89 4runner clutch problems (1 Viewer)

[KKell]

Okay so i have a 1989 4runner with about 302000km. in october i had the clutch master cylinder replaced after it started leaking excessively.

After i got it back i noticed i had to push the pedal a little lower to the floor to engage the clutch. and eventually lower and lower and lower.... about a week and a half ago it started giving me problems getting stuck in first or reverse or not going into gear from a stop.

So naturally i had a look at the slave cylinder, replaced it cause it was cheap. and it was better for about 5min. Thinking there was air in the line, i worked on it a little more. But the problem was still there.

So on thursday i bought a clutch kit, dropped the tranny, did the pilot bearing clutch disc pressure plate and release bearing all to no avail.

I'm only twenty and it was my first time doing this, anyone have any suggestions?

 

[bcstoy]

Here are some things you need to keep an eye on:
1) direction of the disc, if installed incorrectly its springs will be crushed when pressing the pedal.
2) IF the tranny is not horizontal when aligning with the pressure plate it will put undue pressure on the clutch assembly causing the inner part of the disc to distort. Thus causing problems when trying to engage the tranny into gear.
3) To make sure the pressure plate and disc sit correctly against the flywheel use a cross pattern for tightening the 12 mm bolts that hold it. While doing this keep the pilot driver in so the clutch assembly stays aligned. Note that I ssumed you replaced the little pilot bearing.
4) Keep the trhoughtout bearing properly positioned against the little springs that hold it against the clutch fork. If in the installation process they come off that will cause problems too. I usually keep them in place by holding the clutch fork with a wire from one of the bolts that old the slave cylinder.
Finally, I usually swap the clucth cylinder rod from the old CC into the new one so my pedal travel does not change.
Hope these tips are helpful. I ran into a similar problem in my early clutch job.

 

[KKell]

well just to be 100% sure which direction does the springs face? im pretty sure i put in the same way it came out but just to be sure....

everything else im sure i did. i definately did star pattern on the pressure plate and used the alignment tool until that was done. i know the throwout bearing spring was on pretty good.

good advice about swapping the clutch cylinder rod. unfortunately i didnt do that, a shop did.
Thank you for the advice though.

 

[2ndGenToyotaFan]

Have someone press the clutch pedal down while you watch the clutch release fork to see how much movement you are getting. If it's not moving much, then I'd guess you still have air in the line somewhere...

I'm not 100% sure, but I think that if you put the clutch disc in backwards it wont seat against the face of the flywheel, so it's pretty evident...

 

[cruiser88]

Where did you but the slave?

 

[bryan89]

Have someone press the clutch pedal down while you watch the clutch release fork to see how much movement you are getting. If it's not moving much, then I'd guess you still have air in the line somewhere...

I'm not 100% sure, but I think that if you put the clutch disc in backwards it wont seat against the face of the flywheel, so it's pretty evident...

^agreed. most likely air. how quickly did the problem onset? i mean clutches dont go bad overnight. so if it went from working to cant get it out of gear in a day or two, i would definitely put money on you have air in there somehow. or are bleeding a small amount of air in everytime you step on the pedal.

 

[KKell]

i got the slave from lordco. it looked like a quality parf but i couldnt help but feel like the bleeder valve oj it wasnt tightening up all the way when i was bleeding it. and that maybe it was too sloppy in the threads.

my other thought is that maybe the master cylinder they put in was faulty?
ill tighten up all the connections check for leaks and readjust the pedal see if it makes a difference.

 

[coryc85]

There is also some adjustment on the pedal freeplay (I think that's what it is referred to as). Basically you can pull a cotter key, pull the pin and then turn the little U bolt on the end of the MC rod and lengthen or shorten it. There are some specs in the FSM on how much movement your pedal should have.

 

[KKell]

k i couldnt find anyone to bleed it with me today, but i adjusted the pedal and tightened all connections.
adjusting the pedal made no diference, however,
i noticed a bit of fluid around where the piston goes into the clutch master. im guessing there shouldnt be any?
i think maybe the master cylinder thats four months old is broke?

 

[bcstoy]

I usually have a spare piece of brake line hooked to the clutch MC fitting for purging the air out once it is bolted on pumping the clutch pedal will get the air. Then quickly reattach the cltuch line. After that bleeding the slave and that's it. The reason I suspect something wrong in the installation is because this process of bleeding the MC and slave is straighforward. How about tthe possibility that you have a cracked clutch fork. I have seen that in Tacomas.

You should not see any leaks in the CMC or the slave, but even if you did have that some additional pumping of the pedal will temporarily restore the pressure and would allow you to shift into gear.

 

[Wasted Dragon]

Is your Clutch Pedal Bracket Cracked? Maybe when you step on the clutch, the bracket bends and causes the piston to not go in the master cylinder properly.

This was how mine looked like when it was cracked.

 

[KKell]

I dont know about my clutch fork but im getting a full range of motion on the clutch pedal -1 1/4'' at the piston. so i dont think the bracket is cracked.

maybe i should drop the transmission again this weekend and check everything.

 

[bcstoy]

OK once you take the tranny off look carefully at the clutch disc horizontally to check for eveness of the inner disc. If is not even it will not engage fully. Also make sure the clutch fork is properly resting on its support if it is not then it will prevent you from putting even pressure on the clutch assembly when trying to shift. If the clutch fork is cracked it will be in the area where the throught bearing rest on.

I would not hurt to check for the a cracked clutch pedal assembly as suggested in the previous post by WG.

 

[toy4xfun]

i had a problem where my clutch was not engaging all the way, the rod on the master was adjusted too far out, and not releasing the clutch all the way, i got that master from Auto zone has a toyota one in there now, and works fine.

 

[bcstoy]

i had a problem where my clutch was not engaging all the way, the rod on the master was adjusted too far out, and not releasing the clutch all the way, i got that master from Auto zone has a toyota one in there now, and works fine.

That is why I prefer to swap the old rod to the new CCM because depending on where you buy it there are differences in length and doing the switch is a 5 minute job.

 

[ColoradoBoy]

Adding to this post regarding clutch direction- I'm having trouble figuring out the correct orientation because the FSM appears to show the clutch in different positions on different pages. This is my first time, so I'm floundering. I messed up the clutch fork installation the first time, so I'm on tranny pull #2, and don't want to do it again any time soon... CL-11 shows the orientation one way and CL-13 appears to be shown the opposite direction.
If anyone can chime in definitively as to which end faces the flywheel (motor) side, I would be very thankful!

3.Slow with R150F transmission

I think the first picture is the side that goes to the flywheel.