Help w/ Shop Diagnosis of New Clutch

[socalkid]

have been dealing with the squeaky clutch pedal issue experienced my many.

about 3-4 months ago the clutch pedal wouldn't return all the way periodically when driving, no rhyme or reason when. to clarify, it wouldnt be stuck to the ground, and would shift fine and the truck drove just fine, but every now and then i'd have to lift the pedal up with my toes to get it to return that last little bit.

wondered to myself if the linear spring replacement to the OEM torsion spring on the clutch would help kill two birds with one stone (squeaky pedal and "sticky" pedal not returning) and so installed the OEM linear brake spring that some had used and pulled the torsion spring.

took it on a test drive and all was good initially (different clutch feel of course) until the next day when i drove the runner and now started to experience functional issues with the clutch, i.e., i'd compress the pedal to shift and couldn't change gears/would be stuck in gear. a couple quick pumps of the clutch, restart the truck (stalled of course) and off i'd go until the clutch would get stuck again.

driving at speed was fine, but if i was decelerating to come to a stop sometimes i'd compress the pedal but i wouldnt be able to downshift or be stuck in 3rd and couldnt shift to 2nd, or stuck in 2nd unable to shift to 1st. other times, i'd be at a complete stop and trying to accelerate with the truck in gear and i'd release the pedal but the clutch would behave as if it was still engaged and the pedal was compressed. another example would be trying to shift from 1st to reverse when backing up and i'd compress the pedal and wouldn't be able to shift. and to be clear, these symptoms did not show up until after i installed the linear spring.

took it to my trusty mechanic and they are saying i need to replace the clutch. when i say trusty i mean it, been my mechanic for over 7+ years with the car, not some new shop i've never dealt with. but still trust but verify. i think this is just based off the tech experiencing the issues i am and no other real diagnosis.

any suggestions for steps i should ask before i pay for a replacement?

i kept the OEM torsion spring, at minimum i wanna ask them to reinstall in the assembly and see how the clutch operates without the linear spring cus i guess to me its too much of a coincidence with me putting in the linear spring?

 

[2TH4IST]

That's usually a sigh of a failing slave cylinder or master or both. If the master and slave cylinders are original I would be suspect of either of those or both. Either way it's waaaaaaayyyyyy cheaper replacing those then a clutch. I'd stick with oem or at minimum aisin for replacements. Make sure to bench bleed the master if you replace it and bleed the system good.

As for the squeak, might need to replace the bushings in the pedal assembly.

 

[phattyduck]

Consider a new clutch line while you are at it...

The 'torsion' spring pushes up strongly for the top of the travel but helps push the pedal down in the bottom half of the pedal travel. It does put a lot of force on all the bushings up in the pedal box, which wears out bushings and pivot points - check ALL of those parts closely.

The linear spring mod will make the pedal feel more 'progressive' but also reduce the pedal self-return force at the top of pedal travel - so it won't hide the pivot (or hydraulic) issues you are having now.

-Charlie

 

[socalkid]

thank you both [MENTION=405460]2TH4IST[/MENTION] and [MENTION=139000]phattyduck[/MENTION].

just spoke to the receptionist at the shop (owners wife) and relayed to them that i'd like to try and at least to reinstall the torsion spring and check for any other fixes needed in the pedal box first and then see how the clutch behaves after that. it could be these other issues with the master cylinder or slave cylinder as [MENTION=405460]2TH4IST[/MENTION] pointed out.

i just can't believe the clutch is bad, i drove the damn thing 25+ miles to the shop yesterday and it drives fine except for the issues i detailed above!

thanks again.

 

[socalkid]

also being quoted just under $2k to replace the clutch OEM, is this within the ballpark?

 

[rglsr]

As others have mentioned, check the master/slave cylinders for proper operation. Have you checked the clutch pedal free play? Sounds like you might be experiencing lack of disengagement of the clutch. Which could be a failing pressure plate, rather than a cooked clutch disc. How many miles on the clutch/pressure plate?

I just went through this, pressure plate was failing, clutch disc still had some life in it. 173K miles on OG parts. I ran it until I had zero master cylinder adjustment left, and could barely get it in/out of gear, but it did not slip!. Replaced everything with OEM clutch parts, flywheel, fork, pivot, boot, hydraulics, and fully rebuilt pedal assy, shifts like butter now!

Parts are not too expensive, but shop rates are, so it ain't going to be cheap.

 

[St Runner]

I agree on changing the clutch master and slave first. Its something you would do anyway if you are going to replace the clutch itself. Not that expensive and it will pinpoint the problem if you still have it. Personally i feel if you are having issues after replacement of the clutch master and slave then it is the arm inside the bellhousing. Which means a full clutch replacement

 

[nissanh]

Have you check the spring inside the clutch master pump? My 92 corolla had that spring broken and the clutch paddle didn't reach to the top and was strange when pressing the clutch.