
R~R