clutch problems

[runnin4life]

hi
i have a bit of a problemo
i think my clutch may have shat it self but unsure hope its not the case

the problem goes like this
i was driving along all fine and dandy and changed from 3rd to 4th and put a little bit of throttle on and let the clutch out and it was if the clutch hadnt engaged completly and i backed off and it appered that the clutch had stoped slipping and engaged
that was fine thinking thats not good i will have a look when i get home
get another say 10km's or so and i stoped at a set of light i then take off every thing fine go to change from 3rd to 4th and i let the clutch out and put a bit of acceleration on and it just reved out like i had the clutch half engaged
and from then on there i couldnt apply alot of accelerator with out the clutch sliping

also there isnt alot of pressure in the pedal any more

the vehicle is a diahatsu F20 1.6 12r 4 speed with a non hydraulic clutch

is my clutch fawked or could it be more likely the cable has let go or something

also i can see any kind of adjuster in the cable to take up any slack or alike

cheers
elliot
need urgent help

[I'll Try]

Hey mate

It could be a couple of things
1- Clutch
2- Clutch fork
3- Cable

i would make sure your cable aint sticking in its housing, if it is try and work some wd40 and atf mixed together down the housing.

Other wise pull your box out and have a look. How many k's have you done on this clutch?

Hope it helps

Mark

[bad_religion_au]

have you been high centered lately? check all your gearbox/bellhousing/engine mounts. my gearbox moved offcenter one time after getting bellied out and had those symptoms. was wierd, i just tightened down the bellhousing bolts and it's run fine ever since

also does it drop much oil?

[runnin4life]

um it does drop some oil but that is a leak from around the distributor and not alot of oil
but it does run down the block and around the belll housing

um i havnt checked engine mounts etc but i would assume there not in the best shape

i havnt hooked it up or any thing l8ly

i cant really drop the box off dont have time or tools to do so
i will have alook and get back to you guys

also i dont know how many km's have been done only owned the car fore about 4 months but the motor has 360,000km's on it

[G_loomis]

I used to own a four runner a few years back...I know this was a hydrolic clutch...but when it started to go kaput the higer gears were the first ones to start slipping. As the problem got worse, the lower gears started to slip as well.

I know this may not help much...but thats all I can offer.

[runnin4life]

yer similiar thingbut it let go quickly at first it was some thig that happened once and i was lik huh and then not long after the hole thing went

cheers
elliot

[HiluxDave]

mate, i have a 99 hilux and its clutch recently shat itself at 210, 000km.

if it slips at all; it is cactus. time for a new one.

mine slipped in L4 1st and had never slipped in the higher gears.

once you get that burning smell or slipping it isnt trustworthy anymore. the last thing you want is to get stuck in the middle of nowhere.

fortunately, for the mileage you will get out of a new one, they arent that expensive. i got a heavy duty one put in, labour inclusive came to about $600.

laters, dave.

[lay80n]

The clutch slips in higher gears because there is more load on it, as the gearing reduction is smaller than in 1st/2nd, therefore there is less mechanical advantage. this causes more force to be applied to the clutch (dunno if this is making sense, imy explaining is average sorry).Check the simple things first like cable and adjustment, then if its still slipping, you are gonna have to remove the box and take a look inside.
Layto....

[runnin4life]

The clutch slips in higher gears because there is more load on it, as the gearing reduction is smaller than in 1st/2nd, therefore there is less mechanical advantage. this causes more force to be applied to the clutch (dunno if this is making sense, imy explaining is average sorry).Check the simple things first like cable and adjustment, then if its still slipping, you are gonna have to remove the box and take a look inside.
Layto....

yep i understand completly and that was what i was thinking

im gunna bite the bullet go the mechanics on the weekend get him to have a looksy and see if he says new clutch i guess ill be bumbing it for the next month or so

cheers
elliot

[murcod]

Had an RAA inspection done on a vehicle I was selling a few months back, to test the clutch they got the car up to ~70km/h in fourth gear (five speed box), pushed the clutch in and brought the revs up to ~5000RPM and then dumped the clutch!? There was a god awful squealing noise as the engine revs where quickly dragged down to around 2000RPM!

Apparently it passed as the rev quickly dropped, a shagged clutch wouldn't do that. (Was glad I sold it after that! )

[of4x4]

The clutch in my TD42 GQ just shat itself with exactly the same symptoms. No points for guessing what I'm doing this weekend.....?

Check the simple things like clutch fork operation, cable etc, first

The best test is to try and take off in 4th with the handbrake on, if the clutch is stuffed, it will slip. If it's Ok, the motor will stall. Obviously don't do this for very long, 'cos it will stuff anything you have left of the clutch real quick. (and it' a damned site better for other components than dumping a clutch with 5000rpm on it.....)

[runnin4life]

hahaha i think its stuffed then cus even when you take off in first it slips

but i duno it seamed to happen all alittle to quickly

like at first it did it for a second and then fixed it self and worked fine i then took off once after that and changed gears a few times with out a problem
the with in probally 2 or 3 min the shit hit the fan

will have a look this W/E
cheers
elliot

[Dee 4x4]

A while back I spent thousands on my R33 giving it a hell of a lot more power. After 6 weeks (waiting for parts etc.) I picked up my pride and joy only to find that any throttle would quickly get the clutch slipping. After the revs would slip to about 6000rpm it would grab on, the revs would fall back down and the car would rocket off.

Unfortunately for me, I still decided to have fun with the car on the drive home and by the time I was within 6km of home the clutch was completely rooted and wouldn't even move in first gear. I had to call a towtruck at 11pm and get my car towed back to the Service Station. Shitty Friday night I'll tell ya that.

But yeah. Those are the symptoms of a dead clutch.

[runnin4life]

had the guy who owned it before me over today and he know a bit more about mechanical repairs than i do and said its possible the rear main seal is leaking (there is a little bit of oil coming out that area)

and he said it may have worked its way on the clutch plate or some thing basically so it cant grip

he said becuase it still grips enough you can drive slowly he said it should still grip when its cold (even if the clutch is on its way out) and it didnt and he recons its probally oil on it
he offered to help me repair it but to be honest i dont feel like getting under and doing all that
im going to the mechanics on monday

cheers
elliot

[sudso]

If it's oil the oil could be coming from through a stuffed seal on the front of your gearbox as it can work its way up to the clutch plate spline and spun out around your clutch surfaces causing the intermittent slipping.
This is what it sounds like to me.

But then you say the pedal pressure required is lighter which indicates the pressure plate is losing it's clamping force and therefore it's stuffed

If it was just your cable letting go it would be harder to get in gear and the clutch would still grip well.

[midi73]

Yep, my guess is that the pressure plate is rooted. New clutch plate and pressure plate I am afraid.

[mattyd]

Is this a symptom of a bad clutch? When I start from a stand still, it revs out to 4k easily in first, and then when i change to 2nd at high revs it accellerates fine. But if I take it easy, and change sooner, then I get this god awefull shuddering, where the car literally behaves like the brakes are being applied and let off really quickly over and over. It even sometimes lurches so badly that the rear wheels loose traction.

Now at low revs, this will happen from 1st - 2nd, and then 2nd - 3rd.... but never really at 3rd-4th or 4th - 5th.

Is my clutch stuffed as well? What else could it be?

matty

[runnin4life]

no i think its just you dont have enough rev when changing gears so you dan have enough momentum to change from one gear to the next

or could it be you are kangaroo hopping which i think is the car jerk which makes your foot go on the throttle than as it lurches forward you foot goes off then as all the wieght shift to the front u put ur foot on the throttle

i may be wrong

depends on the car i know in mine it doesnt do it but in my mums car which is efi and alittle bit more balls it does it veru easilly
also may depend on the position of your foot in the car

cheers
elliot

[of4x4]

Now at low revs, this will happen from 1st - 2nd, and then 2nd - 3rd.... but never really at 3rd-4th or 4th - 5th.

matty

I guess it depends on your definition of "low revs". It you're talking 700 rpm, then your problem is your right foot. - If you're talking 2000 rpm then it can be symptom of a damaged clutch plate (broken spring?) or Flywheel / Pressure plate out of true.

I'm not an expert, but I read of your symptoms when diagnosing my own clutch issues

[V6XtraHilux]

how hard can it be for the manufacturers to install an access panel (bolted and gasketed) which can be removed, and then a litle camera on a stick be stuck in the hole to inspect the clutch plate, or anything else in there????

Surely it cant be hard? The clutch housing is full of air so it needent need an airtight seal, but a gasket can do that, and it will keep water and mud out just as well as the gasket joining the clutch hosuing to the bell housing or transmission!

damn the manufacturers dont think about the service side of things!!!

my 2 cents worth, for no real help!!!

[runnin4life]

how hard can it be for the manufacturers to install an access panel (bolted and gasketed) which can be removed, and then a litle camera on a stick be stuck in the hole to inspect the clutch plate, or anything else in there????

Surely it cant be hard? The clutch housing is full of air so it needent need an airtight seal, but a gasket can do that, and it will keep water and mud out just as well as the gasket joining the clutch hosuing to the bell housing or transmission!

damn the manufacturers dont think about the service side of things!!!

my 2 cents worth, for no real help!!!

very good point there would have to be a good reason not to

[lay80n]

Is this a symptom of a bad clutch? When I start from a stand still, it revs out to 4k easily in first, and then when i change to 2nd at high revs it accellerates fine. But if I take it easy, and change sooner, then I get this god awefull shuddering, where the car literally behaves like the brakes are being applied and let off really quickly over and over. It even sometimes lurches so badly that the rear wheels loose traction.

Now at low revs, this will happen from 1st - 2nd, and then 2nd - 3rd.... but never really at 3rd-4th or 4th - 5th.

Is my clutch stuffed as well? What else could it be?

matty

Possibly clutch shudder, as the flywheel surface and/or the pressure plate surface have become warped, making the clutch shudder when it is opperated. Possibly be able to just remove the clutch and if its not badly worn, a flywheel machine may correct it, but if it doesn't fix it then you will need a new clutch. as the pressure plate surface is warped. Oil leaking on the clutch can also cause it to shudder. Is there any oil leaking from the rear main area. Also check that all the driveline components are tight and in good order (e.g. gearbox mounts, driveshafts etc).
Layto....