Clutch noises, need assistance

[Hiroshima]

Tonight I got to drive home for 2 1/2 hours going
about 5 mph the whole way home. Needless to say the
clutch pedal got a workout.

At any rate, on the drive home the clutch pedal
started feeling rough. Kinda cruchy if you know what
I mean. On the release stroke the clutch would engage
almost suddenly, although not all the way. Slipping
the clutch was not much of an option.

When I got home, I blead the clutch. I removed ATE
super blue and put in some cheap stuff I had on hand
(Pyroil Dot 3 or something). Not sure if this matters
for a clutch.

Well now when I depress the clutch the stroke feels
much better. (Smoother, more progessive, much less
choppy) However when I release the clutch I get a
creaking noise. Almost like something is binding. If
I stop midway on the release stroke it makes a loud
creaking noise when I begin to release the clutch a
bit more.

So here is my question: Can I assume that this is the
clutch fork? And if so where are the grease points?
I know there is one at the slave cylinder junction but
have not had a chance to grease this yet. I would
love to hear that there is a simple fix. Something I
can do myself w/o having to remove the tranny housing.

Any help is appreciated!

Thanks in advance. And sorry if this is a double post... I posted this to the list as well as here since I am a little worried that there may be something wrong inside the tranny bell houseing.

Jeff
(91 NSX with clutch issue,
86 Legend with a blown
clutch slave cylinder.... YESTERDAY. What luck!!!

 

[PettittsAuto]

Jeff, Sounds like if the clutch works better after you bled it there could be a problem in the master or slave cylinder. The slave cylinder will make noise if the ball on the release fork is dry. If you can have someone operate the clutch while listening in the engine area and see if you can hear where the noise is coming from. It is not likely the release fork on the t/o bearing and you will have to remove the trans if it is.

Bruce www.pettittsauto.com

 

[Hiroshima]

Thanks Bruce! I appreaciate your assistance. Wish I could have made it up to your open house a few months back but prior commitments kept me away.

A few more questions,.... and I am really hoping that it is just greas on the slave ball joint:

Is this a common problem? I assume that 2.5 hours on the freeway at 5 mph probably got all the fluids pretty hot since there was practically no airflow.

Should I remove the slave cylinder to grease the joint? If so no prob, just wondering.

You said that if after I blead the system and the clutch felt better, the master or slave cylinder may have a problem? Like fluid bypass? My Legend slave just went out and the pedal felt a little rough before it did,... is that the symptom of a bad cylinder?
Thanks Again Bruce.

Jeff

[This message has been edited by Hiroshima (edited 13 November 2002).]

[This message has been edited by Hiroshima (edited 13 November 2002).]

 

[PettittsAuto]

Jeff, If the noise is coming from the bellhousing area I would remove the slave cylinder and grease the ball. Usually the only reason a slave cylinder or master cylinder go bad is because they leak and your fluid level would have been low. You can check for a leak visually on both the master and the slave. You will need to look under the dash at where the pushrod goes into the master, there will be fluid leaking. Is the noise in the pedal area or the rear? If in the pedal area you might just have to lube the pedal assembly. Good Luck!

Bruce

 

[CityofAngels]

I had the exact same noises and fixed it when I pulled my tranny out. It is the clutch release fork making the noise. If you remove the slave cylinder, you can then remove the boot that covers the fork. Partially remove the fork and grease the pivot then reinstall. Grease the slave/fork joint after cleaning it.

That should do it.

 

[Hiroshima]

So you are saying that I can remove the fork without taking out the tranny case?

Last night I removed the slave cylinder and greased the pivot and the piston. That did not do anything.

Then I noticed that the binding was occuring both when the engine is running and when it is not,... thereby indicating that it is probably not the throwout bearing binding since I would assume that @1000 rpms there would be little binding occuring against the T-O bearing and the main shaft.

That leaves the clutch and the clutch fork.

So your solution seems to make a lot of sense.

Hopefully this will be easy.

Thanks CityofAngels.

Jeff

[This message has been edited by Hiroshima (edited 14 November 2002).]

 

[CityofAngels]

You can't completely remove the fork from the tranny case but you can unhook it from the pivot rod to be able to apply some grease. Removing the tranny is not a very fun job if you are only going to grease that one pivot!

Word of caution. It may be possible to drop the fork inside the tranny case so keep a good grip on it or tie some wire around the end of it so it doesn't move far.